Legit Reviews

DDR3 Memory Performance Analysis on Intel X79

Since we posted our launch article on the Intel Core i7-3960X we have been getting e-mails asking about detailed memory questions on the Intel X79 platform. Today, we show you how single, dual, triple and quad-channel performs on the Intel DX79SI motherboard! We also test out 1066, 1333, 1600, 1866 and 2133 MHz memory performance with a quad-channel kit to see what happens to performance at various clock speeds. This is a must read review if you are going Intel X79!

We started out running a single module at 1333MHz and then another module at a time to test dual channel, triple channel and finally quad channel. The Intel X79 chipet on the Intel SX79SI motherboard was able to properly run each memory configuration. The benchmark results in Sandra 2012 was very impressive in the sense that the benchmark results were nearly linear when moving from single channel to triple channel memory. Adding the fourth module for quad channel performance showed...

Article Title: DDR3 Memory Performance Analysis on Intel X79
Article URL: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1779/1/

1. Does this mean, that you could run 2x dual channel kits in quad channel or do you actually have to buy a quad channel kit to have them run in a quad channel? In case my question is not clear enough: can you ad 2 sticks of dual channel memory to your existing 2 sticks and use the 4 sticks in a quad channel setup?

2. I wonder why did you use the Intel board if it is obviously handycapped, when it comes to handling very fast memory (inability of using 2400mhz and the need to loosen timings and command rate + voltage to use 2133Mhz). I understand if you did not have any other board at the time of course - just wondering.

I wonder also how memory bandwith would scale with a good gigabyte or Asus board @ those higher speeds?
I hope I'm not too annoying with my questions

BTW, the review was excellent as always and did answer a ton of questions I had. Thank you

sbohdan wrote:1. Does this mean, that you could run 2x dual channel kits in quad channel or do you actually have to buy a quad channel kit to have them run in a quad channel? In case my question is not clear enough: can you ad 2 sticks of dual channel memory to your existing 2 sticks and use the 4 sticks in a quad channel setup?

As with any memory kit (dual, triple, quad and so on) you are usually paying slightly more than a single module to ensure that all of the modules work in sync without any issues. Buying individual modules or a pair of dual channel kits to run quad-channel is perfectly fine, but you risk having stability issues. This is a minor risk on standard clock speeds (1066-1600MHz) and a moderate risk at higher clock speeds (1866Mhz+)

sbohdan wrote:2. I wonder why did you use the Intel board if it is obviously handycapped, when it comes to handling very fast memory (inability of using 2400mhz and the need to loosen timings and command rate + voltage to use 2133Mhz). I understand if you did not have any other board at the time of course - just wondering.

I have other boards here. Intel showed me the DX79SI board running 2400MHz memory back in September 2011, so I figured that board could hit 2400Mhz in all honesty. It's a ROI thing. Doing this review was a fun project for me. I delayed all the reviews sitting here to get this posted, so I was trying to be time efficient. I also like getting numbers from the OEM reference design, so if I every look at other boards in the future I now have some great baseline scores and really know the limitations on this board.

sbohdan wrote:I wonder also how memory bandwidth would scale with a good gigabyte or Asus board @ those higher speeds?

The memory bandwidth really hinges on the CPU as the memory controller is integrated as you know, so if anything I'd love to try another 3960X, but I don't have another. How many people will really try to hit 2400MHz right now though? The CMGTX8 memory kit that I used for this review was $499. Not many people are going to buy a 4x2GB memory kit for $499 to try and hit 2400MHz. The performance gain just isn't worth the cost.

Thank you for the very detailed reply - I'm sure it will clear up these questions for all along with this otherwise complete and very useful review.

Something else: I wish I could like the article and share it on facebook. Would it be possible to have this option under the legit articles - It might greatly improve the advertisement of the site and forum. Just an idea. I did like Legit Reviews on face but likeing the articles separately could be beneficial. What do you think?

You can share the article by clicking reshare on the article post on our facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Legit-Reviews/47587158881

You can also click the 'share' button that is on the top of every article page and do it that way!

Thanks will do

With the system overclocked to 4.6Ghz using the auto overclock and very loose 10-12-10 timings it hits 42.5GBs