It's great to see how individual memory stacks up against the competition under stock configurations, but we're also going to show how it compares when overclocked. With performance in mind, we're going to compare the maximum overclocked results of the various DDR2/3 memory modules PCSTATS has tested in the past which are listed below. Remember, just because memory is clocked fast doesn't mean it's the best thing for a computer. Timings are also important, and getting the right ratio of both is the real key to performance based overclocking!

Maximum Overclocked Speeds - PCSTATS TEST Results
DDR3 Memory - Maximum Speed w/ Low Latency	Timings	Capacity	Max Speed	Ranking
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin3X2048-1800C7D	7-7-7-20	1024MB	1840 MHz
Super Talent W1866UX2G8	7-7-7-20	1024MB	1780 MHz
Mushkin HP3-10666	6-7-6-18	1024MB	1452 MHz
Crucial Ballistix PC3-12800	7-7-7-20	1024MB	0
DDR2 Memory - Maximum Speed w/ Low Latency	Timings	Capacity	Max Speed	Ranking
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-8888C4DF	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1260 MHz
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-8888C4DF*	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1244 MHz
Patriot PDC22G9200ELK	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1170 MHz
OCZ PC2-7200 Platinum SLI*	4-4-3-15	1024MB	1142 MHz
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-9136C5D*	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1142 MHz
PNY XLR8 D22GX85XL-5	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1120 MHz
A-DATA Vitesta Extreme Edition	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1100 MHz
Patriot PDC24G6400LLK	4-4-4-12	2048MB	1066 MHz
Mushkin XP2-6400	4-3-3-10	2048MB	1066 MHz
SuperTalent T1000UX2G4	4-5-4-12	1024MB	1044 MHz
Corsair Twin2X2048-6400C4*	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1000 MHz
Patriot PDC22G8000+XBLK	4-4-4-12	1024MB	1000 MHz
Corsair Twin2X2048-8500C5*	4-4-4-12	1024MB	977MHz
Crucial PC2-6400	4-4-4-12	1024MB	890 MHz
Corsair Twin2X2048-6400C3*	3-4-3-9	1024MB	888 MHz
PNY D22GX93XLP-5 XLR8	4-4-4-12	1024MB	N/A
DDR3 Memory - Maximum Speed	Timings	Capacity	Max Speed	Ranking
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin3X2048-1800C7D	8-8-8-24	1024MB	1920 MHz
Super Talent W1866UX2G8	8-8-8-24	1024MB	1900 MHz
Crucial Ballistix PC3-12800	8-8-8-20	1024MB	1780 MHz
Mushkin HP3-10666	8-8-8-24	1024MB	1760 MHz
DDR2 Memory - Maximum Speed	Timings	Capacity	Max Speed	Ranking
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-8888C4DF	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1300 MHz
PNY D22GX93XLP-5 XLR8	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1280 MHz
Patriot PDC22G9200ELK	5-5-5-12	1024MB	1260 MHz
A-DATA Vitesta Extreme Edition	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1250 MHz
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-8888C4DF*	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1244 MHz
Corsair DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-9136C5D*	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1244 MHz
PNY XLR8 D22GX85XL-5	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1220 MHz
OCZ PC2-7200 Platinum SLI*	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1219 MHz
Corsair Twin2X2048-8500C5*	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1200 MHz
Patriot PDC24G6400LLK	5-5-5-15	2048MB	1180 MHz
SuperTalent T1000UX2G4	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1160 MHz
Patriot PDC22G8000+XBLK	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1155 MHz
Corsair Twin2X2048-6400C4*	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1142 MHz
Mushkin XP2-6400	5-5-5-15	2048MB	1130 MHz
Crucial PC2-6400	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1080 MHz
Corsair Twin2X2048-6400C3*	5-5-5-15	1024MB	1066 MHz

* - denotes tested on ECS PN2 SLI2+ platform

With tight timings the 4GB Patriot Memory PDC24G6400LLK kit performs exactly the same as Mushkin's XP2-6400 4GB memory kit. Loosening the timings allows the it to perform faster than Mushkin's memory. That's pretty darn good!

2GB is Nice, 4GB is Sweet...

In general memory is something that you can never have enough of. At today's prices, there's never been a better time to stuff your computer full of it. A 4GB DDR2-800 memory kit has fallen in price dramatically, and this parts are definitely worth consideration even from a normal computer user.

The big question is whether you need a 2GB DDR2 kit now or 4GB to be future-ready? Most common software applications and the majority of games require at least 2GB of system memory, but that's bound to increase. We do expect upcoming DirectX 10 titles to push the boundary of current computing technology from 2GB towards 4GB pretty rapidly - though for the time being you won't see significant performance differences.

With a retail price of $178 CDN ($185 USD, £89 GBP) the 4GB PC2-6400 DDR2 Patriot Memory PDC24G6400LLK kit offers consumers an interesting option. This 4GB dual channel memory kit is rated to run at DDR2-800 speeds with timings of 4-4-4-12 and 2.2V. Up until recently these kinds of low latency memory timings at DDR2-800 speeds were only available to computer enthusiasts willing to spend mad amounts of money. It's amazing how quickly technology progresses!

In terms of performance, the 4GB capacity Patriot Memory PDC24G6400LLK memory kit performed as quick as some of the fastest 2GB DDR2 memory kits PCSTATS has tested. Essentially, this means that current memory benchmarks used with Windows Vista don't differentiate between 2GB and 4GB.

The Patriot Memory PDC24G6400LLK is in pretty good company considering Corsair's DOMINATOR Twin2X2048-8888C4DF is basically the pinnacle of what DDR2 memory can achieve. When it came to overclocking the Patriot PDC24G6400LLK did pretty well for itself. The two 2GB PDC24G6400LLK modules achieved a top overclocked speed of 1066 MHz with 4-4-4-12 timings, and 1180 MHz with lax 5-5-5-15 CAS latency timings.

Ultimately, the 4GB Patriot PDC24G6400LLK DDR2-800 memory kit is something you should consider if you need a lot of memory for your computer system; for gaming, video editing, or manipulating massive Photoshop jobs. This memory is reasonably priced, so once more Patriot has proven itself to be a worthy competitor to the memory big shots. For consumers, that's good news right?

Find out about this and many other reviews by joining the Weekly PCstats.com Newsletter today! Catch all of PCSTATS latest reviews right here.

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