Will P67 Memory work in Z68 Mobos?

[flong]

Hi Everyone,

I did something not so bright, I am preparing to build a computer with the Z68 platform and I saw a great buy on P67 memory (8 GB for $75.00) designed for Sandy Bridge and I bought it on impulse (it was late at night and I wasn't thinking clearly).

The memory is designed to work with Sandy Bridge CPUs. Does anyone know if P67 memory will work with the Z68 mobos? Sorry if this is a dumb question.

The link to the memory I bought is here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

Thanks

 

[ubercake]

Yep. Rest easy.

 

[jprahman]

Yes it will work. For the most part DDR3 RAM is DDR3 RAM, and as such will work on any DDR3 compatible platform. The "Designed for P67" designation on the RAM kit simply specifies that it runs at the slightly reduced RAM voltages that Intel recommends for Sandy Bridge CPUs. It will work an any system, however. People have even used it in AMD systems with great results.

 

[geekapproved]

Z68 is a Sandy Bridge motherboard and it will have a Sandy Bridge cpu in it and you want to know if memory labeled as "Designed For Sandy Bridge" will work in it....?......LOL

 

[Leaps-from-Shadows]

Yeah, it's only Ivy Bridge and Sandy Bridge "E" that will likely require lower-voltage memory. That's why some companies already have 1.25v and 1.35v RAM available.

 

[flong]

Z68 is a Sandy Bridge motherboard and it will have a Sandy Bridge cpu in it and you want to know if memory labeled as "Designed For Sandy Bridge" will work in it....?......LOL

Hey now be nice, I said it might be a dumb question ha, ha. I have a civil engineering degree not a computer science degree . I am having to learn about building my own computer on my own - I have no one to help but the wonderful people on Tom's Hardware forum.

I understand that the Z68 is a Sandy Bridge platform, however it could have some peculiar requirement for a different type of RAM and that is why I was unsure. Note that the 1156 RAM IS slightly different from the 1155 RAM even though many RAM sets work well in both platforms.

I have read Wickipedia, the FAQ and other sources explaining RAM but I really don't think that I understand it clearly. I am still unsure what "tight" RAM settings are other than I think it means that the CL settings are less.

The RAM I purchased is DDR3 1600, CL9, but it can be OC to 1866. In all of the tests that I have read, 1600 or 1866 produced nearly as good performance as the 2133 setting RAM which is very expensive (over twice as much). So when I saw this GSkill 8GB set for only $75.00, I thought it was a bargain. All of the reviews I have read on RAM show that there is little real benefit to installing more than 8 GB unless you have some very unusual power user requirements which I don't.

Though this RAM is CL 9 it is similar the the CL7 RAM that was in April 18th Tom's Hardware article on RAM. The GSkill performed better than any other RAM but the Geil, which is expensive and not widely available. That GSkill RAM used in the review costs over twice what I paid ($150 or more) and I am betting that there will be very little real-world difference in performance. i hope that I am right.

What do you guys think? Is there that much difference between CL9 and CL7 RAM to merit over twice the price?

 

[jprahman]

Tight RAM settings are settings with lower timing values, although CL values are not the only timing settings. Lower values are better because the timings control the delay between RAM data transfers, allowing more transfers in the same amount of time.

Overall there isn't a big difference between CL7 and CL9, although if choosing between similar sets of RAM the set with lower timings is the better option, in your case, however, it's not worth paying twice as much, just to get lower timings.

 

[Leaps-from-Shadows]

Note: All of the times I've seen G.Skill 1600 RAM that overclocks to 1866 or 2133, it was the CL8 version. The CL9 version doesn't overclock worth crap (I have 1600 CL9 4GB and 8GB kits) -- it won't go to 1866 even with timings at 11-11-11-33 at 1.65v (tested on two different boards).

 

[flong]

Note: All of the times I've seen G.Skill 1600 RAM that overclocks to 1866 or 2133, it was the CL8 version. The CL9 version doesn't overclock worth crap (I have 1600 CL9 4GB and 8GB kits) -- it won't go to 1866 even with timings at 11-11-11-33 at 1.65v (tested on two different boards).

