Super Talent & TEAM Join the Fast DDR2 Club

With both AMD and Intel solidly in the DDR2 camp memory makers have pulled out all the stops in creating new and faster DDR2 memory. The latest Intel Core 2 Duo and AMD AM2 platforms both support DDR2-800, and enthusiast memory makers have filled the market with DDR2-800, DDR2-1000, DDR2-1066, and even DDR2-1100 modules. The new DIMMs, mostly based on Micron memory chips, established memory timings of 3-3-3 as the newest standard for Enthusiast memory at DDR2-800. All of these new memories have also reached DDR2-1067 and beyond.

Even Value DDR2 became faster very quickly. Most of the value sticks began using Elpida memory, and while these were usually rated at DDR2-667 or DDR2-533, they managed to run at DDR2-800 at 4-3-3 timings at around 2.2V. None of the DDR2-800, DDR2-667, or DDR2-533 rated modules tested have been able to reach DDR2-1067, which is supported by recent Intel Socket 775 boards, but DDR2-800 at good timings is plenty fast for many users. You will find a recent roundup of Value DDR2 in the Value DDR2 section of the Conroe Buying Guide. However, you will need to ignore the prices quoted just two months ago, because memory is in another period of price escalation. Some memory has increased 50% or more in price, and the great value 2GB memory kits for $150 are no where to be found.

From this stew of ever-escalating DDR2 memory prices, two brands have landed on our test bench that may not be familiar to all our readers - particularly at the high-end of memory performance. Super Talent and TEAM have both established a reputation of delivering solid value in memory, but they are not the names that normally come to mind when you think of the best memory available. However, both companies are out to prove their products are more than competitive when it comes to memory aimed at the computer enthusiast.

We were excited to look at both these new DDR2-1000 offerings because top DDR2 memory has become so expensive so fast. Both Super Talent and TEAM seem to have a knack for pricing their products at the value end of whatever speed they ship, and it was time to find out if the value was real, or whether there were performance penalties for the lower prices.

The first glance at the rated performance of both new modules was not particularly encouraging. Super Talent rates their T1000UX2G4 at 4-4-5-15 timings at DDR2-1000 with 2.2V . The important rating here is the 5 which represents RAS to CAS delay. TEAM is even more conservative than Super Talent, rating their DDR2-1000 at 5-5-5-15 at DDR2-1000 with 2.1V to 2.3V. These rated performance numbers compare to our champion Corsair and OCZ DDR2-1000 modules which both run with complete stability at 4-3-4-11 timings at 2.20V to 2.25V at DDR2-1067 - well above their rated speed. However, we have often seen much more conservative timing and speed ratings than the best memory can actually achieve, and this is particularly true with high-end memory. The proof is in what the memory can actually do in competitive memory benchmarking.



Super Talent Product Specifications

Super Talent may be a new name for many, but they have been designing memory products for about 20 years. A quick look at their website will show the heavy emphasis on flash products as well as memory products. The Super Talent design center is located in San Jose, California, and their website emphasizes their US memory manufacturing facilities.

Those familiar with the memory industry may be interested in another tidbit about Super Talent. Joe James, who was formerly a key member of the Corsair Marketing team, is now at Super Talent. Certainly that says quite a lot about the directions Super Talent will likely pursue in future memory products.



One area where Super Talent definitely needs some work is packaging. The Super Talent labeling is so basic you have to look up the product code just to figure out memory speed and suggested timings. The label on the plastic clamshell looks as if it were designed by a grade-school student to be proudly displayed on the family's refrigerator. If Super Talent wants to be regarded as a serious player in the high-end memory market, they definitely need to invest in an upgraded look to their packaging.



The T1000UX2G4 was supplied as a 2GB kit with a matched pair of 1GB DIMMs. The Super Talent DIMMs feature aluminum heatspreaders with blue labeling. The DIMMs themselves are a lot more attractive than the packaging. The website pictures recent "overclocking" memory with solid blue heatspreaders. Product information is available at the Super Talent site and shows the DDR2-1000 memory is available as single 1 GB DIMMs or as a kit of two 1GB DIMMs (2GB total). We tested the 2GB kit.

