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PC Gamer
PC Gamer
Nick Evanson

During a memory crisis do you really need fast memory for PC gaming? No, no you do not

A photo of a set of Lexar Thor OC DDR5 UDIMMs, resting on top of a motherboard's heatsink.

PC gaming has always been an expensive hobby, even if you stick to entry-level hardware. So much so that the majority of enthusiasts only upgrade their systems piecemeal, one component every so often, or get a new rig after many long years. But if you were hoping to build a new gaming PC or update the CPU and motherboard this year, the shocking cost of DRAM kits right now is making the process considerably challenging.

Back in July 2025, you could pick up a 32 GB kit of DDR5-6000, with a CAS latency of 30 cycles, for under $90 (albeit during the sales). For AMD Ryzen processors, you honestly wouldn't need anything better, and although Intel's chips can handle faster DRAM, they'll still be just as happy with a kit like that.

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