Review: Crucial Ballistix Tracer DDR3-1,600: putting bling before value?

Final thoughts and rating

Crucial's introduction of a number of Ballistix Tracer DDR3 modules ensures that it keeps reasonable pace with noted specialists in the Core i7-based high-speed stakes. The top-of-the-line modules, operating at 1,600MHz with 8-8-8-24-2T timings, are decent and stable, and available in either 3GB or 6GB tri-module kits.

Our testing has shown that Core i7 doesn't really benefit from high-speed DDR3 in any form, even if the BCLK clock is pushed up to 200MHz and the CPU overclocked. DDR3-1,333 CL9 modules deliver 95 per cent-plus performance of these 1,600MHz CL8 modules and do so less than one-third of the price. Put it this way, would you buy a £300 graphics card if a £90 model delivered practically the same performance in real-world benchmarks?

Crucial's greatest enemy to the Ballistix Tracer memory is its own vastly cheaper line of regular DDR3 which has seen another huge price-cut in recent weeks. Faced with the prospect of shelling out £200 extra for, say, five per cent performance gain, which is what we observed in the benchmarks, the money would be better spent on a higher-specification graphics card, capacious hard drives, or better motherboard, we feel.

Bottom line: Crucial's Ballistix Tracer DDR3-1,600 CL8 is a solid, dependable pack, but such is the price differential and lack of performance deviation from a £90 set, that the near-£300 asking price needs to be snipped to, at most, £150 for it to make any real sense.

HEXUS Rating

HEXUS.net scores products out of 100%, taking into account technology, implementation, stability, performance, value, customer care and desirability. A score for an average-rated product is a meaningful ‘50%’, and not ‘90%’, which is common practice for a great many other publications.

We consider any product score above '50%' as a safe buy. The higher the score, the higher the recommendation from HEXUS to buy. Simple, straightforward buying advice.

The rating is given in relation to the category the component competes in, therefore the memory is evaluated with respect to our 'extreme components' criteria, where performance and technology are weighted far higher than value.

Crucial Ballistix Tracer DDR3-1,600 CL8 (BL3KIT25664TB1608)

HEXUS Where2Buy

The 6GB pack is available to buy for £297.84 direct Crucial.co.uk.

HEXUS Right2Reply

At HEXUS, we invite the companies whose products we test to comment on our articles. If any company representatives for the products reviewed choose to respond, we'll publish their commentary here verbatim.

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Considering the criticisms applied to this pack can also be applied (to an even greater extent) to the £500 Corsair Dominator pack tested earlier in the week, what justifies the crucial scoring 62% and the corsair 80%?

the lights look sweet, hopefully these will go down in price come the summer.

Michael H;1638625
Considering the criticisms applied to this pack can also be applied (to an even greater extent) to the £500 Corsair Dominator pack tested earlier in the week, what justifies the crucial scoring 62% and the corsair 80%?

The value portion of the final score is much smaller for high-end and extreme modules than it is for run-of-the-mill mid-price components.

The Corsair DOMINATOR scores very poorly on value, with the Crucial faring only slightly better, but it does better (and much) in terms of performance. Yes, the benchmarks only show a little difference, but the DOMNATOR is the fastest RAM you can buy. In comparison, the Crucial, is barely above mid-range but also horribly expensive.

The DOMINATOR is that £1,000 CD or Blu-ray player and receives recognition, via scoring, that this is the creme de la creme of DDR3 desktop memory. You want memory? There is nothing that's currently better, and price is somewhat incidental.

The Crucial Ballistix is in no mans' land, being some way from the fastest and, as noted above, priced highly. It's difficult to recommend no matter which way you look at it.

We have no intrinsic problem in passing impartial judgement on ultra-expensive kit if we can see a demand and point to it. The DOMINATOR has that point, we believe, whilst the Crucial doesn't, hence the deviation in scoring.

Products released at the price point have little interest too 99% of consumers. They are products that lead the way for things to come in the future. They shouldnt be rated on value. They should be rated on technical acheivement and how well they work.

If that was going to hapepn, there would need to be a second rating system… would get a bit complicated.

The tracers are a bit pointless at the end of the day, but they'll always find a market somewhere. Personally, I reckon you'd be better off buying some ballistix and some Christmas tree lights.