Date: May 18, 2006 - Author: - Editor: Mark Ozimek
NVIDIA unveiled a new technology designed for overclockers called EPP, or Enhanced Performance Profiles. NVIDIA chose Corsair to be their joint partner during production and in launch, so we sat down with John Beekley to ask some burning questions about the technology.
This past Monday, NVIDIA announced a new feature of their nForce 5 chipset's. The feature is called EPP, or Enhanced Performance Profiles and is primarily designed around making overclocking easier. You can read NVIDIA's press release here and Corsairs coinciding release here.
New memory technologies happen often, but many don't become mainstream very quickly. EPP is going to be different, because anybody will be able to take advantage of what it offers as soon as AM2 drops. EPP has been in the works for a while, and companies like Corsair have been directly beside NVIDIA's side throughout the process to assure that things are done right. OCZ and a few other companies have been assisting NVIDIA also, but Corsair has will be the first to offer EPP modules to the public.
What is EPP? Well first let's take a look at memory overclocking. When overclocking your CPU or memory, there are many factors that come into play to assure stable settings. On AMD specifically, you must worry about using memory dividers properly, along with CPU multipliers to make sure everything adds up to what you expect. It's not as simple as plugging away simple options in your BIOS to give you a good overclock, but you will actually need to use your brain.
What CAS should I use? Should I tighten up my tRAS or leave it at 8? Should I begin to worry about secondary timings? More voltage? Argh! This can be very overwhelming for a new overclocker, and that's where EPP comes in. In simple terms, EPP will take all of the options that enthusiast overclock's use, and meld them into one option. With this one single option, you can overclock your CPU and memory at the same time.
Now the question comes into play.. What about the timings? Sure, overclocking your CPU and memory makes sense, but what about tightening or loosening of the timings to assure a stable overclock? EPP will essentially handle all the timings and other factors as well, which will make this a dream for those looking to get into the overclocking scene.
Since Corsair is the leading launch partner with NVIDIA on this technology, it was only fitting to interview them to get their input on what they think of it. They also clear up a lot of questions about the technology. John Beekley is the VP of App Engineering and co-founder at Corsair, and was happy to sit down and answer some burning questions.
Techgage: First off, thanks John for taking the time to answer our questions. EPP seems like quite an exciting new feature for DDR2 memory. What is it about EPP that makes memory better, and who exactly is best suited to take advantage of what EPP has to offer?
John Beekley: I wouldn't say Enhanced Performance Profiles make memory "better", because to me that implies a performance improvement. But, I think that EPP provide real benefits for the memory user. The biggest benefit in my mind is that it takes data that used to be available only on printed datasheets and puts this information directly in the part. Once it is in the part, it can be used by the host motherboard's BIOS to automatically configure the system. It can also be used by the more sophisticated enthusiast to gain insight about how the part is tested and how it should be expected to perform.
TG: Simply put, will we ever see EPP available on DDR1 modules?
JB: Simply put... almost certainly not.
TG: One thing that enthusiast overclocker's enjoy is having the ability to tweak -all- available settings in the BIOS relating to their CPU and memory. While EPP consolidates all of these options into a single one, do you believe that any enthusiast overclocker's will ever have a need for EPP?
JB: I don't believe experienced overclocker's will ever have a need for EPP... but I think they will certainly have a use for it. It is capable of providing a good "base camp" for ascending the difficult summit of an aggressive overclock. It also provides a guideline about how we were able to achieve aggressive performance.
TG: How closely did Corsair work with NVIDIA on the development of EPP? Were any other parties involved that helped the thought or technical process?
JB: Nvidia and Corsair were the primary parties developing this spec. We had many meetings back and forth, starting late last year, and they set up a lab for us within Nvidia so we could do platform testing in close proximity to the chipset and BIOS experts. Lots of smart people over there, and we are all focused on enthusiast products... it is a pleasure working with them, and they are an excellent partner.
TG: It recently became known that JEDEC is not interested in making EPP a standard feature for DDR2 modules. Do you think we will see JEDEC accept EPP in the future, and do you believe their refusal will hurt the technology?
JB: Well, let me clarify this a little. JEDEC did not state they are not interested in making EPP a JEDEC specification, they only made it clear that EPP has not been proposed to JEDEC, and is not a JEDEC specification. And, certainly, neither Nvidia or ourselves meant to imply that it was.
JEDEC is an industry-wide organization, and has to consider proposals like this very carefully and thoroughly, which is time consuming. A JEDEC specification takes at least two showings, a vote by the membership, and approval by the executive committee prior to publication. This process typically takes between nine and eighteen months. And, in general, much of the JEDEC membership (outside of Corsair and Nvidia, both of who are longtime members) is not geared towards overclocking, i.e. running components beyond their published specification.
Based on these constraints, we felt the best way to bring this spec to market was to create consensus between motherboard, chip set, processor, and memory suppliers, and then make a proposal to JEDEC. And we are actively engaged in doing this.
