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View Full Version : G.Skill F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ PC4000


//mAr
10-12-2005, 01:19 PM
[page=Introduction & Packaging]
Introduction

From the manufacturer G.SKILL (http://www.gskill.com):


Package : 2048 MB kit (2x1GB) dual channel pack
IC Spec : Samsung K4H510838C-UCCC (http://www.samsung.com/Products/Semiconductor/DRAM/DDRSDRAM/DDRSDRAMcomponent/512Mbit/K4H510838C/K4H510838C.htm)
CAS Latency : 3-4-4-8 (PC4000)
Test Voltage : 2.6~2.8 V
PCB Board : 6 Layers PCB
Speed : DDR 500 MHz (PC4000)
Type : 184-pin DDR SDRAM
Error Checking : Non-ECC
Registered/Unbuffered : Unbuffered
Quality Control : Comprehensive rigorously tested in pair at dual channel environment
Warranty : Lifetime


Packaging

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/package_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/package_big.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/packagederriere_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/packagederriere_big.jpg)
G.SKILL is using a blister pack which can be easily opened with your bare hands.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/beilage_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/beilage_big.jpg)
The "background" paper of the package is looking nice, and gives you some information about G.SKILL and contact data.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/sticker_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/sticker_big.jpg)
On the sticker you find the rated speed, the stock timings, rated voltage and the serial number for RMA.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/ram_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/ram_big.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/posing_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/posing_big.jpg)
The heatspreaders are black colored made from aluminum.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/pcb_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/pcb_big.jpg)
Brainpower makes the PCB with #808. It is very well known as one of the best PCBs for DDR-RAM.

2 GB - Who needs it?
Many applications and games nowadays benefit from 2 GB of RAM. For example, the brand-new Quake 4 needs 2 GB to play at ultra-high detail with high resolutions such as 1280*1024. If memory is low, the game will start to stutter while it is loading the next part of the map. Also all professional CAD programs, such as AutoCAD and Solidworks with many assemblies benefit greatly from having more memory. Another important application is image editing with Photoshop for example. Once you start working on high-resolution images and apply a few effects with multiple layers, memory usage starts to grow quickly
For these usage scenarios the amount of memory will most probably be the bottleneck in your computer.

[page=Performance & Overclocking]
Test Setup
<table border="1" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" class="systable">
<tr><th colspan="2" style="font-size:larger;text-align:center">Test System</th></tr>
<tr>
<th width="100">CPU:</th>
<td>AMD Athlon64 3200+ Winchester (multi lowered to 9)</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>Motherboard:</th>
<td>DFI LanParty NF4 UT (Bios 623-3)</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>Memory:</th>
<td>2x 1024 MB G.SKILL F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ PC4000</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>Video Card:</th>
<td>MSI NX6600GT TDI128E</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>Harddisk:</th>
<td>Hitachi T7k250 160GB</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>Power Supply:</th>
<td>TSP 420W</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>Software:</th>
<td>Windows XP SP2, Forceware 81.85 official</td>
</tr>
</table>

We will be testing this memory at 1T timing only, because that is what enthusiasts are using to get maximum performance out of their memory.

Alpha Timing settings in Bios:
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/bios1_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/bios1_big.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/bios2_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/bios2_big.jpg)

Performance
First we tried to determine the fastest timings for 200 MHz at 2.6V, the result was 2.5-3-3-8. After this we increased the voltage and tried to lower the timings again - no go. So it is not possible to run CAS Latency 2 at 200 MHz - not the best result for 200 MHz.

Then, we tested how far we could overclock the memory at 2.6V with tightest timings possible. We reached 228 MHz. When using the more relaxed timings of 2.5-4-4-8, our overclock dropped four MHz down to 224 MHz, which is strange. We did not run any benchmarks at these setting, since the 228 MHz @ 2.5-3-3-8 will yield better performance in all cases.

Now we changed to 3-3-3-8 and got 242 MHz, then 263 MHz at 3-4-3-8. When running at the manufacturer's official specification of 3-4-4-8 we could overclock from 250 MHz to 275 MHz. That's a nice result for a 2 GB kit. Generally, 2 GB kits do not overclock as well as 1 GB kits.

