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How much ram do you really need these days?

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Submitted by anonymous on

Hi. I just bought a AMD Athlon 64 3200+ (socket 748) barebones and I wondered what is standard for ram these days.



My old system had 768 ram (3x256) but this computer needs ddr of course and is only 2 slots. Is 512 ok or 1 gb ? Are 1gb pieces cheap enough anywhere to grab one of them and have room to upgrade?



I'm basically using this to RECORD and run plugins for 16-30 tracks. No softsynths (pretty much), no samplers, just recording and playing back audio in Cakewalk Sonar on XP Pro.



Thanks for the tips in advance...



Mike

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_Mikael

Not only would I get at least a GB of ram, I'd get the best possible sticks you can afford. With native systems, you need all the processing headroom you can afford -- especially on the XP platform.



Many companies manufacture ram, and it is not created equally. Seek out sales on sticks of Corsair and Toshiba, and avoid PNY and "Value" sticks like the plaque! And caveat emptor on Ebay ram!!!

Mon, 06/06/2005 - 09:28 Permalink
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zemlin

My system has 768MB. I watch the "PERFORMANCE" tab on the Task Manager and I NEVER hit the wall. IMHO, more ram would not help me. That was NOT the case when I only had 512MB.



Having said that, I'm looking at putting a new DAW box together. It will have 1GB.



In the end, it will depend largely on the plugs you use. I would assume that there are some that are RAM hungry. Watch your resource meters and you'll know how you're doing.

Mon, 06/06/2005 - 14:19 Permalink
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_Mikael

In the end, it will depend largely on the plugs you use. I would assume that there are some that are RAM hungry. Watch your resource meters and you'll know how you're doing.





..and to that I'd like to add:



- in some instances, more ram means more tracks, improved latency, etc.



- routing audio in/out of the computer eats up a lot of processing and memory.



-reverbs, modelers, and virtual instruments tend to be memory gluttons. Instead of applying to each track, trying slapping verb across an aux bus.

Mon, 06/06/2005 - 14:50 Permalink
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HansAm

You have to strip XP to the BONE if you plane on using it as a audio GUI.

I suggest the use of nLite. a free software for lightning the cd image. can make the installation unatended to, include drivers and more. Very usefull.

Then you go ower the system a quick time with Power Tools, Tweakui. :D

XP is ready to perform.

Mon, 06/06/2005 - 14:50 Permalink