Posted by Nathan Kirsch | Tue, Dec 22, 2015 - 11:40 AM

Jump To: Page 1: G.SKILL TridentZ Extreme DDR4 Memory Review Page 2: The DDR4 Test System Page 3: AIDA64 Extreme Edition 5.30 Beta Page 4: 3DMark Sky Diver and Handbrake Page 5: Final Thoughts & Conclusions

G.SKILL TridentZ Extreme DDR4 Memory Review

DDR4 memory prices have fallen significantly over the past year and prices are expected to decline even further in 2016. This is due to weak demand for DDR4 in the PC market that is causing an oversupply and to top it off the memory makers are shifting from DDR3 to DDR4 production causing an even larger supply glut. The rather large stockpile of DDR4 memory ICs has caused 4Gb DDR4 DRAM chips to drop in price by nearly 40% between June 2015 and October 2015 alone and over 50% this year. The excess supply of DDR4 memory has significantly driven memory kit pricing down and that is great news for anyone for anyone looking to build a new PC on the Intel X99 or Intel Z170 platforms. G.Skill has one of the largest and most respected DDR4 memory kit lineups on the market and they are always trying to develop and release faster memory kits for enthusiasts. The G.Skill Trident Z series of memory was designed specifically to offer extreme performance applications and feature the best Samsung DDR4 ICs that G.Skill could purchase. G.Skill than sorted/binned all the Samsung IC’s that they purchased and came up with 11 different speed grades ranging from 2800 MHz to 4266 MHz with regards to 8GB (2 x 4GB) dual-channel DDR4 memory kits that we are going to be focusing on today. The Trident Z 8GB (2x4GB) DDR4 dual-channel memory kits currently start out in price at $65 and go all the way up to $400. The kits all feature the same PCB, Samsung DDR4 IC’s, heat spreaders and lifetime warranty. The only real difference between the kits is how they have been sorted and had the SPD programmed for operation.

G.Skill TridentZ Series 8GB (2 x4GB) DDR4 Memory Kits

Part Number Density Speed Latency Voltage Bandwidth Price F4-2800C15D-8GTZB 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 2800MHz 15-16-16 1.25V PC4-22400 $64.99 F4-3000C15D-8GTZB 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3000MHz 15-16-16 1.35V PC4-24000 $64.99 F4-3000C15D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3000MHz 15-15-15 1.35V PC4-24000 $69.99 F4-3200C16D-8GTZB 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3200MHz 16-18-18 1.35V PC4-25600 $69.99 F4-3200C16D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3200MHz 16-16-16 1.35V PC4-25600 $70.99 F4-3466C16D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3466MHz 16-18-18 1.35V PC4-27700 $89.99 F4-3600C17D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3600MHz 17-18-18 1.35V PC4-28800 $99.99 F4-3733C17D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3733MHz 17-19-19 1.35V PC4-29800 $124.99 F4-3866C18D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 3866MHz 18-22-22 1.35V PC4-30900 $159.99 F4-4000C19D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 4000MHz 19-21-21 1.35V PC4-32000 $209.99 F4-4133C19D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 4133MHz 19-25-25 1.4V PC4-33000 $299.99 F4-4200C19D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 4200MHz 19-26-26 1.4V PC4-33600 $369.99 F4-4266C19D-8GTZ 8GB Kit (2x4GB) 4266MHz 19-26-26 1.4V PC4-34100 $399.99

With that many speed grades available it basically forces the enthusiast to purchase a memory kit by the price of the kit as most of the sorting fun was done at the factory. If you can only afford a $100 memory kit then you are looking at a 3600MHz kit, but if you don’t have any budget you can purchase a 4266MHz kit if you really wanted to. We were sent the G.Skill Trident Z 4000MHz 8GB (2x4GB) memory kit to review that is sold under part number F4-4000C19D-8GTZ for $209.99 shipped. This kit, like all the other Trident Z kits, come with the latest Intel XMP 2.0 overclocking profiles and the new aggressive looking bi-colored heat spreaders with red accents.

The F4-4000C19D-8GTZ memory kit operates at 4000 MHz (PC4-32000) with 19-21-21-41 timings and 1.35 Volts. The tRFC isn’t really advertised, but it is set to run at 525 clocks in the SPD programming. These memory modules are fairly tall at 44mm in height, so be sure that they won’t interfere with your CPU cooler.

Here is a quick video overview on the G.Skill Trident Z DDR4 memory series.

Let’s move along and take a look at the test system and then the performance of this kit!