TG: EPP will allow a user to use a single option to overclock their CPU and memory at the same time. We understand that the EPP will automatically know how to handle the memory timings. Does EPP go beyond the standard tweaking of CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS and handle secondary timings, such as tRRD, tWR, tWTR among others?
JB: A full enhanced profile will handle clock speed, CAS latency, tRCD, tRP, tRAS, memory voltage, and command rate. In addition, it will handle drive strengths, fine delays, setup times, write recover time, and tRC. It is quite flexible!
TG: As it seems right now, EPP will only be available using the nF5 chipset on AMD AM2 systems. Will the nF5 for Intel, when it arrives, also support EPP?
JB: Well, I think that is a question for Nvidia! I would not be surprised to see it, though...
TG: How long do you believe it will take EPP to become a stature in the memory world? Do you believe it will take very long for other memory manufacturers to pick up on the technology, and do you know if some already have?
JB: I believe we will see lots of EPP-enabled modules from many suppliers over the next few months, though I haven't seen any yet. And all new XMS DDR2 modules from Corsair will be EPP-enabled. I am also aware of some very cool motherboards on the way that will take full advantage of EPP. I think the market will embrace this very quickly.
TG: From a technical standpoint, EPP uses bytes on the SPD that are unused. Does EPP fill up this extra space to the brim, or does it leave any room left for future use? In addition, is it technically feasible to increase the total byte size of the SPD to allow more information to be added in the future?
JB: EPP fills up this unused space pretty well. It is technically feasible to increase the size if necessary, but there are lots of ramifications, as vendors often use this area for other information. Corsair, for instance, uses bytes 128-255 to store parametric data for our XPERT modules. So, I would say that increasing EPP size is technically feasible, perhaps a bit problematic, but not impossible to implement, should a real need arise.
TG: Just the other day, you announced "SLi-ready memory". Does this relate to the EPP, or is this a technology aside from it? Also, what do current memory modules lack that's holding back some of our SLi performance?
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JB: SLI-Ready Memory is basically Nvidia's term for EPP-enabled memory that they have qualified for performance and stability in their labs. Current modules aren't holding back current SLI performance, but using SLI-Ready memory along with the Nvidia nFORCE 590 basically gives you a system designed for overclocking, with performance and stability that has been rigorously evaluated.
TG: In conclusion, what are your opinions on EPP thus far, and what do you hope to see it accomplish?
JB: Well, since I was very involved in the development of EPP, of course I think it is a fine idea, best thing since sliced pizza ;-)
But, taking a step back, here is what I think in a nutshell. I think EPP provides a huge benefit by incorporating specs like voltage and command rate that do not exist in the JEDEC SPD. This allows us memory guys to put a JEDEC compliant SPD on a module to ensure compatibility with all systems, but gives us a place to put the aggressive specs that the part is tested to.
For the novice overclocker, the existence of a high-confidence performance profile gives them a high likelihood of success in their early overclocking endeavors, presumably encouraging them to go further. For the experienced overclocker, it gives added visibility about how the manufacture recommends configuring the module (and, at least in Corsair's case, tests it in the factory). I would not characterize it as a revolutionary advance, but rather as an evolutionary improvement that I wish someone had thought of long ago!
Thanks, Rob, for the chance to discuss EPP with your readers. These are all very good questions, and I hope my answers are thorough enough! This is an exciting time to be an enthusiast, with all the new platforms hitting the market. Happy overclocking!
EPP is not going to be a small project that people are just going to forget about. It appears that it is here to stay, and memory companies and motherboard manufacturers alike seem to be supporting it. All of Corsairs future DDR2 modules will incorporate EPP.
According to current spec sheets, each EPP enabled modules can be equipped with two full blown profiles, and four abbreviated ones. This will effectively take up 42 bytes in an SPD.
In my opinion, EPP sounds gimmicky at first glance, but it may have some real uses. It may prove beneficial for those enthusiasts that want to get into the wonderful world of overclocking, but allow them to take baby steps rather than diving in head first. There's no doubt though, that to get the 'maximum' performance out of your PC, you are going to want to tweak everything by hand, but this may prove to be a great entry level way of doing things.
There's still a burning question on my mind, but it won't be answered until we can get our hands on some nF5 motherboards. As John mentioned in the interview, the EPP's can set a 'base' for an overclock, and allow enthusiast overclocker's to learn from that base and tweak accordingly. As far as I can tell, you are not currently able to set an EPP, and then immediately disable it and continue tweaking from the settings it laid. Rather, the BIOS will clear the options after unsetting a profile. This will be BIOS independent though, and there's nothing holding back motherboard makers from incorporating this feature into their BIOS.
Considering EPP has not been released yet, it's hard to tell at this point just how much of an affect it will have on our overclocking. One thing is for sure though, it's an interesting concept. If it lives up to it's promises, it may prove to be a feature that we will -want- in all of our motherboards. I wouldn't be surprised to see ATi jumping onto a similar bandwagon, but I am willing to bet that Crossfire boards will not be able to utilize EPP's in their current configuration.
We will report more on EPP as we get our hands on a compatible board and modules. Thanks again to John Beekley for taking the time to answer our questions.
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