Easiest speedup--more RAM, or faster HD?

I recently got a stock 2GHz C2D Macbook--80 GB 5400 RPM HD and 1 GB memory. If you could only upgrade one, which would see a better speed boost: up the memory (to 1.5 GB using unmatched RAM), or install a 7200 RPM HD (remain at 80 GB)?
95% of the time, the speed is great, but after awhile switching between apps (especially heftier apps, like iPhoto and iTunes and very especially bringing these apps up via FrontRow), causes very noticeable delays. The login screen to get out of screensaver then takes awhile to come up as well.
Not too surprised to see pageouts (via MenuMeters) numbering in the hundreds of thousands, but my old dual-533 MHz PowerMac G4, with only 768 MB of RAM, didn't seem to choke as bad between iPhoto, etc. I don't regularly run PPC apps on my MB, though I do expect a speed/response penalty after starting one up.
So is my amount of RAM "okay" if I just up the speed of the HD?
One other difference: I always shut down my G4 when done so it starts fresh next time; my MB I just sleep/wake, so RAM isn't allowed to clear and virtual memory isn't flushed.
Comments and experience welcome, thanks!
Macbook 2 GHz C2D   Mac OS X (10.4.8)   1 GB RAM

If you are getting lots of pageouts, the correct solution is more RAM, or running fewer RAM-hungry programs at the same time.
Your ratio of pageouts to pageins should be less than 10%. If it is greater than that, you are working the virtual memory system too hard.
You probably should have 2 Gig RAM, but going to unmatched 1.5 will be a start. Eventually match up another 1 Gig DIMM.
When you run Acitivity Monitor, look to see what PPC stuff is running. If you can replace all the legacy PPC stuff with Intel or Universal apps, your memory will go farther, because you won't have the additional overhead of the Rosetta emulation layer running.
Widgets are often RAM hungry, too. Watch out there.
Since you are currently working your Virtual Memory system too hard, I'd recommend rebooting more often, to clear stuff out. (Once Rosetta is started by running a PPC app, it will stay in memory until reboot.)
Over-working the VM system will lead to premature Hard Disk failure, in addition to bad performance and lousy battery life.

Similar Messages

  • IMac 2012 (December) more RAM or faster processor?

    I will buy a 21.5 iMac.  Basic user: web, MS Office documents, some photo editing, burn DVDs.  Maybe light video.  I tend to keep my computers a long time (current Mac is the half dome from about 8 years ago).
    Question: for the most bang for the buck, and long term use, is it worth adding more RAM (8 to 16) or upgrading the processor (2.7 to 2.9)?
    Or just keep the basic model?
    Unlike previous questions like this, the 21.5 Macs don't let you add RAM later.   I get conflicting opinions from Mac store.

    IMHO if you intend to keep the machine a long time in order to get the best performance and most futureability I'd recommend getting the i7 21.5" with 16GB and get the 1TB Fusion drive. The 2012 21.5" iMacs are not designed to be user upgradeable for anything however OWC (www.macsales.com) sells a RAM upgrade kit. It takes skill to do the upgrade and will probably invalidate the warranty but it's possible.
    IMHO I'd buy the upgrades from Apple at the point of order. You can purchase the above (i7, 16GB, Fusion drive)  configuration from Apple's online store, I doubt the brick and mortar store would carry it.

  • Will more RAM mean faster rendering?

    Kinda silly question but I have 2GB of RAM on my 2.0ghz 20 inch imac. As of now, it takes about 30 minutes or a bit more to render a 3 min clip in 1080 with the h.264 compressor. If I upgrade to 4GB of RAM, will those times get better?

    It probably won't make much difference. H.264 conversion is extremely processor-bound.

  • How much will more RAM speed up my iBook?

    I am looking to upgrade my RAM.
    I know that speed is a multi-factor question. I need to know what's important and what pitfalls to avoid.
    I have an 12" iBook G4, 1.2GHz, 512 RAM (256 card, 256 internal). I recently installed a 120.0GB Western Digital "Scorpio" 5400RPM 9.5MM SuperSlim Notebook Drive with 8MB Data buffer.
    I am choosing between a 512 or 1g RAM upgrade. My questions are:
    1) How much will this speed up my computer? 2) Is the 1g really twice as fast? 3) with my specs?
    I read a post where some poor cat had upgraded RAM, but didn't feel the difference in iPhoto.
    My specs read pc2100 (pc2700 compatible). Will my specific machine work faster with pc2700? Comptick (which has an awesome battery price) has a 1g RAM upgrade for $189, which is pc2100. Apple's $300 1g is pc2700.
    What do I need to know about the bus rate so that I don't slow things up there?

