Super Talent & TEAM: DDR3-1600 Is Here!
by Wesley Fink on July 20, 2007 11:30 AM EST- Posted in
- Memory
Memory Test Configuration
The comparison of the two new DDR3-1600 memories used exactly the same components as our first reviews of DDR3 in DDR3 vs. DDR2, Intel P35 Memory Performance: A Closer Look, and Kingston Launches Low-Latency DDR3. The same test bed was used wherever possible. DDR2 memory performance baselines have been established and DDR2 memory performance will no longer be actively tested for our DDR3 reviews. With that in mind the bench processor has been changed to the Core 2 Duo E6420, which uses the same 4MB of unified cache as the top line C2D processors. With a ratio of 8 it is very easy to run 8x333 or our base 2.66 GHz with this CPU, merely by selecting the 333 strap and FSB on the test bed ASUS P5K3 Deluxe motherboard. This CPU can also handle FSB speeds to 500 and more (memory to DDR3-2000+) within the available 6 to 8x ratios at default voltage.
It is very difficult not to digress into a sidebar on Intel Core 2 overclocking when working with this CPU. The cost was just $183 and it will be replaced by the E6750 1333 FSB CPU at the same $183. Our 6420 runs 8x266 (2.13GHz), 8x333 (2.66 GHz), 8x417 (3.33 GHz) and 7x500 (3.5GHz) all at the default voltage setting. This covers up to DDR3-2000 at the 333 strap, and we hope the upcoming E6750 will perform just as well in our test bed as a replacement. This is a retail chip bought from an etailer and not an Intel-supplied processor.
Just six weeks after the introduction of P35 we already need a new chipset - or at least some serious work on DDR3 ratios. The ease of testing with the first DDR3 was the availability of a 1333 ratio on the P35-based ASUS P5K3 Deluxe. This meant we could select a stock speed like 2.66GHz and test various memory speeds at the same CPU speed. Unfortunately there is no 1600 (or 1666) ratio available on the P5K3 Deluxe or other P35 boards we have been testing. We need this ratio, since DDR3-1600, and DDR3-2000 are about to be common memory speeds. The only way you can test these memory speeds without a ratio is to overclock the CPU. Also the unfortunate reality of the 333 multiplier for a 1333 bus speed is that it is almost impossible to devise ratios and speeds that will allow realistic memory testing at the same processor speed.
As a result, until we get new chipsets and/or a BIOS with added ratios we are back to testing memory above 1333 speed at overclocked settings instead of the same processor speeds. This makes isolation of memory speed as the only test variable in memory reviews virtually impossible above the 1333 ratio. Motherboards need DDR3-1600 and DDR3-2000 ratios now that these memory speeds are on the market. We have a quick request/question for motherboard makers and Intel: if you can fix this ratio issue with BIOS updates please do so; if not, will this be one of the features of the upcoming X38 chipset?
Past performance tests of DDR2 memory on the Intel P965 and P35-DDR2 platforms are included for comparison. All current memory tests use the Intel P35-DDR3 test bed (ASUS P5K3 Deluxe) with the DDR3 memory under evaluation. The CPUs listed above in our table are 1066 FSB processors, but all ran fine at 1333 FSB at default multiplier and default voltage. New 1333 bus processors with the same ratios will be substituted for these processors as soon as they are available.
The comparison of the two new DDR3-1600 memories used exactly the same components as our first reviews of DDR3 in DDR3 vs. DDR2, Intel P35 Memory Performance: A Closer Look, and Kingston Launches Low-Latency DDR3. The same test bed was used wherever possible. DDR2 memory performance baselines have been established and DDR2 memory performance will no longer be actively tested for our DDR3 reviews. With that in mind the bench processor has been changed to the Core 2 Duo E6420, which uses the same 4MB of unified cache as the top line C2D processors. With a ratio of 8 it is very easy to run 8x333 or our base 2.66 GHz with this CPU, merely by selecting the 333 strap and FSB on the test bed ASUS P5K3 Deluxe motherboard. This CPU can also handle FSB speeds to 500 and more (memory to DDR3-2000+) within the available 6 to 8x ratios at default voltage.
