RAM Upgrade (or SSD?)

Hi all,

ordered a refurb'd Dell M4800. Stock is with 8GB RAM, specs say 4 DIMM slots, so 2x4GB in there now.

1. Is it worth adding another 8GB?
- if so, via another 2x4GB or should I just get a 1x8GB in case I want to upgrade further later?

2. Does laptop RAM have to be of the same brand, or the same size chips in order to work efficiently?

3. Does laptop RAM brand matter? i.e. Corsair vs. Crucial?


Lastly,
4. Would I see more benefit by adding an SSD? Certainly not a cheaper alternative, and I keep reading about people's SSD's slowing down dramatically over time.

 

1. Try posting on Dell's Precision forum. You will get more replies.

2. Yes I would personally go with 1x8gb. There are channels to match, but performance difference really isn't there.

3. Does not have to be same brand. Just make sure the speed/CL is the same and is DDR3L.

4. Ram brand does not matter. They are really all the same, due to JEDEC standards.

****** I WOULD DEFINITELY 100000000% RECOMMEND UPGRADES TO SSD BEFORE GETTING MORE RAM OR ANYTHING.

WHEN YOU GO SSD. THERE IS NO COMING BACK. PERIOD. YES YES SSD IS THE FIRST FXCKING THING YOU NEED TO GET UPGRADED. PERIOD. END OF DISCUSSION!!!!!!!

 

100% go for the SSD, I agree.

Going from 8GB of RAM to 16GB will not make a difference in most things you do, even gaming (unless it's a heavy-duty game and you're running some video editing in the background at the same time while also streaming video).

But you WILL notice the difference a SSD will make. Put your OS and programs on the SSD, put everything else on a regular HDD.

It'll blow your mind.

 

PLEASE SIR. For the sake of humanity, get the SSD!

Also remember that some 128GB versions have write speed only half as fast as than that for 256GB. 256GB is really the sweet spot.

 

So upgrade RAM first?

I jest.

Thanks for the replies! I should clarify: I'll be using this as a DAW with a good deal of MIDI and VST's along with tracking instruments with Direct Input (low latency is really crucial) and for some video editing.

1. Same answer as before - SSD will be more valuable than RAM as a first upgrade?

2. Similar questions: Does SSD brand matter? Kingston, Crucial?

3. 256GB is the "key" in terms of speed? Does a step-up in size provide even faster speeds?

4. I've read about SSD's slowing down a great deal. Is there any way to prevent this?

5. Is a Dell Precision even a good idea for a DAW?


Thanks all! Don't think I'll be gaming while editing video and streaming music so I don't think RAM will be an issue .

 

Yes.

It certainly does. Decide how much space you need and what you're willing to spend and we'll take it from there. Kingston is junk, Crucial is fine.

256GB is the bare minimum. If you can afford 512BG go for it, most SSDs in that size will be faster than their smaller siblings.

There most certainly are ways of doing so, but a *lot* will depend on which drive exactly you end up purchasing.

Happy shopping.

 

Absolutely. They're one of the last few remaining brands that still offer a firewire port. Even though its aging, audio editing is one of the few (probably the only) remaining segments that still utilized it, Because audio editing still utilize ram, you might want to invest in another 8GB just for good measure.

 

It doesn't have firewire though (does have an express card slot though)? And don't most new laptops offer Thunderbolt, for which you can get adapters?

I just keep reading about hardware failures and horrid driver support - any idea if that's still true?

 

Hoping not to spend more than $150USD or so (if I buy within the next few days I can have a friend bring it up from the US). Really depends on if I keep the Dell though, starting to second-guess the purchase as a DAW...

 

RAM behavior is deterministic, which means the device has to return just the right response after the right number of ticks and there's no randomness involved on the interface. As long as the RAM specs meets your requirements you're good. RAM brand/model does not matter. However, hard disk behavior is not deterministic, and SSDs allocate data randomly, so the behavior is very "statistical". SSD brand/model matters A LOT. Even if the specs looks similar, one SSD might be happy with your heavy load and maintain good latency/throughput all the time while another's response goes all over the place.

There's nothing technical that makes sub-256GB drives inherently slow. However due to the way flash chips are made small drives usually don't have enough dies to populate all the channels on the controller. So some of the potential throughput gets wasted.

Any storage device could slow down with use, especially with a file-system that encourages fragmentation. In the case of SSDs, powerful ones would maintain performance longer. Unlike with magnetic drives, due to the randomness of data allocation it's always better to leave a SSD partly empty. If most of the SSD is full the controller would have a hard time to find empty cells to work with. (On high-end SSDs, a lot of space is deliberately hidden from user access for this reason.) So you need to buy a bit more than your need capacity-wise. Also make sure TRIM is working with your OS so the SSD knows which cell is no longer used. Google would turn up a lot of guides on how to check this for your version of OS.

 

The best 250GB range SSD that can be bought with $150, bar none:

SanDisk Extreme Pro SDSSDXPS-240G-G25 2.5" 240GB SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - Newegg.com

Happy shopping.

 

Ah, I see. Didn't realized they 86ed the firewire in the 4800. Get the Macbook Pro then. It doesn't have the build quality, ports, pro graphic, or as powerful a CPU, but its battery life is a lot longer and it does offer Thunderbolt.

On the other hand, you will have to connect a lot of peripherals to bring it up to standards. But its OS offers more flexible audio processing configuration. At least, that is the case with their desktops.

 

I would strongly recommend the Extreme Pro.. I have the Extreme II and the Pro is a step up from it.. My Extreme II has been nothing short of epic.. Really like it..

As for RAM, Dell usually uses Hynix RAM as far as I know so if you want to add more in Hynix would work... Crucial and other brands will also work as long as it's DDR3-L RAM.. It also depends on how fussy your lapto's motherboard is with RAM.. My old R4 board used the Crucial RAM with no issues while the new mobo is very fussy with it and switching graphics modes will cause beep issues for me..

 

Thanks guys! I might be cancelling the Dell order for now until I can get a firmer grasp on whether or not it's a decent route to go.

 

Ram increase and SSD get the best from both worlds.

Cheers
3Fees



_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
HP Pavilion 17" AMD Elite A10-5750M-8750G-APU,Micron-Crucial Ballistix Sport- 16GB DDR3L- 1866Mhz with automatic Over/Under Clocking of DDR3 Ram by the AMD APU-1866 MHz Memory Controller-Built in the APU Architecture, Samsung EVO 250GB SSD,Logitec LS1- Laser Mouse 5000 DPI, Seagate Backup Plus USB 3.0 drive -1TB size, Windows 8.1 Full Retail Box Version, 64 Bit installed. I have Lexar S33 32GB USB 3 Jump Drive ~ 100/50 MB/s.

 

People still use firewire?

 

In audio.


Due to its configuration, its superior to USB and it's controller which contributes to latency. Thunderbolt can supplant it, but of course that's mostly and Apple thing. One of the reasons it too is preferred over PC in a DAW.

 

Thanks for the info.! Rep'd.

 

Cancelled the Dell til I can figure out more about DPC latency, expresscard usability and the like. If anyone has any experience in this regard I'd really appreciate it.

A fairly practical solution is a firewire card via Expresscard slot. Any comments on that? Seems like a few pro audio builders do this exactly.

 

Well my laptop still has the firewire port so I've never really had a need to investigate it. However, a cursory review seems to indicates that it works as specified. Although you're going to need to check the reviews and make your own decision. Just be mindful of the power requirement since some (9 pin) require additional power adapters.

P.S. Its a shame expresscard slots are going away when they should be enhancing their development. Your situation just proves how valuable they still are.