    1) How much will this speed up my computer?
    There is no way we can quantify this for you. It depends on your usage pattern (i.e. what application you use, how many applications open at a time, etc.).
    2) Is the 1g really twice as fast?
    Most certainly the answer is no. If lack or RAM was causing delays in processing, adding more RAM will alleviate those delays and make your computing experience smoother and more enjoyable. But changing your RAM from 768 MB to 1.256 GB won't double the speed of your iBook.
    3) with my specs?
    ?? What is the question?
    I read a post where some poor cat had upgraded RAM, but didn't feel the difference in iPhoto.
    For the most part, iPhoto is disk intensive not RAM intensive. Therefore upgrading RAM will only improve certain aspects of iPhoto (such as photo editing).
    Will my specific machine work faster with pc2700?
    No, the PC2700 will operate at PC2100 speeds.
    Current RAM prices from Mac knowledgeable vendors offering lifetime warranties can be found at RamSeeker.com and DealRam.com.
    What do I need to know about the bus rate so that I don't slow things up there?
    Nothing. Just buy PC2100 or PC2700 RAM and relax.

  • More hard-drives = faster Virtual Memory ? or not...

    2 internal HD's... only one is being used for Virtual Memory. If both were being used, it could double VM disk access - simultaneously uploading.
    I know that buying Crazy Expensive Mac Pro RAM would sort the problem out, but i ain't going to do that any time too soon. Besides i might get a new hard-drive... and 3 drives should be able to do VM noticably faster.
    does anybody know if i can set the second drive as a VM scratch disk also ?
    - or what part of mac os x controls these Virtual Memory and disks and if that can be tweaked
    - or are there any good little apps for controlling VM?
    Thanks peeps.
    nicholas.

    Thanks.
    I'm not going to do that, though it is certainly of interest. I had a thread on another board which went from "use a raid single" to "you cheepscate buy ram" too quickly for my liking.
    Of interest from that was :
    1) Not having ram is bad when it hits disk VM - that's the slow bit.
    1.1) so if you buy a little, that will raise the ceiling and you'll hit VM less often. Every titchy bit helps.
    2) if you never go beyond your ram - more ram is wasted.
    3) with some EXPERT tweaking performance can be gained from controlling where VM pages to - but really either buy ram or use less apps.
    4) the reason i brought it up was flight sim mode on google earth (apple alt a). Which is a waste of time anyway ! But that sometimes freezes and writes to disk for 5-10 seconds. My professional apps, are almost always in ram, so i think i'll forget it. Or buy ram.
    5) if you want to know if you need ram - look at activity monitor - but combine "free AND inactive" to see how much/little is spare. Also read the "vm page ins".. if there are lots (7,000 in 10 minutes) you're into slow VM land.
    really... it's only apparent because the mac pro is lightning fast most of the time, and WHEN you're waiting on the HD - even though it's still running really fast - it is more apparent.
    Thanks everyone. Happy Mac'in.

  • Does installing more RAM void the warranty?

    I have a new MacBook that I bought in late January. After having to format my entire hard drive and reinstall Mac OS X because of playing Civilization IV: Colonization, I am interested in adding more RAM/VRAM to my MacBook. I noticed Apple put up a tutorial on how to install more; does this mean that doing so does not void the warranty I have on my MacBook? Also, is installing it easy?

    Also for future people it's very easy to change the RAM, open up the inside of the macbook pro, pop out the old RAM and click in the new, put the cover back on and turn on the macbook! it will take a longer time to boot up the first time, but then it will be much faster.

  • Aging g4 just keeps going but is more ram worthwhile?

    I have a g4 that was purchased in 2000. I have never had a problem with it and probably haven't turned it off 50 times since I bought it. My question is that I can't afford a new computer but is it worth putting more RAM in it now in view of it's age? I run heavy apps on it (i.e., adobe and open-source). Currently I have 756 total RAM. My understanding is that with OS X I can go as high as 2GB so is it worth it? I know I have been extremely lucky with how this computer has performed.
    The only other option I might consider is a Mac Mini with 4GB of RAM but everything I've read says that this is not a "production" machine. I am a graphic/web designer so performance is important (yeah, I know, so why am I using a dinosaur?).

