Hello (I hope I'm not posting in the wrong place, but feel free to move my thread. ) So I have a really old machine: Asus Maximus II Formula Core 2 Quad Q8400 2.6Ghz overclocked to 3.36Ghz Ati Radeon HD4870 3GB Ram However using gamebooster + radeon pro + ultra settings i get a really playable fps. I have set it to max 35 and it goes down to a minimum of 20 in large battles. I think that is very acceptable, with a machine that barely hits the minimum requirements. Now if I would like to upgrade the cpu i had to buy a new motherboard too, and of course new memory modules (preferably ddr3). That's a lot of money, and i don't really have that kind of money right now, so i'm looking for any cheap ways to improve my performance. So i was thinking about upgrading ram, because, well, i can't fly with this swapping (but that doesn't really bother me, i'm more of an infantry). Right now i have three stick of ram, each 1 GB in size. 2 of them are (don't laugh) 333Mhz, and one is 400Mhz ddr2. My motherboard is compatible with ddr2 up to the speed of 1200Mhz. I was looking around in my country, and there is no 1200Mhz ddr2 to be found anywhere, but i can buy 1066Mhz. So i was thinking about buying 4GB of 1066Mhz for a start, and maybe buy another 4GB later. Now i just would like to hear your opinions guys. Will this memory upgrade increase my performance? Even slightly? Because if it will, i'm going with that option, if not, well, then i will spend my money on something else. Please share your opinions, i don't want to spend money on something that has no use. Of course i will upgrade my computer, in a year or two, but now i'm kinda addicted to Planetside 2. Please help me! Thanks!
More RAM will always help in every day usage, but adding a few more will not help you in this game. You are CPU bottlenecked and always will be until you can get a new PC.
It won't help with general FPS but may make the loading of new areas and assets that little bit smoother. If I was you I would look around on eBay to get a set of dual channel 4GB memory. They should be dirt cheap on their and if they work on arrival they are likely to keep working for as long as you need them - then can be sold on afterwards. I do that a lot and it makes PC upgrading much cheaper in the long run. I assume you are on Windows x32 presently so a x64 upgrade would also be required.
Yes i was thinking of dual channel, 2x2 GB. I have 64 bit os, just haven't upgraded my ram since i switched from 32 bit. Thanks for the replies by the way.
Dont bother with more ram. I have a very similar setup than you. Q9550 OCed to 3.4, 4 GB Ram, GTX570. I get a few more FPS, but ram isnt really the issue here, its the CPU. But upgrading to a better CPU wont help you much. Instead, save some cash and get a new Mobo, Ram and CPU whenever you can. Everything else would be a waste.
uhm, ok. So the speed of the ram is not an issue then. But with more ram will i be able to fly? Now it's like a slideshow when i'm flying. How much ram do i need to fix that? Is 4 GB enough? If it is, then i guess i just buy the cheapest 1GB ram and be done with it.
The prices of DDR2 are ridiculous compared to DDR3 nowadays. I thought about adding another 4Gb of ram too as a quick upgrade before building a new PC, but at these prices and it probably making not a lot of difference ingame I chose not to.
