Late 2011 Macbook Pro ram to upgrade

[Juan TS]

Hey Guys,

I have a Late 2011 13'' Macbook Pro, which is running dead slow. I want to buy a 4gb ram so I can add it to the original one and have 8gbs.

Since I am budget constrained, I was looking for the most accessible ram chio, and came across the following 4. I would like to know if these are compatible with the Macbook before everything, and if you have any suggestions on which.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...2&sr=1-44&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

http://www.amazon.co.uk/PC10600-133...79&sr=1-2&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Crucial-CT5...ON-ECC/dp/B005LDLV6S/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...9&sr=1-11&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

Thanks guys!

 

[CanadaRAM]

The RAM you have listed are PC generic, if you want to be assured of compatibility, Corsair and Crucial have Mac specific model numbers;

For Corsair CMSAxxxxxxxxx
For Crucial CTxxxxxxxxxM

You want to purchase memory with a lifetime manufacturer's warranty, from a seller who guarantees compatibility, and who offers a no cost (no restock, no shipping cost) return or replacement if it does not work.

You say you want to add a 4 GB to the 4 you already have. Have you checked for certain whether you have a sigle 4 GB module, or two 2 GB modules presently?

 

[JTToft]

I want to buy a 4gb ram so I can add it to the original one and have 8gbs.

- Provided the installed 4 GB are the original modules, you can't do that, since both slots will be occupied. Look in the memory section of "About This Mac".

All the modules you linked to are (probably) compatible. I say probably, because the information is quite sparse. It's worth making sure they're compatible with 1.5V, which isn't stated for all of them. The Crucial is the best option, since it's 1600MHz.

Your computer will support up to 16GB 1600MHz RAM, and to upgrade you'll have to remove at least one of the installed modules.
I use 16GB Corsair Vengeance 1600MHz in my 2011 machine. Recommended.

The RAM you have listed are PC generic, if you want to be assured of compatibility, Corsair and Crucial have Mac specific model numbers

- If they're more expensive, that's a waste of money. RAM is RAM and as long as you buy RAM with the right specs, you're fine.
In addition, different Macs have different requirements and capabilities, so a generic "mac compatible" label says nearly nothing, and it certainly doesn't ensure you're getting the best or fastest RAM you can.

 

[Juan TS]

- Provided the installed 4 GB are the original modules, you can't do that, since both slots will be occupied. Look in the memory section of "About This Mac".

All the modules you linked to are (probably) compatible. I say probably, because the information is quite sparse. It's worth making sure they're compatible with 1.5V, which isn't stated for all of them. The Crucial is the best option, since it's 1600MHz.

Your computer will support up to 16GB 1600MHz RAM, and to upgrade you'll have to remove at least one of the installed modules.
I use 16GB Corsair Vengeance 1600MHz in my 2011 machine. Recommended.



- If they're more expensive, that's a waste of money. RAM is RAM and as long as you buy RAM with the right specs, you're fine.
In addition, different Macs have different requirements and capabilities, so a generic "mac compatible" label says nearly nothing, and it certainly doesn't ensure you're getting the best or fastest RAM you can.

Thank you very much for your answer.

Indeed I have 2x2gb memory chips. Can I leave a 2gb chip and add in a 4gb to make it 6? (also, they say both are 1333MHz, so will a 2gb will be compatible with a 1600MHz chip?)

And if the answer is yes to both, you hence recommend this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...9&sr=1-11&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

as it is 1.5v and 1600MHz (its the fourth ram available, at £25.00)?

Thank you very much again

 

[saturnotaku]

The RAM you have listed are PC generic, if you want to be assured of compatibility, Corsair and Crucial have Mac specific model numbers;

For Corsair CMSAxxxxxxxxx
For Crucial CTxxxxxxxxxM

I would have argued in favor of Mac-specific RAM on older systems, but it doesn't matter on the system the OP has.

 

[JTToft]

Indeed I have 2x2gb memory chips. Can I leave a 2gb chip and add in a 4gb to make it 6? (also, they say both are 1333MHz, so will a 2gb will be compatible with a 1600MHz chip?)

