| 12GB Crucial DDR3 Memory Kit CT3KIT51264BA1339 |  |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Memory | |
| Written by Olin Coles | |
| Wednesday, 05 May 2010 | |
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12GB Crucial DDR3 Kit ConclusionAlthough the rating and final score mentioned in this conclusion are made to be as objective as possible, please be advised that every author perceives these factors differently at various points in time. While we each do our best to ensure that all aspects of the product are considered, there are often times unforeseen market conditions and manufacturer changes which occur after publication that could render our rating obsolete. Please do not base any purchase solely on our conclusion, as it represents our product rating for the sample received which may differ from retail versions. Benchmark Reviews begins our conclusion with a short summary for each of the areas that we rate. Our performance rating considers how effective the 12GB Crucial DDR3 system memory upgrade kit performs in operations against direct competitor DDR3 triple-channel RAM storage products. For reference, Crucial specifies the CT3KIT51264BA1339 modules to perform at 1333MHz CL9 on 1.50 volts. Since there are few 4GB UDIMM components available to the retail market, this memory kit competes with 2GB x6 kits. Crucial's higher-density modules equal a higher latency and a slower speed than kits using twice the parts. This kit also compete with 6GB DDR3 RAM kits, even though they offer less memory density. In many of the synthetic benchmark tests, the benefit of having more memory delivered higher performance, or in some cases matched performance with higher-speed modules. The Crucial 12GB memory kit produced faster CPU-bound frame rates in Cinebench, and also ranked high in our Adobe Photoshop CS4 and PCMark Vantage video transcoding results. As far as looks go, this kit looks like any other basic DRAM component: eight DDR3 ICs per side on a green PCB. PC hardware enthusiasts may not appreciate the subtle appearance as much as industry professionals and computer power users, which makes this a memory kit that puts function before fashion. When it comes to after-sales product support, Crucial is the industry leader in customer care. Backed by a Crucial 'Limited Lifetime' warranty protecting consumers who own any of their memory kits, you can't really go wrong. Micron already screens modules to the point that failure rate is a fractional percent, so all that remains for concern is static discharge damage. Even then, the warranty has you covered. A robust Crucial Community Forum helps users troubleshoot problems, which can be helpful for upgrade projects. If a Crucial memory product does happen to fail during the warranty period, end-users can make contact via e-mail, chat, or mail. Fortunately, there's also a toll-free telephone number for support or customer service questions within the US and Canada: 800-336-8915. While this 12GB 1333MHz Crucial DDR3 kit may not offer overclockers any XMP profiles for tweaking their memory to match the processor, the large among of system RAM helps to deliver incredible performance in memory-intensive applications. In our tests, the 12GB Crucial memory upgrade kit matched-up extremely well with the Intel Core i7-980X Extreme Edition processor installed on our ASUS P6X58D-Premium test motherboard. Using this PC for massive image and video editing projects, the production time was increased for batch and encoding processes. As of May 2010, the 12GB Crucial memory upgrade kit is available at several online retailers. The CT3KIT51264BA1339 kit sells for $750 directly from Crucial, or you can compare prices to other merchants. The best price we discovered was $661, which certainly places a premium on these high-density modules. If you're got six DIMM slots to spare, there are plenty of more affordable Crucial memory kits available that will also deliver 12GB of system memory. Is conclusion, Crucial's 12GB memory kit is ideal for triple-channel computer systems where large amounts of system memory are used. Simply put, this is a professional's RAM kit, and not a fancy overclocking set for hardware enthusiasts. Nevertheless, Crucial's lifetime product warranty ensures that this will be the last RAM upgrade you'll need for quite a while. For power-users working on a 64-bit O/S, this 12GB kit fits perfectly on Intel's X58-Express motherboard platform, and even leaves room for expansion up to 24GB. The 12GB Crucial DDR3 triple-channel memory kit offer JEDEC speeds and a low 1.50 volt power demand. While not the fastest RAM we've tested, the Crucial CT3KIT51264BA1339 memory kit has proven it can handle Photoshop CS4 much better than any 6GB kit ever could. For multimedia power-users and PC hardware enthusiasts who can afford the purchase price, this memory kit could improve productivity and transcoding times. Pros:
+ Uses 4GB UDIMM DDR3-1333 Modules Cons:
- Not for overclockers - no XMP profiles Questions? Comments? Benchmark Reviews really wants your feedback. We invite you to leave your remarks in our Discussion Forum.
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