Which 16GB RAM (frequency, size) should I add to this PC SETUP? (ASRock B360 Pro4 - Intel B360)

Question

I have 16GB RAM HyperX Predator 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 3000 CL15 and I'd like to extend the RAM to 32 GB as I'm a programmer and working with IntelliJ Idea and big XML files and Ubuntu 20.04 freezes occasionally because of RAM.

Can you tell me which additional RAM will work on this setup and what is the best? Basically, I have 4 RAM slots and 2 of them are used by 8 GB HyperX RAMs.

• I Can add RAM of the same type but 16GBx1 in the 3rd slot? Will it work without problems?
• Should I choose higher frequencies (the old RAM has 3000mhz)? There is almost no difference in price between 3000MHZ and 3333MHZ

Options:

1. HyperX Predator 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 3000 CL16
2. HyperX Predator 16GB (1x16GB) DDR4 3000 CL16 (So I can add another 16GB one day)
3. HyperX Predator 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 3333 CL16
4. HyperX Predator 16GB (1x16GB) DDR4 3333 CL16 (So I can add another 16GB one day)

I have a PC with this HW:

MB: ASRock B360 Pro4 - Intel B360
RAM: HyperX Predator 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 3000 CL15
CPU: Intel Core i7-8700
OTHER:
Seasonic S12II-520 - 520W
SilentiumPC Spartan 3 LT HE1012
Seagate BarraCuda, 3,5" - 2TB
SilentiumPC Regnum RG1W Pure Black, okno, černá
Kingston A1000, M.2 - 480GB
MSI GeForce GTX 1060 ARMOR 6G OCV1, 6GB GDDR5

Answer 1

If your stated options are the only ones available go for option 1.

My actual advice would be to try and get the exact same set of memory down to those CL15 timings or to completely replace your current RAM sticks for a 2x16gb set.

To answer your questions directly:

I Can add RAM of the same type but 16GBx1 in the 3rd slot? Will it work without problems?

No, ading a single stick of ram in the third slot would cause all sticks of ram to run in "single-channel" mode. this would effectively halve the read speeds of your ram.

Should I choose higher frequencies (the old RAM has 3000mhz)? There is almost no difference in price between 3000MHZ and 3333MHZ

No, the motherboard you own only supports speeds up to 2666mhz, so even your current RAM is not used at full potential. Even if it did Running ram at different speeds in a single computer is not supported. If you would put in faster memory, the system would simply downgrade the faster chip to match the slower one.

If you haven't changed any settings the chances are high it's actually only running at 1333mhz, check whether XMP is enabled to be sure of this.