    Hi, helloiamamac -
    There's no factual way to answer that question, only opinion.
    When using OS 9, since you already have more than 512MB of RAM, adding more will not help much, as long as you are not running out of RAM under your current usage patterns. If you had less than 512MB, you could see (subjectively) an improvement in OS 9 by adding more. OS 9 can address a max of 1.5GB of RAM.
    If you are using OSX, then adding more can help, specifically by reducing or eliminating the need for the OS to use swap space on the disk (a form of virtual memory). No data is read faster than data in RAM. Although fast processors (which you do not have) can manage swapping data from disks much better, it's still not as fast as reading from RAM. OSX can address a max (on your machine) of 2.0GB of RAM.
    That machine, a G4 (Gigabit Ethernet) model, has four RAM slots (it was the last machine prior to the G4 MDDs which has more than three slots); each slot is rated for a max RAM module size of 512MB. Four of those give the machine's max total of 2.0GB.
    You stated your machine has "756 total RAM" - might that be 768MB instead? 768MB is usually the result of one 512MB module and one 128MB module, although it could also be three 256MB modules (or some other combo of modules). In order to get 2.0GB of RAM in it, the minimum number of 512MB modules you would need is three; the max is four. You would need to balance the cost of those vs. the cost of a newer machine, one with more RAM than you have now.
    By "newer" machine I am suggesting that instead of a brand new machine, you look at ones older than new, but newer than yours. Some of the G4 MDDs are going for good (i.e., low) prices, perhaps even lower than the cost of adding RAM to your machine. G5s are another possibility, provided you do not need to boot to OS 9.

  • I have a MBPro 2.4 Ghz with 2 GB ram max. is there anyway to add more ram?

    so this might be a really stupid question
    I have a MBPro 2.4 Ghz with 2 GB ram max. is there anyway to add more ram?

    unfortunately i don't have the manual anymore
    Model Name:          MacBook Pro
      Model Identifier:          MacBookPro3,1
      Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
      Processor Speed:          2.4 GHz
      Number Of Processors:          1
      Total Number Of Cores:          2
      L2 Cache:          4 MB
      Memory:          2 GB
      Bus Speed:          800 MHz
      Boot ROM Version:          MBP31.0070.B07
      SMC Version (system):          1.16f11
    I've read that max'ing out ram isn't the best thing to do. also i've read that some memory chips are faster than others?
    thanks for all your help

  • Upgrade: more Ram or SSD ?

    I am using a Mac mini 2009 with 2 GB Ram Mac OS 10.5.8
    It looks like there are two options to upgrade my Mac.
    1. upgrade the Ram from 2 GB to 4 GB
    2. replace the internal hard drive with SSD
    I just want to improve the overall performance.
    Which one would you recommend?
    Thank you.

    Of course, the ultimate prize would be to upgrade both, but for overall performance, go SSD.
    The difference is so noticeable and rewarding.
    I had an early 2008 MB Pro 15" which I'd used a Cardbus SSD in the Expresscard slot for over a year. Now I have a current model MB Pro 15" which I do love, but in many respects it's no faster than my old one with the SSD.
    If you are planning to do a lot of video editing and transcoding, image editing, etc. then the SSD has less noticeable improvement and is better served by better CPU and more RAM. But if you're consuming content, using social networking, importing and managing lots of files, databases, etc. then SSD it is. Reboots, launching multiple applications, Cmd+Tab(bing) between apps are all accelerated greatly by SSD.
    An interesting idea, I've seen positive reacting to the new hybrid drives form Seagate which combine SSD with traditional HD storage. This way you still get 500GB but also, SSD and lower cost. In fact, then you could buy the RAM too!

  • More Memory or faster processor?

    Hi, Im interested in buying a Macbook soon and have a question. Which setup would give me better performance?
    1)
    2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
    2 GB Memory
    2)
    2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
    1GB Memory
    Everything else is exactly the same. Thanks in advance

    Hi jtp861,
    I prefer faster processor over more ram, because the processor is fixed, while ram you can upgrade anytime.
    Also with 2.16 model you also get dual layer dvd burner that will come handy if you need to back up your iTunes library and your other data.
    And if you purchase 2.0 with 2 gb of ram directly from apple, it considered as built to order item, and apple will not accept return on BTO order.
    Better upgrade memory yourself.
    Good Luck.

  • What do I gain by installing more ram ?