Super Talent T1000UX2G4 Memory Specifications
Number of DIMMs & Banks	2 DS
DIMM Size	1GB
Total Memory	2 GB
Rated Timings	4-5-4-15 at DDR2-1000
Rated Voltage	Not Specified

The Super Talent Warranty is stated to be Lifetime, and the customer may have to provide proof of purchase. An RMA request is provided on the Super Talent website on the warranty page.


TEAM Xtreem DDRII-1000 Product Specifications

Team Group Inc. was established in Taiwan in 1994 as a manufacturer and wholesaler of computer components. TEAM is a company with a worldwide presence in memory modules, flash memory cards, and USB flash drives. All manufacturing is in Asia, but TEAM has US Sales and Marketing offices. Distribution is handled by centers in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the USA, but TEAM plans additional distribution centers for the future.

TEAM products have performed well in past memory reviews at AnandTech, but we were a bit skeptical of how a product rated at DDR2-1000 5-5-5-15 would compare to the best DDR2 memory we have tested. As you will see in the results, the TEAM DDR2-1000 performed very well.



Compared to the very basic Super Talent design, TEAM has a distinctive Xtreem heatspreader embossed with the red Xtreem, the TEAM logo, and the web site address (www.teamgroup.com.tw). The website itself is pretty slick and full of good information about TEAM products. This even includes forums in both English and Chinese.

TEAM TXDD2048M1000HC5DC Memory Specifications
Number of DIMMs & Banks	2 DS
DIMM Size	1 GB
Total Memory	2 GB
Rated Timings	5-5-5-15 at DDR2-1000
Rated Voltage	2.1V to 2.3V)

Test DIMMs were a 2GB kit composed of two 1GB DIMMs rated at DDR2-1000. TEAM DDR2-1000 is available as a 2GB kit (2x1GB) or as individual 1GB DIMMs.



Memory Test Configuration

It was demonstrated in Conroe vs. AM2: Memory & Performance that DDR2 memory performance, in timings and voltage, are equivalent on the AM2 and Core 2 Duo platforms. However, the first generation of AM2 on-processor memory controller does not support any memory timings below 3, where the Intel platform supports 2 settings for RAS-to-CAS and RAS Precharge. In addition AM2 boards do not currently support DDR2-1067 as a memory speed option, which makes it more difficult to test some of the newest DDR2 memories rated at DDR2-1000, DDR2-1067, DDR2-1100, or even higher. For all of these reasons, the Intel platform is the current test platform for DDR2 memory. Specifically, Core 2 Duo Extreme, which has available memory ratios both up and down, is the platform of choice. When changes are made in the AM2 and Core 2 Duo markets in the future the memory test platform will be examined again.

The ASUS P5W-DH is the latest 975X board in the ASUS family and it fully supports the Core 2 processors. The P5W-DH Deluxe therefore replaced the P5W-D2-E premium used in past DDR2 reviews. A review of the updated ASUS P5W-DH Deluxe is available in the Conroe Buyers Guide. The P5W-DH features similar memory options to the earlier versions. Since most of the Core 2 Duo/Extreme processors run at a quad-pumped FSB of 1067 (base 266), the available options are particularly useful for benchmarking when a Core 2 chip powers the system.

Memory Configuration Options/ASUS P5W-DH Deluxe Motherboard
	Auto	DDR2-400	DDR2-533	DDR2-667	DDR2-711*	DDR2-800*	DDR2-889*	DDR2-1067*
FSB-1067	X	X	X	X	X	X	X	X
FSB-800	X	X	X	X		X
FSB-533	X	X	X

Our memory test bench uses the following components:

