[iriverdude]

With Windows 7 64bit on the horizon, I probably have a chance to upgrade my computer from 2GB ro 4GB of RAM (actually I have another two sticks of identical Corsair XMS 3200 C2PT in another PC) but of course that means I'll have to buy 2GB. It's a dual core AMD

 

[Mr. B]

Odds are you won't notice a significant difference, but with RAM being so cheap these days, why not?

 

[iriverdude]

It's DDR, not DDR2 so it'll cost a bit to upgrade.

 

[leeperry]

well, look at the ram usage in the task manager?

it never raises over 600MB on my XP SP3 HTPC(pagefile is disabled too), and disable that thing on Vista/7 that uses the RAM to cache applications of course....can't remember the name.

if you like to run Photoshop/Premiere/Cubase simultaneously it's a great upgrade...otherwise there's no point IMO.

 

[ear8dmg]

You might want to check second hand prices on 939 Athlon X2s and DDR RAM.

I essentially got a free upgrade last year. Selling my 939 X2 4600+ and 2GB DDR got me enough to fund an AM2 X2 5000+ Black Edition and 4GB DDR2. I did have an easy upgrade path though as my 939 motherboard (ASROCK 939Dual-SATA2) supported the new CPU and RAM via a cheap riser card though.

 

[MrKazador]

Depends what you're doing on the pc, 2gb is still fine for basic stuff and games.

 

[DeusEx]

Well, I'm running 6GB here (i7 platform), but you're looking at DDR, not DDR2 (reminds me of picking up 4GB for $20 a few months back)....2 GB is fine, as long as you're not doing high-level processing work, or high res gaming...

 

[iriverdude]

Gaming will be at 1920x1200.

 

[DeusEx]

Of course, gaming still relies on the GPU...if you have a Geforce 6200, it's not going to matter how many sticks of ram you have...

 

[iriverdude]

8800GT 512MB. Still copes fine, I don't use any AA.

 

[DeusEx]

That's a decent card, but it'll struggle with newer games at that resolution. Unless you're playing WoW and CS, then I suggest upgrading the GPU instead. Good choices are the ATI HD4870/4890, or Geforce GTX 260/275. These are bang-for-the-buck cards, will run you ~$150-200. If that's too much, then a HD4850 will run you ~$100.

 

[iriverdude]

I've played Far Cry 2 and Fall Out 3 at that resolution and it's fine. I don't think worth buying a new GPU considering my CPU, it'll be bottleneck. AMD X2 4400

 

[Ntropic]

Save for an overhaul, keeping the graphics card. Vista/7 might take up more RAM, but that's typically for caching purposes. The OS will free up RAM if you want to play games. 2GB will probably handle fine, with 4GB being ideal. If you're on XP now, then I wouldn't worry about anything at all.

If you're working Photoshop or video-editing seriously, then you'll want RAM. Lots of it.

 

[FallenAngel]

As long as you don't downgrade (yes, I mean downgrade) to Windows 7 or Vista, your ram will be just fine.

 

[Bloodoath]

The correct answer to your question is YES. 4gb is about right for the investment. More than that and you might question the money, but I can say 4 gb opens up the system very nicely. It's not like double the speed, but you should notice a snappier more responsive system. It like taking a choke off an engine. It just allows it to run with more breathing room. Using Windows 7 64 bit 8 gigs here. I even noticed improvement in XP with max ram of 3.4 or so gigs.