OCZ Platinum Rev. 2 / ATI Certified DDR2-800 review

OCZ DDR2-800

Now AMD has finally joined Intel in leaving behind DDR for DDR2, the market for overclockable DDR memory has almost collapsed completely. All memory manufacturers are geared towards DDR2 at the moment, and particularly towards memory rated 800 MHz or higher for the upper reaches of the market. This is because the memory controllers within AMD's dual core Socket AM2 processors as well as the Intel 965 and 975 chipsets support this DDR2-800 standard. Overclockers will always try to squeeze as much performance as possible out of their memory, be it through higher clockrates or lower latencies. In our memory modules buyers' guide we researched the point of overclocking, and one thing's for sure: if you want the highest performance and benchmark figures, fast memory is certainly no mere novelty!

One of the memory manufacturers which has specialised entirely in hardware enthousiast-oriented memory modules is of course OCZ. This brand is known for delivering modules with excellent overclocking results. In the past few months OCZ has produced several new DDR2 products. Today we're examining two: the PC2-6400 Platinum Revision 2 modules and the special ATI Certified DDR2-800 modules.

OCZ DDR2 PC2-6400 Platinum Revision 2 [OCZ2P800R22GK]

The Platinum Revision 2 modules feature a special silver-coloured heatspreader with a honeycomb structure. According to OCZ this heatspreader's design guarantees an optimal spread and dissipation of heat as produced by the DDR2 chips. Whether this is true or not: the modules sure look extremely impressive! For casemodders we cannot think of many modules that could look better when illuminated in a nice case.

The modules we tested have a rating of 800 MHz with 4-4-4-15 timings. In the SPD a higher safety margin is chosen and the modules are set at 5-5-5-15 for DDR2-800 and 3-4-4-10 for DDR2-533. As we shall soon see DDR2-800 with 4-4-4-15 does not present a problem for these modules, and they can be pushed much further still!

According to the pricelist on the product page of these OCZ modules on our webste it appears that the price for a set of two 1 GB modules lies around € 295. This makes OCZ slightly cheaper than the high end DDR2-800 modules as produced by for instance Corsair or Kingston.

OCZ DDR2 PC2-6400 ATI CrossFire [OCZ2A8002GK]

The second set of modules OCZ sent us to test can absolutely be considered special. This set of two DDR2-800 sticks is "Certified by ATI" and should therefore be suited especially for motherboards with an ATI Crossfire Xpress chipset. The modules do not contain any extra technology that would enhance overclocking and performance in combination with an ATI motherboard, but OCZ as well as ATI guarantee a smooth cooperation. Because of the special ATI treatment the modules are decked out in bright red and we find an ATI logo in the center of each module. If you're a real ATI fan and your casemod contains an ATI motherboard and two ATI Crossfire videocards, the looks of these modules alone should be enough to warrant spending money on them.

Functionality-wise the specifications are identical to the other modules: an identical 800 MHz rating with 4-4-4-15 timings. The contents of the SPD are also identical. It's hard to lay one's finger on it, but it seems that we are dealing with two identical sets of memory modules.

The price of the ATI modules, however, is much higher! In our price overview the modules cost between 330 and 375 euros per 2x 1 GB set. This means that you're paying around 50 euros more for ATI certified modules... but they certainly complete your ATI-powered system!