Thoughts
In terms of absolute maximum performance, the G.Skill obtained the highest frequency at DDR604, albeit at 2T, with the OCZ fastest at 1T with DDR588. The loss of performance at 2T isn't enough to make you want to use it for the extra MHz that seems to be available on the test platform.Ignoring the Corsair's off-colour performance at the high end of testing, it remains to be seen if the difference in its pricing compared to modules with the same ICs, but without Corsair's display, make it value for money. Will people pay £100 for them? I'm fairly certain the price might come down somewhere in the region of a £50 difference over XL PRO, and at that price I'd be much keener to save up the extra. The display is genuinely useful to those who want to keep a close eye on what's going on, without trusting what the BIOS tells you. That you can scroll "ZOMG HI2U" at the same time just adds to the appeal.
If you're not keen on the display, you can find XL PRO with the same ICs at under £200 and you'll get the same performance. Samsung TCCD doesn't replace BH-5 in an absolute sense for the crazy overclocker, but for the rest of you who think a full volt over spec is a bit mad, it's pretty much spot on. It loves the Athlon 64 (on both Socket 939 and 754) and despite it being at least £190 for a 1GB kit from either Corsair, OCZ, G.Skill or others, it's the IC I heartily recommend if you're buying brand new memory today.
Micron have some nice looking ICs on Crucial Ballistix models and I'll be looking at that keenly in the future, so it's not all Samsung at the moment, but they've got most of the market for the enthusiast at the moment.
To sum up, if you want the coolest modules on the block and you're feeling flush, the Corsair Xpert is in a niche of its own. Paired with Samsung's TCCD modules, there's a world of performance to be had from them at modest Vdimm. Otherwise, the G.Skill and OCZ both come recommended at around the £200 mark, with Corsair's XL PRO and XL PT under that price, too.
Scan offer all the Corsair modules on sale today, with CPU City picking up the slack for most other enthusiast memory. TCCD rocks for low-latency at decent Vdimm. Enough said.
Thanks
Thanks to Corsair, G.Skill and OCZ Technology for the samples.HEXUS Right2Reply
Corsair responded to our article with the following:Dear Hexus,
Thanks for reviewing Corsair's XPERT series memory.
We agree with you that it is "the coolest module on the block", and we think it sets a new standard in memory that no other product comes close to.
Corsair recommends our TwinX1024-4400C25 memory kit to anyone seeking the fastest DDR module in the world.
Our -3200XL modules are also incredibly fast, but don't overclock quite as well as our -4400C25 parts.
To make XPERT technology available at a much lower price point, Corsair just launched the TwinXP1024-3200C2 this week, which does not perform quite as fast as the -3200XL you reviewed, but should be available for around £200 very soon.
Joe James, Marketing Director.
OCZ have also provided a response to our article:
We at OCZ appreciate the fine article Hexus has published. As you have found our PC3200 Platinum Rev 2 modules are extremely fast. For the fastest TCCD experience our PC4800 Platinum DDR600 TCCD modules are the highest rated available from any manufacturer.
OCZ strongly feels that memory performs best when the memory slot in a motherboard and the memory PCB are not burdened with the powering of displays and lights, as your testing has shown.
Thank you once again for another fine review.
