Mushkin Redline XP4000: Winbond with Voltage Be Damned
by Wesley Fink on May 16, 2005 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Memory
Final Words
OCZ may have been first to market with high voltage 2-2-2 memory, but Mushkin Redline XP4000 competes very well with the top OCZ VX Gold PC4000. Mushkin is clearly doing a very good job of binning the Winbond UTT chips, since performance in every area was as good as, or slightly better, than the OCZ that we tested a few weeks ago.It is not faint praise to say that the Mushkin Redline we tested was at least the equal of OCZ VX Gold 4000 – the fastest DDR memory that we have tested up to this point. Mushkin Redline is a quality memory, which is the important point of this review. The Mushkin is actually the fastest DDR memory that we have ever tested at 2-2-2 timings, edging out OCZ at the top at DDR544 compared to DDR538. However, it would be a mistake to make too much of this, since the performance seen from OCZ VX Gold 4000 and Mushkin Redline XP4000 was virtually identical. The variations between them were what you would find as normal variations with any two memories using the same chips from lines using similar binning strategies.
Mushkin Redline XP4000 is some of the fastest memory that you can buy, but it requires special handling that will not be everyone’s cup of tea. You need to feed it about 3.5V for best performance. Only one production board family supplies those voltages out of the box – the DFI nForce4 series Ultra or SLI. If you want to use another board, you may be able to use the OCZ DDR Booster, which costs about $40, to supply the higher voltages. The DDR Booster won’t work on every motherboard, but it does work on most. Or lastly, you could go on Enthusiast Forums to find the latest volt mod for your favorite motherboard. Just keep in mind that a volt mod will almost surely void your warranty.
If these options don’t scare you away, then get ready for some outstanding performance with either Mushkin Redline XP4000 or OCZ VX Gold 4000. There are no other options that can deliver 2-2-2 DDR memory timings at almost DDR550 speed. It takes voltage to get there, but you can be sure that your memory performance is as good as it will get.
If, on the other hand, the options for reaching 3.5V frighten you or really are not something that interests you, then move on to another memory. Mushkin Redline and OCZ VX are not for everyone. There are many readers who will think all this effort is a waste of time and resources, and they should select another memory. That is why there are complete systems, separate components, a wide range of component performance levels, and Dell and HP, all serving the computer market. Not everyone has the same goals, interests or passions for computer technology.
Mushkin Redline XP4000 clearly delivers what it promises to the Computer Enthusiast. If that level of performance is what you’re looking for, and you’re willing to provide 3.5V of memory voltage, then you will be very satisfied with Mushkin Redline memory.
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devonz - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
Ok, maybe I'm missing something, but there seems to be no mention of active cooling being necessary for the OCZ VX modules. Is that correct and why would there be such a difference between the two if they are basically the same chips at the same voltage?Joepublic2 - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
#18, thats why you use memtest86+, prime95 and some type of looping 3d-demo (or the games you play) to confirm stability. My processor has 25% increase over its nominal clock frequency at the default voltage (overvolting is what wears out dialectrics and causes electromitigration, increasing the frequency alone doesn't put any additional stress on the silicon). My motherboard has a 30% increase over the nominal frequence at the default voltage. And my graphics card has a 16% increase on the core and a %10 increase on the memory, but I don't push it because it already runs so damn hot. And yes, I can notice a difference, although admitably only when archiving, extracting and encrypting very large files and when playing demanding 3d games (the only taxing things that I do with my computer). If I did any scientific calculations, CAD/CAM or rendering, it would make a perceptible difference as well. I haven't ever had a program crash, return a bad result, or had the computer crash, either.Tujan - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
Buffered,Non-Buffered Ram ?Is this two physically different ram modules.? Certainly would want the Buffered results seen if where to have a choice bearing on performance.
Say you purchase 'Redline ''Buffered''""...or Redline ''unbuffered'"" .
What they do here,physically remove the 'unbuffered modules,and replace with 'buffered modules.
The NF4 supports 'buffered,or unbuffered memories ? This is a specific setting to make sure within the BIOS ?
fitten - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
#17, there is no such thing as "super stable". It's either stable or it isn't. Having "one memory related crash per week" is not a stable system. Besides, with overclocking, the best result you can get is a hard crash because then you know for sure you've pushed something too far.(Before anyone starts yapping about Windows or the like crashes happening more than stability crashes, my Windows XP boxes - I have 3 that run 24/7 - have uptimes as long as the times between patches that require reboots - granted, that isn't as long as I'd like - or power outages - which we've had two in the past month that were down for longer than my UPSs could keep the machines running.)
I used to overclock everything all the time, then I learned a few things about circuits, CPUs, and digital hardware in general and I also grew up. Stability for me is more important than any 10% overclock that I could ever get. Even if I could get a 100% overclock at the cost of stability, I wouldn't take it.
JonB - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
On a moderately OC'd DDR motherboard at normal voltages, wouldn't these be super super stable? I know the price is extreme, but some applications (like video or sound editing) need stability first, then speed. If it could stop just one memory related crash per week, the extra money would be worth it.ksherman - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
is it possible to compare DDR1 to DDR2 in these tests? Ive always heard that they were slower because of the latency, but sometimes here on Anandtech, slower sometimes means 3-5% difference, which isnt much...erinlegault - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
I think the true test of extreme ram will be once we see some OC tests on the Athlon 64 X2. I'm sure two processors can make use of the higher memory bandwidth.Also, looking ahead. Does anybody feel that the active ram cooling of the Abit AN8 Fatal1ty SLI mobo is enough to cool this ram?
JustAnAverageGuy - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
#12Welcome :)
Brian23 - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
I agree with ZeboWesley Fink - Monday, May 16, 2005 - link
#1 & #3 - Our Editing engine is inserting spaces randomly. The original does not have these hiccups. Thanks for listing the locations of the extra spaces - they have been corrected. We are trying to find and correct the problem with the inserted spaces