Questions About Motherboard Dual channel memory.

[DumbFounded]

Hello, I am a newbie on computers and these may be stupid questions for some of y'all.

 

I have a motherboard with 4 slots, 2 blue, and 2 black, and upon small research, apparently, it's called DUAL channel memory but when seeking for answers online, It led me to confusion. I am currently using 2 (blue) slots with 8 GB 3200 sticks, but I am thinking of raising my memory. I thought that I didn't wanna waste my x2 8 GB RAM sticks so I am thinking of buying 2 more instead of buying x2 16 GB RAM sticks.

 

Questions:

Will both black and blue slots gonna add up to 32 gigs of RAM if I fill the black slots with 8 GB's of RAM?

Is buying 2 more 8 GB RAM sticks better than buying x2 16 GB RAM sticks?

I heard that people can get BSoD when they use DUAL channel memory.

Will my PC still be fine if I insert x1 8 GB RAM stick in the black slot?

 

Thank you if anyone answers all my questions. It will be a big help.

 

[Neutraliz]

8 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Will both black and blue slots gonna add up to 32 gigs of RAM if I fill the black slots with 8 GB's of RAM?

Yes
 

9 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Is buying 2 more 8 GB RAM sticks better than buying x2 16 GB RAM sticks?

It depends of certain factors, but for most users, it's not a massive difference.
 

10 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

I heard that people can get BSoD when they use DUAL channel memory.

I can't really see the link here ? Dual channel memory is a perfectly normal and standard thing.
 

11 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Will my PC still be fine if I insert x1 8 GB RAM stick in the black slot?

Yes



I would just add that you might want to try to find the exact same sticks you already have and buy the same reference. It's not a massive deal if you can't find it, but matching memory sticks avoid some headaches/instabilites that can happen.  

[RONOTHAN##]

23 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Will both black and blue slots gonna add up to 32 gigs of RAM if I fill the black slots with 8 GB's of RAM?

 

Yes.

 

23 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Is buying 2 more 8 GB RAM sticks better than buying x2 16 GB RAM sticks?

 

It's complicated. Running 4x8GB is a little bit faster than 2x16GB (about 400MT/s worth on DDR4, unless you're buying high-end Samsung B die based memory in which case it's identical), though it's also more likely to run into issues. If you're just at 3200 and assuming you're using a platform with a good memory system, that isn't usually too much of a worry, but if you're on something like 1st gen Ryzen then it's something to be weary about as there's a chance the system won't even boot. 

 

If you don't want to think about it, go 2x16GB especially as the pricing has gotten nearly identical and you can still resell your current kit, though if you buy the kit from somewhere with a good return policy going for an additional 2x8GB isn't the worst idea in the world. 

 

23 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

I heard that people can get BSoD when they use DUAL channel memory.

 

That's either mixed memory configs or two DIMM per channel configs, not dual channel as you're currently already running dual channel memory. There definitely can be issues, though they aren't exceptionally likely unless you're pushing the limits of the memory system. For reference, each memory channel is actually comprised of a blue slot and a black slot, and having a stick on each channel allows for double the memory throughput. 

 

23 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Will my PC still be fine if I insert x1 8 GB RAM stick in the black slot?

Yeah, but with how cheap RAM is nowadays I see no reason to not just go for an additional 2x8GB instead. 

[porina]

17 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

Is buying 2 more 8 GB RAM sticks better than buying x2 16 GB RAM sticks?

"It depends"

 

For sticks with the same speed and timings, assuming the system runs fine with 2 or 4 sticks, then:

If the 2x 16GB modules are 2R, and the 4x 8GB modules are 1R, performance is about the same

If the 2x 16GB modules are 1R, and the 4x 8GB modules are 1R, performance of 4x8GB is generally better

 

I think most recent 16GB modules are now 1R, but older ones may be 2R. 8GB modules are almost certainly 1R. Some were 2R back when DDR4 was new.

 

The potential problem with 4x 8GB is that at higher speeds, there is increased risk it will not be stable in a system where 2x 8GB is. 3200 is probably ok, don't have experience at 3600 or higher.

 

17 minutes ago, DumbFounded said:

I heard that people can get BSoD when they use DUAL channel memory.

3 minutes ago, Neutraliz said:

I can't really see the link here ? Dual channel memory is a perfectly normal and standard thing.

I've seen the occasional post in troubleshooting where this seems to be the case, but I haven't dug into them to see what was the cause. It shouldn't happen, but with the vast number of systems out there, there can be the odd outlier. It is not normal to have a problem in this scenario.

[SimplyChunk]

 

[Somerandomtechyboi]

1 hour ago, DumbFounded said:

and these may be stupid questions for some of y'all

Its better to ask stupid questions to not end up doing something stupid

 

What mobo?

What cpu?

What rams?

 

Send a thaiphoon burner screenshot of the rams to identify ic

 

1 hour ago, DumbFounded said:

Will both black and blue slots gonna add up to 32 gigs of RAM if I fill the black slots with 8 GB's of RAM?

Yes

1 hour ago, DumbFounded said:

Is buying 2 more 8 GB RAM sticks better than buying x2 16 GB RAM sticks?

Dual rank > single rank so yes, just make sure it works though which shouldnt be too much of an issue at slow <3600 ddr4, prime95 largeffts is a good way to test ram stability

 

1 hour ago, DumbFounded said:

I heard that people can get BSoD when they use DUAL channel memory.

defective sticks and garbage xmp profiles that dont work (mainly corsair has this issue) otherwise you should be ok

 

especially if you are going with a jedec binned oem bare pcb as those are pretty much guaranteed to work on anything, though those are slow garbage if you leave them stock so overclocking is basically mandatory, and some particular models with specific ics overclock like mad not to mention you can pick rank config so you can still get dual rank 8gb sticks and stuff, mainly m378a1g43eb1 and hma41gu6afr8n for dual rank 8gb sticks, hma82gu6djr8n and m378a2k43db1 for dual rank 16gb sticks, all of these will do 4000+ with ease (and hynix djr in particular can do 5200+ assuming the imc and the rams pcb can handle that speed)

 

1 hour ago, DumbFounded said:

Will my PC still be fine if I insert x1 8 GB RAM stick in the black slot?

Thats flex memory mode, not ideal but itll be fine, i mean the highest stable speed ive gotten on ddr2 at 1520mhz was achieved with a cursed 1x3 config