1GB DIMMs: FAST 2GB DDR Kits from Corsair, Gigaram, and OCZ
by Wesley Fink on October 11, 2005 2:55 PM EST- Posted in
- Memory
Corsair CMX1024-3500LL PRO
Corsair is the most widely recognized brand of enthusiast or high-performance memory in the world. Corsair also maintains very visible support in the form of RamGuy, who provides support for Corsair products at www.asktheramguy.com and as a participant in many Forums.
Specifications
The CMX1024-3500LL PRO is rated at CAS 2, an extremely fast rating for a 1GB DIMM.
Test Results
To be considered stable for test purposes, Quake3 benchmark, UT2003 Demo, Super PI, Aquamark 3, and Comanche 4 had to complete without incident. Any of these, and in particular Super PI, will crash a less-than stable memory configuration.
Several things stand out in the performance of this Corsair. We were able to maintain 2-3-2 timings all the way to DDR456. These excellent timings are very close to the best 2-2-2 that we currently see with 512MB DIMMs. The memory was able to accomplish this at very low voltage 2.6 to 2.7 volts. In fact, the Infineon chips that Corsair uses rarely need or like higher voltage. Increasing voltage beyond 2.7V did not allow us to go any higher in overclocking, nor did more relaxed timings allow us to push higher. The limit is DDR492 - very close to DDR500.
Corsair appears to have binned these Infineon chips for fastest performance in the most used DDR400 to DDR480 range. In that range, these 1GB DIMMs perform very competitively with the best 512MB DIMMs.
Corsair is the most widely recognized brand of enthusiast or high-performance memory in the world. Corsair also maintains very visible support in the form of RamGuy, who provides support for Corsair products at www.asktheramguy.com and as a participant in many Forums.
Specifications
The CMX1024-3500LL PRO is rated at CAS 2, an extremely fast rating for a 1GB DIMM.
| Corsair CMX1024-3500LLPRO Memory Specifications | |
| Number of DIMMs & Banks | 2 DS |
| DIMM Size Total Memory |
1GB 2GB |
| Rated Timings | 2-3-2-8 at DDR433 |
| Rated Voltage | Standard (2.6V) Voltage |
Test Results
| Corsair CMX1024-3500LLPRO (DDR433) - 2x1GB Double-Bank | |||||||
| CPU Ratio at 2.4GHz | Memory Speed |
Memory Timings & Voltage |
Quake3 fps |
Sandra UNBuffered | Sandra Standard Buffered |
Super PI 2M places (time in sec) |
Wolfenstein - Radar - Enemy Territory fps |
| 12x200 | 400DDR | 2-3-2-7 2.5V 1T |
547.4 | INT 2654 FLT 2808 |
INT 5984 FLT 5918 |
80 | 120.8 |
| 11x218 | 436DDR | 2-3-2-7 2.6V 1T |
551.7 | INT 2825 FLT 2990 |
INT 6246 FLT 6178 |
80 | 121.5 |
| 10x240 | 480DDR | 2.5-3-2-7 2.7V 1T |
558.4 | INT 2991 FLT 3142 |
INT 6441 FLT 6360 |
79 | 122.5 |
| 10x246 (2.46GHz) |
Highest MEM Speed 492 DDR |
2.5-3-2-7 2.7V 1T |
570.6 | INT 3060 FLT 3250 |
INT 6570 FLT 6507 |
78 | 125.7 |
Several things stand out in the performance of this Corsair. We were able to maintain 2-3-2 timings all the way to DDR456. These excellent timings are very close to the best 2-2-2 that we currently see with 512MB DIMMs. The memory was able to accomplish this at very low voltage 2.6 to 2.7 volts. In fact, the Infineon chips that Corsair uses rarely need or like higher voltage. Increasing voltage beyond 2.7V did not allow us to go any higher in overclocking, nor did more relaxed timings allow us to push higher. The limit is DDR492 - very close to DDR500.
Corsair appears to have binned these Infineon chips for fastest performance in the most used DDR400 to DDR480 range. In that range, these 1GB DIMMs perform very competitively with the best 512MB DIMMs.
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Slaimus - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Does 4 single sided 512MB sticks behave the same as 2 double sided 1GB sticks?eastvillager - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Why would you buy these when the 2-3-2-5 sticks are readily available?Wesley Fink - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
If you read the review you will see that ALL THREE of the 1GB dimms ran at 2-3-2 at DDR400 to DDR440 or so. They will all run 2-3-2-5, but we have shown in previous tests the the nForce 4 is fastest running a tRAS of 6 or 7. We ran 2-3-2-7 because it is faster than 2-3-2-5 on the nForce4. Try it for yourslef with memtest86 and differnet tRAS.Sunrise089 - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Possible minor typos aside, this article is a great change of pace from some of the recent technical write-ups here on Anandtech(cough:R520:cough). The quality of writing as well as the attempt to put the parts in perspective and give the big picture is much appreciated. With so many sites out there, I can go anywhere for simple RAM benchmarks, but for me it is much harder to find informed discussions about why the part being reviewed is a good idea/choice or not. I really felt this side of the story was lacking in the X1800 reviews and am glad to see it here.Houdani - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Page 3:I think you meant DDR550.
Page 4:
In your table of memory, you list the 3 new sticks as 2x512. I think you meant 2x1024.
Wesley Fink - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Corrected. Thanks for bringing these to us. It's funny that they looked just fine at 3AM :-)Doormat - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Whether its worth it or not to invest heavily (these pieces arent cheap) in DDR1 tech if you've already got a pair of fast running 2x512MB sticks. You'll just have to buy DDR2 sticks in a year if you want the fastest stuff (an A64 M2-socket based chip).emilyek - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
Lame. Why not a big review on the many available 2 and 2.5 cas DDR 400 sticks? The Geil, Patriot, OCZ, Gskill, and Corsair already top out at about 1k FSB when loosed up, and the timings on these RAMS sucks anyway.DrMrLordX - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
They've said it before, and I'll say it again: you just can't add every available DIMM variety to RAM tests. There's too much on the market, and many of the budget RAM types have wildly variable quality and performance.RockSolid - Tuesday, October 11, 2005 - link
The RamGuy link on Page 5 is incorrect.