# Pcie ssds vs ram



## Phryq (Jan 22, 2016)

So, if a computer had 2 PCIe SSDs in a raid 0, would it be able to do with less ram?

because it's able to stream from disk so quickly?

in other words, machine a has 32gb ram, 2 x 512gb PCIe in a RAID 0
machine B has 64gb ram, and a regular SSD

which will be able to handle heavier / more sample libraries? And how significant is the difference? 

I'm asking because I want to get a laptop, but would ideally like something thin (which will only support 32gb). ATM 32gb is not enough for me, but I wonder if it would be enough if I had 2 PCIe SSDs in a raid 0.


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## rgames (Jan 22, 2016)

Yes - as SSDs have gotten faster, RAM requirements have decreased (in my experience). I'm on the road for a year and am using a 32 GB laptop with 2.5 TB of SSD and 1 TB of HDD. I find that 32 GB RAM is sufficient for 95% of what I do.

The trick is to purge what you can in Kontakt and drop the VSL pre-load buffers way down. PLAY, unfortunately, offers no options. So you probably won't be able to do much with it (I have only the perc and harp loaded).

The other trick is to use VE Pro and set up a modular template. I have VE Pro instances for each library across my ENTIRE template but several of them are empty - I load those up as they are needed. It takes only 10 seconds or so to pull up the VIFrame file.

I am told that some Kontakt libraries don't like being purged but I've had no issues with LASS, Cinebrass, bunch of perc, Symphobia, Voxos, and a bunch of others.

Of course, when you purge, you do get the occasional hiccup but I find it's not much of an issue in practice. It just happens every now and then that there's a noticeable lag between when you hit a key and hear a note. But as you're working on a piece they all get loaded up and after some time you don't get any more hiccups.

Bottom line, though: yes, SSDs have significantly reduced RAM requirements. I've long been a laptop naysayer for full orchestral mock-ups but you can do it pretty well these days.

rgames


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## rgames (Jan 22, 2016)

Also, related: if you're looking for a laptop, I'd say get a 17" with 3.5+ TB internal storage.

Two reasons:

1. Yes, it's large, but not as inconvenient as lugging external drives, external power supplies, cables, etc.
2. It cools better, so your processor will be able to work harder (definitely an issue on laptops).

rgames


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## Phryq (Jan 23, 2016)

Hmm, I've thought about a 17", but I only want to own 1 computer, and I would like to bring it with me everywhere.

I've thought, if Dell XPS made a 17" with their 'infinite display', it would be ideal, and then could support another drive bay and ram slots.

Right now I'm running a Haswell i7 with 32gb ram. I have an OS SSD, a 7200 HD, and a 960gb Sata SSD for samples. It's not really powerful enough. I'm wondering, the dell XPS 15 is sooo thin and light, will support 32gb, so with a PCIe, maybe it'll be able to hand significantly more than my current, even without having more ram?

How do 17" cool better? Simply more room?


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## rgames (Jan 23, 2016)

Phryq said:


> How do 17" cool better? Simply more room?


Yes.


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