Corsair Dominator PC2-10000: Fastest DDR2

Memory Test Configuration

Recent memory testing has used the ASUS P5D-DH Deluxe, which is based on the Intel 975X chipset. We did all initial testing on that platform, to provide results that can be conveniently compared to earlier test results. However, with the evolution of the Intel P965 chipset and the NVIDIA 680i, it is clear that higher memory speeds can be achieved with different memory "straps" used for the highest ratio settings on those chipsets. The P5W-DH Deluxe is very demanding of memory at high speeds and the "looser" base ratios used at the top of most P965 and 680i boards allow higher memory overclocks with some memory modules.

This is another way of saying that some recently released memory is tweaked for and performs best on the Intel P965 platform. This is truer today as the P965 has slowly matured into a chipset providing much better memory compatibility, performance, and flexibility than was seen on early P965 motherboards.

Recently the NVIDIA 680i chipset has demonstrated an even greater range of performance at the top of memory overclocking, with extremely flexible options for squeezing the most performance from almost any memory. A cross-section of Enthusiast memory manufacturers was also asked which motherboard performed best with their top DDR2 memory. In all cases the answer that came back was the NVIDIA 680i motherboard.

For these reasons, we recently revised test procedures in DDR2 memory reviews. In the new procedure standard memory performance and overclocking are first tested on the ASUS P5W-DH Deluxe. This allows valid comparisons to earlier reviews of DDR2 memory on the Core 2 Duo platform. We then run overclocking tests only on the NVIDIA 680i test platform, using the same X6800 Core 2 Duo processor.

The Intel platform was used because the first generation of AM2 on-processor memory controller does not support any memory timings below 3, or memory speeds above DDR2-800. Both these features are supported on the ASUS 975X motherboard. Timings of 2 are available for RAS-to-CAS and RAS Precharge, and DDR2-1067 is an available memory ratio. In addition it was clearly illustrated in Conroe vs. AM2: Memory & Performance that DDR2 memory performance, in timings and required voltage, are equivalent on the AM2 and Core 2 Duo platforms.

The memory test bench uses the following components:

Memory Performance Test Configuration
Processor:	Intel Core 2 Duo X6800 (x2, 2.93GHz, 4MB Unified Cache)
RAM:	2x1GB Corsair Dominator PC2-10000C5DF 2x1GB Corsair Dominator PC2-8888C4D 2x1GB OCZ PC2-9200 Flex XLC (DDR2-1150) 2x1GB Patriot DDR2-1066 2x1GB Super Talent DDR2-1000 2x1GB Team DDR2-1000 2 x1GB Corsair CM2X1024-6400C3 2x1GB OCZ Ti Alpha PC2-8000 VX2
Motherboards:	ASUS P5W-DH Deluxe (Intel 975X) EVGA NVIDIA nForce 680I SLI
Hard Drive:	Hitachi 250GB SATA2 enabled (16MB Buffer)
Video Card:	1 x EVGA 7900GTX - All Standard Tests
Video Drivers:	NVIDIA 91.47
CPU Cooling:	Tuniq Tower 120
Power Supply:	OCZ PowerStream 520W
Operating System:	Windows XP Professional SP2

We will continue this test procedure until we can fully evaluate the NVIDIA 680i and recent Intel P965 boards as a potential replacement for the Intel 975X as our memory test platform. Our testing has shown different straps at high memory speeds can yield memory bandwidth results that may vary as much as 20% at the same memory speed - particularly in the standard buffered Sandra 2007 memory bandwidth test. Variations in Unbuffered Sandra tests, Super Pi, and real-world game tests are much smaller with different straps at the same memory speed, however, with small variations near the accuracy limits of our test procedures.

Test results have also shown with some memory the P965 and/or NVIDIA 680i performed much better than the 975X in memory speed, but where the P965/680i performance was still the same or less than the 975X. The ASUS P5W-DH Deluxe appears the more demanding platform in terms of memory straps, but it also often yields better performance at the same memory speed. Testing will continue to look more closely at the impact of memory straps on performance and memory test platforms will be revised with the move to Vista.

Value DDR2-800 kits from both G.Skill and Super Talent were recently reviewed. Since those two memories are really a different category than top-line DDR2, results for those two memories are not included in comparisons in this review. For comparisons of performance of those two memories you can refer to the linked reviews.