- You can, yes. If you mix different clock speeds, though, they'll both run at the lowest module's speed. So if you get a 1600 and put with the 1333, they'll both run at 1333, so you won't get any benefit from the 1600MHz (but it will work fine).
You could still get a 1600 MHz module, which would make it easier to upgrade to 2x4GB 1600MHz in the future if you should want to.

Other options (in GB):
4+4, 2+8, 8+8.

 

[snaky69]

The RAM you have listed are PC generic, if you want to be assured of compatibility, Corsair and Crucial have Mac specific model numbers;

For Corsair CMSAxxxxxxxxx
For Crucial CTxxxxxxxxxM

You want to purchase memory with a lifetime manufacturer's warranty, from a seller who guarantees compatibility, and who offers a no cost (no restock, no shipping cost) return or replacement if it does not work.

You say you want to add a 4 GB to the 4 you already have. Have you checked for certain whether you have a sigle 4 GB module, or two 2 GB modules presently?

Mac specific doesn't exist except in a marketing department's wet dream. They just use the same modules, slap a "made for mac" sticker on it and charge an arm and a leg extra.

OP: Buy whatever's on sale with the correct specs and a good return policy/warranty and you're golden.

 

[CanadaRAM]

Mac specific doesn't exist except in a marketing department's wet dream. They just use the same modules, slap a "made for mac" sticker on it and charge an arm and a leg extra.

OP: Buy whatever's on sale with the correct specs and a good return policy/warranty and you're golden.

OK, whatever works for you.

You make the assumption that ALL of the specs are published (they aren't), and that you know which ones are relevant (Hint: DDR3-1333 SODIMM is not all there is to it). And you assume that the SPD values have been correctly written to the module by the manufacturer.

Get back to me after you install some generic high density Single-Rank modules in your 2009 Mac even though they are the "correct specs".

There's a reason why Kingston, for example, has dropped support for thousands of individual models of PCs and Macs; they have switched manufacturing across the board to a single rank module build with lower chip counts and higher density chips. These work on most modern machines but fail miserably on many machines, particularly from 2008 - 2011.

and it certainly doesn't ensure you're getting the best or fastest RAM you can.

Please point out to me where putting faster than spec RAM in a Macintosh has any advantage, I would like to know how you would overclock the machine.

different Macs have different requirements and capabilities

Getting the correct speed and voltage for the machine is important, of course there is no one single "Mac compatible" module for all models of Mac.

Also, the Corsair CMSA Mac RAM is no different in price from the CMSO Corsair ValueRAM (on Amazon.ca Canada at least, individual sellers in different countries may vary)

So the linked generic RAM may work fine.

My point was that SOME generic RAM is unworkable even if the basic spec looks right, and given that there is little or no price delta between the "Value" and the Mac version of a given brand, if you want the assurance of compatibility, you should know that the companies have Mac part numbers.

 

[JTToft]

Please point out to me where putting faster than spec RAM in a Macintosh has any advantage, I would like to know how you would overclock the machine.

- I don't believe I said it did.
However, if you consider "faster than spec RAM" to be anything faster than 1333MHz or above 8GB for the machine in question (which is what Apple's specifications list as its maximum), then using faster than spec RAM indeed does have advantages, as that machine is actually capable of utilizing 16GB RAM at 1600MHz without issues of any sort.

My point was that SOME generic RAM is unworkable even if the basic spec looks right

- Care to provide an example of where that's true for the Late 2011 13" MacBook Pro in question?

and given that there is little or no price delta between the "Value" and the Mac version of a given brand, if you want the assurance of compatibility, you should know that the companies have Mac part numbers.

- Definitely agreed on that. Information is always better than a lack thereof.

 

[snaky69]

You make the assumption that ALL of the specs are published (they aren't), and that you know which ones are relevant (Hint: DDR3-1333 SODIMM is not all there is to it). And you assume that the SPD values have been correctly written to the module by the manufacturer.

Get back to me after you install some generic high density Single-Rank modules in your 2009 Mac even though they are the "correct specs".

There's a reason why Kingston, for example, has dropped support for thousands of individual models of PCs and Macs; they have switched manufacturing across the board to a single rank module build with lower chip counts and higher density chips. These work on most modern machines but fail miserably on many machines, particularly from 2008 - 2011.

