It has been a few months since we started playing with the new X58 platform that is the Core i7, and as with any new platform, there are lots of new techniques that must be learned in order to milk maximum performance.  A lot of these techniques often deal directly with memory, and Core i7 is no different.  What is different, is the memory performance associated with the i7 platform.  And so, with us today at the club, we have a premium triple channel memory kit from Crucial Technology. 

While "Ballistix" is oftentimes a name associated with bleeding edge performance, however, in a way, this particular kit almost feels retro.  Why is this?  Because while the newest generation of Ballistix comes in red, green and blue, the particular kit we have uses the same styling as the original Ballistix Tracers:  black with silver trim, red and green activity LEDs on the top, and blue LEDs at the base.  Even though the look is retro, the real question is, is the performance retro? 

Specifications:

This particular kit is configured as follows:

Triple Channel Memory Defined

The Intel® Core i7 family of processors is the first to introduce triple channel DDR3 memory support. This new technology will take memory data transfer rates to the next level. Compared to a dual channel controller, the Triple Channel technology actually doubles to rates of up to 25.6 GB/s when operated in triple channel interleaved mode. Furthermore, the memory controller for the i7 is located on-die, which helps increase memory performance as well.  

Memory Voltage and the Intel Core i7

Now, unlike older intel platforms, playing with memory voltages carries an added risk to the CPU as well.  There has been a lot of misinformation out there regarding this, and while the official Intel calls for a nominal voltage of 1.5V, not to exceed 1.65V, the reality is that what is important is the relationship between vDIMM and VTT.  The general rule of thumb for CPU longevity is as follows:

vDIMM - VTT < 0.5V

This allows us some extra flexibility in terms of really cranking up the juice.  This means with the proper "enhanced interrogation techniques", we can really see what this memory can do.