I'm using a Ryzen 5 9600X, 16GB of DDR5 (2x8GB), and a Radeon 9070 XT for 4K gaming. I can spend roughly the same amount on either a Ryzen 7 7800X3D or a 32GB DDR5 kit (2x16GB). Which upgrade would make the biggest difference in modern AAA games at 4K? I've seen around 10–15GB of memory usage depending on the game, and in a few cases, such as God of War, textures seemed to load more slowly than expected.
3 Answers
Neither upgrade is likely to transform 4K performance because you’ll be GPU-limited in most demanding titles. Still, between these two options, I’d choose 2x16GB. Your processor is plenty capable, while 32GB gives modern games more headroom. You can also wait for a future CPU generation and consider a processor upgrade later if you start playing more CPU-heavy or high-refresh games.
Go with 32GB of RAM. Your 9600X is already a strong gaming CPU, and at 4K the 9070 XT will usually be the limiting component. The extra memory should help avoid paging and improve stutter or 1% lows in games that push beyond 16GB.
The 7800X3D would mainly help in CPU-limited games, but the difference is likely to be small at 4K with this graphics card. A 32GB kit is the more practical choice for current AAA games, especially since you’re already seeing occasional texture-loading issues.
The important issue is memory capacity, not DDR5 speed. More RAM won’t raise every average frame rate, but it can prevent hitching when a game and background tasks use nearly all 16GB.
Windows can start relying heavily on the page file when you’re using roughly 13–15GB of a 16GB kit, so the upgrade is worthwhile if your usage regularly reaches that range.