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How much ram should i buy for my MacPro?

W

wawathings

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 25, 2008
26
0
Hello all,
I am after some advice on how much ram i should buy for my:

2008
-Octo 2.8 MacPro 3,1
-2x1gb

I have all the stock hardware installed with no upgrades yet.
The current 2x1gb ram isn't cutting it for me at all.

I am a design student who works allot with the cs4 suite mainly in web/flash/photoshop/aftereffects.

But switching over to architecture and allot of 3D work next year what is a good amount of ram to have in for this machine? 8gb - 10gb - 16gb ? they are the options I am considering.

Do you think that the macpro is in fact overkill for what i need would an imac or macbook pro be enough to perform architectural and 3d work ??
 
MovieCutter said:
Simple answer? As much as you can afford...
Click to expand...

Thats what i hear allot but to me thats bs...
I can afford 32gb but I wont max out 32gb or ram so whats the point ?

Why waste money on something you wont use is my concern so do people find 8gb or then 16gb to be enough?
 
Oh come on, go to 8GB or 16GB then. You can afford 32GB? But you're sitting at 2GB, I call BS myself. You're working 3D and you won't go to 32GB? Mac Pros EAT RAM for breakfast, and with Snow Leopard, they will even more. I have 8GB in my 2008 8 core and I'm going to 16GB next week. If you're doing anything with 3D, the more RAM the better, especially with AE or C4D.

You're asking for advice, I'm a pro, and I'm giving it to you. The more RAM, the better....
 
MovieCutter said:
You're asking for advice, I'm a pro, and I'm giving it to you. The more RAM, the better....
Click to expand...

Ohk thanks for the response moviecutter i think 16 will be good, it was what i was leaning towards.

A second questions ?

4X4 or 8x2 ?

8x2 is faster from what i have seen but 4x4 lines me up for future additions and i can add the 2gb i already own?
 
I like these memory threads every so often. I have 10gb in my Pro as it was I was willing to pay for at the time (2x1gb apple modules and added 4x2gb OWC's).
Seeing these threads makes me re evaluate memory sizes and prices, no I am not a power user as such, I use imovie (HD) quite a lot with photo work and virtual machines.
I will check out how my Mac is doing in activity monitor with regards to real memory and look at bumping to 16gb (by removing the 2x1gb's and the populating the remaining 4 spaces with 2gb sticks) or going up to 24gb.
 
johny5 said:
I like these memory threads every so often. I have 10gb in my Pro as it was I was willing to pay for at the time (2x1gb apple modules and added 4x2gb OWC's).
Seeing these threads makes me re evaluate memory sizes and prices, no I am not a power user as such, I use imovie (HD) quite a lot with photo work and virtual machines.
I will check out how my Mac is doing in activity monitor with regards to real memory and look at bumping to 16gb (by removing the 2x1gb's and the populating the remaining 4 spaces with 2gb sticks) or going up to 24gb.
Click to expand...

Is your 10gb enough for what you do, do you ever feel like your running out or maxing it out?
 
Buy a 2 x 4GiB kit. It's not much more expensive than 4 x 2GiB, and you can keep on adding 2 x 4GiB kits as you need it without waste.
 
cube said:
Buy a 2 x 4GiB kit. It's not much more expensive than 4 x 2GiB, and you can keep on adding 2 x 4GiB kits as you need it without waste.
Click to expand...

That sounds like a really good idea actually.
I'll keep upgrading till i'm happy.

thanks for the advice.
 
wawathings said:
Is your 10gb enough for what you do, do you ever feel like your running out or maxing it out?
Click to expand...

I havent been taxing it today but yes I think it was enough for what I use it for. I couldn't resist though and have just purchased 4 x 2gb modules so it will be fully populated with 8 x 2gb, should keep it going for a while :)
just need to sell my original 2 x 1gb modules now.
 
Rule of thumb if you need more memory is if your page outs are 10% or more of your page ins. This is NOT always the case though as some programs are made to stay in a certain amount of ram (ie 3gb max). I currently have 18GB ram in my 2008 mac pro and when using iMove06 HD, i get a few MB of page outs. So add as you go. Would suggest you stay away from the 512mb sticks.
 
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