DDR3 Memory: What Makes Performance Better?

Top Performers

Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

All eight of these DRAM sets are nearly equal, and with the testing that was done across two platforms — and considering this was intended to be more of an informative article than a typical hardware review — here are some things to take into consideration.

Top AMD Platform Performers

The top performer of all the sets on the AMD platform was Team Xtreem. In the overall testing, Team Xtreem edged out the other two CL10 sets, G.Skill Trident X and Corsair Vengeance Pro (in order), but not by much. The G.Skill Snipers were the best of the CL11 sets.  The Team Group DRAM set was an eye-opener; I’m looking forward to working with more of their sets of DRAM.

Top Intel Platform Performers

On the Intel platform, the best performing set was the G.Skill Tridents X, again only by a small margin, topping the Corsair Vengeance Pro and Team Xtreem sets (in order). In the CL11 sets, the Snipers were at the top, barely edging out the Kingston Savage and Mushkin Blackline set.

AData And AMD

Both manufacturers guarantee their DRAM by the packaged set, which means both ADATA and AMD have a lot of faith in their products to provide us with two sets of 2x8GB (since they don’t have 4x8GB sets). I hope they will come out with actual 32GB sets in the higher frequencies since their sets performed very well and would no doubt would have been even better if they were matched 4 stick sets.

A Note On Packaging

Team Xtreem and Mushkin Blackline had the best packaging; the clamshells in a box ensure the sticks don’t get damaged, and look great, too. The packaging of the Kingston Savage sticks is rather unique; it has a great tray concept and it’s not a package you’d likely throw away.

Unique Features

The AMD Radeon Gamer Series has implemented a new approach to overclocking profiles with the implementation of AMP.  Time will tell if it catches on with other manufacturers. The Trident X has a unique approach to high profile DRAM with its removable upper fin to fit under tight heat sinks.

Aesthetics

This was a tough one, since it’s all subjective. I loved the look of the Trident X sticks, but as I worked with these others on a daily basis, I was drawn to the looks of the Vengeance Pro sticks, especially on the ROG motherboards. The initial look in a case, and seeing the name written along the top edge of the sticks, is also appealing – which you’ll also see on AMD’s Gamer Series.  The ADATA XPG, Savage, and Muchkin Blackline sticks are nice, clean-looking sticks, each with their own twist to the heat-sink design. The Team Xtreem sticks with the reflective label that appears to change colors might well be most original-looking, though I’d like to see the labeling on both facing sides.  And then there’s the Sniper series, with the embossed rifle, looking to shoot the others is (in the computer world) a long time classic.

I spent many hours testing these sets and wouldn't hesitate to recommend any of them, given the right circumstances.  I’ll continue to test them with other mobo/CPU combinations to find the best combo scenarios where we can suggest various DRAM sets to Tom’s Hardware readers and forum members.