It is very difficult not to digress into a sidebar on Intel Core 2 overclocking when working with this CPU. The cost was just $183 and it will be replaced by the E6750 1333 FSB CPU at the same $183. Our 6420 runs 8x266 (2.13GHz), 8x333 (2.66 GHz), 8x417 (3.33 GHz) and 7x500 (3.5GHz) all at the default voltage setting. This covers up to DDR3-2000 at the 333 strap, and we hope the upcoming E6750 will perform just as well in our test bed as a replacement. This is a retail chip bought from an etailer and not an Intel-supplied processor.
Just six weeks after the introduction of P35 we already need a new chipset - or at least some serious work on DDR3 ratios. The ease of testing with the first DDR3 was the availability of a 1333 ratio on the P35-based ASUS P5K3 Deluxe. This meant we could select a stock speed like 2.66GHz and test various memory speeds at the same CPU speed. Unfortunately there is no 1600 (or 1666) ratio available on the P5K3 Deluxe or other P35 boards we have been testing. We need this ratio, since DDR3-1600, and DDR3-2000 are about to be common memory speeds. The only way you can test these memory speeds without a ratio is to overclock the CPU. Also the unfortunate reality of the 333 multiplier for a 1333 bus speed is that it is almost impossible to devise ratios and speeds that will allow realistic memory testing at the same processor speed.
As a result, until we get new chipsets and/or a BIOS with added ratios we are back to testing memory above 1333 speed at overclocked settings instead of the same processor speeds. This makes isolation of memory speed as the only test variable in memory reviews virtually impossible above the 1333 ratio. Motherboards need DDR3-1600 and DDR3-2000 ratios now that these memory speeds are on the market. We have a quick request/question for motherboard makers and Intel: if you can fix this ratio issue with BIOS updates please do so; if not, will this be one of the features of the upcoming X38 chipset?
| Memory Performance Test Configuration | |
| Processor | Intel Core 2 Duo E6420 (x2, 2.13GHz unlocked, 4MB Unified Cache) 8x266 - 2.13 GHz 8x333 - 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo X6800 (x2, 2.93GHz unlocked, 4MB Unified Cache) 10x266 - 2.66 GHz 8x333 - 2.66GHz |
| RAM | Super Talent W1600UX2G7 (2GB kit - 2x1GB, DDR3-1600 7-7-7) Team TXD31924M1600HC9 (2GB kit - 2x1GB, DDR3-1600 9-9-9) Kingston KHX11000D3LLK2 (2GB kit - 2x1GB, DDR3-1333 7-7-7) Corsair CM3X1024-1066C7 (2GB Kit - 2x1GB- DDR3-1066 7-7-7) Corsair Dominator CM2X1024-8888C4 (2GB Kit - 2x1GB - DDR2-1250 5-5-5) |
| Hard Drive | Samsung 250GB SATA2 enabled (8MB Buffer) |
| System Platform Drivers | Intel - 8.3.0.1013 |
| Video Card | Leadtek WinFast 7950GT - 256MB |
| All Standard Tests | |
| Video Drivers | NVIDIA 93.71 |
| CPU Cooling | Intel Retail HSF |
| Power Supply | Corsair HX620W |
| Motherboards | ASUS P5K3 Deluxe (Intel P35 DDR3) ASUS P5K Deluxe (Intel P35 DDR2) ASUS P5B Deluxe (Intel P965 DDR2) |
| BIOS Revision | 0604 (6/26/2007) |
| Operating System | Windows XP Professional SP2 |
Past performance tests of DDR2 memory on the Intel P965 and P35-DDR2 platforms are included for comparison. All current memory tests use the Intel P35-DDR3 test bed (ASUS P5K3 Deluxe) with the DDR3 memory under evaluation. The CPUs listed above in our table are 1066 FSB processors, but all ran fine at 1333 FSB at default multiplier and default voltage. New 1333 bus processors with the same ratios will be substituted for these processors as soon as they are available.
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retrospooty - Friday, July 20, 2007 - link
thanks.I would really like to see the effects of latency on the new DDR3 platform. Now that more options are availbale, it would be great to see scores using the lowest and highest latency settings achievable at 1066, 1333, 1600 etc...