How Much Memory/RAM Do I Need

One of the most important components of a trading computer is the system memory (RAM). Many traders believe that they need as much RAM as possible to gain an advantage. This is only partially true. It is always wise to have more RAM than needed, but more important is the quality of RAM being used. Processor technology moves much quicker than any other technology in computers so many times “high-end” systems get bottle-necked by having slow RAM. There is no sense in having a processor that is so fast that it has to wait on the other components of the computer. For starters, traders shouldn’t have less than 8GB of system memory of any type of RAM. More important however is the speed of the RAM being used. There are $50 sticks of RAM and $150 sticks of RAM, with important reasons for the difference. When RAM leaves the manufacturing plant, each stick is tested and rated. Depending on the rating, it will be placed into specific categories of which the higher-end better rated RAM is more expensive. The reason is simple: there is a lot less “high rated” RAM in a batch than low performing RAM. Nearly all major computer manufacturers use the generic or low performance RAM in their systems to save on costs and keep their prices low to the end-user.