Overclocking 9 Value-Priced DDR2-800 Kits

Test Setup

Designed specifically to get the greatest features and best performance for its price, the following mid-budget system formed the basis for this "bang for the buck" memory comparison.

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System Hardware
ProcessorIntel Core 2 Duo E6300(Conroe 65 nm, 1.86 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache)
MotherboardAsus P5B Deluxe WiFi/AP Edition, BIOS 0910
Hard DriveWestern Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD150 GB, 10,000 RPM, 16 MB Cache, SATA 150
NetworkingDual Gigabit (Onboard, Disabled)
Graphics CardsFoxconn 7900GS, P/N : FV-N79SM2D2nVidia GeForce 7900GS - 256 MB
Power SupplyOCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI - 700W
System Software & Drivers
OSWindows XP Professional 5.10.2600, Service Pack 2
DirectX Version9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
Platform DriverIntel INF 8.1.0.1010
Graphics DrivernVidia Forceware 91.47
Benchmarks and Settings
PCMark05 ProVersion : 1.1.0Memory TestsWindows Media Player 10.00.00.3646Windows Media Encoder 9.00.00.2980
SiSoftware Sandra 2005Version 2005.7.10.60Memory Test = Bandwidth Benchmark

Dropping the CPU multiplier to 6x and using a 2:1 DRAM :CPU bus clock ratio permitted ultra-high memory clock rates at speeds that would have otherwise rendered this system a smoking pile of rubbish. The performance impact will be felt equally at all speeds, making the bandwidth numbers not comparable to other articles, but perfectly proportional with respect to each other.

This Automatic Configuration Data chart shows SPD values detected by CPU-Z version 1.38, as well as those detected by the Asus P5B Deluxe WiFi/AP edition motherboard.

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Automatic Configuration Data (MHz : tCL-tRCD-tRP-tRAS)
ModelDetectedSPD TimingsBoot VoltageEPP
A-DATA Extreme 800+ AD2800EU400 : 5-5-5-18400 : 4-4-4-12400 : 4-4-4-111.80 V (CAS 5)2.00 V (CAS 4)Yes
Buffalo Select PC2-6400 D2U800C-K2G400 : 5-5-5-18400 : 5-5-5-18266 : 4-4-4-12200 : 3-3-3-91.80 VNo
Buffalo FireStix 6400 FSX800D2C-K2G400 : 4-5-5-18400 : 4-5-5-18400 : 4-5-5-18266 : 3-4-4-121.80 V (CAS 5)2.10 V (CAS 4)No
Crucial Ballistix 6400 BL2KIT12864AA804400 : 5-5-5-18500 : 5-5-5-15400 : 4-4-4-141.80 V (CAS 5)2.10 V (CAS 4)Yes
Mushkin Standard Value SP6400 996529400 : 5-5-5-18400 : 5-5-5-18266 : 4-4-4-121.80 VNo
OCZ Gold GX XTCRevision 2 PC2-6400OCZ2G800R22GK400 : 5-5-5-15400 : 5-5-5-15333 : 4-5-5-13270 : 3-4-4-101.95 VNo
Patriot Extreme Perf.PDC22G6400LLK400 : 5-5-5-16500 : 5-5-5-15400 : 4-4-4-121.80 V (CAS 5)2.20 V (CAS 4)Yes
Wintec AMPO3AMD2800-2G2K-R400 : 5-5-5-16400 : 5-5-5-16266 : 4-4-4-11200 : 3-3-3-81.80 VNo
Wintec AMPX C53AXT6400C5-2048K400 : 5-5-5-16400 : 5-5-5-16266 : 4-4-4-11200 : 3-3-3-81.80 VNo
Wintec AMPX C43AXT6400C4-2048K333 : 5-5-5-15333 : 5-5-5-15266 : 4-4-4-12200 : 3-3-3-91.90 VNo

Nine memory kits defaulted to 5-5-5 timings for easy booting, settings which further assured the maximum clock speed during these tests. Manually dropping the Buffalo FireStix to 5-5-5-18 kept this competition fair, but any attempt to loosen OCZ Gold GX XTC Revision 2 or Wintec AMPX C5 tRAS to 18 cycles resulted in a boot failure. The later used default SPD timings of 5-5-5-15 and 5-5-5-16, respectively.

Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom is a Senior Staff Editor at Tom's Hardware US. He tests and reviews cases, cooling, memory and motherboards.