DDR4 v DDR5 | TheaterFire

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rowrowdilo@reddit

I couldn't find a single comment mentioning this so I'll do it. Read the edit that you bought an AM5 RAM and processor, but did you buy a motherboard as well? The old motherboard won't support the new processor.

Also a 5070 ti is a more power hungry gpu so do you have the right power supply for that? You need a 750w at least.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Yeah I bought a B850 Rox motherboard and a 850w psu, is this sufficient?

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rowrowdilo@reddit

You mean the ROG Strix motherboard right? Yeah that and PSU are more than enough.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Yeah

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-UserRemoved-@reddit

What would the difference be

The first build has a 5900X, and the second has a 9800X3D

You can use benchmarks to determine expected performance difference for specific workloads

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Does the ram actually change anything major in the pc then, or is it just compatibility problems with newer gen CPU’s?
Like does DDR5 do something better than DDR4?

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PokerLawyer75@reddit

You’re overlooking something.

You can not use DDR4 past the Ryzen 5000 series. Ryzen 7000 and 9000 use AM5 sockets and the chipsets do not support DDR4.

So you have to decide. Get the last generation supporting your current build or you have to upgrade everything. DDR5 will work with Zen6 as well. Maybe even Zen7 as DDR6 will most likely be delayed due to RAMageddon.

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WantedKi1ler@reddit

this guy is the smartest one in this thread. Depends what CPU u buy will then determine what RAM u need to buy.

However imo if your doing a full upgrade, dont be cheap and just by DDR5 before you find yourself in a few years wishing u did

DDR6 is expected to come out 2026 or 2027. so dont be that guy and be 2 generations behind when you just upgraded ur rig

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HJQueen@reddit

I hate these kind of posts. Don't cheap out! Massively overspend for an average FPS increase of maybe 13 FPS! Pretty sure in a few years I'm not going to care about that. Nor should anyone. Go with what your budget allows.

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HistoricalAbalone914@reddit

Fr, i bought a pair of DDR4 3200 32gb for 70$ and i don't see any reason why they would need replacing in the next 5 years. DDR5 5200 32gb was around 50% more expensive and they have almost the same performance in gaming.

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HJQueen@reddit

Yup, but everyone on here will tell you to spend way more money to "future proof". This is just an elitest sun disguised as help.

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greggm2000@reddit

DDR6 will be later than that. Enterprise won't see it until 2028 or 2029, with consumer after that. This is in line with rumors that say Zen 7 will be on AM5. Zen 8 should be around 2030-2031, which would fit the timing of DDR6 availability.

Also, DDR6 timing has nothing to do with the RAMapocalypse. Fortunately.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

I’m not overlooking it, that’s the main reason for this. If I could use DDR4 with a 7000 or a 9000 then this would be a close discussion, it’s the fact that I’m not sure spending £600+ is worth it because I didn’t know how different DDR4 with a 9 5900X is to a DDR5 with a 7 9800x3d

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MisguidedColt88@reddit

Okay here is how I would think of it.

Don't worry about how fast your ram will make your system. It makes things complicated and ultimately isnt how things tend to play out. When it comes to games, generally the goal is to have enough ram to support your CPU. So if the CPU you want is a ryzen 9 5900X, keep your DDR4 ram. Also id recommend a 5800x3d over a 5900X if its for gaming.

If you want a ryzen 9800x3d (which typically i would recommend if you have the budget), then you have to upgrade to at least 32gb of ddr5 to support it.

Going the 9800x3d route will be noticeably faster and also enables upgrading your GPU down the road.

If you're doing a full rebuild anyway, I would go the 9800x3d route. you pay more now but it will let the PC feel strong enough longer, and give you better upgrade paths once it does start to fall behind.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Thank you, this is what I needed. Okay so in your opinion, if you was to buy a priced pc (not the best of the best ofc) using amd, what would you do.

Currently im looking at
Ryzen 7 7800x
RTX 5070
DDR5 ram,
B850 motherboard
Then your other bits and pieces.
So far it’s costing me just shy of £2000

Would this be good, by the way the game I’ll be playing the most is RDR2 and preferably on high graphics.

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iszoloscope@reddit

That will be more then fine, I played RDR2 (online) for a few months with my previous build. That was a 8700K and still my 1080ti I believe, since then I upgraded my GPU twice.

I now play BF 6 with a 7600 (so bit less then you) and a 9700XT (bit more then you) and I get 150 to 190 fps on 1440p.

Few tips, try to get a 9000 serie CPU and see what AMD GPU's cost in your country/area. Also check which brand GPU (Nvidia or AMD) gives more fps for RDR2.

