Layout
Packaging comes in a plastic enclosure type. This is the standard Corsair packaging we’ve seen for all their modules. The modules come with instructions in 5 different languages, a current newsletter and a "powered by Corsair" case badge.
The modules are a matched pair of Corsair CMX512-4400C25 modules tested at aggressive latency settings of 2.5-4-4-8. They were tested as a matched pair in multiple Intel and AMD based setups then packaged together immediately following system test.
The Corsair TWINX1024-4400C25PT uses the latest Revision F 4ns Samsung K4H560838F-440 TCCD ICs. Surprisingly, these are the very same chips that were used by Corsair for their Extreme Low Latency PC3200 XL modules. These chips not only promises to run at extremely low latencies at DDR400 but are also capable of running at DDR550 speeds at an amazing CAS 2.5-4-4-8. Nothing like the best of both worlds.
Like most DDRs now, the TWINX pair comes with an aluminum heatspreader attached to the actual memory chip by thermal tape. Corsair’s CMX512-4400C25 modules comes in both black and silver heatspreaders. Our particular samples comes in silver. Thus, the Platinum (PT) version.
Test Setup
| Hardware |
| Chaintech 9CJS i875P Canterwood Motherboard |
| Intel P4 2.4GHz 800MHz s478 Northwood |
| Chaintech GeForce FX5700Ultra 128mb AGP |
| Corsair Hydrocool200 |
| Enermax 550w PSU |
| Western Digital 80Gb HDD 7200 rpm PATA |
| Western Digital 120Gb 7200 rpm SATA |
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| Software |
| Windows XP Professional SP2 |
| nVidia Forceware 61.77 |
| Direct X 9.0c |
| Benchmark |
| Sandra 2004 Professional SP2 |
| AIDA32 |
| PCMark 2004 |
| Quake 3 |
| 3DMark2001 SE |
Overclocking
We’ll go straight to overclocking so that we can include the results generated from this overclocks later on. We used a variety of timings to determine its overclockability. As we know, this chip is both an ultra low latency PC3200 DDR400) and a PC4400 (DDR550) chip using slightly aggressive timings.
We tried a variety of timings that the memory would work on besides its rated settings. Below are the following CAS timings used for this overclocking test:
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CAS 2-2-2-5
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CAS 2.5-3-3-6
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CAS 2.5-4-4-8
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CAS 3-4-4-8
As you can see, using ultra low latency timings of CAS 2-2-2-5, we were able to push the chip up to 214MHz (DDR428). This is excellent if you want extreme performance within this memory speeds.
What amazed us is that at CAS 2.5-3-3-6, the Corsair TWINX1024-4400C25PT managed to run ROCK SOLID up to a blazingly fast speed of 267MHz (DDR534)! Now that is really something as we’ve never had any modules to run at this speed at those timings. Impressive.
At its rated CAS setting of CAS 2.5-4-4-8, the maximum ROCK solid overclock we can make the modules to work was 281MHz (DDR562). This was also the same result when the modules were running at very relaxed timings of CAS 3-4-4-8. No amount of CPU or DIMM voltage increase can make us go any further after 281MHz without causing the system instability while in Windows. Increasing the module’s voltage to push the memory further didn’t do anything as we must have hit the limits of either our board or CPU. Of course the latter is more likely.
Note that all the overclocks were achieved in Dual Channel configuration and with just a vDIMM of 2.6v! That’s correct, you’ve heard it right.
Next: Test Methodology, Results & Conclusions