ram [useful] RAM Frequency & Latency - Easily Compare for Fastest RAM (graph)

[Awakening]

Chart: http://i.imgur.com/D4JWHOq.png

 

Coverage:

- 800-4500 Mhz (29 speeds)

- 7-21 CAS Latency

 

There's a large range of numbers, what's a good response time to look for?

Typically anything below 14 is a decent speed. 12-14 is about average for today's standards. Anything near 10-11 or lower is very good. Anything under 10 is phenomenal. You should probably avoid anything above 14.

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                    

 

 

This chart combines the frequency and CL combinations of practically all semi-modern to modern memory modules into a single raw performance number. This number alone doesn't mean much, but it means the world in a relative scenario like the graph above. This graph is useful if you want to compare several memory modules of different frequencies and latencies to find out which is fastest. Sometimes the faster module turns out having a lesser frequency than what you compared it against thus saving you a few monies. It could also be used in the high-end to determine which memory module will have the best performance if you're looking for the best you can get.

 

As an example, let's say you wanted to compare the Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB 2133 CL14 against the G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB 2400 CL16 memory modules to see which performs better (frequency and CL go hand-in-hand to determine memory performance). The Kingston stick has a worse frequency, but better CL timings while the Ripjaws stick has a higher frequency and worse CL timings. Without a graph like this, it's hard to tell which would actually perform better and you'd probably just assume it's the one with the higher frequency. Visiting the graph, the Kingston stick has a response time of 13.13 and the Ripjaws stick has a response time of 13.33. So, if you assumed the higher frequency module was faster, you were wrong; the Kingston module is slightly faster even though its frequency is less. That's solid evidence that frequency isn't everything and I hope this example showed you the usefulness of this graph. This was a modest result and you can definitely see more significant results here, but nonetheless, you just got better performance for less money by using the graph to make an educated pick.

 

Hopefully this will save you some money while getting you better RAM performance at the same time. Depending on your hardware, it has been shown that faster RAM can get you more FPS in-game, mainly with integrated graphics or high-end hardware where your memory will likely be the weakest link. This doesn't mean you won't see more performance with mid-tier hardware, but it likely won't be as significant.

 

Video:

(this is an update of ThioJoeTech's list, so most of the credit goes to him)

 

If for whatever reason your RAM speeds don't line up on the graph, you can use this formula to calculate the number: "1/(REAL FREQUENCY)1000(CL)=RESPONSE TIME" The real frequency is a module's rated speed divided by two. See second row of graph.

 

Download Excel spreadsheet:

Spoiler

Paste in a hex editor and save as .rar, extract

http://pastebin.com/jFvkyk0M