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Corsair 16GB (2x8GB) with Asus Z77 Motherboard


rodney226

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I have a few questions and wondered if anyone could help.

 

I am looking at Asus P8Z77-V Deluxe, Ivy Bridge i5/i7 Unlocked processor, Corsair 650D, Corsair H100, Intel 520 SSD or Corsair Force GT, Western Digital Caviar Black (Over 1TB), 16GB DDR3 (2x8GB), Asus GTX560Ti (Non reference and pre-over clocked), Corsair AX850 Power Supply, Sony DVD and Windows 7 Ultimate (upgrade to Windows 8 when available).

 

I have been looking on the internet and on Corsair's website but I have found 16GB RAM but it is 4x4GB. This means if I ever wanted to upgrade then that would not be possible as the motherboard only has three DIMs. I have found on Amazon 16GB RAM 2x8GB from Corsair Vengeance but it is not on the Corsair website.

 

A few sub questions:

  • what is latenty?
  • If I want to upgrade can I add 1x8GB DIM?
  • Vengeance or Dominator GT?
  • Is a Airflow fan for RAM necessary?
  • What is a good RAM speed?
  • Why is the 2x8GB not available from Corsair?

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This means if I ever wanted to upgrade then that would not be possible as the motherboard only has three DIMs.

Whicjh MB are you looking at? I have not seen any Z77MB that only have three DIMM slots. They should all have 4. Only the X58 chipsets have three or six slots. The rest will have 4 or 8 slots depending on chipset.

 

what is latenty?

Basically how fast or many clock cycles it takes the memory to communicate with the rest of the system. The lower the number, the faster the memmory.

 

If I want to upgrade can I add 1x8GB DIM?

If you are thinking you want more than 16 gigs now it is best to purchase a 32 gig kit right off the bat. Corsair dos not suugest or support the mixing of kits(even the same part number) So if you added a second kit later on down the road and they do not work together there is not alot that can be done.

As far as adding just one stick, you would not want to add a non matched stick to an otherwise matched kit. Your just asking for poroblems.

 

What is a good RAM speed?

Depends on what you want to use your machine for. Anything over 1333mhz will require overclocking so keep that in mind when choosing a kit.

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A 32 GB Kit is too expensive but I dont want to have DIMM slots that are using 4GB when they can use 8GB. In the future if I needed 32GB I thought I would buy the same dual channel kit and just place it in there. What do you suggest?

I want to build my first PC so am asking for suggestions. I have seen RAM of 1866MHz and the latency numbers are strange. What is a good low latency?

Also what is the difference between CL9 and CL10?

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  • Corsair Employee

Mixing memory especially if you purchase them at different times; they will likely not be the same and may not work together or in some cases will not wrok at all when mixed. As peanutz94 stated it is best to purchase the amount of memory you want to install. Even if you purchase single modules or two sets of the same part at the same time in some cases they will not run at the rated speed when filling all of the slots. Because they were not sold or tested that way.

As CPU and memory frequency has risen Memory controllers on the MB or most cases today on the CPU will not tolerate memory that is not exactly matched. And for us the only way we can guarantee compatibility (especially for an over clocked part) would be to test and sell them as one set.

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I have seen RAM of 1866MHz and the latency numbers are strange. What is a good low latency?

Yup and there are modules up to 2400mhz too. But again, anything above 1333mhz will be overclocking. The higher the frequency the more strain on the memory controller. With that strain and higher frequencies you also get higher CPU temps. So good CPU cooling is a must.

 

Since this is your first build i would suggest keeping it simple and go with a 1600mhz kit with the lowest latencies you can find. It's a small overclock depending on your CPU, would give you good performance and more than likely not affect CPU temps but a degree or two.

 

Also what is the difference between CL9 and CL10?

The CL9 part would be slightly faster at the same frequency.

 

 

A 32 GB Kit is too expensive but I dont want to have DIMM slots that are using 4GB when they can use 8GB. In the future if I needed 32GB I thought I would buy the same dual channel kit and just place it in there. What do you suggest?

Mixing memory especially if you purchase them at different time they will likely not be the same and may not work together at all. Even if you purchase single modules or two sets of the same part at the same time in some cases they will not run at the rated speed when filling all of the slots. Because they were not sold or tested that way.

 

Well, like RG and i stated your best bet is to get what you want right off the bat. If you add another kit of the exact same part number it may not run at rated speeds or at all.

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So it is better to get 16GB with 4 DIMMs instead of 16GB with 2 DIMMs, and if I want to upgrade then just get 32GB with 4 DIMMs.

With over clocking the Asus has a TPU switch which will automatically overclock the system. With an H100 the AI Suite 2 should allow me to push it more by using its extreme setting.

Also sorry but what is a good latency. A real example if possible.

Does RAM need the Dominator GT with the Airflow 2 Fan or is Vengeance good enough

Also what is the difference between the CMZ16GX3M4X1866C9 and the CMP16GX3M4X1866C9, Difference is the Z and the P.

 

Thank you for the replies, I do appreciate it.

Also does anyone else find the corsair memory narrow your results to sometimes not work?

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  • 4 weeks later...

I'm in a similar position, ASUS p87z7-v pro - decent offer on for 2 x 8gb (better than 4 x 4gb). The idea would be if for some insane reason I wanted to go for 32gb much later i would replace all the ram, but sell the 2 x 8gb which i imagine would be easier than selling 4 x4gb. So is there a techincal reason why 4 x 4 is better, and 2 x 8 would still work?

 

Memory in question is Corsair Dominator 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C10 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMP16GX3M2A1600C10) [CMP16GX3M2A1600C10] for £99

 

Thanks

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