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Question on adding RAM

C

c2kvette

macrumors member
Original poster
I have a Power Mac G5 Dual 1.8 with 1.25 gb of ram currently. Would I be able to tell a difference if I upgraded to 2.0 gb ($96) or 3.0 gb ($216). Would it be worth the extra money?

Programs I use:
QuarkXpress; Photoshop; Illustrator; iMovie HD; iPhoto; iDVD

Thanks!
 
c2kvette said:
I have a Power Mac G5 Dual 1.8 with 1.25 gb of ram currently. Would I be able to tell a difference if I upgraded to 2.0 gb ($96) or 3.0 gb ($216). Would it be worth the extra money?

Programs I use:
QuarkXpress; Photoshop; Illustrator; iMovie HD; iPhoto; iDVD

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Hopefully these benchmarks will help you decide for photoshop.

EDIT: Which versions of Quark, PS, and Illustrator are you using?
 
Simple: You'll be able to tell the difference the moment you exceed 2.0 Gb of programs and data at one time.

So it depends how you are using the software, and how big your projects are. If you consistently stay below the 2 Gb threshold, you'll see little if any improvement.

I'm just trying to think through how you are going to get from 1.25 Gb to 2 Gb. Your machine requires RAM in pairs. So I am guessing you are taking out the 2 x 128 that apple shipped it with and installing 2 x 512. If you have a G5 with 4 memory sockets, then you have to factor in that 4 x 512 leaves you with no room to expand -- so 2 x 1 Gb may be a better long term purchase
 
ps is the big hog there.

cs will max out at 2 no matter what your system has
cs2 w/o tiger is around 3.5 gb max
cs2 w/ tiger is however much you have.
 
c2kvette said:
I have a Power Mac G5 Dual 1.8 with 1.25 gb of ram currently. Would I be able to tell a difference if I upgraded to 2.0 gb ($96) or 3.0 gb ($216). Would it be worth the extra money?

Programs I use:
QuarkXpress; Photoshop; Illustrator; iMovie HD; iPhoto; iDVD

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Yes, you will see a difference in you Mac with more memory. Purchase whatever you can afford. Your prices sound quite low. Just be sure that you are purchasing from a legitimate company. They should offer a lifetime warranty. I would suggest that you check the Crucial RAM link above. They have an easy locator, very important that you get the correct RAM for your Mac.
 
I saw a dramatic improvement in going from 1.5 GB to 3.5 GB when using various programming tools (and many browser windows). Hopwever, I tended to be maxing out my RAM and swapping a lot - which you might or might not be doing.

I would suspect that you'd notice a difference between 2GB and 3GB and I agree that, if you can afford it, the extra GB is well worth the ~$100, esp. if, as noted, you've only got four slots.

If you've got an older dual-1.8 with 4 pairs (8 slots), I'd add a GB (2x512) and see if it works fine, then add the extra GB if necessary.
 
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