Thanks for letting me know and you may be right. In the NewEgg reviews a couple of people report that they got the RAM to OC to 1866 - but that is just second hand info from the reviews.

Here is a quote of one of the reviews: "I have this memory overclocked to 1866MHz with 9-10-9-28 timings @ 1.5 volts, and is stable using Prime95 for 8-hours. Gets a WEI rating of 7.9 overclocked, and 7.8 at stock settings."

Considering the GSkill CL7 1600 RAM overclocked very well up to 2133, hopefully this CL9 1600 RAM will OC to 1866. It seems fairly realistic that it will. Heck the Kingston CL9 RAM OCed to 2133 in the Tom's Hardware review which is pretty amazing.

Even if this RAM doesn't OC to 1866, I am happy with 1600 - especially for the price. The performance difference between 1600 and 2133 doesn't seem to be that big when I read the reviews of RAM performance. It really is striking to me how little real-world difference there is between high dollar RAM and less expensive RAM like I purchased. At least that is what the reviews I have read show.

This will be my first computer build and with the 2600K OC to 4.5 - 4.8 GHZ I and an ATI 6950 GPU I think it will be fast enough for my needs. I don't really game and so I don't need 2300 htz RAM speed (the newest high speed RAM). Later if I feel the need I can upgrade and I really won't have lost much because I have only $75 invested in this RAM. I may even be able to sell this RAM for something.

I do not see the cost/benefit ratio of buying exotic RAM - but I am not an enthusiast and I am a rookie. If someone has some info to add about the benefits of "tighter" more expensive RAM I would like to hear from them as I am trying to educate myself in the world of computer. I am sure that there are a lot of other rookies reading this forum just like me.

Also I have another question. If the Kingston CL9 OCed to 2133 in the Tom's Hardware review but its CL settings were not as "tight" as a result of the overclocking, is it better to take the higher htz rating and 2133 and lose the lower CL settings? Or, is there a balancing point somewhere between the two that is the sweet spot?

Let's say you have the Kingston CL9 1600 OCed to 2133 with looser CL settings, would there be a lot of difference between that RAM and a more expensive CL 7 1600 RAM (from any maker) OCed to 2133?

It also seems like a lot of people are very loyal to Corsair and I have been very impressed with the products that I have bought from them - Corsair 850 HX PSU and 2500 SPF 2.1 speaker system. Is Corsair the best RAM to get?

BTW the SPF 2500 2.1 speaker system is simply amazing. It has cleaner, more detailed sound than my $2000 home theater speaker system and it costs $200.

 

[flong]

Note: All of the times I've seen G.Skill 1600 RAM that overclocks to 1866 or 2133, it was the CL8 version. The CL9 version doesn't overclock worth crap (I have 1600 CL9 4GB and 8GB kits) -- it won't go to 1866 even with timings at 11-11-11-33 at 1.65v (tested on two different boards).

I forgot to say that GSkill has two different 8 GB RAM (2 X 4GB) sets; one has BRL in the model # and the other has BXL. From reading the reviews, it appears that the BXL is a newer improved version of the BRL RAM and that it will OC. The BRL RAM got a lot of poor reviews on NewEgg, the BXL has nearly perfect reviews. The BRL RAM is cheaper than the BXL. The BXL is specifically designed for the Sandy Bridge platform, the BRL is not. Once I finally get all my parts and build my computer I will let you know.

Thanks to everyone who has replied.

 

[geekapproved]

I'm not sure why you want to overclock your memory, the performance difference would be un-noticeable and it has no bearing on overclocking of the cpu.

If I were you I would stick to DDR3-1600 in cas8 or cas9 and 1.5v. They will work fine with SB-E.

As long as it says 1.5v, it's designed for Sandy Bridge, whether it says it or not.

 

[flong]

I'm not sure why you want to overclock your memory, the performance difference would be un-noticeable and it has no bearing on overclocking of the cpu.

If I were you I would stick to DDR3-1600 in cas8 or cas9 and 1.5v. They will work fine with SB-E.

As long as it says 1.5v, it's designed for Sandy Bridge, whether it says it or not.

I probably will do that. As I have mentioned, the performance difference will probably be negligible.

 

[flong]

Best answer selected by flong.

 

[Maziar]

This topic has been closed by Maziar