32GB vs 48GB RAM: Impact on Gaming Performance

I. Introduction

In October 2021, Intel officially launched the 12th generation Core processors, introducing a significant change by supporting DDR5 memory. However, in the first few years, DDR5 memory was very expensive, so most users still opted for motherboards supporting DDR4 memory when building their PCs.

Now, three years later, while DDR5 memory is not yet at “budget” prices, it has dropped to a level that most users can accept. Many people have already upgraded to 32GB DDR5 memory, which is now the mainstream configuration.

However, some users may feel a bit dissatisfied: there are still two vacant memory slots on the motherboard, and with the ongoing Double Twelve sales, is it worth adding one or two more 16GB memory sticks to upgrade the total memory to 48GB or 64GB?

This article will use the Ryzen 7 7800X3D paired with the GeForce RTX 4090 for testing, comparing the gaming performance with 32GB and 48GB DDR5 6400MHz memory in 4K resolution, for those interested in this comparison.

II. Test Platform Configuration

The main configuration is as follows:

Processor: Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard: MSI MPG X670E CARBON
Memory: 32GB and 48GB DDR5 6400MHz
Graphics Card: GeForce RTX 4090
Storage: Two Samsung 970 EVO 1TB SSDs
Operating System: Windows 11

III. Game Tests (32GB vs 48GB RAM)

The following tests were conducted on seven games, all using 4K resolution. In the images, the left side represents the 32GB memory platform, and the right side represents the 48GB memory platform.

Game 1: God of War

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 119, Minimum FPS: 94, Frame Time: 8.6ms, CPU Usage: 21%, Power Consumption: 51W, Temperature: 55°C, Memory Usage: 11.5GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 8.6GB, Power Consumption: 374W, Temperature: 56°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 120, Minimum FPS: 98, Frame Time: 8.0ms, CPU Usage: 17%, Power Consumption: 51W, Temperature: 50°C, Memory Usage: 11.7GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 8.8GB, Power Consumption: 374W, Temperature: 57°C.

In this game, the 48GB memory platform has a 4% lower CPU usage, 0.2GB higher memory usage, equal GPU usage, and 0.2GB more VRAM usage. The average FPS is virtually identical between the two platforms, with the 48GB platform showing a 4 FPS higher minimum FPS and a 0.6ms lower frame time, which can be considered negligible. Overall, the performance difference is within normal margin of error, making it a tie.

Game 2: Cyberpunk 2077

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 69, Minimum FPS: 53, Frame Time: 15.1ms, CPU Usage: 37%, Power Consumption: 63W, Temperature: 57°C, Memory Usage: 11.3GB, GPU Usage: 96%, VRAM Usage: 14.6GB, Power Consumption: 387W, Temperature: 56°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 69, Minimum FPS: 49, Frame Time: 13.1ms, CPU Usage: 36%, Power Consumption: 61W, Temperature: 57°C, Memory Usage: 11.6GB, GPU Usage: 94%, VRAM Usage: 15.0GB, Power Consumption: 368W, Temperature: 58°C.

In this game, the CPU usage is nearly identical. The 48GB memory platform uses 0.3GB more memory, 2% lower GPU usage, and 0.4GB more VRAM. The average FPS is the same, but the 48GB platform has 4 FPS lower minimum FPS, and the frame time is 2ms shorter, which is still within the margin of error.

Game 3: Silent Hill 2

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 75, Minimum FPS: 45, Frame Time: 14.6ms, CPU Usage: 22%, Power Consumption: 55W, Temperature: 53°C, Memory Usage: 12.5GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 9.8GB, Power Consumption: 318W, Temperature: 55°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 76, Minimum FPS: 49, Frame Time: 13.3ms, CPU Usage: 23%, Power Consumption: 56W, Temperature: 53°C, Memory Usage: 12.4GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 9.8GB, Power Consumption: 322W, Temperature: 55°C.

In this game, both platforms show nearly identical CPU usage, memory usage, GPU usage, and VRAM usage, with differences too small to be significant. The average FPS is virtually identical, but the 48GB platform has 4 FPS higher minimum FPS and a 1ms lower frame time, both of which are within the margin of error.

