System setup and notes
| Memory | 4GB Kingston HyperX 1,600 (KHX1600C8D3K2/4GX) |
4GB Kingston HyperX 2,133 (KHX2133C8D3T1K2/4GX) |
8GB Corsair Dominator
1,600 (CMD8GX3M4A1600C8) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memory capacity | 4GB (2x 2GB) | 4GB (2x 2GB) | 8GB (4x 2GB) |
| Memory speed and timings | 1,600MHz, 8-8-8-20 1T | 2,133MHz, 8-8-8-24 1T | 1,600MHz, 8-8-8-24 2T |
| Rated voltage | 1.65V | 1.65V | 1.65V |
| CPU | Intel Core i7 870 (2.93GHz, LGA1156) | ||
| Core speed | 3,211.2MHz | 3,210MHz | 3,211.2MHz |
| Uncore speed | 3,612.6GHz | 3,851.8MHz | 3,612.6MHz |
| Motherboard | ASUS P7P55D Deluxe | ||
| BIOS revision | 0701 (09/07/2009) | ||
| Graphics Card | HIS Radeon HD 5850 1GB | ||
| Disk drive | Seagate 500GB SATAII (ST31000528AS) | ||
| Mainboard software | Intel Inf 9.1.1.1015 + Intel Matrix Storage Manager 8.9.0.1023 | ||
| Graphics driver | HD 5700 Press driver (8.66.6-091006a-089804E-ATI) | ||
| PSU | Cooler Master Real Power M850W | ||
| Operating System | Windows 7 Ultimate (64-bit) | ||
| Approx. price at time of writing | £90 | £170 (CL9) | £235 |
Tests
| 2D benchmarks | SiSoft Sandra 2009 SP2
(15.72) Win64 memory bandwidth (float) ScienceMark 2.0 memory latency StaxRip encoding HEXUS.PiFast wPrime (1024M calculation) Far Cry 2 benchmarking loading time |
|---|
| 3D Benchmarks | Far Cry 2 v1.01,
1,680x1,050 4x AA, 16x AF
vhq, ranch
long demo. Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, OpenGL, 1,024x768 0xAA, 0xAF low Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, OpenGL, 1,680x1,050 4xAA, 16xAF vhq |
|---|
Setup notes
All three sets run with the maximum long-term voltage recommended by Intel for its LGA1156 chips.
We've had to toggle the Intel Core i7 870's uncore speed to be able to run the modules at their rated settings. You'll note that the XMP-set timings are a little different from what's advertised
We're looking to see what effect, if any, having different speeds and capacities has on performance. Going by historical results it will be negligible, but let's head to the benchmark section and find out.