Memory Performance Test Configuration
Processor	Intel Core 2 Duo X6800 (x2, 2.93GHz, 4MB Unified Cache)
RAM	2x1GB Super Talent DDR2-1000 2x1GB TEAM DDR2-1000 2 x 1GB Corsair CM2X1024-6400C3 2x1GB OCZ Ti Alpha PC2-8000 VX2
Hard Drive	Hitachi 250GB SATA2 enabled (16MB Buffer)
Video Card	1 x EVGA 7900GTX - All Standard Tests
Video Drivers	NVIDIA 91.47
CPU Cooling	Tuniq Tower 120
Power Supply	OCZ PowerStream 520W
Motherboard	ASUS P5W-DH Deluxe (Intel 975X)
Operating System	Windows XP Professional SP2
BIOS	AMI 1407 (October 2, 2006)

It is almost useless to compare benchmarks with Conroe to older results with Intel Presler processors - since Core 2 Duo is as much as 35 to 40% faster than Presler. Therefore, the only results shown in this review are DDR2 memories tested on the X6800 platform. Previously reported timings and voltages are still useful and can be compared to new results, but performance results on Core 2 are the only DDR2 test results compared in this review.



Stock Memory Performance

Most Intel processor motherboards provide a wide range of memory ratios that match available DDR2 memory. End-users can select the memory ratio that matches their DDR2 memory speed. For those reasons, we first test all of the stock ratios at the fastest stable timings we can achieve at the given ratio. With ratios, CPU speed remains the same at 2.93GHz in our memory test bed, and memory speed is varied by selecting different ratios.

There are some downsides to this approach. With the memory controller in the chipset, instead of part of the processor as in AM2 systems, there is a small performance penalty for speeds other than a 1:1 ratio (DDR2-533 in this case). However the penalty is in reality very small and memory scales nicely through the various speed options. DDR2 memory is then pushed from the highest stock ratio that could be achieved in testing - in this case 1067 - to the highest FSB speed at the stock multiplier.

Super Talent DDR2-1000

Click to enlarge

The Super Talent reached a stable speed of 1080, which is below the fastest DDR2 speed we have tested, but still well above the rated specs of DDR2-1000. While the system could boot at speeds as high as DDR2-1100, the Super Talent could not complete our benchmark tests at higher than DDR2-1080.

While the Super Talent reached similar speeds achieved with other top DDR2 memory, a closer look at the performance chart shows the Super Talent generally required a little more voltage and/or a little slower timings for stability at the top and bottom of our memory ratios tests. Where other top DDR2 runs fine at 3-2-2 timings at DDR2-400 and DDR2-533, the Super Talent required 3-2-3 timings. In fact, the memory seemed to be completely averse to running at a 2 setting for RAS-to-CAS at any speed, requiring 3 for that timing. Super Talent also requires a bit more voltage - .05V to .10V more at most speeds - to perform with complete stability. This may mean something as simple as the SPD needs a bit more refinement, or it could reflect different binning procedures compared to Corsair and OCZ.

In the middle range, the important DDR2-800 and DDR2-667, the Super Talent DDR2-100 performed virtually the same as the best we have tested. The message here is that if DDR2-800 is the fastest you will run, the Super Talent performs as well as anything you can buy.


TEAM DDR2-1000

Click to enlarge

The TEAM performance numbers are so close to our past Corsair and OCZ test results that we can only conclude that the memory chips have to be Micron, which is certainly a good thing. While the TEAM DDR2-1100 topped out at DDR2-1084, the memory matched the best timings we have seen at all the standard test ratios - including DDR2-1067. Required voltages were also similar at each ratio. Together this means that over almost all of the useful range of memory performance the TEAM DDR2-1000 is equivalent to the best DDR2 we have tested at AnandTech.

The TEAM will not reach well over 1100, as the best Corsair and OCZ do, but it performs exactly the same to DDR2-1067 and a bit beyond. If you plan to run the memory in that range then you will be just as happy with TEAM as any DDR2 you can buy and you might save a few dollars on your purchase. However, if your goal is the highest memory speed you can achieve, then you will need to go with the OCZ Alpha VX2 or the Corsair 6400C3.



Memory Bandwidth and Scaling

Everyone should already know that memory bandwidth improves with increases in memory speed and reductions in memory timings. We first used the new Memory Performance Scaling charts in our comparison of DDR2 memory on AM2 and Core 2 Duo processors. They worked well to compare both Memory Bandwidth and Memory Performance over a wide range of DDR2 speeds. To evaluate memory bandwidth SiSoft Sandra 2007 Professional was used to provide a closer look at scaling for fast DDR2 memory.

