memory question (quad channel)

[Sithxace]

what would be more beneficial, 8 4gb sticks of ddr3-1600 ram of a total of 32gb in quad channel or 7 sticks of the 4gb ddr3 plus a 8gb stick for the total of 36gb ram. is the quad channel more beneficial or the extra 4gb?

I have the i7 3930k with ssds.

[Sasha dal Ponte]

Put same sticks in pairs, do not mix different sticks. So same manufacturer, same frequency, same capacity. Even if it means less memory in your system.