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256MB Corsair & 128MB Mushkin Memory
Companies: Corsair
Micro, Mushkin
Products: Corsair 256MB PC133 222, Mushkin 128MB PC150 232
Street Price: Corsair 256MB - $174 / Mushkin 128MB - $119
Date Reviewed: January 15, 2001
First Impression:
First off I would like to thank Corsair
Micro and Mushkin for their generosity in donating the RAM for this
comparison. I know these two sticks of memory may seem entirely different at
first glance, but they have more in common than you think. First let me go over
the specs of each memory module, then I will get down to testing and
performance.
Real quick, the test system composed of the following, I used
the BE6-II because of it's excellent stability and memory tweaking options:
|
Test System |
| Motherboard |
ABIT BE6-II v2.0 |
| CPU |
PIII-550 FC-PGA (Runs stable at over 160FSB) -
Courtesy of PCNut |
| Video Card |
VisionTek GF2MX (Because of its stability at very
high AGP bus speeds) |
| Hard Drive |
Western Digital Expert 20.5GB ATA/66 |
Corsair Micro:
|
Corsair Micro
CM654S256-133C2 SDRAM

|
| Module Type |
PC133 Synchronous DRAM DIMM |
| Module Setup |
Built using sixteen 16M x 8
SDRAMS, 4k refresh |
| Module Size |
256 MB |
| Module Speed |
133 Mhz |
| CAS Latency |
2 |
| RAS to CAS Delay |
2 |
| Precharge Delay |
2 |
| ECC |
No |
| Unbuffered /
Buffered / Registered |
Unbuffered |
| SPD (Serial
Presence Detect) |
SPD EEPROM |
| Warranty |
Lifetime |
Just looking at the chip in general, it is nice solid quality.
The sixteen chips are Micron Technologies -7E, which means 7ns, and the
"E" denoting CAS2. Taking a look at the information
Sisoft Sandra can read from the memory, it has a setting of 7-1-1-1 read &
5-1-1-1 write. These numbers are basically wait states. (Remember the old 486
boards where you actually were able to set these numbers?) There was no real
information telling about the "RAS to CAS delay" and the "precharge
delay" on Corsair's site or on the memory chip itself. The only information
stated was that the "CAS Latency" is 2. I guess the logic behind it is
because most motherboards only allow you to adjust the CAS Latency and not
either of the two delays. However, in all their memory modules I have used, I always
set the delays to 2 and they work perfect.
Mushkin Enhanced Memory Systems:
|
Mushkin 128MB PC150
Enhanced HSDRAM

|
| Module Type |
PC133 Synchronous DRAM DIMM |
| Module Setup |
16Mx64 (16 Chips), 4k refresh |
| Module Size |
128 MB |
| Module Speed |
150 Mhz |
| CAS Latency |
2 |
| RAS to CAS Delay |
3 |
| Precharge Delay |
2 |
| ECC |
No |
| Unbuffered /
Buffered / Registered |
Unbuffered |
| SPD (Serial
Presence Detect) |
SPD EEPROM |
| Warranty |
Lifetime |
A while back, Mushkin merged with Ramtron which makes the
"Enhanced SDRAM" line of memory modules. The chips on this Mushkin
module are the "Enhanced" brand and are 6.6ns. The one thing that
struck me as very odd was that it was rated for CAS 2, and a Precharge Delay of
2, but the RAS to CAS Delay has to be set to 3. Trust me, if you try 150FSB @
222 it will not work! It has to be 232 or higher (i.e. 333). When I received
this module, (the PC150) this was the fastest Mushkin made, the only other option
was to buy their High Perf. Rev 2 which is rated at PC133 @ 222 with 7.5ns
chips. Now Mushkin has a High Perf. Rev 3 which is rated at PC150 @ 222. They
still have all three models for sale, with only a $30 difference in price
between the Rev 2 & Rev 3, and the PC150 right between the two. Again,
taking a look at the information
Sisoft Sandra can read from the memory, it too has a setting of 7-1-1-1 read &
5-1-1-1 write.
One little neat note is that the Mushkin memory comes in a
really odd bubble package to ensure that it isn't damaged during shipping.

Go To Page 2 For Benchmarks
& Conclusion
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