The upgrade your upgrade deserves
Anyone with the need for a new CPU and even the slightest inclination towards tech envy is currently waiting for new stock of theAMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, the unbeatably powerful new chip that our boffin friends atDigital Foundryare calling the fastest gaming CPU ever.
If, however, youre hoping to switch to the 9800X3D from an older system with DDR4 RAM, youll need to upgrade that as well as the motherboard, as the entire Ryzen 9000 series only works with newer DDR5 memory.
Cyber Mondaywont help materialise more processors into retailers warehouses, but it can help you make this RAM switch on the cheap.
Relatively speaking.
And I can recommend a nice, fast 32GB kit of Corsair Vengeance DDR5, which is down by 43 in the UK and $22 in the US.
UK deal:
Corsair Vengeance DDR5 32GB (2x16GB)
94 (was 137)
See at Amazon UK
US deal:
$100 (was $122)
See at Amazon US
Vengeance is a name thats been synonymous with no-nonsense reliability ironic, given the whole “dig two graves” saying since well before DDR5 became AMDs most favouritest memory platform.
Ive chosen this kit specifically because a) anything more than 32GB is a waste for games and b) besides the speedy 6000MHz clock speed, its also got a CAS latency rating of CL30, which is very speedy by DDR5 standards.
Normally its CL32 or higher, and higher latency means worse performance, even if you do eventually pair it with the current king of CPUs.
