Designing the Perfect PC

The RAM (Random Access Memory)
RAM is used as the largest cache of the CPU due to its high capacity and low manufacturing cost. A large amount of RAM is essential for new PCs, which are heavily driven by multitasking and an array of services. A common guideline is to buy as much RAM as the budget (and your OS) allows. RAM is made up of the following generalised components:

Capacity: The capacity of RAM is measured in GB (or Gigabytes) on modern sticks. The more the better, but anything over 3GB requires a 64-bit OS and CPU to be accessed. All modern CPUs are 64-bit, so this shouldn’t be an issue.

Clock speed: The clock speed defines the speed at which the data can be transferred to and from the RAM. Higher clock speeds are preferred when comparing RAM modules.

Architecture: RAM architecture includes DDR1, DDR2 and DDR3. Each generation of RAM strives to improve bandwidth and overall throughput of data transfer. A side effect of this advancement is higher latencies; however modern systems benefit more so from higher clock speeds rather than lower latencies.

Latency: Latency is the gap between a request for data by the CPU, and the transmission of said data. Although lower latency is preferred, it isn’t important compared to larger clock speeds.

Choosing RAM
DDR2 is the cheapest solution at this point in time, while DDR3 has theoretically higher performance. If going with DDR3, look at modules which are over 1066MHz, otherwise you’re better off with the cheaper and lower latency DDR2 modules. If the price is too high, get some generic (yes, generic are fine) DDR2 1066MHz sticks. They are great value for money.

Researching RAM
With RAM it’s a matter of selecting the cheapest sticks with the highest clock speeds. Latency isn’t much of a performance factor on modern platforms, so don’t choose lower latency models if the cost is significantly greater. If overclocking, research benchmarks and user results.

[subhead] The HDD/SSD (Hark Disk Drive/Solid State Drive)
The humble primary storage device comes in two consumer flavours, the HDD and SSD. Look out for the following when choosing a storage device:

Platter Density: Regarding HDDs, platter density refers to the capacity each platter holds. The greater the density, the faster the transfer speeds will be due to the minimal movement required by the read head.
Platter Speed: The speed at which the platter rotates is measured in RPM (Rotations Per Minute). The faster this rotation, the smaller the seek time is in HDDs. Regular drives are 7200RPM, high-end drives are 10000RPM upwards.
Sustained Write/Read: The speed at which the drives can transfer data to and from the HDD or SSD. The write speed is commonly a measurement of the speed of cached data being written to the main storage platters (or flash in the case of SSDs). Faster is better, speed is typically measured in MB/s .
Capacity: Capacity is fairly obvious – the more capacity there is the more room for data such as software and documents.
Cache: The cache stores data ready to be written to the HDD. Greater capacity generally improves write speeds.

Choosing a HDD/SSD
There are many factors which determine the appropriateness of a HDD or SSD for your intended setup.

Performance/Enthusiast/Overclocker: The main focus for performance systems are high density platter 7200RPM HDDs, Velociraptor high speed drives, and high end SSDs. The first option is cheapest and often the appropriate choice.

Server: High-end servers use SCSI drives which are faster variants similar to that of Western Digital’s Velociraptor range. These drives are expensive and require a SCSI capable system.

What to Research?
When looking at storage devices, its best to look for high density platters with large capacities. SSDs should only be factored in if your budget can cater for the exorbitant costs. High transfer speeds can be determined via benchmark comparisons between models.