#### gigabyte ga-z68x-ud7-b3 ####

[shutIT]

A few questions regarding memory kits w/ this mobo:

http://download.gigabyte.us/FileList...68x-ud7-b3.pdf

link is the authorized memory from gigabytes website.

1. What do they mean by downgrade?
2. For OC purposes is better to get a higher speed than set it lower in the BIOS to OC?
3. Lower speed with a lower latency vs Higher speed with a higher latency?
4. Lower stock voltages by default IE. 1.5v vs 1.8v are they better for OC?
5. I have been reading anything over 8G in a windows x64 setup is overkill: true or false?

I build a rig every 3 years so when I do I want the fastest hardware possible. Money of course factoring in. So this is my goal when choosing memory or any other hardware for that matter. I'm using a i7 2600k cpu with a water cool setup, OCZ vertex ssd mixed with raptor, Super clock SLI dual 560ti's, (900 1800 speeds) Just need my memory and I'm ready to roll.......

Thanks for taking time for reading my post. You can just reply also with the make and model to make it easier. Was just curious about the OC factor.

[Tradesman]

1. They currently have the mobo rated up to 2133 OCed - maybe planning to upgrade speeds via BIOS update or the CPU they tested with couldn't carry faster sticks, so they are suggesting running at 2133
2. Not sure what you mean, but generally the higher speed you run the sticks the better, though at times you can lower the speed and run tighter timing and get better performance overall
3. Basically same as #2 above, to figure out the Best Performance requires testing i.e. benchmarking at different speeds/CLs
4. Depends on the sticks, most DDR3 range from 1.5 to 1.65, at times you can lower voltage to the sticks other times you can't, depends on the individual sticks and CL combined w/ your OC, again it's testing to find what's best for your purposes
5. That would all depend on what you do and how you plan to utilize your DRAM - I'd say for most it is...but if you use memory intensive programs, are constantly running multiple programs, want to speed things up with a RAMDrive, etc, then No, over 8 isn't overkill, you'll see many here on the boards running 12, 16, 24 GB....

Make/model may depend on intentions and 8 or 16 GB...and budget, if thinking 16 a 4x4GB set would be preferable as all 4 sticks are tested to work together, whereas going 2 2x4GB sets will normally work together fine, but no guarantee.....they might work fine with minor tweaking or they may just not want to play together at all......the RipjawsX lines are designed for the P67 (and variants Z68/H67) so they are a good choice, I've also had great success with the Snipers and the original Ripjaws on the 1155 mobos.

[shutIT]

16G kits vs 2 sets of 8 G kits

Just saw this feedback from a person who bought G.SKILL Ripjaws X + Turbulence II Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory Model F3-17000CL9D-8GBXLD

"Other Thoughts: I was going to buy another 8G to make 16G but they do no sell 8G without the fan kit. Apparently, if you want 16G, you need to buy the 16G kit so the memory is tuned together. I wish this had been explained in the descriptions as I would have bought the 16G up front. Be sure to test with Linpack as this really verifies the stability of the memory"

Is this true? I was going to buy 2 sets of 8G kits because its actually cheaper than buying 16G kit at once.


Thanks again for your prompt response...

[Tradesman]

The difference in buying 2 2x4GB vs 1 4x4GB is that each set is tested individually to work together, getting 2 sets of 2x2GB generally isn't a problem but it can be...and normally, if it is it can be adjusted w/ minor voltage tweaking.......but..........on occasion you might get two sets that just won't play together, most often it's sets bought at different times, and possiblty from different production lots that may be using components from even more different production lots, i.e. PCb, chips/ICs. With tolerances as tight as they are an extremely slight difference can affect the sticks. If you plan to buy two sets, it's best to order both at the same time, I've done it rather often and generally end up with sets that even have consecutive serial #s...haven't had a problem yet.....(knock on wood)...but it can happen

[shutIT]

thanks

G.SKILL Ripjaws X + Turbulence II Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) look like the sticks I am going to get. Thanks

[Tradesman]

No problem, give a shout and let us know how you like them, it's a sweet set of sticks