HL2 and 512 or 1024 MB RAM ?

S

Sashq

Guest
Hi,
does anybode know from the Reviews, from CS Source or maybe from Valve if there will be a huge difference with 512 or 1024 MB System Ram? In games like Doom3 or FarCry the difference is really great. I ask this question because i don`t know if i should update to 1024 MB ram or not for HL2.

Thanx for your answer.
Sashq.
 
yes, do it!!!
256mb to 786mb made a great differance for me, sodo it dude

rf
 
Sashq said:
Hi,
does anybode know from the Reviews, from CS Source or maybe from Valve if there will be a huge difference with 512 or 1024 MB System Ram? In games like Doom3 or FarCry the difference is really great. I ask this question because i don`t know if i should update to 1024 MB ram or not for HL2.

Thanx for your answer.
Sashq.
Click to expand...

I have 512Mb and CS:S runs fine, but takes awhile to load and remove itself from virtual memory. 1024 would probably help, but not significantly.
 
I upgraded from 512mb to 1 gig a few weeks ago and I've noticed a huge difference. Loading times are greatly improved in all games, particularly CS:S, and Doom 3 is much less jumpy. I would go for it, especially since RAM is really cheap.
 
How must i config/tweak my WINXP so i get the max. performance with 1024 MB ram ?
 
1gb here. went from 512, and OH MY GOD it makes loading times a breeze. doom3 used to get sluggish when entering a new room, but now...hehe
 
I lent a friend 512 megs to take his RAM to 1Gb, but Doom3 loading/jumpyness was pretty much the same :) And what happens when you quit Doom3? "Windows virtual memory is too low"...

I get that damned message once every now and then but I have 1.5Gb.... :-(

But yeh, to stay on topic - I'd take the 1 gig.
 
If you're having virtual memory problems with a gig of ram is probably down to a misconfigured system. Get a gig, download cacheman register it, auto optimise then read up on how to set the best windows swap file. Preferably a small backup swap file on your windows drive and whatever you need on a secondry drive or partition. There is no recommended value you need so read up and work out what is best for your system. Even if you have loads of ram it's recommended you have some swap file, if it's there and not used it won't do any harm.
 
im thinking about 1gig ram also, but will it make the game run(fps) better?
 
Maybe not FPS so much but it will stop the game stuttering more and will load faster. Probably a slight FPS increase but it should be worth it although not essential :)
 
RAM generally won't help you're framerate (unless you are currently very low). What it will do is speed up load times and iron out all the bumps. For example, in Far Cry with 512MB of ram every time I shot a weapon for the first time while playing, there would be a second or two pause while the sound was loaded up. RAM helps with all this swapping of data so you don't get those glitches and snags so often.
 
upgraded 512 to 768 and I saw a very noticeable difference in UT2k3/4
 
I went from 512 megs of PC2700 ram getting 70fps in the stress test to 1 gig Corsair Dual Channel Ram and got 83 fps in the Stress test.

That is nearly a 20% improvement in frame rate.

512 megs should be fine but 1 gig is desired.
 
Sashq said:
Hi,
does anybode know from the Reviews, from CS Source or maybe from Valve if there will be a huge difference with 512 or 1024 MB System Ram? In games like Doom3 or FarCry the difference is really great. I ask this question because i don`t know if i should update to 1024 MB ram or not for HL2.

Thanx for your answer.
Sashq.
Click to expand...

Judging by the texture quality and the overall detail of the environments, in terms of visuals, sounds and everything else, I'd definitely recommend 1GB.

If you've only got 512MB you should be fine. The extra RAM will definitely allow you to bump those settings up a notch though.
 
How does Ram affect textures? I can see how it'd help out with load time stutters but it doesn't have to process anything so how would having the greater memory contribute to better graphics?
 
Quixote said:
How does Ram affect textures? I can see how it'd help out with load time stutters but it doesn't have to process anything so how would having the greater memory contribute to better graphics?
Click to expand...

With all of the setting on high you're unlikely to fit everything in memory. This leads to almost constant swapping between memory and secondary storage.

