by Rob Williams on July 28, 2006 in Miscellaneous
With C2D and AM2 out, many are looking for the right DDR2 kit to choose. If you are on a budget, then you will want to check out the Mushkin EM6400, which retail for around $200. Though they are surrounded with a ‘value’ cloak, they deliver surprising overclock-ability.
Today on the ram testing workbench, we have a PC2-6400 2GB value kit from Mushkin. I took a look at the OCZ SOE kit a few months ago, which are rated for the same speed and timings. Their price range is also the same, so I have a feeling that performance will be similar. However, the SOE’s were horrible overclockers, so I am hoping I can at least push these EM’s a little bit further.
Before we jump into the specifications and all the juicy stuff, let’s take a look at what we get.
Closer Look
The memory arrived in a nice clean professional looking plastic blister pack. The recent Mushkin redesign has become evident in their packaging, that’s for sure. One thing I have complained about in the past though, is how they hot glue the sides together. This makes it harder to open than it should be, and you can potentially break the package. That sucks if you plan to re-use it again.
The modules are equipped with green heatspreaders, and are some of the best I’ve seen. Mushkin hasn’t changed their heatspreaders for a while, but they don’t need to… these are great. The top is open to allow for good airflow. If you have a fan pointing at these, the air will actually hit the chips.
The sticker includes all of the information you would expect, such as timings, model number and frequency. Overall, these are some sweet looking sticks. Let’s hope the performance is equaled!