I've seen boxes of Kingston RAM with a Made For Mac sticker, in a brick and mortar store, right next to the regular stuff. If you looked at the package and read the SKU on both, they were 100% identical. Same goes for all the printed writing on the chips. The only difference was the sticker. Price difference? About $10 per stick. That's an expensive sticker.

One has to remember a Mac is a regular, run-of-the-mill, Intel-based PC, in a pretty case, that runs OS X. So long as the RAM stick is compatible with whatever the mainboard can handle, it'll work. End of story.

If the RAM will not work in a Mac, is it also unlikely to work in a PC of the same vintage with a similar mainboard.

Again, there is no such thing as Mac RAM ever since the switch to intel.

 

[CanadaRAM]

So long as the RAM stick is compatible with whatever the mainboard can handle, it'll work.

Correct although it is a self referential statement: "Any RAM that is compatible will be compatible". We have never debated that you need compatible RAM.

The debate is how do YOU tell if it is compatible with the mainboard?

You are saying that any "PC" or "generic" RAM with the DDR3-1066 spec (for example) will work in any Mac that takes DDR3-1066. And I am saying (with 20+ years experience in the Mac RAM business), you are wrong. there is much more at play than "DDR3-1066 SODIMM".

If the RAM will not work in a Mac, is it also unlikely to work in a PC of the same vintage with a similar mainboard.

You make an absolute statement that is absolutely untrue

The chip density, SPD programming and the Row and column organization of the cells are major factors in Mac compatibility. PC machines are by and large much more lenient in accepting RAM.

http://www.ehmac.ca/anything-mac/133569-beep-x-3-1st-time-everything-sold-bad-ram-q.html

In the case linked, the poster actually bought Mushkin RAM sold for Mac. (Unfortunately they didn't know that there are different Mushkin modules for different Macs of the same speed, and that the first modules they got, like the majority of PC RAM, were high density 8-chip modules that failed miserably in their particular model Mac) and they went through three sets of RAM before they hit on some modules with the correct density, 16 chips and SPD programming.

 

[JTToft]

You are saying that any "PC" or "generic" RAM with the DDR3-1066 spec (for example) will work in any Mac that takes DDR3-1066.

- He said nothing of the sort, nor have anyone in this thread.

And the case you're referring to is about a significantly older machine than the OP's.
The fact of the matter is that it doesn't matter for the machine this thread is about. Any 1.5V-compatible non-ECC unbuffered 1333MHz or 1600MHz 204-pin SO-DIMM modules up to 8 GB are fine for it. Unless you have evidence to the contrary?

 

[Meister]

Hey Guys,

I have a Late 2011 13'' Macbook Pro, which is running dead slow. I want to buy a 4gb ram so I can add it to the original one and have 8gbs.

Since I am budget constrained, I was looking for the most accessible ram chio, and came across the following 4. I would like to know if these are compatible with the Macbook before everything, and if you have any suggestions on which.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...2&sr=1-44&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

http://www.amazon.co.uk/PC10600-133...79&sr=1-2&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Crucial-CT5...ON-ECC/dp/B005LDLV6S/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...9&sr=1-11&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

Thanks guys!

If your goal is a speed increase, I have a strong suspicion that a RAM upgrade will be a waste of time and $$$. Have you already installed an ssd?

 

[glenthompson]

Hey Guys,

I have a Late 2011 13'' Macbook Pro, which is running dead slow. I want to buy a 4gb ram so I can add it to the original one and have 8gbs.

Since I am budget constrained, I was looking for the most accessible ram chio, and came across the following 4. I would like to know if these are compatible with the Macbook before everything, and if you have any suggestions on which.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...2&sr=1-44&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

http://www.amazon.co.uk/PC10600-133...79&sr=1-2&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Crucial-CT5...ON-ECC/dp/B005LDLV6S/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CMS...9&sr=1-11&keywords=ddr3+pc3+10600+1333mhz+4gb

Thanks guys!

Since you're budget constrained have you verified that memory pressure is the cause of your slowness? What does Activity Monitor show? Better to spend a little time finding the root cause before spending the money.