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Advice On Memory Upgrade for Mac Mini

D

dlim

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 15, 2012
108
0
Im planning on getting the 2012 Mini when it comes out, and I was wondering if you guys think that it will continue to use the DDR3 1333 memory format.

I know no one will know for sure until it comes out, and that memory is cheap but I figure while I wait I'll just pick up 8gb if a deal comes around. Keeping an eye out for a good deal on a 128gb SATA III as well.

Don't know much about memory other then the past few years laptops used 1333, and was wondering if it is still the mainstream one.
 
1600 and 1866 are readily available in 204-pin DIMMs. The 2011 Mac minis seem to take both really well, unlike mixed results with the MacBook Pros. Imagine the next gen systems will continue to be plug and play (PnP) for the speed and timing.
 
shortcut3d said:
1600 and 1866 are readily available in 204-pin DIMMs. The 2011 Mac minis seem to take both really well, unlike mixed results with the MacBook Pros. Imagine the next gen systems will continue to be plug and play (PnP) for the speed and timing.
Click to expand...
Was looking at the Kingston Hyper-X model, and I'm a bit conflicted between getting the 1600 with a lower latency or the 1866 witha higher latency.
This thread seems to suggest that the 1600 model is a better choice:
http://www.123macmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=205918&sid=f7074621010bf4072c6e27456b4a7845
 
dlim said:
Im planning on getting the 2012 Mini when it comes out, and I was wondering if you guys think that it will continue to use the DDR3 1333 memory format.

I know no one will know for sure until it comes out, and that memory is cheap but I figure while I wait I'll just pick up 8gb if a deal comes around. Keeping an eye out for a good deal on a 128gb SATA III as well.

Don't know much about memory other then the past few years laptops used 1333, and was wondering if it is still the mainstream one.
Click to expand...

don't worry about the ram,but keep looking for a good ssd.

I am going to go against the grain with ssds and suggest buying a sata II 128gb ssd.

My reasoning is your random reads are more important then any other stat for osx and apps. Those big numbers for long writes and reads are sequential and are more important with clones and backups not 95% of osx and apps work.



here are some ebay deals

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Samsung...ultDomain_0&hash=item2c6273a7f2#ht_500wt_1124




http://www.ebay.com/itm/128GB-Samsu...aultDomain_0&hash=item43ac51c038#ht_980wt_889


I have purchased from laptop king.
 
beatlesmith said:
This RAM seems to have the right specs to work in a Mini and comes at a good price. Anyone have experience with Corsair memory?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/16070948...AX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_1944wt_907
Click to expand...

When I got my mini I also ordered 8gb of corsair memory because it was available from the same source and would arrive at the same time and was in the same ballpark price as better known name brands. It passed basic diagnostics but I did have a few glitches with my mini freezing and it's video going strange. Nothing frequent or big and I did not attribute it to the ram at the time. But I later upgraded to 16gb of OWC ram and haven't had a single issue since.

That combined with reports I've seen here of corsair memory sometimes not passing heavier diagnostics leads me to believe I had a memory issue. Lots of folks seem to be happy with it, but I'm not sure I would buy it again.
 
I just purchased 16GB from OWC ($279) and installed it this morning. It's running great so far, although it has only been about 12 hours. I did a full test of the RAM using Rember, no problems at all. I'm still amazed that the price came down from $1,400 to $279 in the last 6 months. I'm running the newest Mac Mini Server and it accepted the 16GB of ram right away.
 
I actually bought 8gb for $40 on amazon along with the 2011 mac mini, but I decided to return the mac mini. They're charging me $8 return shipping to return the memory, so I've been trying to sell it instead, but now considering just keeping it until the new mini comes out and am assuming it should be 100% compatible.
 
dlim said:
Im planning on getting the 2012 Mini when it comes out,.... cheap but I figure while I wait I'll just pick up 8gb if a deal comes around. Keeping an eye out for a good deal on a 128gb SATA III as well.
Click to expand...

Why bother? Save your $ and wait until you get the machine. One thing is constant with computers: Storage, memory, and drive prices go down over time.

The temporary hike you see in hard drives will evaporate soon enough once production is back up in Asia.

I will go with the poster that said go with the SSD over more memory, unless you need the memory (games, graphics/video editing, virtualization, etc). I use my Mini 5.1 as an audio interface and home theater setup ONLY and 4gb is more than enough, never swaps.

I did, however, but a 64gb SSD in it the day I got it and it made a huge difference in usage performance. I had the SSD already, all storage is on a 8tb NAS so 64gb is plenty, I only use 15gb local after the install.
 
beatlesmith said:
Sorry to ask again but how about Patriot memory? Better than Corsair?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Patriot-...ultDomain_0&hash=item20bdae36a5#ht_2216wt_907
Also, are 1600/1866 MHz modules worth the extra money for the performance they give?
Click to expand...

People have gotten it to work and some have stated an increase in graphics performance using the 1600 and/or 1866 mhz models (in the base and server only), but I personally wouldn't spend the money on it and end up having to return it. But that's just my .02 worth.
 
I got this CMSO8GX3M1A1333C 5 days ago. And my mac mini is running great without reboot/shutdown! I have not close any applications in the background yet and I have been playing a lot of starcraft2 games with it :)
 
philipma1957 said:
don't worry about the ram,but keep looking for a good ssd.

I am going to go against the grain with ssds and suggest buying a sata II 128gb ssd.

My reasoning is your random reads are more important then any other stat for osx and apps. Those big numbers for long writes and reads are sequential and are more important with clones and backups not 95% of osx and apps work.
Click to expand...

Philip's advice seems to have been overlooked in this thread. If I were you, I would pay attention carefully because Philip is the 'daddy' on these boards when it comes to mac minis. If he says SSD above RAM, I'd go along with it.

And from my own limited experience, can corroborate what he's saying. My 13" i5 MBA with SSD (4GB RAM) is noticeably faster than my i7 mac mini (8GB RAM), the only other difference being the lack of SSD.
 
paulrbeers said:
People have gotten it to work and some have stated an increase in graphics performance using the 1600 and/or 1866 mhz models (in the base and server only), but I personally wouldn't spend the money on it and end up having to return it. But that's just my .02 worth.
Click to expand...

the hyperx by kingston works well in mac server.

I own this in one mac mini server

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104257



and I own this in the other mac mini server


http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-ELPIDA-...ltDomain_0&hash=item2a17ce51ef#ht_3507wt_1141


these are hp laptop pulls. 16gb is good if you use vm fusion for windows.




8gb 1600 ram helps graphics just a bit. cost is 70 bucks vs 40 bucks for 1333 ram.

do not bother using it in the discrete gpu mini's.
 
I would just wait until you get the mini. Even if it takes a few days to get the RAM, it ain't gonna kill ya. And the mini will work fine with the supplied RAM until the new Ram arrives.

@AuroraProject
Yes I did take the time to scan it :p
 
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