How Important Is Matched Ram?

mamamia88 · August 14, 2018

Upgrading an old pc that uses ddr3. I'm picking it up after work today at the fedex place so not sure what ram config it comes with but, it should have 4 slots and a total of 4gb ram. I ordered a 2x4 kit on ebay. If it comes with a single stick would it be better to run 4-4-4 for 12 and just add a 4gb stick later when i want to go 16? Or should I flip the 4gb ram that comes in it and use that money to buy another 2x4 kit?

Br3tt96 · August 14, 2018

I run 4x4 in my rig, and my buddy runs 3x4 without any issues

PlayStation 2 · August 14, 2018

It's going to really depend on how touchy various things are with the RAM.

While I'd recommend using the same kind of RAM for the rig (if it's a 2[+]x[number] kit then they'll usually have a 1x[number] equivalent of the RAM in the kit) as long as the board isn't too sensitive about what RAM you have it'll just run the rest of the RAM at the slowest stick's speeds and latency.

You can do 3x4GB.