OC Report :: Corsair Dominator 2x1GB PC3-14400 CL7
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...rsair_logo.png
I thought I would kick off 2008 with a fresh OC Report and who better to do it with than Corsair and their flagship DDR3 kit, the TWIN3X2048-1800C7DFIN. We are all familiar with this Freemont California based memory manufacturer and in particular their support staff. Members from the Corsair support staff are seen floating about in almost every major enthusiast web site including this one. The friendly likes of Redbeard, Yellowbeard, and XS's very own Bachus_Anonym are among the most approachable reps that I know of on the internet and are always ready to help. Eric/Ryder, you are most definitely one of the most approachable too, that is why I said 'among' for the Corsair cats...as for you Tony, if it’s one of your good days then you can be on the list too ;). I won't be needing their assistance today but I may need some pharmaceutical assistance because I have finally gotten my hands on some of the best clocking DDR3 currently available and my excitement is hard to disguise.
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...nator_logo.png
The Dominator line of memory was introduced some time ago with the emergence of DDR2 high frequency and low latency kits. I can't recall exactly which kit was the first to sport the Dominator brand but I remember the TWIN2X2048-10000C5DF being the first I saw on display at the Computex trade show back in June of 06. At inception, the Dominator line only recruited the very best of Corsairs memory for membership but shortly after release, the TWIN2X2048-6400C4D (now retired), had a change in ICs that brought them down to the 'average' level. This eliminated a little bit of luster for the Dominator name. The TWIN2X2048-8500C5D was recently announced to have dropped Micron ICs and it too has retracted another chuck of the Dominator dominance from its name.
Even still, the Dominator line of Corsair memory has proven its worth in the enthusiast community and the first DDR3 offering supporting tuxedo black heat sinks is definitely at the top of its game. The memory we are looking at today technically aren't the first Corsair Dominator DDR3 modules but an updated version to include Intel XMP profiles for the latest X38/X48 chipset. I am of course talking about the TWIN3X2048-1800C7DFIN, 900MHz of CL7 goodness.
Directory:
Before we get started, I have to state that these modules have been provided to me directly from Corsair as a review sample. As with all manufacturers I present, I have been assured these are not a hand-picked or cherry-picked sample. They are simply your run-of-the-mill Dominator retail kit and the results should be compared with other user’s results to provide a complete picture of how this memory tends to overclock.
Specifications, Features, & Pricing
I won't get into too much discussion about the specifications but we can see these modules are rated for 900MHz or DDR3-1800 at 7-7-7-20 timings with 2.0v. The Dominator DHX (Dual-Path Heat Exchange) heatsink is the identifying trademark of the Dominator line but has proved to be so beneficial that Corsair has extended its use to mid-range products in the DHX line which sport a silver DHX heatsink. The unique DHX heatsink is designed in conjunction with a special PCB to not only remove heat from the ICs outside surface area, but also through the PCB side of the IC where heat is transferred from the IC through the ball grid array solder joints.
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...00/specs-1.jpg
Without going into great detail, we can see the photo below showing the backside of a Micron mobile DDR BGA package (D9DKJ). Now D9GTR/GTS are not going to be the exact same as far as rows and columns of solder joints go but for those un-familiar with how a BGA IC connects to the PCB, it does the trick. These solder balls not only secure the IC to the PCB and transfer the electrical signals, they also transfer heat to the PCB according to Micron. The DHX PCB is designed to interface directly with its own heatsink fins to alleviate this heat build-up in the PCB and in turn lower operating temperatures of the ICs. This is obviously where the name, Dual-Path Heat Exchange (DHX) comes from since there are two paths for the removal of heat. There will be some photos of the dual heat sinks in just a moment, for now, let's get back to the specifications.
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...mall/bga-1.jpg
The first CPU-Z screenshot displays the SPD profile of these modules. There are three JEDEC SPD profiles that allow these modules to POST at relaxed timings/voltage to ensure compatibility so the end-user can at least get into the BIOS to adjust settings. I can confirm that these modules have no problem POSTing in an Asus P5K3-Dlx with setup defaults loaded (BIOS 0604). There is also a XMP profile that stands for the Intel specified Extreme Memory Profile. This is a standard developed by Intel to provide similar capabilities to that of NVIDIAs EPP profiles. With X38/X48 motherboards you simply select the XMP profile of your choice, in this case #1, and the motherboard will adjust the settings accordingly, including voltage.
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...4400/spd-1.png http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...4400/spd-2.png
In fact, with this kit on the Asus Maximus Extreme, it automatically loaded the XMP profile on BIOS defaults. FSB was set to 450 with a 7X multi for 3150MHz and the vCORE was left to the default VID of the CPU. The memory is then obviously set to 1:2 for 900MHz and 7-7-7-20 1N timings. Heck, a Performance Level of 6 was even set which put performance of this automatic overclocking right up there with a manual setup by someone who knows what they are doing. The vDIMM was also adjusted to 2.0v but unfortunately this puts the vDIMM at 2.1v on the Maximus Extreme. This is a product of the motherboard and not the memory. Overall though I was quite surprised that the BIOS defaults (BIOS 0803 BTW) would choose the XMP profile and it was 100% stable at BIOS defaults. My first experience with XMP is quite positive because if I was just an average user, I would have been quite pleased with this ease of overclocking. Without XMP, it would take some effort to get the same result manually adjusting settings.
Prices/Availability at time of posting:
Once again, we get screwed up here in Canada with the prices but at least it is available and it isn't too bad in comparison. Naturally, like it is will almost all DDR3, this kit is priced very high. But do take into account the type of pricing we saw with the high binned DDR2 kits when they first came out. Even now, the cheapest PC2-10000 kit of Dominators I could find is $475USD at the low end of the price list so for this memory to be coming in at $550USD isn't that bad at all. Heck, it could be considered damn good when you put it into perspective considering how mature the DDR2 market is. So all you price whiners can stick a sock in it...if you want to play, you have to pay.
Asus Maximus Extreme Setup
Click for full size...
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...ll/setup-1.jpg
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...ll/setup-2.jpg
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...ll/setup-3.jpg
http://www.3oh6.com/forum_posted/rev...ll/setup-4.jpg
I still haven't had anything cold on this motherboard yet and this memory has been the only kit to grace the DIMM slots of the Maximus Extreme so there are no photos or results from any phase or dry ice work. I will certainly add those when I do go cold with this board and these modules. I have also bypassed the Dominator fan in favor of 120mm fans in order to help with the cooling of that huge heat-pipe mess of a chipset/PWM heat sink. During testing, as we can see, I had a couple different fan setups but at all times there was a 120mm fan over top of the Dominator memory.
Code:
Hardware used:
MB: Asus Maximus Extreme (BIOS 0803)
CPU: Intel C2D E6850 (L724A479)
CPU Cooling: Thermalright Ultra-120
GPU: Biostar 8600GTS 512MB DDR3
NB Cooling: Stock
SB Cooling: Stock
PWM Cooling: Stock
PSU: Silverstone Zeus 560W
HD: Seagate SATAII 80GB 8MB NCQ
OS: Windows XP Pro SP2
Ambient Temperature: 22-23C
The motherboard obviously isn't volt modded as it likely won't be necessary for this ROG board. I also haven't changed the chipset cooling so this motherboard is literally straight out of the box. So far, it has performed admirably but as mentioned, it still hasn't been cold so I will wait until I get some benching down and the board sees sub-zero before I praise it like my monster Asus P5K3-Dlx.
