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MAME and RAM vs CPU

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JustMichael:
I would recommend 512MB of ram and a 2+ GHZ cpu.

krick:
There are a *few* new games in MAME that will use the whole 512M of memory but they're recent editions that haven't been modified for efficiency (or playability for that matter).

I think that a dedicated MAME system running a modern version of mame should have:

512M optimal
256M normal
128M minimum


If a game requires more memory than you have, then the bottleneck will be your hard drive speed read/write speed as chunks of memory are swapped out.


I've also read that using a MAME executable that is *not* UPX compressed (like the official releases are) is better in low memory situations.

This is because with UPX, the entire executable must be uncompressed in memory before mame can be run.


BLACK KNIGHT:
I don't build any computers without at least 256megs of ram.  However, going from 256megs of Ram to 512 I saw very little difference except for games like Doom 3.  I did see a BIG performance increase going from 128 to 256 however.  I currently have 512 in my main rig and my secondary, third, fourth, and fifth computers all have 256megs as well as my wife's and they all run fine running Windows XP Pro and Mame.  As for processors my main rig runs an XP 2000+ oc'ed to a XP 2400+, and my fifth computer is running a Duron 750...all of my other computers are in between, my MAME cabinet rig has a XP 1600+ at default speed right now.

subzero23:
If I had a 2ghz computer and I didn't have weird expectations like playing blitz...would 256mb suffice?

Play everything 2D? Like UMK3, Killer Instinct etc

Tiger-Heli:
Hard to give definitive answers . . .

--- Quote from: calicyco on November 16, 2004, 06:13:06 pm ---How about on the flip side - is there some amount of RAM which would be a waste to use in MAME?

--- End quote ---
I agree with other posters . . .  There is a point of diminishing returns.  64M will run very slowly.  128 would be acceptable, but 256 will make a noticeable difference.  512 will run better than 256, but not significantly for most games.  I wouldn't expect to see much of any difference with 768 over 512, and probably only a marginal increase with 2 Gig.

--- Quote ---Which one would perform better? I haven't setup the P4 yet so I can't test it. Would 2 gig really help MAME, does it do heavy memory stuff?

--- End quote ---
Without starting a flame war, I think that the Pentium 4 will perform better at equivalent PR rating (mainly b/c HAZE does his development work on a P4, AFAIK).

Personally, I run an XP2800, but I couldn't say how your faster Athlon compares to the slower P4 with more memory.

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