If you’re looking to build a gaming computer or simply want to upgrade/improve the performance of your current build – then upgrading to DDR4 RAM will be the first upgrade you will need to make to get the biggest performance improvement. Here we present our guide to the best DDR4 RAM for gaming available in 2017 – perfect for your next build or simply to upgrade your current DDR3 RAM build. As usual, if you have any questions or want to know why I selected these products please send it over in the comments section at the bottom and ill do my best to get back to you ASAP. Enjoy our best DDR4 RAM for gaming guide!
Overclocking is something most people have heard of, and a lot of people these days have at least dabbled with it, if not done fully CPU/GPU overclocks. Memory isn’t usually the first thing people think about when the subject comes up, but that may be turning into something just as mainstream. With the Kingston HyperX FURY DDR4-2133Mhz memory kit, you get several great features, one of the most impressive being an automatic overclocking system that will increase the ram’s speed up to 2666Mhz. Matched with low profile heat spreaders, and a price that competes with non-overclocking ram, the Kingston HyperX FURY is RAM that will compliment any gaming rig.
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Corsair offers some nice features with their Vengeance LPX line of memory. They’re overclock compatible with x99 chipset motherboards to start with. They offer low profile heat spreaders, and are available in 4 different colors to match any style or design you want for your rig. The heat spreaders are also 100% aluminum too, for superb heat dispersion. They offer XMP 2.0 support to make settings in BIOS a piece of cake, no timing setting needed! The kits are fast, and with 16Gb total ram offered, should be enough for even app-heavy gamers.
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Memory isn’t typically something you hear referred to as stylish or cool, but Crucial has done that with their Ballistix Sport LT kits. Available in three different color schemes gives you options for any build, and the heat sinks sport a ‘stealth digital camo’ design, giving it a look that is unique and impressive. It’s low-profile, and the heat sinks are vented for better heat management. XMP 2.0 compatible, for intuitive plug and play installation. When you’re looking for that added detail and style, this is going to be a great option.
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If you need a great price, from a reliable brand, Crucial’s Ballistix sport 16Gb kit is worth your time to look into. It’s priced as one of the lowest 16Gb DDR4 kits available, but still offers DDR4 speeds. Being fast is only half the battle though, and with this kit, you get a pair of 8Gb memory sticks, giving you enough total ram for any of the most intense games out now, and likely in the future. It even offers a nice looking gun-metal colored heat spreader, impressive for such a bargain memory kit!
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Sometimes you need something fast, but have a strict budget to work with. Or maybe you just want to squeeze every last cent out you can for a better video card or CPU. When budget is an absolute top priority, but you can’t sacrifice the DDR4 speed, and absolutely need a full 16GB for your gaming and application needs, Crucial has the exact set of no-frills, bare-bones memory sticks that you’re looking for. They’re consistently the lowest price DDR4 2133 kits available, and when you can get memory from such a rock-solid and time-tested company, it’s hard to have any complaints.
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It’s hard to know where to start when you’re trying to cover each feature worth having in the Ballistix Elite 16Gb DDR4 3000 kit. This Crucial memory leverages some of the latest advancements in memory technology and is engineered to run at lower voltages, and it’s even armed with a thermal sensor. With the Ballistics M.O.D. utility for real-time temperature monitoring, this kit grants up to 40% more power efficiency out of your memory. The heat spreaders have a unique design and offer great heat protection as well. With memory bandwidth up to 21.3 gigabytes per second, there’s so many reasons to like this set of memory sticks.
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Per usual, there’s a lot to love about this Kingston memory kit. Always a heavy-hitter in the memory world, they bring yet another winner to the table with the HyperX FURY series. It’s got enough capacity for any games out now, 4K, and VR. The Fury asymetrical heat spreader design is both aesthetically pleasing, as well as efficient at dealing with heat. They even color matched the chip board to the black heat sink for a killer look. Beyond the XMP 2.0 compatibility, it also offers automatic overclocking up to 2666, giving you free speed, which you can never complain about.
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When you’re building a rig to turn heads, it can be hard to find memory that really stands out. Even if you know you’ve got a lot of ram, and fast ram at that, it’s not always common to find a kit that will impress. Corsair saves the day for anyone building a DDR4 rig that wants something to stand out. Presenting the Corsair Vengeance 16GB 2666 RAM built for gaming. It’s got 16Gb of capacity, and runs quickly, at 2666. Beyond the tech specs though, it’s got a high quality heat spreader that’s equipped with integrated red LEDs for an amazing look. They even boast a limited lifetime warranty, so you not only get something that looks fantastic, but also offers peace of mind.
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We all know the feeling when building a new PC of wanting something super fast, but not wanting to have to pay a crazy amount more. The Corsair Vengeance LPX 16Gb 3200 kit is the best of both worlds, offering not only 3200 DDR4 speeds and a full 16Gb of ram, but they’ve also priced it competitively with much slower 2133 or 2400 speed kits. You don’t have to sacrifice style or heat efficiency either, as they come equipped with flat black aluminium heat sinks. They offer the standard XMP 2.0 compatibility, and high performance 8-layer PCB for stability and quality.
