AMD Ryzen processors are very fast, but they can be even faster if you pair them with a couple of fast DDR4 RAM sticks. This is in no small part thanks to the infinity fabric in AMD Ryzen’s architecture which, unlike Intel CPUs, allows AMD CPUs to enjoy the benefits of faster RAM. But how fast should my RAM be for AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen?
In general, the faster RAM you get, the better the performance. However, the sweet spot is 3733 MHz RAM. If the price is too high, you can go for 3600 MHz RAM or even 3200 MHz. An alternative would be to buy slower RAM sticks, like 2400 MHz, and then overclock them as much as you can. Remember that 3200 MHz is the official maximum, though.
So, what does all this mean for you? What about timings? How fast should my RAM be for AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen? You can read more about this topic below. Let’s get started!
How Fast Should My RAM Be for AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen?
Thanks to infinity fabric, RAM frequency can have a huge impact on your performance. This is a good thing because it means that you can squeeze out a bit of extra performance to achieve the maximum FPS possible on your system. Intel CPUs do not have this advantage yet, so it is only relevant for AMD Ryzen CPUs.
Nowadays you will find 3200 MHz RAM everywhere at a relatively affordable price. If it costs only a few bucks more than 2933 MHz or slower RAM, you should definitely spend the extra cash. Remember that you can easily overclock most RAM to get more performance out of it. But if overclocking is not for you, you can get faster RAM from the get-go.
Note that there is no point in paying much more just to get slightly faster RAM because you will only see a minor performance improvement of 2-3 FPS. This is why the sweet spot for price and performance is 3600 MHz RAM and you can easily overclock it for even more performance. But what about the officially supported memory speeds?
You might have noticed that even the most powerful AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen CPUs only officially support up to 3200 MHz DDR4 RAM. What this means is that RAM sticks up to that frequency will not cause any stability issues. Conversely, if you get extremely fast RAM and decide to overclock it even further, this can cause some issues.
This is why 3600 MHz is the sweet spot. It is slightly faster than the officially supported speeds, but most users report no issues with it and these RAM kits are very popular. But what about the “CL” spec that you can see in the description of the RAM? That is the CAS (Column Acess Strobe) latency, which is a part of overall RAM timings.
It tells you the time it takes for your RAM to respond to requests that it receives. The lower the CAS latency, the better. The difference between, let’s say CL16 and CL15 can be more significant than the difference in the clock speed. DDR4-3000 MHz CL15 can outperform DDR4-3466 MHz CL16 memory. So, the goal is to get the lowest CAS latency with the highest frequency possible.
Again, this is why RAM between 3200 MHz and 4000 MHz is best because higher frequency may require you to increase the CAS latency, which can have a significant impact on performance. So, get the fastest RAM with the lowest CAS latency that your budget will allow to avoid overspending.
Conclusion
Choosing the right RAM is important because it can have a significant impact on your computer’s performance. How fast should my RAM be for AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen? You want to get the fastest RAM that you can afford but avoid overspending on it because your money is better spent on other parts like your CPU, GPU, or case fans.
You also have to pay attention to the CAS latency. The lower, the better, so get the fastest RAM with the lowest CAS latency for best results. If you want great value, go for a 3200 MHz kit and if you want to squeeze out a bit of extra performance, 3600 MHz is the best.
