HOW MUCH MEMORY?
So, in this world of hyperinflated memory prices, just how much DDR4 is enough for what you want to do? It’s tricky. A year or so ago, we would have happily sat here and recommended 64GB of DDR4 for any video editor or content creator out there. But, to be honest, given the ludicrous price increases (more on that later), that’s just not a practical or good use of your money in this day and age.
4GB
If all you’re building is a home theater PC or a machine for low-end office work (we’re not talking 4,000-cell Excel files here), then arguably a single 4GB stick of low-spec DDR4 should be perfect for the job. Couple that with a low-end Pentium part, and you’re all set. For those keen miners out there, this is also the ideal spec for a cryptocurrency mining rig, because mining is typically not as memoryintensive as other more mainstream applications (but you should pass on the Pentium if you’re planning to mine CPUintensive currencies).
8GB
If entry-level gaming is your jam, 8GB (2x 4GB) is the absolute minimum we’d recommend at this point in time. Ironically, the lower the amount of VRAM on your GPU, the more likely the system is to cache overly large texture files on to the actual RAM itself (here’s looking at you CoD:
WWII)— dual-channel here helps with those massive transfers.
16GB
For mid-range to high-end gaming, you absolutely need that 16GB of DDR4. Annoyingly, more and more games are starting to use more and more memory. Yearly releases and poorly optimized titles are putting more strain on system memory, with even StarCitizen recently announcing a minimum spec of 16GB of RAM purely to run the Alpha. 16GB is also a nice middleweight RAM capacity for any task you want to throw at your rig. Whether that’s extensive office work, Photoshop, entry-level videography, you name it, it’s the right spec for you.
32GB
For anyone who makes a living from 3D modeling and content creation, 32GB is the way to go for the time being. Although this will more than likely still set you back $400 or more, it’s the absolutely perfect amount for applications such as After Effects, 4K Premiere Pro, and more.
32GB-plus
For now, unless you can somehow get it aggressively subsidized, anything beyond 32GB just isn’t worth it, at least not until prices drop below that $500 mark once more.