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MisguidedColt88@reddit

It sounds similar to my current pc but with a better GPU and fairly worse CPU (the x3d makes a big difference in gaming).

Ryzen 9800x3d

32gb ddr5

rtx4070

b850 wifi gaming plus mobo

I haven't played RDR2, but given its a few years old now I imagine you can run basically max graphics or close to it. I can still run all the games i want to play on high or max settings (at 1080p).

I cant comment on cost because I'm in Canada so my sense of price will be way different.

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Sumeung-Gai@reddit

The ram isn't the difference maker in this equation, the CPU is BY A MILE. 5900x vs 7900x would be a better measure of the performance differences between ram generations, of which there are some. In short the second configuration is theoretically faster in every way.

That being said if you are playing at 1440p or 4k it is not financially worth it as you will be GPU limited and will not realize the full potential of the CPU. At 1080p 240 however the 2nd setup is the obvious winner.

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lazyhustlermusic@reddit

That’s not how they work though, and aren’t interchangeable. You’re comparing different generations of cpus that each use different generations of ram. So yes, more expensive = faster in this context but it’s more nuanced than ‘lol 5 is more than 4’

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Warcraft_Fan@reddit

You can't physically use DDR4 in DDR5 slot or vice versa. It's more than just faster RAM, there are many other changes that makes it nearly impossible to cross generation memory.

The last time we could carry memory sticks across generation, it was with 30 pin SIMM in 72 pin slot with adapter. 30 pins were last produced in mid 1990s and 72 pins were retired with Pentium and PowerPC era computer using larger DIMM

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dertechie@reddit

It’s mostly compatibility with the newer CPUs, but yes, DDR5 does do things better than DDR4.
DDR5 offers much higher bandwidth to RAM. How much this matters depends on the workload.

There is one platform that can use either, depending on motherboard setup - LGA 1700. When playing games from 2020, there isn’t much difference between the two. When playing games from 2025, LGA 1700 CPUs average about 20% higher FPS when tested in CPU bound scenarios.

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-UserRemoved-@reddit

RAM is fast temporary storage that is used by your CPU for data it's currently using (VRAM does the same for GPU). It plays into CPU performance, it doesn't perform on it's own.

Certain workloads that are CPU or memory heavy may benefit from DDR5 more given the higher speeds and increased bandwidth, but you didn't tell us any of your workloads so I can only assume it's likely not of much concern for you, and CPU choice would dictate the DDR generation you use.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

My goal for my new pc are these two things:
- Be able to game on high quality settings and not have major fps drops
- be able to run CAD softwares and some 3d design as it will be part of my job soon.

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-UserRemoved-@reddit

Nothing you listed makes me think DDR4 vs DDR5 matters for you, and the decision should be based on CPU vs CPU instead.

Again, you can use benchmarks to determine performance. If you know performance, and you know price, then you can decide for yourself which option is more worth your money.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Alright thanks, didn’t mean for any of my info to be confusing or Elusive, I’m just not to clued up on pc’s but want an upgrade. Thanks for the help.

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HJQueen@reddit

600 euros between those two options is stupid because you could've reused the RAM. All that matters is you're happy. This sub tends to push people into unnecessary territory because they're elitests.

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Warcraft_Fan@reddit

From scratch, I'd invest in AM5 with DDR5 as AM4/DDR4 is pretty much at the end of life and very limited upgrade opportunity. AM5 and DDR5 is still new and should be good for a decade of minor but very useful upgrades.

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Sumeung-Gai@reddit

What resolution are you playing in what's ur monitor hz?

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misteryk@reddit

9800x3d destroys it in everything it's not even close.

In games it's marginally better than 5600x/5700x/5800x i would not buy it for gaming it's not worth price increase https://youtu.be/6x2BYNimNOU?si=CGCtZejPbW6lHJVX&t=373

as for comparison with 9800x3d here's one with 5800x on the chart that has basically the same performance as 5900x in games https://youtu.be/s-lFgbzU3LY?si=JDww-fSTmSaT-b8w&t=654

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BadGoodNotBad@reddit

Good luck finding one

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misteryk@reddit

???

they're literally everywhere https://pcpartpicker.com/product/fPyH99/amd-ryzen-7-9800x3d-47-ghz-8-core-processor-100-1000001084wof

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BadGoodNotBad@reddit

For 400 minimum, you're better off getting an AM5 bundle from microcenter if you live near one.

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IHaveTheBestOpinions@reddit

Everyone saying the 9800x3d is the better processor is correct, of course, but that's not the question you should be asking. The roght question is "what performance difference will I see?"

