First of all, thanks for any and all!
To explain it like I do at work:
^
Speed
/ \
Capacity -- Price
It's the efficiency triangle. You can pick one ignoring the other two and it'll do great (awesome speed OR capacity OR price). Or find a choice that's good at two, shunning the third.
hehe. The Efficiency Triangle.. ; ) I like that. I am engaging *all* efficiency triangles, on this purchase.. and appreciate your guys' help with this first one.
After that, DDR3 and DDR4's main difference is processors and speeds supported.
This is the kinda info I'm looking for. I mean, what's the big deal between 3 and 4? Relatively speaking, memory standards/specs don't go up that often. So there very well could be a big deal, or two. Like a way huger data path or lower heat/power or... I dunno! I haven't done this for awhile. I have a hard time believing that a whole new standard that requires a whole other processor doesn't provide a (faster!).. more modern computing experience with a longer lifespan of usefulness - thus keeping my not often up-to-date PC up to date for.. longer. Hopefully not 12 years, this time.
If there is no reeeeal noticeable difference with DDR4 and the processors supporting this memory offer no reeeal noticeable difference - and - this trend is likely to continue throughout their (the memory and processor) lifetime... at that point, spending half as much on memory and processor (and probably less on a motherboard, too..) becomes more tempting. Like when 386/40's where outgunning and outselling more expensive Pentiums.
My *guess* is, for a motherboard to support the processors and memory we're talking about, it is going to be fairly modern. It's going to have the current bus standards and all that happy hoo hoo. I'm good with spending a little more for this, too.
I mean, I'm paying extra for what would probably be considered current/'modern' tech, but, I'm not really paying New Cutting Edge Tech prices when we're talking about (any speed flavor of) DDR4 and the lowest end DDR4 supporting motherboard. Huh? This stuff's been around since I started shopping some months ago, anyway.
Or.. can I/is it smarter to get *high end* DDR3 for the same price - that blows away low end 'DDR4 tech'........? And will that DDR3 tech be considered acceptably modern for an acceptable amount of time. (As read in our crystal balls).
Finally, 10 paragraphs later, I figured out what I was trying to say.... ^^
Speed isn't everything: don't forget capacity and price.
No no, speed *is* everything...!
But, we often can't have everything.
In this case I can afford 16 gig of DDR4. I bet I can get it for close enough to $100 before year's end...
In this case I can afford the processor.
Memory and processor and motherboard are the three things I skimp on a little as possible. They're the core. Everything feeds off of these things.
Video is super important too... but it's an expansion card and not so ...integrated. I plan to hit that triangle as hard as I can when the time comes and I have to hit it before the motherboard triangle, just to be safe that I'm not skipping some great new video standard.. And then it's time to hit up the Hard Drive triangle and visit a local PC shop for what is hopefully a really great case. My old one shoulda never made it this far : D
I don't have (any) tons of disposable cash laying around.. but.. I have been saving very small amounts, for.. years. And I don't plan to build another PC for years. The PC I have now? It's 12 years old and I play my (old Cryptic) games on max settings. It takes Windows 5 minutes to fully boot! but.. Point is, I've been saving for this and I don't plan to do it again for awhile - like last time.
"If he can afford it, why's he asking us?"
Well.. because what I save here, if anything, I can spend elsewhere. Or maybe I decide I should spend that money, here, and save, for spending more, elsewhere.
I guess what surprised me is that there are still a ton of seemingly popular processors out there on DDR3. There was a time that the 386/40 was an excellent processor even when Pentiums were making the scene. Well, and, 'DDR3 tech' is about half the cost of going DDR4.
But what's that half? I would be surprised if I can't get 16 gigs of DDR4 for ~ $100 before years' end and several minutes of shopping revealed I can already get a DDR4 supporting processor $160.. I have not priced DDR4 motherboards but I would be surprised the sweet spot, there, wasn't ~ $120 or less. I have not priced DDR3 motherboards.. I wouldn't be surprised if they were half of the DDR4's, or a little more. This is all pretty acceptable and not surprising (unless I'm way wrong on the motherboards).
We're talking about equipment that may well have to last me another decade. Hope not! But it did last time. I'm getting my feet wet here. I need to start getting in ordering-stuff-mode which means I have to start getting straight in my head what tech to go for. Thanks for the help.
Even when my PCs only had to last a year or two or three at max, I always built them to last for 10. As a goal. (Damn lucky thing, this last time!) But that surely does not mean that I start at the Price part of the triangle and that I aim for super new alien technology. I aim for the superest sweet spot I can find, and afford - what I think will be the fastest, for the longest, for the cheapest.. Just like TQ is talking about. Used to do it for my customers too : )
So what's the big deal about DDR4? Is there anything especially special about the motherboards and processors running it?
I picked DDR4 as the focus due to it is a newer standard than DDR3. DDR4 requires newer tech to run on - newer motherboards and processors. Well, and, Memory is King. One of them anyway. In the King/Queen geometric shape : )
^
Motherboard
/ \
Processor -- Memory
With very important but generally not as much immediate importance towards..
Video
...Storage
(which must be supported by Motherboard, above)
Case and a place to plug-in are a must! : D I have the latter, covered : )
Thanks for your help! Input! Vibe... Experience! : )