Upgrading RAM

DaMattberg · January 8, 2022

Hello all,

I am looking to upgrade my RAM to something a little faster. I want to do this because I’m not getting the performance I want out of my rig and based on the research I’ve done so far upgrading my current DDR4 2666 16gb to a 16gb or 32 (16x2) at 3600 might help. What I’m hoping to have answered is whether or not this thought is a good one or if it would be more beneficial to upgrade something else first. Upgrading my CPU (Ryzen 5 2600) is also something that I probably need to do in the near future but just don’t know which to do first.

As far as the performance issue, I don’t get very consistent frame rates and when I do they are lower than I would like them to be. I play tarkov (which I know is a very RAM hungry game) and apex legends. At 1440p on low settings, I average 140 on apex which really isn’t bad, but on tarkov I struggle to get above 60 and am often in the mid 40’s.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Specs

Ryzen 5 2600

ASUS TUF 3070ti

seasonic gold 850W

Gskill rip saw 16gb DDR4 2666

gigabyte x470 gaming 7 motherboard

Chris Pratt · January 8, 2022

2666MHz is slow, so yes, faster RAM should help some. Is it going to solve all your problems? Probably not. At 1440p and those types of frame rates, there's not much stress on the CPU.

One thing to be aware of is that Zen+ doesn't tend to handle higher than 3200MHz very well. However, if your intention is to upgrade the CPU as well, you'll actually want 3600MHz then. I'd get the 3600MHz, but just be aware that you may need to downclock it until you upgrade the CPU.

DaMattberg · January 8, 2022

Thank you for the response. So it sounds like it might just be better to upgrade both at the same time. I’m a self learner and downclocking ram sounds like something I might not want to tackle quite yet.

I guess one other question I had would be when upgrading either or both of those components, does one have to update BIOS as well to get it to identify them?

Chris Pratt · January 8, 2022

5 minutes ago, DaMattberg said:

Thank you for the response. So it sounds like it might just be better to upgrade both at the same time. I’m a self learner and downclocking ram sounds like something I might not want to tackle quite yet.

I guess one other question I had would be when upgrading either or both of those components, does one have to update BIOS as well to get it to identify them?

For an X470, yes, the BIOS will probably need an upgrade, assuming you haven't already updated it at some point. For Ryzen 5000, you need AGESA 1.2+. Check your current BIOS revision at your mobo manufacturers website to see if it might already have support. If not, then yes, you'll need to upgrade.