Unless you're a twitch gamer going for ultra high FPS on 1080p low settings, both options you presented are likely to be bottlenecked by that RTX 5070 GPU. So you might get a few extra frames in some situations, but probably you won't notice much difference in actual gaming even though the 9800x3d is far more capable - it will just be more underutilized.

Maybe you want that extra headroom for streaming or some other non-gaming tasks, but otherwise I don't think it's worth the price difference, especially considering the fact that you already have DDR4 RAM and RAM is stupid expensive right now.

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skyfishgoo@reddit

DDR5 is faster.

DDR4 is cheaper.

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markshelbyperry@reddit

Knowing what you use/want to use your computer for, what you currently have, and what bothers you about what you currently have, are important considerations.

DDR5 is around twice as fast as ddr4 in terms of throughput, but has the same latency as DDR4. So the RAM performance itself is not that important a variable.

The processor is really the difference between your options. The 9800 is significantly faster and the huge L3 cache on the 9800x3d will have a big effect for things like games.

BTW AMD has said that its next generation Zen 6 cpus will also use AM5, and rumors suggest Zen 7 will also use AM5, so maybe a small consideration is that there’s an upgrade path for the 9800x3d option.

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TBNRhash@reddit

Depending on your motherboard i would recommend keeping it if you decide to go down the 5900x path if it has high end VRMS but ultimately your choice

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Huge_Valuable9732@reddit

you dont need a ryzen 9. if youre really hell bent on upgrading am4, go 5800xt or roll the dice waiting til later in the summer when 5800x3d 10th anniversary comes out

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mati203920392@reddit

Important thing here is what resolution you are using, in 2k there will be no difference between those builds, at 1080p i'd say up to 20%. Regadless of that i would get 1st option but with ryzen 5700x, bassicly no difference at gaming vs 5900x but much cheapper, and upgrade in a year or two when ram prices gets better.

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number8888@reddit

Whichever ram you use is determined by the cpu you will be using (more specifically the socket). If you want to reuse you DDR4 ram your only choice is to stay with AM4 which is your first choice.

Note that if you main usage is gaming you should consider the X3D models instead.

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Does the 5000 series have x3d models?

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G-nome420@reddit

5500, 5600, 5700, 5800 all X3D exist but are hard to find for a good price. All of the CPUS perform within about 15-3% of the 5800x3d.

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PCBuilderCat@reddit

Yes but they can be hard to find for a reasonable price I’ve found (in the Uk)

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jbshell@reddit

Rumor is AMD is bringing back the 5800X3D soon for AM4 10 Year Anniversary edition as well.

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PCBuilderCat@reddit

The difference here is nothing to do with RAM you’re comparing a 2 gen old CPU and the current best gaming CPU on the market

So naturally, there’s no competition there

To answer your actual question if you have comparable CPUs (so say, idk specifics, but something more like a 5900x vs a 9700x or something) than the difference from DDR4 and DDR5 for gaming specifically is not massive whatsoever. You’ll run into something like a GPU bottleneck long before using DDR4 is your problem

In your specific case though? If you’ve got the extra 600 just go for it and stick your DDR4 kit on eBay for 100 quid or something.

Alternatively maybe have a look at a 7800x3D instead. The performance difference vs the 9 is tiny and you might be able to put some money towards a better GPU like the 9070xt (unless you want to go NVIDIA which is fair enough)

ALL THAT said the 5900x and the 5070 would still work absolutely fantastic together and you’d have 600 quid in your pocket

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Jaded-Bet6646@reddit (OP)

Thanks, this made it easier to understand. Building a pc and getting parts is just too much stress than what it should be. Guess it’s like that for anything a bit expensive tho

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LesPeterGuitarJam@reddit

I recently went from Intel i9-11900, RTX 4070, 32GB DDR4 RAM, 2TB SSD to Ryzen 7 9850X3D, RTX 5080 OC, 32GB DDR5 RAM. The jump was insane. Way bigger than I expected. It's a beast.

Been an Intel guy since I got my first Pentium 90hz CPU, this is my first Ryzen / AMD CPU. And I can comfortably say that my next CPU most likely going to be a Ryzen / AMD..

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ssuper2k@reddit

You can just ugrade to a 5700x + 4060 Use it for 1-2 years

Then upgrade to next gen cpu/gpu

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ThatsHowIMetYourMom@reddit

That was my move. I replaced my 2600 with a used 5600x for $60 to try to buy myself enough time for RAM prices to return to earth. And I’ll just put the savings toward the next full build.