G.Skill Trident 6GB PC3-16000 CL9 Tri Channel Memory Kit Review

Overclocking Results

For our overclocking tests we are interested in two main elements: how well the memory scales with additional voltage and how versatile it is at overclocking with different timings. As mentioned in the methodology, our overclocking efforts will primarily focus on four basic timing configurations (6-7-6 / 7-8-7 / 8-9-8 / 9-9-9) and three different voltage settings (1.55V / 1.65V / 1.70V). The QPI/DRAM voltage was kept at a high 1.50V (BIOS)/1.47V (measured via digital multimeter) throughout our tests in order to ensure (as best as possible) that the integrated memory controller would not bottleneck our memory overclocks. The IMC is without a doubt the determining factor in achieving high memory clocks, and every single Core i7 processor will have different headroom when it comes to the memory clocks and timings it can achieve.

With the pleasantries out of the way, let's get to the fun stuff.


Now those of you who are familiar with our memory reviews will likely notice that we limited the memory voltage to 1.70V, instead of our usual 1.75V. The simple reason for this change is that was we didn't actually gain any usable stable Mhz when increasing vDimm above 1.70V. We have seen some Trident kits scale successfully with up to 1.77V, but that simply wasn't the case for our sample. Nevertheless, as you can see above, the results were very strong across the board.

Starting off with the default 9-9-9 timings, this memory kit showed a lot of potential. Not only were we almost able to hit the stock DDR3-2000 at a mere 1.55V (it was stable at 1.57V), but this kit scaled up to the 2100 mark with a mere 1.70V. At that point, our CPU's integrated memory controller was holding us back, which as we've mentioned above is likely to be the bottleneck in most instances.

When dropping down to CAS 8, overall memory clocks did not decrease much. We almost managed to hit DDR3-2000 8-9-8 at this model's stock 1.65V, which is definitely a very strong result. Perhaps most impressively though, a mere 0.05V increase allowed us to achieve DDR3-2043 8-9-8, a huge 45Mhz increase in memory clocks. Clearly, the ICs that G.Skill have selected for this Trident kit scale well with additional voltage (up to 1.70V anyways), which is something that we did not see in our review of the G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ.

However, the excitement started to get a little muted once we dropped below CAS 8. As you can see in the above chart, the memory clocks really started taking a nosedive once we tightened up the primary timings and additional voltage was not making as much of an impact as previously. Once we hit the CAS 6 level, the memory clocks just fell off a cliff. At 6-7-6, not only did we lose an eye-watering 300Mhz (DDR) when compared to 7-8-7, but voltage scaling stopped at the 1.65V mark. We were even able to decrease QPI/DRAM voltage from 1.53750V (BIOS) to 1.43750V (BIOS) since the IMC was not being stressed, the modules simply came to a screeching halt on their own.

Assuming we are correct, these BBSE ICs are not much of a threat to the record-setting Elpida Hyper BASE chips which have a shocking capacity to achieve the highest of memory clocks with the tightest of timings. Having said that, let's put things into perspective. We would never compare a $168CDN+ memory kit to one costing upwards of $300, which is the bare minimum for any Hyper BASE-equipped kit. Instead, what we do have here is a memory kit that is powerful enough to never limit you in any of your overclocking endeavours, but flexible enough to allow you to use tight timings at popular memory frequencies (1600 / 1866 / 2000). If you are an overclocker and you don't have an unlimited budget, the Trident F3-16000CL9T-6GBTD is pretty much as good a kit as you will find right now.


Since we like to provide our readers with ample evidence of our overclocking achievements, feel free to check out the four screenshots below:

Highest Stable Overclocks
6-7-6 click for full size...	7-8-7 click for full size...
8-9-8 click for full size...	9-9-9 click for full size...

Now that we have tested this memory kit's overclocking prowess, and revealed that it can handle a wide range of speeds and timings, we have to see how it actually performs. Specifically, when it comes to pure performance what is the best option? Is the stock DDR3-2000 9-9-9 the fastest setting, or can you use the timings flexibility to eek some even better performance? That is what we will be examining next in our benchmarking section. Double check our Benchmark Methodology for the specifics.