The modules from Kingmax occupy a special place in this test, as they are equipped with chips in the Tiny BGA package (Ball Grid Array). According to the manufacturer, the cycle time is only 4 ns and is therefore significantly below the values that are typical for DDR DIMMs in the 200-250 MHz range. This is made possible by the improved signal quality of this construction mode. However, in practice it's a different story: the two Kingmax DIMMs performed without any hiccups on only a few of the boards.
Processor: AMD Athlon64 3400+
Two different steppings of the Athlon64 were used in this test: CO and the latest CG stepping. Performance values and features of the 64 bit processor satisfy all requirements according to current standards: with up to 2.2 GHz (3400+) at present, the CPUs offer plenty of power, especially for games and multimedia. Cool & Quiet also ensures a reduced clock rate and supply voltage in the case of a low power load - providing it is supported by the motherboard. Unfortunately, the memory support is somewhat restrictive:
Given the restrictions in terms of potential memory, the question arises as to how users are supposed to use larger memory volumes - which are only possible by means of a 64 bit processor - without experiencing problems.
Patrick Schmid was the editor-in-chief for Tom's Hardware from 2005 to 2006. He wrote numerous articles on a wide range of hardware topics, including storage, CPUs, and system builds.