    Hi !
    I would like to know what are the advantages of installing more ram on my powerbook ? Would installing an additionnal 512 mb ram or 1gb ram speed up the idvd compression to dvd ? More generally while I gain performance on game graphics or video compression ( which takes quite a long time on a powerbook )?
    thank you

    Hi Yanis,
    No performance gain in graphics speed, no, but
    a smoother and quicker computer use in everything that uses "hard disk accessing" while running a task.
    Simplistic answer:
    The more RAM is available, the less tasks need to use Virtual Memory.
    And RAM is much faster than VM, too.
    If you often hear that your work uses hard disk accessing, then you'll be happy with extra RAM.
    Axl

  • How to give iMovie '09 more RAM?

    I'm editing a 13:49 short on iMovie and it's lagging a lot. I hear that giving it more RAM will make it run faster? How do I do this?
    Thanks!

    char304 wrote:
    .... I hear that giving it more RAM will make it run faster? How do I do this?
    You can't.
    There's some Unix/Terminal 'hack', which allows to give any app a higher 'priority', but I don't notice any speed-diffrences doing so.
    a slow-down in performance has many reasons: do you use 'regular' camcorder imports or 'other' imported files? if so, which codec is in use? e.g. iM handles h264, but that needs 'tons of computation' in the background ...
    disk-space ... iM swap Gigs of in-between-files onto the local, specific: the MacOS partition. if you had, for any unknown reason, partitioned your drive, that part should offer at last 15-20GBs.
    'traffic' - if external drives are in use, the usb-bus could be 'crowded' by other tasks ....
    other tasks ... e.g., a Spotlight-indexing while editing could brake the performance ...
    etc etc etc.

  • Is 2gig to 3gig  of ram noticable? + do extra displays require more ram?

    hey guys
    first question.... i have two gigs of ram in my mac right now.. i use photoshop and handel large raw files, would i notice any differnce if i were to upgrade to .. say 4 gig? or even 3?
    second question... i have my 23" display and then i have another 19". would the computer run fast/more securely/smoother without it? in other words, does an evter display take up more ram?
    thanks alott

    You probably want 8GB of RAM as a start.
    A fast boot drive, another fast scratch drive, and data drive, just to get started.
    http://homepage.mac.com/boots911/.Public/PhotoshopAccelerationBasics2.4W.pdf

  • Will More Ram stop the GB 08 painful slow down

    Will More Ram stop GB 08 from running painful slow ?
    I had 3GB of ram and GB on some songs GB would become painfully slow when it came to deleting notes, perhaps 30 seconds to execute the command.
    The same with start and stop and many other functions like solo ect, I added two more GB of ram and it did not change this lack of processing problem.
    In GB perfs I have Automatic set for all three catagories in the Advanced section
    Any ideas?

    It's true that more ram will make garageband run better, but I'm afraid that's not true in your case. I have a 2 year old macbook that had the ram upgraded 1 to 2Gigs and GB did run faster under heavy loads but I would say your processor and OS are maybe a little outdated if you're running GB 08. Then again maybe its something else but you have more than enough ram in my opinion.

  • Benefit of more RAM

    Hello,
    My current desktop system (Quad Phenom II 3,4GHz, / on SSD, /home on HDD) is equipped with 8 GB RAM and no swap. I'm thinking about upgrading to 16GB of RAM. Reason is mainly some memory hungry CFD post-processing software I want to run. I wonder how the rest of the system would benefit from this upgrade? Will the system benefit from the larger disk caches etc. or will be there no effect at all? (KDE is my desktop environment)
    Thx!

    Osiris wrote:Maxing out regarding the actually used memory by applications, no! But since linux uses the spare memory for caches e.g. it might still have an effect.
    When you're not using your memory heavy software you're not getting anywhere near 8 GB (cache included), and when you're actually using it I doubt that you give a damn about cache. Theoretically what you described is correct, but since you already have 8 GB's, then I doubt increasing it any further would have any real effect. It would be much more noticeable if you had say 2 GB's and were considering upgrading to 4 GB, even if you weren't regurarly using all of your 2 GB. So my advice would be to get more RAM only if you actually need it, i.e. if you're regurarly running out while using your CFD software.
    karol wrote:You are using SSD for / so I'm not sure if there will be a noticeable improvement in e.g. system responsiveness but RAM is cheap nowadays so getting more of it (if the board supports it) shouldn't be a problem.
    Why SSD, you're thinking about heavy swapping? While they're fast, SSD transfer rates still can't be compared to DDR3 speed. Moreover, while I consider the panic around poor SSD longevity (limited write cycles in particular) largely exaggerated, it is still based on truth, and a lot of swapping is one thing you want to avoid.
    edit: meh scratch that, I misread your post. Swap is not what you meant, but still might be a thing to consider.
    Last edited by meph (2012-03-07 22:25:04)

Maybe you are looking for