These days a decent PC will support dual channel memory, while high-end desktops usually go with quad channel memory. Does this actually improve performance, and if so, how much and for which applications? We researched it for you.

A frequent Hardware.Info reader who builds their own system, will generally fill up at least two memory slots. This is because the effective bandwidth increases when multiple memory channels are in use. However, if you purchase a prebuilt system in a shop, or if you buy a laptop from the cheaper segment, you will quite often find that only a single memory channel is used. If you're lucky, you might be able to fill up the second slot yourself and upgrade the capacity this way. We were wondering whether the usage of multiple memory channels actually improves performance.