a little help with some RAM

[gero1369]

I'm looking for some memory that will be able to clock at least to 1600 (hopefully higher), but will also have the lowest latency possible at 1600 &/or 1333. I currently have an intel i7 930 @ 3.8 GHz with a Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R motherboard and 3x 2GB of GeIL 1333 (9-9-9-24, iirc) @ 1033 or so.

I plan on upgrading my system in the future and I will be using the RAM that I purchase now for that build (a 4P, AMD G34 server system, most likely). I will be building this system in a year or two. I know that the memory for it can only run at 1333/1600 max (depending on CPU), so that's why I want the lowest latency that I can get at those speeds (I've seen people running anywhere from 6 to 9, I'd prefer <=7).

The main thing that I do with my computer(s) is Folding @ home. I don't game.

Here is what I am looking at, but I'm open to other suggestions. I've only really looked on newegg thus far.

 

[E4g1e]

I'm looking for some memory that will be able to clock at least to 1600 (hopefully higher), but will also have the lowest latency possible at 1600 &/or 1333. I currently have an intel i7 930 @ 3.8 GHz with a Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R motherboard and 3x 2GB of GeIL 1333 (9-9-9-24, iirc) @ 1033 or so.

I plan on upgrading my system in the future and I will be using the RAM that I purchase now for that build (a 4P, AMD G34 server system, most likely). I will be building this system in a year or two. I know that the memory for it can only run at 1333/1600 max (depending on CPU), so that's why I want the lowest latency that I can get at those speeds (I've seen people running anywhere from 6 to 9, I'd prefer <=7).

The main thing that I do with my computer(s) is Folding @ home. I don't game.

Here is what I am looking at, but I'm open to other suggestions. I've only really looked on newegg thus far.

Actually, I would not recommend any of those kits for this very reason:

1) They are all severely overpriced (in terms of cost per GB), and what real-world improvement in performance is far less than their cost justifies.

2) They are only 2GB sticks - and even at DDR3-1333 at 9-9-9, 2GB modules are already more expensive per GB than 4GB sticks right now.

3) IIRC these kits all limit you to a maximum of only 6GB total if you are to use their higher speeds and timings because the LGA 1366 IMC only supports one DIMM per channel at anything higher than standard speeds.

4) Most of these kits do not allow full triple-channel IMC operation on your CPU because they come in pairs or fours. In fact, you cannot have triple-channel at all with only two sticks of RAM.

 

[gero1369]

I'll be purchasing at least 3 (if not 4) sticks total, so I should be fine for running triple channel. I don't mind purchasing 4GB sticks, but I don't really need them, so I'll likely stick with the 2GB sticks and save a few $$. In the rig that I'll build in the future, I'm going to use 4x 1GB or 2Gb sticks per CPU. I have no use for any more than that.

 

[Dangman]

What country are you in?

EDIT: Oh just saw the Newegg. Gonna assume that means you're in the U.S.
EDIT 2: I have to concur with E4g1e: A lot of the RAM you have in that list is rather overpriced for the little performance increase you might see. Check out this G.Skill 6GB RAM set (Still overpriced but a better deal than the RAM you've listed so far):
$43 - G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM

Yes CAS 9 but I doubt you'll notice the difference. If you look at the per stick basis as you did with your list, it's about $14.33 per stick for the above G.Skill RAM.

 

[E4g1e]

I'll be purchasing at least 3 (if not 4) sticks total, so I should be fine for running triple channel. I don't mind purchasing 4GB sticks, but I don't really need them, so I'll likely stick with the 2GB sticks and save a few $$. In the rig that I'll build in the future, I'm going to use 4x 1GB or 2Gb sticks per CPU. I have no use for any more than that.

Actually, all of those kits contain 2GB sticks that actually cost more than many of the 4GB sticks. In fact, almost all of those kits contain 2GB sticks that cost as much money as or more than most of the 4GB sticks that we recommend. As such, I see absolutely no reason whatsoever to spend nearly $30 per 2GB stick when some 4GB sticks (even from known good brands) cost less than $20.

 

[gero1369]

If they're less expensive per stick, I have no problem with purchasing them. I'm making my decision based on speed and overall price for the combination of fastest speeds with lowest latency. I see lower latency (CAS 7) 2 GB sticks while 4GB sticks have CAS 9 and both are priced around $20 per stick. I don't argue that the better value lies with the 4GB sticks, but they do have higher latency, that's one of the factors that I'm looking at.

 

[E4g1e]

If they're less expensive per stick, I have no problem with purchasing them. I'm making my decision based on speed and overall price for the combination of fastest speeds with lowest latency. I see lower latency (CAS 7) 2 GB sticks while 4GB sticks have CAS 9 and both are priced around $20 per stick. I don't argue that the better value lies with the 4GB sticks, but they do have higher latency, that's one of the factors that I'm looking at.

Trust well done reviews on the impact of memory speed and latency. CAS latency has a far lesser impact on system performance than higher memory speeds. However, since the i7-930 already runs very hot at even a fail-safe 1.6GHz to begin with, you might need super-expensive water cooling just to run the fastest, highest-voltage RAM on that LGA 1366 platform. And that will only increase power consumption (in fact, the slowest first-generation LGA 1366 i7 CPU already eats up more power than an i7-3960X at full load), necessitating a larger, higher-wattage PSU of good quality. And those first-gen quad-core Nehalem CPUs are power hogs even with slow DDR3-800 RAM. (The official maximum RAM speed supported by Intel with these CPUs is only DDR3-1066.)

 

[EngineerAi]

I would definitely go with the kingston because its affordable and I've used them for my first build with no problems at all. Hope this helps you out on making a decision.

 

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