Corsair intros 24GB DDR3 kit

Robert Hallock 15 Dec, 2009 at 6:33pm ET Article published in Tech

For the low, low price of $1349.99, you can be the proud owner of Corsair’s new CMD24GX3M6A1333C9 memory kit which bundles six 4GB DIMMs into one wallet-melting package.

“Corsair’s 24GB Dominator memory kit is perfect for high-performance computing applications, including computational research, HD digital content creation, working with multiple virtual machines, and other data-intensive applications,” said John Beekley, VP of Technical Marketing at Corsair.

“The latest multi-core Intel and AMD CPUs, combined with sophisticated graphics processors from Nvidia and AMD, are capable of performing incredible workloads. Corsair’s 24GB Dominator memory kit enables the large number of concurrent threads and substantial datasets required by these applications.”

The DDR3-1333 DIMMs operate at 9-9-9 and 1.6v. A triple-channel motherboard is required, but the kit is guaranteed to work on any and all X58 boards with six DIMM slots.

Comments

15 Dec 2009 ~ 6:46pm Sledgehammer70 That is insane!
15 Dec 2009 ~ 9:06pm photodude Some people who have upgraded to 12GB from 8GB and said they saw no improvement in their 64bit systems or 64bit programs they run. (like they are experiencing a software limitation in the amount of ram access, which is odd for a 64bit program on a 64bit OS)

It would be interesting to see performance comparisons with 8GB, 12GB and this 24GB Kit. for Cinebench R10, 3DS Max, Maya, Premiere, CAD, Revit, Lightroom, and Photoshop CS4.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 9:17pm lordbean RAM follows one basic rule - upgrading is only going to help you if you're using 100% of what you already have.

For memory-hungry apps, it could indeed be of significant benefit to have 24GB of RAM in the PC. However, for current gaming usage, this is overkill to the point of using an ICBM to swat a fly. The "practical" maximum for current gamers likely falls at around the 6GB point, with 12GB being comfortable for a long time to come.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 9:22pm Tim I remember reading the review some time back where 2 GB of ram was tested against 4 GB for performance. The 4 GB showed some improvement, but not a HUGE gain.

People will put 24 GB in a computer just because they can. And because they have more money than brains.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 9:26pm MAGIC

Tim wrote:

I remember reading the review some time back where 2 GB of ram was tested against 4 GB for performance. The 4 GB showed some improvement, but not a HUGE gain.

People will put 24 GB in a computer just because they can. And because they have more money than brains.

And because its awesome, count me in.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 9:31pm mas0n Or because they do actually need it.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 9:36pm shwaip It's not difficult for me to run out of 8gb of ram running matlab. I would love to have enough ram to do whatever i wanted.

edit:

You probably don't care because you just need 2 gb to run ie6 and wow. But for scientific computing, it's _awesome_.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 10:26pm lordbean

shwaip wrote:

It's not difficult for me to run out of 8gb of ram running matlab. I would love to have enough ram to do whatever i wanted.

edit:

You probably don't care because you just need 2 gb to run ie6 and wow. But for scientific computing, it's _awesome_.

This is an excellent example of a case where having that amount of RAM would be beneficial. The expense of the memory can be justified in time saved in cases like this.

The point I was trying to make above is that for a gaming system, it's a waste. You don't need more than 6 gigs for even the most demanding game on the market today.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:13pm shwaip My response was to tim, who was telling us that we don't need more than 2gb because 4gb doesn't perform a lot better in some games.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:21pm lordbean Ah, gotcha... just wanted to make sure my comment hadn't been misinterpreted as an advocation to simply not buy 24GB. It definitely would have its uses... gaming just isn't one of them.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:27pm BuddyJ Virtual machines, OTOH...
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:35pm photodude I remember those 32bit people who were all claiming that 2GB is all you need and 4GB didn't perform with enough of a gain to justify the cost. ....Wait I just blogged on Icrontic about someone I meet who was all up in my grill about only needing 2GB. I wish I would have told him to get his 32bit thinking out of my 64bit life, he was so out of his game.

Most Games are still 32bit, which caps at 1.5-3GB depending on how it's programed due to 32bit limitations...I'm not familiar with the few games that are 64bit to know if there is a ram cap in the program. but I expect that they might access the full 192GB if you had that much.

I agree if your not using 100% of your ram adding more ram wont help, but it should help data intensive programs like CAD, Photoshop, and maya. (yes, the people I know who upgraded from 8GB to 12GB were and continue to use 100% of their ram, with minimal performance differences)
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:42pm lordbean

photodude wrote:

Most Games are still 32bit, which caps at 1.5-3GB depending on how it's programed due to 32bit limitations...I'm not familiar with the few games that are 64bit to know if there is a ram cap in the program. but I expect that they might access the full 192GB if you had that much.

There's a pretty significant difference between having access to it and actually needing it. A 64-bit game may be capable of addressing an enormous heap of RAM, but if the game itself only occupies 8GB on your hard drive, then there's no way it's ever going to use 24GB of RAM.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:50pm mas0n

Buddy J wrote:

Virtual machines, OTOH...

THIS is why I'm always buying RAM.

Also, superfetch is good stuff. Doesn't justify 24GB for your average user, but it does justify buying twice as much as you absolutely need, IMO.

People who know they need it will buy it without batting an eye. People who read a review that uses games or "typical" applications as a reference will see it as unnecessary. The world keeps turning.
15 Dec 2009 ~ 11:54pm lordbean ^ True that.

Side note about superfetch - if you haven't got an SSD, it's actually worth it to use a flash drive for ReadyBoost. RAID arrays of standard platters may sustain a high transfer rate, but seek time even on a six-gazillion drive RAID0 is still limited by read head movement. I find that having a Readyboost flash drive makes my gaming PC feel jumpier.