Memory is one of those products where personal opinion just doesn't matter too much. Either you like how they look, or you don't. Either you are willing to pay a bit more for that added performance, or you are not. When balancing choices once it comes to making the purchase, Crucial has a wide spread of offerings that embody every ideal, except, of course, for looks. That is a big part of why I like the Crucial Ballistix Elite; with a matte black finish, these simply disappear into your case and perform pretty well while being almost invisible.

The Crucial Ballistix Elite comes in at 2666 MHz, with fairly moderate timings, but manages to take the top spot in my testing in more occasions than one. I'm pretty confident that Crucial's 32 GB kit of these Ballistix Elite sticks, which would offer 2R performance numbers, are ideal choice for performance memory, provided the price is right, of course.

There are definitely cheaper kits out there, but don't let that dissuade you from plopping a few more dollars on the counter at your local PC store. With a thick and heavy heatsink, these modules can take some abuse, and the 2666 MHz profile at only 1.2V is one of the highest speed bins Crucial has on offer right now. In overclocking circles, Micron ICs tend to offer better latency scaling than other options, and this kit might just be populated with some of the best if overclocking is your thing, although no guarantees are ever provided when overclocking. Got a fresh new set and need help setting it up? Let me know in the forums!