Is a motherboard with 2 RAM slots dual channel?

Yes it will! All that 4 slot boards have over it is they can have more capacity that is you can have 2 more of the same modules. Dual channel is on your board 1 slot pair channel on a 4 slot board 2 slots pair channel and most people just use 2 modules which then runs just like they had 2 slots.

Do you have to fill both RAM slots?

A common misconception about RAM is that you can put any RAM into any slot. If you have four RAM slots, always buy matched pairs of RAM (two sticks from the same company, same speed, and same capacity) for the best results.

How do I activate 2 RAM slots?

Boot the machine and press F1 to get into BIOS, then select Advanced Settings, then Memory Settings, and change the corresponding DIMM slots option to “Row is enabled”. Save the BIOS settings and reboot.

Can I only use 1 RAM stick?

You can’t install an odd number of sticks Very few (mostly dirt cheap models) motherboards have only one RAM slot available. Motherboards have memory slots separated in two channels, usually in pairs of two. When sticks are installed in corresponding slots, they work as dual channel DDR.

Can I just use 1 RAM stick?

Yes you can run just 1 ram stick. Check your motherboard manual as to which slot to use (usually the one closest to the cpu). The advantage of using 2×4 GB is you can run in dual-channel mode, which may give you a bit more speed.

What if I only have 2 RAM slots?

2 slots will run in dual channel mode if you populate each slot with a ram stick. You can buy a second 4gb stick that has the same specs and it is likely to work properly. If you require a guarantee, buy a matched 2 stick kit of supported ram.

Should I use 2 RAM slots or 4?

Honorable. The only difference will be if you populate all 4 slots. With 2 RAM slots you are only able to install 32GB RAM but able to use the faster RAM. With 4 slots you can have 64GB RAM, but the Ryzen will only support RAM at DDR4-2133MHz in that configuration (might be 2400 on the Ryzen 2’s).