Optimizing Triple Channeling Performance

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According to Intel,

The Intel® CoreTM i7 family of processors brings triple channel DDR3 memory technology support. The DDR3 SDRAM devices operating at 1066 MHz, offer peak data transfer rates of up to 25.6 GB/s (when operated in triplel-channel interleaved mode), enabling the platform to take advantage of the higher bandwidth, faster system performance, and higher performance per watt at 1066MHz.

Intel Product Brief

My understanding is that the higher Mhz, the better (given the timings remain the same). Has anyone tested this yet? If I were to get 3 DIMMs rated at 1600Mhz, should I set the frequency down to 1066Mhz?

I have ASUS Sabertooth X58 and i7 950.

Thanks.

 

[COLGeek]

Adding memory rated for a higher speed than the default (1066) will allow you to more reliably overclock the memory up to the higher rated speed. That being said, overclocking memory does not yield massive performance gains to overall system performance.

Also, overclocking memory, even memory rated for a higher speed than stock/standard can make your overall system unstable and unreliable. Many alpha-geeks, including me, never recommend OCing memory.

Stick to CPUs and GPUs, the headaches that often come with OCing memory really aren't worth the performance gains (or the added cost of the "faster" memory).

Good luck and Happy Holidays!

 

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At the moment, I am not looking to overclock the memory because I do not know enough to do a good job. I just would like to know if Intel's claims about the triple channeling memory frequency set lower at 1066MHz is better than having it at 1600MHz (the rated speed of the memory I bought).

 

[COLGeek]

Yes, it is better, in spite of the higher rating on the memory itself, for overall system reliability.