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Introduction:::...
I
can't believe I was actually whining a couple of months
ago over the demise of low latency memory. I don't mind
overclocking for christenings, weddings, reviews and special
occasions but when I'm alone with my machine I tend to run
at stock speeds just out of a combination of laziness and
the desire for maximum peace, quiet and uptime.
Memory
that runs at 500MHz plus is of no value to me 98% of the
time, I want stuff I can plug in and fire up in the knowledge
that what it lacks in frequency it's compensating for in
efficiency. If I can crank it up until it squeeks when I
need to then that's just a rather nice bonus.
With
most of the recent low latency memory modules on the market
relying on Winbond's BH5 chips for their talents, the demise
of these chips left a gaping hole in the market that took
a little while to fill.
Today
I want to look at a pair of modules from a company that
seems to be gaining in stature on an almost daily basis.
OCZ have recently been the name behind some extremely innovative
and attractive product releases, like their unique DDR
Power Booster or the new line of extremely high
quality power supplies.
Today
though our focus is on memory, the product that OCZ pretty
cut their teeth on when they were formed back in August
2000. With a claimed 2-5-2-2 ability at 200MHz and built
around Samsung's increasingly prestigious *-TCCD memory
chips, OCZ are making some bold claims that I hope to test
out.
TCCD
translates to (T : TSOP2) (C : Commercial,
Normal 0. ~ 70 Celsius) (CD: 4ns <500MHz> CL3),
so clearly this memory should be good to at least 500MHz
at CAS3. The fact that it can also do 400MHz 2-5-2-2 is
probably partly to do with PCB design and partly down to
the chips themselves.
Before
we move on here's what OCZ are saying about it:
OCZ
Platinum Edition Revision 2 PC-3200 memory has been designed
for ultra-low latency operation on Intel Pentium 4 and AMD
AthlonXP/Athlon 64 platforms. OCZ Platinum Edition PC-3200
memory is able to reach latencies as low as CL 2-2-2-5.
OCZ
PC-3200 products are 100% hand-tested to ensure compliance
with stringent quality standards. In addition, each OCZ
Platinum Edition Revision 2 module also comes with a high
quality copper heat spreader with a platinum mirrored finish.
OCZ
Platinum Edition memory modules are rated to handle up to
2.9V without invalidating the OCZ Lifetime Warranty so that
performance enthusiasts can tweak their systems without
worry.
Specifications
400MHZ
DDR
CL 2-2-2-5
Available in 512MB and a 1GB (2x512MB) Dual Channel Optimized
Kit
Unbuffered
Mirrored Platinum Copper Heatspreader
Lifetime Warranty
2.75 Volts
184 Pin DIMM
Part
Numbers
512MB Module PN - OCZ400512ELPER2
1GB Dual Channel Kit PN - OCZ4001024ELDCPER2-K
It's
the 1GB kit I have on test today so let's see what the modules
actually look like.
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