RAM upgrade worth it?

[lolsmurfzs]

Hi, I recently upgraded my CPU and motherboard (from I5 6600K to Ryzen 7 5800X) and I want to give my old components to my dad.

The problem is I kept my original RAM so it's not a working computer yet. (Current RAM: 24GB, 2x4gb and 2x8gb, Corsair Vengeance lpx 3000 MHz)

 

Now i'm wondering if I should get some new RAM for myself (I would go for 32gb 2x16 probably 3600 MHz) and use my current ram for the old pc or just get a new 16gb kit for the old pc.

Will there be a noticable difference if I were to get new RAM? And if yes, how much do timings matter / what is recommended these days?

 

I mostly use my pc for playing games (the finals, battlefield 1, warframe), programming, and a bit of music production.

 

[RONOTHAN##]

13 minutes ago, lolsmurfzs said:

Will there be a noticable difference if I were to get new RAM?

Possible, but not likely. The single CCD Ryzen 5000 chips like the 5800X aren't super memory sensitive, so faster memory doesn't help too much. It does help, yeah, but not that much. 

 

I'd still recommend just getting a new kit for you and leaving the old sticks in your old system though. 2x16GB kits do not cost much more the 2x8GB kits nowadays, and the extra $10-20 you'd have to spend on the extra capacity is probably worth it. 

 

21 minutes ago, lolsmurfzs said:

And if yes, how much do timings matter / what is recommended these days?

It's a little complicated, as timings tend to matter more than the actual memory frequency to a point. That said, the kits with good timings cost significantly more than the kits with OK timings do, so actually getting a kit rated at say 3200 CL14 or 3600 CL14 (probably the best performing XMP for Ryzen 5000) is going to cost over double that of 3200 CL16 or 3600 CL18 for not that much extra performance. Spending much more than necessary on DDR4 doesn't make much sense nowadays since the only reason to go for an AM4 system is to save money (AM5 is just faster overall, and a 7600 costs about the same as a 5800X with motherboards being about the same price), so sticking to a 3200 CL16 or 3600 CL18 kit is for the best. Err towards 3600 CL18 since it should be slightly faster than 3200 CL16, but if it's more than $2-3 more just get 3200 CL16. 

[Tetras]

I would get yourself a new 2x16 kit rather than buy 2x8 for your dad. A lot of the newer 8GB sticks are nerfed (1Rx16) and perform worse than the older ones and it would be a good way to sort out your weird config of mismatched modules and increase your total capacity by 8GB, while leaving a future upgrade to 64GB open.

 

I doubt you'll notice the difference in speed between 3000 and 3200 or 3600 or a kit with tighter timings, so I agree with the above about getting an affordable kit and calling it a day.