Now we increased voltage in several steps to 2.8V, 3.1V and 3.3V. We saw absolutely no increase in maximum clock speeds.

The last test "JEDEC DDR-400A" is for comparison with a generic DDR module running at JEDEC standard timings.

<table width="640" border="1" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" class="ramtable">
<tr>
<th colspan="9" style="font-size:larger">G.SKILL F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ PC4000</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th nowrap="nowrap">CPU Clock &amp;<br />
Memory Ratio</th>
<th>Memory<br />
Speed</th>
<th>Memory<br />
Timings</th>
<th>Everest<br />
Read</th>
<th>Everest<br />
Write</th>
<th>Everest<br />
Latency</th>
<th>Quake 3<br />
Timedemo</th>
<th>3DMark<br />
2001SE</th>
<th>SuperPi<br />
Mod 1M</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 200 1:1</th>
<td>200 MHz</td>
<td>2.5-3-3-8 2.6V</td>
<td>5789 MB/s</td>
<td>2200 MB/s</td>
<td>49.3 ns</td>
<td>431.1</td>
<td>18554</td>
<td>42.12 s</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 224 1:1 </th>
<td>224 MHz</td>
<td>2.5-4-4-8 2.6V</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
<td>-</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 228 1:1 </th>
<td>228 MHz</td>
<td>2.5-3-3-8 2.6V</td>
<td>6445 MB/s</td>
<td>2394 MB/s</td>
<td>45.7 ns</td>
<td>446.7 fps</td>
<td>19032</td>
<td>40.98 s</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 242 1:1 </th>
<td>242 MHz</td>
<td>3-3-3-8 2.6V</td>
<td>6616 MB/s</td>
<td>2445 MB/s</td>
<td>44.6 ns</td>
<td>468.4 fps</td>
<td>19671</td>
<td>38.24 s</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 250 1:1 </th>
<td>250 MHz</td>
<td>3-4-4-8 2.6V</td>
<td>6951 MB/s</td>
<td>2524 MB/s</td>
<td>45.0 ns</td>
<td>476.6 fps</td>
<td>19700</td>
<td>37.52 s</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 263 1:1 </th>
<td>263 MHz</td>
<td>3-4-3-8 2.6V</td>
<td>7442 MB/s</td>
<td>2649 MB/s</td>
<td>44.1 ns</td>
<td>503.1 fps</td>
<td>20155</td>
<td>35.52 s</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>9 x 275 1:1</th>
<td>275 MHz</td>
<td>3-4-4-8 2.6V</td>
<td>7729 MB/s</td>
<td>2790 MB/s</td>
<td>40.6 ns</td>
<td>520.9 fps</td>
<td>20817</td>
<td>33.75 s</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>JEDEC DDR-400A</th>
<td>200 MHz</td>
<td>2.5-3-3-8 2.6V</td>
<td>5789 MB/s</td>
<td>2200 MB/s</td>
<td>49.3 ns</td>
<td>431.1 fps</td>
<td>18554</td>
<td>42.12 s</td>
</tr>
</table>

If you are going to run this memory under the specification of 250 MHz, there might be better alternatives with tighter timings like G.SKILL's F1-3200BIU2-2GBHX. But if you want to overclock to high memory speeds, and need 2 GB of memory, you will love these modules.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/275pi_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/275pi_big.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/timingstweaker_small.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/timingstweaker_big.jpg)
SuperPi - 275 MHz; 3-4-4-8; 2.6V and SysTool Memory Timing screenshot

Benchmarks
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/everestread.gif http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/everestwrite.gif http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/everestlatency.gif http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/quake3.gif http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/3dmark01.gif http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/superpi.gif