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You’ve got to offer something pretty special to claim it as the world’s most advanced DDR4 modules. Corsair makes this claim and gives us something pretty spectacular as far as memory goes with their Dominator Platinum series. This RAM built for gaming has 16Gb of memory, at 3200 speed to satisfy the size and speed needs of even the 4K or VR gamer. They also offer a customizable and up-gradable top bar that has a replaceable white LED, and their patented Dominator DHX cooling, allowing for the heatsink to directly cool the PCB. If that wasn’t enough, it’s also compatible with Corsair’s Dominator Airflow Platinum system and Corsair Link software, for ultimate-level overclocking ability. Paired with their lifetime warranty, if you want the top-quality option for a 16Gb kit, this is your answer.
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For the most extreme of us, or those looking to future-proof their rig, sometimes you need to really push the limit for memory. If you’re one of those who needs a full 32Gb of memory, The Corsair Vengeance LPX 32Gb memory kit should satisfy your need for enormous capacity. The set of 4 memory sticks is a cool white, and made of pure aluminum for cooler operation and quicker heat dispersion. They manage to offer top-quality cooling in a low-profile design, allowing for use in even Mini-ITX and micro HTPC systems. To offer comfortable overclocking headroom the memory is made from eight layer PCB, and supports XMP 2.0 and trouble-free automatic overclocking. Probably the best performing DDR4 RAM for gaming out there in 2017.
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Memory is one of the things that is always on the fore front of someone’s mind when they are putting together a new PC for anything, especially gaming. One of the most common questions is how much is enough, not enough, too much for your purposes. In this day and age, with the prices of memory, the prevalence of PCs running several if not dozens of apps at once, 16Gb seems to be the number most people want to hit. For the budget minded, or those who genuinely use only a small number of apps at a time, 8Gb can be acceptable, but most gamers in 2017 are interested in making sure they have a little more than enough, not just barely what they need.
The main differences when you’re comparing DDR3 and DDR4 ram is clock speed, latency, voltage, and of course, cost. Whereas DDR3 ram can run as up to speeds of 3200Mhz, DDR4 ram is now being sold at speeds up to 4266Mhz. DDR4 is also a lower-voltage memory, which for most home users will not make a noticeable difference, but in large server farms, can actually add up to significant cost of power savings. As of right now, however, even with the much higher numbers on the packaging, the real-world results of the DDR4 chipset seems to give favor to the CAD, 3D, and video editing users, more than the gaming crowd. There’s hope that soon the CPU and north / south bridge chipsets will better be able to make use of higher clock speeds in memory, and better mitigate the latency difference.
If you’re comparing 16Gb of DDR3-2400 to 16Gb of DDR4-2400, you may be surprised to see that the gains in speed, performance, and benchmarking you get are not more than 1 or 2% better, if they are better at all! This highlights both the advantage and the disadvantage of DDR4 ram, and that is how much potential is has, and how little of it’s potential is currently being used by developers, in large part, because of the prevalence and popularity DDR3 already has. Despite having very small gains against same-speed DDR3, DDR4 ram does not yet have an upper limit to it’s speed. Every time a manufacturer comes out with a ‘new fastest’ speed for DDR4, the race is on to beat that with something faster. It may not be a significant benefit in performance today, but as developers discover new faster top-speeds and better methods of utilizing them that aren’t based around the DDR3 architecture, DDR4 will show how much benefit it can really provide.
As with any piece of tech you need to decide upon for a build, price is a factor worth considering. When it comes to deciding between DDR3 and DDR4, you also need to factor in the difference between motherboard/CPU chip sets. Your motherboard will only be compatible with EITHER DDR3, or DDR4, not both, so be sure you know before making your final CPU decision, if the ram speed is a deal-breaker for you! As for raw cost, ram can be volatile for pricing, but in general for teh 2133-2300Mhz range, DDR4 is competitive with DDR3. Depending on what features, or if you have brand preference. If you’re a bargain hunter, you can sometimes get DDR4-2400 ram for less ($69.99 at time of this writing) than a similar sized DDR3-2133 kit ($78.99 at time of this writing).
If you’re the sort of gamer who wants to be bleeding-edge, you may be wondering (especially if you have a new video card with 8Gb of ‘GDDR5’ ram onboard!) ‘when will we have DDR5 for our motherboards?’. Well, as far as we can tell, it’s going to be at least 2020, and possibly even longer before the ‘post-DDR4’ memory type is released. A big part of the reason is because developers still don’t know the limits of DDR4, nor are things generally programmed to make good use of the different speed and latency vs DDR3. For now, and for the next few years at least, the only DDR5 memory we will be able to use is going to have to be on our video cards.
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