Since the results were so close at all tested speeds, the scale range was reduced to better show the small differences in these memories. Please keep this in mind when viewing the charts, since a normal zero scale would make performance differences appear much smaller than these expanded scale charts. Values for each memory at each speed are included below each chart for reference.


The most widely reported Sandra score is the Standard or Buffered memory score. This benchmark takes into account the buffering schemes like MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, and other buffering tools that are used to improve memory performance. Buffered bandwidth performance of the TEAM and Super Talent DDR2-1000 memory was virtually the same as the previously tested Corsair and OCZ to DDR2-1067. At the very top the better overclocking OCZ and Corsair pull away.

The Buffered benchmark does not correlate well with real performance in games on the same computer. For that reason, our memory bandwidth tests have always included an Unbuffered Sandra memory score. The Unbuffered result turns off the buffering schemes, and we have found the results correlate well with real-world performance.


In Unbuffered tests we see the real bandwidth differences among the four tested memories. The TEAM pretty much mirrors the Corsair 6400C3 and OCZ PC2-8000 to DDR2-1067. The Super Talent, which requires slightly slower timings at many speeds, is a little lower on bandwidth than the other three. At the highest speeds the OCZ and Corsair top the bandwidth, as we would expect from the better overclocking memories.

We also compared pure number crunching with Version 1.5 of Super Pi - comparing the time to calculate 2 million places of Pi at the different memory speeds.


The most striking result in comparing Super Pi results is that performance continues to improve all the way to the highest speed that could be reached with stability with each memory. The second result that stands out is that the Super Talent drops off a bit at the top and bottom - where it required slightly slower timings for stable operation than the other three tested memories. Even though these performance differences are extremely small, they still show up on Super Pi scaling charts, showing the sensitivity of Super Pi as a measurement of memory performance



Performance Comparison

While Sandra and Super Pi provide useful information on how memory performs, the real test is real-world benchmarks - specifically gaming benchmarks. We use Far Cry, Half-Life 2 and Quake 4 for memory testing because they are sensitive to memory changes, making them useful for examining memory performance.

Since the results were so close at all tested speeds, the scale range was reduced to better show the small differences in these memories. Please keep this in mind when viewing the charts, since a normal zero scale would make performance differences appear much smaller than these expanded scale charts. Values for each memory at each speed are included below each chart for reference.




All three games continue to show improvement in frame rates as memory speed increases, even though timings are looser the faster we go. Put another way, performance continues to improve as memory speed increases - to DDR2-1067 and a bit beyond. The TEAM is still capable of operating at 4-3-4 timings at DDR2-1067, and the Super Talent is only a bit slower at 4-3-5 timings. At the bottom of the scaling chart Super Talent requires a 3 RAS-to-CAS setting, while the other 3 memories are stable at a 2 setting. This is reflected in the general drop-off at the bottom and top for Super Talent, while the TEAM memory mirrors the results of the OCS and Corsair. The performance differences are admittedly very small - but still measurable. Memory speed can definitely improve system performance, but not to the extent of an upgraded video card or a higher speed processor.



Overclocking Performance (Highest Ratio at Highest Speed)

The TEAM and Super Talent DDR2-1000 memories both performed well beyond their rated DDR2-1000 speed. The TEAM reached 1084, while the Super Talent reached a similar 1080. Neither of these are record overclocks, but they are both in the ball park for performance of the best DDR2 memory. Both also performed very well at DDR2-1067, which should be considered the practical limit of overclocking for either memory.


What this overclocking chart cannot show is the timing and voltage advantages the TEAM memory enjoyed compared to the Super Talent. The timings of the TEAM matched the best DDR2 memory and the voltages needed for stability were very similar to other top-performing DDR2. The Super Talent required a bit more voltage at every speed and the timings required for stability at the top and bottom of the benchmark tests were a bit slower than other top DDR2 memory we have tested. It would be a mistake, however, to put too much weight on the small differences we found in these tests. In the all-important DDR2-667 and DDR2-800 ratios performance of the Super Talent was all but identical to TEAM and the other top DDR2 memories we have tested.



