Mushkin 4GB XP2-8500

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by Rob Williams on May 9, 2007 in Miscellaneous

Mushkin is the only memory company right now to offer 4GB extreme performance kits, with their top-end offering on our test bench today. Despite the fact that it already has high stock speeds, we were surprised to find out that it still had a lot of overclocking headroom.

Page 3 – Everest, Super Pi, Sciencemark


Next on the list is Everest 3.5, with it’s read/write and latency tests. We broke through the 8K mark in our read tests and came close to 5,500 in our write. These benchmarks are heavily CPU bound as well though, so the higher your CPU frequency, the better effects your memory overclocks will have.

Again, at our 575MHz setting, the Mushkin kit proved slightly higher Read results than our previously reviewed OCZ Reaper 9200 at the same timings and voltages. Write scales with FSB on Intel systems, so the results will be the same regardless of the memory kit.

Latency is where we begin to see the small disadvantages of moving up to 4GB of ram. While the previously mentioned OCZ Reaper kit hit 57.4ns at 575MHz, this 4GB kit hit 58.2ns. I had originally expected much larger differences than this however, so I am impressed by the results.

Super Pi

This is not a memory benchmark per se, but rather one that stresses a single core of your CPU to it’s full potential. Because it crunches such an insane amount of digits, tighter timings and faster memory generally offers better results. We choose to run with an 8 million test, as anything lower flies by too fast on a Core 2 Duo and it’s hard to generally see the differences that way.

Again, great results displayed here. Comparing to the OCZ Reaper kit again, the Mushkin proved faster in all the tests that it was able to use the same timings. For instance, at the 400MHz setting, this 4GB kit proved 4s faster than the 2GB kit at equal speeds. It goes to show how a program like Super Pi loves ram, especially if it can benefit from having wider bandwidth to play with.

Sciencemark

Though it’s no longer in development, Sciencemark is a tool I still like to keep in my chest… err thumb drive. It gives results far more in-depth than other benchmarking programs out there, although you’d have to be an engineer to care for -all- the information it delivers. It generates a bandwidth result just like Everest and Sandra does, and is effected by higher CPU clocks.

We barely broke through the 6K mark, but it happened! Let’s compare this 4GB kits performance to other kits we’ve reviewed in the past.


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Rob Williams

Rob founded Techgage in 2005 to be an 'Advocate of the consumer', focusing on fair reviews and keeping people apprised of news in the tech world. Catering to both enthusiasts and businesses alike; from desktop gaming to professional workstations, and all the supporting software.

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