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Every time I'm setting up a new PC, I check the prices on RAM and then check the benchmarks for actual usage, and I always seem to find that buying faster RAM i

Every time I'm setting up a new PC, I check the prices on RAM and then check the benchmarks for actual usage, and I always seem to find that buying faster RAM is not a good use of the budget, especially because I need a PC with a lot of RAM. Currently running a 12900k with DDR4 RAM. When I checked the benchmarks, DDR4 ended up being about 3% slower than the fastest DDR5 which was more than double the price, which for 64Gb was a significant price increase. Even less difference for gaming, something like 1%. https://www.techpowerup.com/review/intel-core-i9-12900k-alder-lake-ddr4-vs-ddr5/7.html https://www.techpowerup.com/review/intel-core-i9-12900k-alde... I'm sure it's a similar story for the different speeds of DDR5. The price premium isn't worth the tiny increase in speed. I guess people see the big numbers like 4800 vs 5600 and assume that means it's that much faster, 17%, when in reality it's something like 1-2%. Faster RAM has always been a ripoff, and like you said you're risking stability issues. https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/ddr5_core_i9_13900k_ddr5_7200_mhz_memory_scaling_review,16.html https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/ddr5_core_i9_13900k_dd...

hirvi74 3y ago
I'm really considering just going with a 12th gen, and upgrading in a few years vs. trying to stretch the 13th gen 3-5 years. It's a fool's errand trying to keep up with everything, and I need to do more research from a price vs. value point of view. What motherboard are you using for your 12th gen? It's honestly been the most difficult part of piecing together my build. It seems like all the decent motherboards are plagued with one or more issues e.g. poor VRMs, poor bios/supporting software [1], NIC disconnects randomly [2], coil whine, etc.. I'll admit, I have only seen benchmarks for DDR5 in regards to games which was not impressive. It's disappoint to see that other applications would only have a greater performance of around 3%. Maybe I will just go with DDR4 then... [1] I have heard Gigabyte boards have a hell of a time getting RBG Fusion 2.0 to work/save settings. [2] I have also read to stay far away from boards with Intel's I225/226 NICs or to get a secondary NIC.
- brokenmachine 3y ago
  Gigabyte Z690 AORUS PRO DDR4. I'm very happy with it. Stable and does the job. BIOS seems good to me, no complaints. Can't comment on RGB stuff because mine's in a closed black box. Not sure what NIC it has... specs online say "Intel 2.5GbE LAN chip", my router is only 1Gb but it works fine, no disconnects. PC is Windows only though. I've mostly had Gigabytes over the years (some Asus as well), and haven't had a lemon motherboard yet, maybe I've been lucky. But I am pretty demanding and don't tolerate faulty stuff well. I'm also quite annoyed by noise, system is set up to be as quiet as possible with passive PSU/140mm fans/etc. Haven't noticed any coil whine.

hirvi74 3y ago

I'm really considering just going with a 12th gen, and upgrading in a few years vs. trying to stretch the 13th gen 3-5 years. It's a fool's errand trying to keep up with everything, and I need to do more research from a price vs. value point of view. What motherboard are you using for your 12th gen? It's honestly been the most difficult part of piecing together my build. It seems like all the decent motherboards are plagued with one or more issues e.g. poor VRMs, poor bios/supporting software [1], NIC disconnects randomly [2], coil whine, etc.. I'll admit, I have only seen benchmarks for DDR5 in regards to games which was not impressive. It's disappoint to see that other applications would only have a greater performance of around 3%. Maybe I will just go with DDR4 then... [1] I have heard Gigabyte boards have a hell of a time getting RBG Fusion 2.0 to work/save settings. [2] I have also read to stay far away from boards with Intel's I225/226 NICs or to get a secondary NIC.

brokenmachine 3y ago
Gigabyte Z690 AORUS PRO DDR4. I'm very happy with it. Stable and does the job. BIOS seems good to me, no complaints. Can't comment on RGB stuff because mine's in a closed black box. Not sure what NIC it has... specs online say "Intel 2.5GbE LAN chip", my router is only 1Gb but it works fine, no disconnects. PC is Windows only though. I've mostly had Gigabytes over the years (some Asus as well), and haven't had a lemon motherboard yet, maybe I've been lucky. But I am pretty demanding and don't tolerate faulty stuff well. I'm also quite annoyed by noise, system is set up to be as quiet as possible with passive PSU/140mm fans/etc. Haven't noticed any coil whine.