Game 4: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 72, Minimum FPS: 55, Frame Time: 13.5ms, CPU Usage: 26%, Power Consumption: 59W, Temperature: 55°C, Memory Usage: 15.4GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 13.6GB, Power Consumption: 407W, Temperature: 61°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 71, Minimum FPS: 59, Frame Time: 13.4ms, CPU Usage: 27%, Power Consumption: 57W, Temperature: 55°C, Memory Usage: 15.5GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 13.3GB, Power Consumption: 413W, Temperature: 61°C.

The CPU usage, memory usage, and GPU usage are very similar, with the 48GB platform having 0.3GB less VRAM usage. The average FPS is almost identical, with the 48GB platform showing 4 FPS higher minimum FPS and nearly identical frame time. All performance differences are within the margin of error.

Game 5: Black Myth: Wukong

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 61, Minimum FPS: 52, Frame Time: 17.0ms, CPU Usage: 17%, Power Consumption: 49W, Temperature: 54°C, Memory Usage: 12.3GB, GPU Usage: 99%, VRAM Usage: 10.9GB, Power Consumption: 365W, Temperature: 56°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 61, Minimum FPS: 50, Frame Time: 17.4ms, CPU Usage: 16%, Power Consumption: 48W, Temperature: 51°C, Memory Usage: 12.3GB, GPU Usage: 99%, VRAM Usage: 11.1GB, Power Consumption: 357W, Temperature: 55°C.

In this game, the CPU usage, memory usage, GPU usage, and VRAM usage are very similar between the two platforms, with negligible differences. The average FPS is the same, with the 48GB platform showing 2 FPS lower minimum FPS and nearly identical frame time. All performance metrics are within the normal margin of error.

Game 6: Hogwarts Legacy

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 49, Minimum FPS: 40, Frame Time: 20.3ms, CPU Usage: 27%, Power Consumption: 57W, Temperature: 58°C, Memory Usage: 20.3GB, GPU Usage: 99%, VRAM Usage: 13.6GB, Power Consumption: 373W, Temperature: 55°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 49, Minimum FPS: 36, Frame Time: 20.0ms, CPU Usage: 27%, Power Consumption: 57W, Temperature: 57°C, Memory Usage: 20.7GB, GPU Usage: 99%, VRAM Usage: 13.8GB, Power Consumption: 375W, Temperature: 57°C.

In this game, the CPU usage is identical, and the 48GB platform uses 0.4GB more memory, with 0.2GB more VRAM. The average FPS is the same, but the 48GB platform has 4 FPS lower minimum FPS, with nearly identical frame times. All performance differences are within the normal margin of error.

Game 7: Stalker 2

• 32GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 110, Minimum FPS: 55, Frame Time: 8.5ms, CPU Usage: 36%, Power Consumption: 63W, Temperature: 58°C, Memory Usage: 19.5GB, GPU Usage: 93%, VRAM Usage: 11.4GB, Power Consumption: 287W, Temperature: 53°C.
• 48GB Memory Platform: Average FPS: 114, Minimum FPS: 55, Frame Time: 8.6ms, CPU Usage: 35%, Power Consumption: 63W, Temperature: 59°C, Memory Usage: 20.0GB, GPU Usage: 98%, VRAM Usage: 11.3GB, Power Consumption: 309W, Temperature: 53°C.

In this game, the CPU usage is nearly identical, with the 48GB platform using 0.5GB more memory and showing 5% higher GPU usage. VRAM usage is almost the same. The 48GB platform achieves 4 FPS higher average FPS, with nearly identical minimum FPS and frame time. All performance differences are within the normal margin of error, making this another tie.

IV. Comparison Conclusion

The comparison results are clear: in 4K resolution mode, the 48GB memory platform does not show a significant advantage over the 32GB memory platform in terms of gaming performance. Both platforms are essentially tied.

In other words, if you are a gamer and already have 32GB of memory, it is more than enough for current needs and is very stable. In this case, upgrading or expanding the memory capacity further is unnecessary, as the performance improvement would be minimal.

However, if productivity performance is a priority and you need to run large professional software (such as Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects), the situation is different. In this case, upgrading the memory is still quite necessary. Even filling all the memory slots and upgrading to 64GB may not fully satisfy the demands of such software. 32GB is only enough to meet the basic requirements.

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