For easier comparison with other modules, we set the maximum voltage required for the best result (here 2.6V; max 3.1V) and tested until we found the highest clock frequency and fastest timings for this memory. The benchmarks Everest Read, Everest Write and Quake 3 were run. We then calculated the performance increase in percent compared to some standard DDR-400 memory running at JEDEC standard timings (2.5-3-3-8). The average percentage of the three benchmarks is listed in following table:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/GSkill/4000-2GBHZ/images/vsjedec.gif

[page=Value and Conclusion]
Value and Conclusion

<table width="100%" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" id="result">
<tr><th>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/dollar.gif</th>
<td>
G.SKILL's F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ PC4000 Kit is sold for $245, which I find is a really good price for 2 GB of overclocking memory. Some 2x512 MB kits cost up to $300.</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/thumbup.gif</th>
<td>
Great overclocker, for 1 GB sticks
Nice looking heatspreaders
Needs only 2.6V to reach best performance
Competitive price
Lifetime warranty
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/thumbdown.gif</th>
<td>
No CL2 at 200 MHz
Timings could be a bit tighter (like memory with TCCD, which is available only on 512 MB sticks)
</td></tr>
<tr>
<th>8.7</th>
<td>If you want to have 2 GB for Photoshop, video editing, Battlefield 2, Quake 4 etc. and want to overclock to high memory frequencies - the G.SKILL F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ PC4000 are the way to go. It does not perform like memory with Samsung TCCD, which usually runs up to 290 MHz at 2.5-4-3-X, but TCCD is only available on 512 MB sticks.<br />
Having 2 GB of memory means putting and end to stuttering while loading and a smoother game play experience.</td></tr>
<tr><th></th><td>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/recommended.gif</td></tr>
</table>

bigghost
11-06-2005, 07:12 PM
netter test //mar. ich habe diese module auch.haste auch mal prime blend bis zu 275 probiert ?. bei mir laufen sie primeblend bisher auf 264.

//mAr
11-07-2005, 07:47 PM
yes, did prime blend for some hours :)

Dynamic
02-20-2006, 04:17 PM
Great article bro! I've been researching on these memory for about a week and the overclock looks about right. Currently i'm running a pair of 512 sticks 1GB total OCZ EL DDR400 and have it overclocked at 250MHz DDR500 2252-1T 3.5vdimm (BH-5). On my next paycheck i'm going to purchase this kit at Newegg.com which is going for $192. Nice price drop from when you had the article and it was $250, NICE! I'm hoping to use less voltages on my DFI NF4-D board since these new sticks will only need 2.6v-2.8v rather than my BH-5 3.5v, oh oh. Thanks for the article, great job once again...

Newegg Listing for this memory here...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820231021

Dynamic
02-27-2006, 10:09 PM
Wizz1rd, not sure why you had to use SYSTOOL's for the memory timings since you have one of the most motherboards that will let you tweak all of that you have in SYSTOOL. Those timings not work for you in the BIOS, or any particular reason? I've seen this memory kit hit around 295MHz, what happened?

Article with these memory modules hitting around 295MHz....

http://www.vr-zone.com.sg/?i=3071&s=1

FLY3R
02-28-2006, 05:48 AM
I absoulty love my set!!! Running my 3700+ 2.8gHz 1:1 ratio no probs ...stock timmings though.

W1zzard
02-28-2006, 08:30 AM
Wizz1rd, not sure why you had to use SYSTOOL's for the memory timings since you have one of the most motherboards that will let you tweak all of that you have in SYSTOOL. Those timings not work for you in the BIOS, or any particular reason? I've seen this memory kit hit around 295MHz, what happened?

Article with these memory modules hitting around 295MHz....

http://www.vr-zone.com.sg/?i=3071&s=1

the systool screenshot shows all settings on one easy screen. and i didnt review that memory

Dynamic
03-03-2006, 07:53 AM
That explains it! LOL, thanks....

stocki
04-03-2006, 11:44 PM
I just just ordered this memmory to go with my newly purchased
ASUS P4C800 DELUXE and P4 2,6 GHz/800Mhz/512KB

I look forvard to see how much i can squeze'em.

How much do you guys think i can overclock the p4 and ram 1:1


Greetings Stocki