TeamGroup is renown for its memory products, especially for the T-Force gaming memory product lineup. Today we’ll be taking a look at the T-Force Night Hawk RGB 16GB DDR4-3200 memory kit, just to see what kind of feature and overclocking headroom can we expect from this kit.

Specifications

Product NameT-Force Night Hawk RGB
Part NumberTF2D48G3200HC16CBK
Capacity16GB (2 x 8GB)
Frequency3200MHz (XMP)
TimingsCL16-18-18-38
Voltage1.35V
Unit Dimensions53(H) x 147(L) x 9(W) mm
Unit Weight118g (236g in total)

 

Unboxing

Starting off with the packaging, TeamGroup included both the black and white design of the Night Hawk RGB so that you’ll know there’s two different color variant available for this model. As for the award badges, it’s just to show you that TeamGroup has won quite a handful of awards with the Night Hawk RGB.

You’ll find some brief description of the product at the back of the box, but that’s all you can find – brief description of the features available. Though, TeamGroup did included a QR code which links to the product page in case if you wish to learn more about the product.

As for the content, you’ll find the Night Hawk RGB kit, a T-Force sticker, and user’s guide.

The T-Force Night Hawk RGB 16GB DDR4-3200

Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB (4)

As seen at the front of the box, we know that the T-Force Night Hawk RGB comes available in both black and white model. The one we have here is the white-colored model and unlike most of the memory kit we have here in the test lab, the Night Hawk RGB is surprisingly heavy. A single module alone is already weighed at 118g (a pair of this weighed at 236g), which is as heavy as most of the dual-channel kit out there.

According to the description on the product page, TeamGroup described the Night Hawk RGB heatsink design as what resembles the eyes of a nighthawk. Although the heatsink doesn’t really resemble a nighthawk’s eye in our opinion, it does gives you that RGB lighting you want if you’re into decorating your PC into a Christmas tree with fancy colorful lights. These RGB LEDs on the Night Hawk RGB can be controlled using the proprietary software from the board manufacturers, or the Blitz software which can be downloaded from the Night Hawk RGB product page.

Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB (7)

Based on the label sticker on the heatsink, we can see that the Night Hawk RGB we have here is capable of running at 3200MHz via XMP with the stated timings CL16-18-18-38 at 1.35V VDimm.

Since the kit is rather heavy, we decided to open up the heatsink just to see just how thick it is. Unlike some of the kit we’ve tested, the heatsink attached isn’t just any thin Aluminum piece you’ll find on lower-cost DDR4 ‘gaming memory’. Due to the weight, a pair of screws are required to keep the heatsink secured in place because the thermal pads weren’t enough to hold the weight of the heatsink.

Moving on to the memory module itself, the Night Hawk RGB we have here is a single-sided kit with some unknown memory IC with TeamGroup logo engraved on it. Foam pads that have the same thickness as the memory IC can be found on the other side of the module, which acts as a filler for the heatsink to hold onto.

Thaiphoon Burner Screenshot Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB

Since this is not the first time we’ve seen memory IC that has its original manufacturer logo replaced, one of the best ways to identify the manufacturer of the memory IC is through the Thaiphoon Burner software.

Based on the information shown in Thaiphoon Burner, we can identify the memory IC as the CJR chips from SK-Hynix. Unlike the older Hynix AFR chips, the CJR is known to be able to reach the 4000MHz mark just like the Samsung B-die that many enthusiasts endorsed.

Software: Board Manufacturer vs. Blitz

While most of the memory kit nowadays are compatible with the RGB software from each motherboard manufacturers, TeamGroup did included a download link to their Blitz software for dedicated RGB lighting controls on the Night Hawk RGB and the rest of the RGB enabled DDR4 memory from TeamGroup.

ASUS AURA

ASUS AURA Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB

We’re using the ASUS AURA software for this test, which is the same software that we used to disable the RGB lightings on the ROG Maximus X Apex that we’re using for this test. The Night Hawk RGB basically just works with all the 13 lighting profiles available on the ASUS AURA, which can be synchronized with the RGB lighting on the motherboard with ease.

TeamGroup Blitz

T-Force Blitz Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB

Now if you think it’s just the same software, take a closer look at the RGB profiles. Instead of the 13 profiles on the original ASUS AURA, it’s now left with 11 profiles – smart and select effect is missing. Oh right, the sync with motherboard option is missing as well.

So what happened here is that the Blitz basically just took over the ASUS AURA and clicking on the ASUS AURA shortcut will just lead you to the same menu. To get back your original ASUS AURA, you’ll have to uninstall the Blitz and restart your PC.

Test System Setup

CPUIntel i7 8700K
CPU CoolerThermaltake Floe Riing 360
MotherboardROG Maximus X Apex
Memory KitT-Force Night Hawk RGB DDR4
GPUZOTAC Gaming RTX 2080 Ti AMP Edition
ChassisCooler Master Test Bench V1.0
Power SupplyEnermax MaxTytan 1250W
StorageKingston KC2000 1TB

Overclocking Test

CPU-Z Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB XMP 3200MHz

We started the test with the XMP profile, which is the tested settings at 3200MHz with timings of CL18-18-18-38 2T. If you don’t plan to go further with the memory frequency, you can just change the Command Rate to 1T without any additional adjustments to the sub timings and voltage.

CPU-Z Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB Manual 3600MHz

If you’re feeling a bit more adventurous and wanted to go a little bit further, you can bump up the memory frequency to 3600MHz while retaining the 1T Command Rate. No additional adjustments to the sub timings are needed at this point, but we have to increase the VCCSA and VCCIO to 1.18V to keep it stable with the current settings.

CPU-Z Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB SuperPi 32M (4)

Like we mentioned earlier, going 4000MHz with the CJR is definitely achievable. Though, you’ll have to loosen up the timings a little after going above the 3866MHz/3933MHz. For the Night Hawk RGB DDR4, we achieved 4000MHz with CL18-22-22-42 2T, 1.4V for VDimm, and 1.25V for VCCSA and VCCIO.

Teamgroup Nighthawk DDR4 RGB Featured

Final Thoughts

Weighed at a total of 236g, the T-Force Night Hawk RGB 16GB DDR4-3200 here is probably the heaviest kit we’ve tested to date. It’s almost impossible to bend the kit under any normal circumstances unless it’s done intentionally or by accident – a REALLY bad one that is. We’re not exactly a fan of all the RGB lightings, the RGB lightings on this kit aren’t really the kind of blinding lights you’ll get from some of the kits out there, which is good.

Apart from its surprisingly heavy and built like a tank heatsink, this kit also turns out to be a pretty decent kit for enthusiasts who is on the budget. At the price of RM699, you’ll still be able to push this kit from its rated DDR4-3200 frequency to DDR4-4000 – which is quite a steal already. If the much-relaxed timings aren’t really your thing, you’ll have to go with the Night Hawk Legend RGB CL14-14-14-31 with Samsung B-die at a higher cost.

Pros

  • Very solid heatsink
  • Good overclocking headroom
  • Soft RGB lighting
  • RGB lightings can be controlled through the motherboard software
  • Reasonably priced

Cons

  • The Blitz software basically just took over the motherboard software

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