Corsair isn't just a busy RAM manufacturer, but also does some analytical studies on RAM and how it impacts the overall system performance from time to time. As a media that tries to remain objective it's hard to consider these articles entirely unbiased but the fact remains they are often well done and thoroughly executed. This is also the case with its latest article that looks at how the memory capacity affects performance in a Core i7 system.
The new Core i7 processors sports an integrated memory controller with three channels which means that most manufacturers are now launching kits of 3GB and 6GB. Corsair is one of them and it has now compared the performance in a number of games with 3GB and 6GB RAM respectively.
The results can be studied from many angles where it is pretty clear that newer games does better with more than 3GB memory in Windows Vista. There are several occasions where the average performance increase noticeably with 6GB memory, but most importantly the frame rate doesn't drop as low as it does with 3GB, due to more harddrive activity. Some rather interesting reading.
"In our tests the minimum frame rate in World in Conflict rose by 50% when we upgraded from 3GB of system memory to 6GB of system memory. In Crysis Warhead the jump was far more significant, with the minimum frame rate increasing by a factor of 3x when upgrading from 3GB to 6GB of memory. The Crysis Warhead results also highlight the need for large amounts of system memory when using high graphical detail settings. The results from Warhammer Online are similar to World in Conflict and Crysis Warhead and show a minimum frame rate increase of 45% when upgrading from 3GB to 6GB of memory."
Corsair's article can be found by following the link below (PDF) and even though the source may make you hesitate you should give it a chance before picking out your new kit before your Core i7 upgrade.
:: Gaming Performance Analysis– 6GB vs. 3GB
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Core i7 Gaming Performance Analysis– 6GB vs. 3GB RAM
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