Should I get another 512 mbs or a Raptor?

Atlantean

Diamond Member
May 2, 2001
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Well I feel like I want an upgrade cause I have some extra cash laying around so what should I get more ram ( I have 512 mbs atm) or a Western Digital Raptor (because a faster harddrive might mean faster loading times... oh and I have 360 gbs in the system right now so its not a matter of size). I am not looking for extra storage space just faster loading times. What will give me the more noticable increase in speed? A Raptor or another 512 mbs of ram? Also if I get the ram should I get the same brand as my other ram or does that matter?
 

EeyoreX

Platinum Member
Oct 27, 2002
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I honestly doubt either solution will offer a significant boost in load times, or anything else. However, I would guess a slight boost would be gained by having the Raptor. Unless of course your RAM is regularly maxed out at or near 512MB, in which case that would be more beneficial.

\Dan
 

Atlantean

Diamond Member
May 2, 2001
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Originally posted by: EeyoreX
I honestly doubt either solution will offer a significant boost in load times, or anything else. However, I would guess a slight boost would be gained by having the Raptor. Unless of course your RAM is regularly maxed out at or near 512MB, in which case that would be more beneficial.

\Dan

Hmm... I am finding that my ram is often maxed out so maybe I will do the ram thing. My comp isnt slow by any means, but I want it a little faster for seti and load times for everything else... my ram is maxed out fairly often as I have like 20 programs (a lot of times more than half of those are ie windows) open.
 

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
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depends, 1gb of mem is required for some games already, and soon probably more.
 

Viper96720

Diamond Member
Jul 15, 2002
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More ram. I got a 36GB raptor and 80GB SE drive. I installed a game on both. Not a great difference. Games on the raptor load faster but not super faster.
 

EeyoreX

Platinum Member
Oct 27, 2002
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It isn't all important to get the same brand. However, many times different brand RAM can act flaky and be more trouble than it's worth. Some motherboards have issues with RAM in that they are very picky, and different brands cause trouble. It's often not a big deal, but better to be safe to start with than to have to rebuy the RAM should there be a problem.

\Dan
 

jdogg707

Diamond Member
Jun 24, 2002
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Try to grab a stick of the same memory, but if you can't get some quality memory like Corsair, Kingston, Mushkin, or OCZ to avoid issues. I would get the Memory over the HD, because if you want faster load times, I have found my 74GB Raptor is a world faster, or at least feels that way, over my single 36GB Raptor.
 

tallman45

Golden Member
May 27, 2003
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Split your upgrade, get some more ram (128 or 256) plus an additional hard drive (80 gb). Load balance some apps onto the new second drive. You will better performance by adding a little more ram and a second drive that by adding just more ram or a raptor alone.