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Should I buy DDR3 1333 or DDR3 1600 Memory?

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PhatKirby

Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2001
Location
Southern California
I'll be building a computer that runs on (most likely) an ASUS P6T which has a memory standard of 1333. Now, to decide on memory. I was thinking of getting 1600 memory. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I can run 1600 memory at 1333 right? Also, later, when I overclock, it should be easier to OC the memory to run at 1600?
Would it be better to get 1333 or 1600 memory for this board?

My other question is in regards to what brand of memory.
Assuming that I get 1600 memory, I have 2 options.
Corsair Dominator DDR3 3x2gb 1600 memory, which is apparently used by most people who build high performance computers. I can also get these slightly cheaper if bundled with my mobo. However, the timings are at 8-8-8-24 I believe.
Now, I'm not an expert and I have limited knowledge on what these numbers actually mean but I understand that lower numbers are better.

My other option for memory is from Mushkin who has a 3x2gb DDR3 1600 kit which according to tomshardware.com out-performs Corsair Dominator 1866 memory. This kit also has the timings: 7-8-7-20.

Which ones should I get?

It appears that the dominators have better heat dissipation though. How important is this using an Antec Nine Hundred Two case?
 
IMO anything less than DDR3-1600 and you might as well have stayed on ddr2. 3 has more bandwidth but higher latency, so any program not using the entire memory bus (which is pretty much all but games for std desktop use) is actually a little slower on 3 than 2.
 
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