Final Words

Our first encounter with the new Micron D memory chips came with our review of OCZ EL PC2-8000 XTC in early spring. We were impressed with the performance then, and our admiration for the performance capabilities of this DDR2 chip has only grown since. This was the fastest DDR2 memory ever tested at AnandTech, and it also scaled easily to the new DDR2-800 speed to be supported by AM2 and Conroe, on to the DDR2-1067 future speed, and beyond to DDR2-1100. It reached those levels at the fastest memory timings we had seen with DDR2. This DDR2 memory was clearly the new DDR2 standard and we awarded the OCZ EL PC2-8000 XTC our Gold Editors Choice.

With the subsequent launch of AMD AM2 and the launch of the Intel Core 2 Duo, memory based on Micron memory chips has benefited even more. AM2 was not really much of a performance boost, but the DDR2 memory scales very well on AM2. Core 2 Duo does not make as much use of the DDR2 bandwidth as AM2, but it frankly doesn't need it. Core 2 Duo has turned out to be one of the largest performance increases we have ever seen with a new processor, and the brute performance strength of C2D more than offsets any memory performance advantage for AM2. AM2 is clearly a better memory platform in raw bandwidth than Core 2 Duo, and that fact may come back into play in the future. For now it is a moot point.

In the past two months memory prices have increased significantly. For that reason alone, buyers are looking much more closely at memory prices and comparison-shopping. The two memories tested here, the Super Talent DDR2-1000 and the TEAM DDR2-1000, are both an excellent choice in your comparison shopping. In general they perform just as well as the most expensive DDR2 at the critical DDR2-800 and DDR2-667 speeds, running with stability at 3-3-3 and 3-2-3 timings, just like the top DDR2 memory. While neither will overclock quite as far as the top memory we have tested, both do reach DDR2-1067 with ease. While they top out at 1080/1084, the practical difference between these top speeds and 1100+ is pretty minimal. The message here is if you can find Super Talent or TEAM at a cheaper price than the other top DDR2-1000 and up brands then buy it. You will get good value.

There is one caveat, however. The TEAM is definitely the better performer of the two tested brands. It requires a little less voltage at each speed for stability, and it matches the timings of the best DDR2 we have ever tested at all the stock speeds. The Super Talent performs much the same at 667 and 800, but it requires slightly slower timings at DDR2-1067. Therefore if you plan to run your memory at DDR2-1067 choose TEAM or another top DDR2 instead.

It is fair to ask if there is any real reason to run your memory faster than DDR2-800. The answer is Yes, provided your memory is capable of 4-3-4 timings at 1067 like the top memory we have tested. There are small but real performance advantages for any of these memories running at DDR2-1067, as you can see in the performance charts. 4-3-4 timings at 1067 is fast enough to make the 1067 speed a performance advantage, and the TEAM DDR2-1067 and the other top DDR2 memories can run at these timings with complete stability at 2.2V to 2.4V.

When we looked at High-Performance DDR2 in the Conroe Buying Guide, it was clear that the performance we first saw with the OCZ EL PC2-8000 was now available from a wider group of memory manufacturers. OCZ, Corsair, and Mushkin stood out at the top of the group of six, but frankly any of the six could deliver the kind of performance that could make a difference in a top Core 2 or AM2 system. That included the 2GB kits from Buffalo, Kingston, and Crucial. You can now add TEAM to that group of top performers, with Super Talent just an SPD upgrade away from the same level of performance. With memory prices high, this gives you a wide range of brands that will generally satisfy in your quest for the best performance you can achieve in computing.

The TEAM and Super Talent will not displace our top two performers in recent tests - the Corsair 6400C3 and the OCZ Ti Alpha PC2-8000 VX2 both use special binning of these Micron memory chips to push performance and overclocking up another level. The advantage for these two is not huge, but it is definitely real. But just below the absolute best there are now many brands that will bring you competitive memory performance up to DDR2-1067. TEAM and Super Talent join that group.