Question 1066mhz tri-channel vs 1600mhz dual channel ram? also different timings

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realflow100

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I have 2 computers. different board/socket and cpu

but once is tri channel 1066mhz and the other is dual 1600mhz

I have 4 ram sticks installed in both. CPU-Z reporting correctly in both cases.

800mhz base ram frequency in dual channel system (1600mhz)
533mhz base ram frequency in tri channel system (1066mhz)
I'm running patriot viper III CL9 type gaming memory

Dual channel system ram timings are
9 9 9 24 37 and 1T command rate
Tri channel ram timings are
6 6 6 18 120 with 2T command rate
I dont know if that makes much difference with the timings though.

How much of an overall performance difference between the 2? is it even worth considering?
 
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KananX

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Let me guess one is a Sandy Bridge based PC and the one with Triple channel is a Nehalem based system? That would mean the former is faster, but tell me which CPUs you’re talking about.
 
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realflow100

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i7 3770k

And a xeon W3520
however dont concern the cpu speeds themselves thats not what im asking about specifically. I'm asking specifically about the ram itself. being placed in the different systems

it is 4 sticks. 32GB total ram
 
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KananX

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realflow100 said:
i7 3770k

And a xeon W3520
however dont concern the cpu speeds themselves thats not what im asking about specifically. I'm asking specifically about the ram itself. being placed in the different systems

it is 4 sticks. 32GB total ram
Click to expand...
The dual channel system should’ve clearly more output (bandwidth), it’s a much more advanced architecture.
 
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KananX

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realflow100 said:
How can I tell for sure? what would I compare besides benchmarks?
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Just if you compare the numbers very simply it’s 1600x2 vs 1066x3 it’s tied, but with the older architecture and more overhead, it will be slower, and not by a small bit. Yes you can also read up old articles about it, Core 1st gen or Nehalem vs Sandy Bridge, where it was compared against each other. If I may ask, why is it so important to you?
 
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KananX

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realflow100 said:
Just curious. but would it be enough of a difference to notice in actual use? Or would overall CPU performance differences be far more of the deciding factor?
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Of course more memory bandwidth is necessary if the architecture needs it to process the data faster, that said, Ivy Bridge is way faster than first gen Core, which the Xeon is based on, and also has way higher clocks in this case. This is like a no brainer.
 
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Karadjgne

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realflow100 said:
but once is tri channel 1066mhz and the other is dual 1600mhz

I have 4 ram sticks installed in both. CPU-Z reporting correctly in both cases.
Click to expand...
There's no tri channel. Only way to get tri channel is with 3 sticks of ram. 4 sticks isn't tri channel, at best it'd be flex-channel with 3x sticks in tri channel and 1x stick single channel and used absolutely last, or just as likely you have 1st and last in dual channel and the 2x center sticks in single channel.

Tri channel sucks. It doesn't work like dual or quad channel, which work in parallel, flip-flopping data streams. Tri channel instead works in series, like having one large single Rank, the 2nd and third sticks being overflow after saturating the bandwidth of the first stick. A major reason it was abandoned after lga1366.
 
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Eximo

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Flex mode is probably the correct reasoning. You have three sticks in 3 channels, and a 4th stick paired up in one of the channels. That second stick isn't operating as part of the set of three channels since its companion slots are empty.

Proper triple channel is either 3 sticks or 6 sticks (or possibly 12 on some of the really big boards)

Dual and triple channel aren't exactly a doubling or tripling of bandwidth either way.

Theoretical maximum bandwidth:
triple channel 1066 = 25.584 GB/s
dual channel 1600 = 25.6 GB/s

But you wouldn't see that in practice except under artificial tests.


Still kind of miss my i7-950. Used to run it at 3.67Ghz with DDR3 1600.
 
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realflow100

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KananX said:
Yes, the second thing (fourth not 3rd). The first sentence is also true. Yes it is kinda weird, that’s how they solved the bandwidth issues back then.
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Typo oops. Meant to say 4th one. :tearsofjoy:
I have 4 sticks filling all 4 available ram slots. no clue why theres 4 slots in a triple channel board? Is that just because "more options" ?
 
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KananX

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realflow100 said:
Typo oops. Meant to say 4th one. :tearsofjoy:
I have 4 sticks filling all 4 available ram slots. no clue why theres 4 slots in a triple channel board? Is that just because "more options" ?
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That’s very odd, I’ve never heard about a tri channel mainboard that has 4 slots, never even seen one with 3. Are you sure you’re talking about the right mainboard? Can you give me the name of it?
 
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realflow100

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Must be a different board in mine. I did not see a 5th or 6th one in mine! Very weird.
All the ram slots I did see in mine were full. i did not see a spare one. I'm super confused.
Maybe they are hidden or covered up or something. or somehow my board is just veeeery slightly different?

Or possibly I'm totally blind and somehow didn't notice?
 
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KananX

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realflow100 said:
Must be a different board in mine. I did not see a 5th or 6th one in mine! Very weird.
All the ram slots I did see in mine were full. i did not see a spare one. I'm super confused.
Maybe they are hidden or covered up or something. or somehow my board is just veeeery slightly different?

Or possibly I'm totally blind and somehow didn't notice?
Click to expand...
I don’t know, however I googled this board and I didn’t find one with 4 slots and as explained a board with tri chan and 4 slots makes no sense. Maybe you can provide a picture, that would be nice.
 
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kerberos_20

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KananX said:
Google it yourself then, I can’t find anything else than a board with 6 ram slots. Probably being trolled here.
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Upgrading HP Z400 Workstation

Hello, I recently got a Z400 workstation for free so i thought it would make a good budget mid range gaming PC I got the PC with the following specs: Ram: 8gb CPU: W3520 GPU: QuadroFX 3500 HD: 1TB Hitachi HUA72101 PSU: 475 watt My upgrade parts: Ram: 32gb £90 <-- still waiting to arrive CPU: x...
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here is one
mainboard used: SP 461438-001 AS 460839-002
 
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KananX

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kerberos_20 said:
linustechtips.com

Upgrading HP Z400 Workstation

Hello, I recently got a Z400 workstation for free so i thought it would make a good budget mid range gaming PC I got the PC with the following specs: Ram: 8gb CPU: W3520 GPU: QuadroFX 3500 HD: 1TB Hitachi HUA72101 PSU: 475 watt My upgrade parts: Ram: 32gb £90 <-- still waiting to arrive CPU: x...
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here is one
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Alright I guess I have to accept it then.😂 This is very strange. However, I would only use 3 ram sticks then, for normal tri channel usage.
 
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realflow100

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z400_3_slashgear-540x359.jpg

Pretty sure thats 4 ram slots there. Same pc as I have. I dont see a 6th slot. This isnt my photo clearly but thats what I see in my case!
Maybe I'm just blind?? Or my computers weird?
 
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