Phenom II X6 1100T plus WHICH Memory?

Hi guys, I'm buiding a new rig and I'm a bit unsure about the memory I should use.

ComponentsI've got so far:
Phenom II X6 1100T
ASUS M4N98TD EVO, nForce 980a SLI

16GB of either:

Kingston HyperX DIMM XMP Kit 16GB PC3-12800U CL9-9-9-27 (DDR3-1600) (no lifelong warranty)
G.Skill RipJaws DIMM Kit 16GB PC3-12800U CL9-9-9-24 (DDR3-1600)
GeIL Black Dragon DIMM Kit 16GB PC3-12800U CL9-9-9-28 (DDR3-1600)
Corsair Vengeance DIMM Kit 16GB PC3-12800U CL9-9-9-24 (DDR3-1600) (no lifelong warranty)
G.Skill Trident DIMM Kit 16GB PC3-12800U CL7-8-7-24 (DDR3-1600)

Now I got a list which memory types are supported with this board, but the titles are all different Or I just can' figure it out.
I'll use this for 3D rendering, Graphics and video, I don't plan on overclocking as I've read stabilizing 16GB on 2000MHz is quite impossible and I have no clue about OCing in general
The GSkill Trident kit is almost 600€, but the CL looks quite good. I'm not that much of a crack to be able to tell if this will make a huge difference, so I'm asking you guys here
Elsewhere the Kingston chips were recommended, but they don't have lifelong warranty like GSkill or GEIL.

Please give me advice! Thank you!

Asus should have a "qvL" listing for each board available as a pdf file. Check your board webpage on their site. Most of those brands should work; I use gskill ripjaws 1600, and it works well with my msi board.

wait.
why in the world do you need 16GB of RAM.?
what exactly are your tasks with this unit.?

The Corsair Dominator CMP16GX3M4A1600C9 as a Fully Matched 4X4GB set, since the RAM is not listed as QVL {NO 2X4GB or 4X4GB are listed} I would encourage your to submit a ticket at Corsair or any RAM Mfg before purchasing high density kits http://www.corsair.com/support/technicalsupport Fully matched 4X_GB or 6X_GB are indeed worth the difference in cost, and are the least problematic from their BIN Sorting match; example 2X4GB Kit1+ 2X4GBKit2 could be from BIN1 to BIN6 sort.

Corsair is the least problematic RAM in this forum, and I am confident the CMP16GX3M4A1600C9 Kit will indeed work. The quality of RAM is primarily from the IC's used {e.g. 9-9-9-24 is often faster than 7-8-7-24 with CAS disparity}.

Corsair Tested -> http://www2.corsair.com/configurat [...] id=1449452
Corsair Phenom II -> http://www.corsair.com/memory-3/am [...] om-ii.html

understood.
good-luck.

paranoia (don't take the RED pill) ... LOL.

OK, I just checked specs at ASUS and AMD - and it's a little weird. First I read it supports 2000Mhz, but only in overclocked mode. Then I read about 1600 Mhz. Now both Asus AND AMD say its 1333? WTF?

AMD: Dual Channel PC3-10667U (DDR3-1333)
ASUS: 4 x DIMM, 16 GB, DDR3 2000*/1333/1066 ECC,Non-ECC,Un-buffered Memory

As I truly AM able to read, why the heck was I reading about 1600 everywhere? And: that means I'll have to stick with 1333, right?

1333MHz is the default speed of AM3 chips, anything higher than that has to be clocked or forced into system to run that fast.
summary: if wanting speeds greater than 1333MHz then you will have to overclock and also buy 1600MHz or faster RAM.

random sources or info....
I often have to physically see for myself sometimes to really know.
I feel your pain..

they list those RAM speeds because they are obtainable and there are now more enthusiast out there just as much as 'stock setting' general users..

^
there ya go..

hold on then, where are u.?

jaquith - is like memory guru around here...

amazon UK ship to you..?

germany delivery, i'll check..

it can be a mess m8..
I will check on the RAM amount for you as well.

And that is exactly the problem: inside the QVL, there is no talk of 16GB at all...
So should I just try to get SOME 4x4GB kit at 1333 and hope it'll work? Or get some that seem most similar to the ones specified?

I understand Dual Channel, and I know the 3,6,9,12 etc G Ram from the Corei7 specs, so why on earth would they put 3, 6 & 12 GB kits on the QVL?
It won'tbe detrimental on performance if I use 1600 instead of 1333?

OK. Corsair doen't hav 4GB modules for my board. OCZ 2GB max for AMD. GeIL not even a single one. Kingston: nope.
GSkill: http://www.gskill.com/products.php?index=269 and no info
The only reasonable thing i found is at Patriot

Any experience?

According to Kingston they don't They don't even list the chip brand in most places. KVR1333D3N9/4Gsports Samsung chips, but in the spec sheets on their website there's nothing to find. Also those are "Value" RAMS without heatsink, so I'm not entirely enthusiastic

My final recommendation is to find a vender that will allow you to exchange the ram if it doesn't work. Newegg charges a 15% restocking fee for returned items (for comparison only). Also, if you get a matched set of 4 sticks that won't post, try just two of the sticks. At the post screen, go into the bios and be sure the "memory mapping" setting is enabled. Some boards have this setting in the memory section of the bios; some don't.

^
I can understand that, good-luck..
again. LOL.

I've used patriot ram and currently use one of their ssd's. If the vender will allow you to exchange it, then I would try it. Remember my recommendation to use two sticks if four won't boot up, and change the memory mapping setting to "enabled".

Corsair's reply: "CMP16GX3M4A1333C9 is a fully matched kit and also compatible with your system. "

OK, what now: Corsair or Patriot? I was advised to take Corsair.... tough they don't post this kit on their own list. Either they're all ioncompetent or they wanna sell something

Don't get Patriot; frequent visitors here...

I got tied up. I would send a Ticket to Corsair and Kingston and copy/paste ALL of the available 16GB >= 1600 MHz, and ask them which will work. While I'm comfortable that most will I won't guess for you. Most memory errors e.g. BSOD is mostly incorrect BIOS settings and voltages. However, I'm very clear the 4GB sticks are VERY touchy and ESPECIALLY touchy in 16GB configurations.

Corsair Ticket* -> http://www.corsair.com/support/technicalsupport
G.SKILL Ticket -> techsupport@gskill.com

*You can input your MOBO or choose not listed and put in th first RAM and use the comments to fill-in the rest.

No, there's no RAM on that limited list that I can 100% guarantee so the ticket is your best choice.

That's the XMP info on the sticks and means nothing. Even on a full XMP compatible stick/MOBO I often don't use the feature, it's not needed and too often in 4 or 6 stick configuration won't work anyway. Meaning if Corsair says they'll work I would trust that they indeed will work.

If there's a problem the #1 thing I would do is set the DRAM Voltages per spec -> failure increase +0.1~0.2v. High density RAM requires additional voltages +50% of the time.

Typically, it's not that much to set and shouldn't take for than a few minutes to fully set-up. The only 'what ifs' are the Voltages and then only a +0.1~0.2v variances.

e.g. AI OC Tuner
DRAM Frequency
DRAM Voltage
QPI/DRAM Voltage {IMC Controller}
CAS Timings e.g. 9-9-9-24-2T

I'll own/help with the RAM. Good Luck!