I had 512MB of RAM when I first bought Far Cry, the game was utterly unplayable with max settings. It ran perfectly on medium however. It never skipped again after I upgraded my RAM.

While the HL2 levels won't be as big as those in Far Cry, they do appear far more detailed. RAM will help. A lot.
 
i gt 512 and everything seems fine but i;m SO sure 1024 would help a ton. with doom 3 i can run it on high at max res and its flawless except the first few seconds after loading.
 
Also it should be noted, they mentioned having the next level loaded up and ready before getting to the next map, so that you dont have to sit and wait for the next part (like you did in HL1). This would be an immense win for people with 1 gig+ RAM indeed, if they made it work ofcourse.
 
_-_-SELAS-_-_ said:
Also it should be noted, they mentioned having the next level loaded up and ready before getting to the next map, so that you dont have to sit and wait for the next part (like you did in HL1). This would be an immense win for people with 1 gig+ RAM indeed, if they made it work ofcourse.
Click to expand...

I thought they meant any maps that were not on the client's PC would be downloaded in the background so you had the file when the map changed? Maybe I mis-read this first time? Seems odd to load a map into ram if you already have it considering machines with lower ram would struggle if this was true? Can anyone confirm this?
 
_-_-SELAS-_-_ said:
Also it should be noted, they mentioned having the next level loaded up and ready before getting to the next map, so that you dont have to sit and wait for the next part (like you did in HL1). This would be an immense win for people with 1 gig+ RAM indeed, if they made it work ofcourse.
Click to expand...

well i hope somthing like this can be disabled?
 
i've got 512mb 3200 ram and its dual channel. If i upgrade to 1gb will i lose the dual channel function and if so which is better 512mb dc or 1gb sc?
 
jonnyapps said:
i've got 512mb 3200 ram and its dual channel. If i upgrade to 1gb will i lose the dual channel function and if so which is better 512mb dc or 1gb sc?
Click to expand...

If you have two 512 modules you can run them dual channel. I'm not sure if you have 2 256s and 1 512. I think it defaults to the slowest option.
 
Sashq said:
Hi,
does anybode know from the Reviews, from CS Source or maybe from Valve if there will be a huge difference with 512 or 1024 MB System Ram? In games like Doom3 or FarCry the difference is really great. I ask this question because i don`t know if i should update to 1024 MB ram or not for HL2.

Thanx for your answer.
Sashq.
Click to expand...

yes there will be a huge difference. HL2 is very texture intensive the more ram the better
 
Yes, the more RAM the better, but also Doom 3 and Far Cry had HUGE textures and shaders, etc. etc.. HL 2 seems to be a little more CPU dependant due to scripted sequences and physics algorithms.
 
512 is enough actualy but its some times pain
specialy when you quit the game it takes like 30 sec

1 gb is recommed anyway
 
512MB RAM is preferred, but having more certainly couldn't hurt.
 
Heh, I got a question as well.

Should I buy a 512MB RAM and insert it together with my 256MB RAM (So I'll have 768 MB RAM), or should I buy a 768 MB RAM and remove the 256 MB RAM? 'Cause I heard having two RAM could infect the other one and could get destroyed. So..what should I do?
 
Valve_Assassin said:
Gossoon, I just wanted to say your avatar is awesome
Click to expand...

:E Thanks. I nicked it from somebody on some other forum so I can't take credit for it.

BTW, I don't think you can even buy a 768 module. They only double. 256 --> 512 --> 1024. It's Ok usually to mix module sizes and even brands if they're quality. I ran 768 for awhile with three different brands and suffered no ill effects.
 
yea don't worry about ram infecting each other and destroying each other. if they get in a fight though, you may need to hose them down with water.
 
Probably been said before, but: Make sure you get exactly the same kind of RAM, or you could run into big problems.
 
Ehm... this 1024mb ram isn't really necessary is it? I mean, check my signature...

Shouldn't that be enough...
 
People just get so crazy, and instantly think that it would be better to buy 1024 for HL2.

A huge difference my eye.
Games aren't memory intensive...
 
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