Feature Articles

Evolution of Memory Performance: A DDR3 Story

By Zachary Chan - 26 Jun 2007

Conclusion

Conclusion

When Intel launched their previous generation P965 chipsets, they introduced a technology called Intel Smart Memory Access into the memory controller. Its purpose was to hide memory latency performance issues with more intelligent pre-fetching and predictive buffering. The memory controller on the new P35 is supposed to have been updated and optimized as well. You can see this in our DDR2 results as the P35 almost always outperforms the P965 in memory intensive tests. Now, this is important to take note of as in theory, the P35 and Smart Memory Access should have helped boost DDR3 performance further, but since this is a chipset level technology that will work just as well on DDR2 and DDR3 memory, real performance differences can only be described as slim.
As with DDR2 when it was launched, DDR3 performance was largely affected by its high latency timings. With starting latencies around 7-9 bus cycles, the improved bandwidth offered by DDR3 could hardly be seen. No matter how intelligent the chipset may be in memory access and buffering, there is no substitute for a true improvement to latency timings. Running DDR3-1333 with CAS 7 timings was a clear indicator of this. Overclocked to 1500MHz (CL9), DDR3 offered a glimpse or better performance, but even then, we weren't really impressed at the gains.

On a side note, NVIDIA's nForce 680i SLI is still a strong memory controller for DDR2 and was able to match DDR3-1066 performance in PCMark05. Things should get interesting if and when NVIDIA releases a chipset supporting DDR3, more so if they actually expand and gain better support for the SLI-Memory (EPP) concept from DDR3 vendors.

Remember that all our benchmarks in this article have been performed on standard DDR2-800 memory modules timed at 4-4-4-12. We did not include any performance DDR2 memory into the equation, so you can make your own conclusions on where the current crop of high-end CAS 3 and DDR2-1000+ memory will stand.

There is no doubt that DDR3 will offer higher performance and lower energy consumption in the long run, just as how DDR2 was to DDR, but whether you are an avid overclocker or the average Joe next door, it currently does not make sense to spend the amount of money needed to upgrade your system to DDR3 for the little benefits it provides in current 1066MHz and lower FSB systems. DDR3 may have entered the scene with more fanfare than DDR2, but the situation hasn't changed. Until 1333MHz FSB processors and platforms become mainstream and latencies drop a couple of cycles, DDR3 can safely be left in the K.I.V. folder for a while longer yet.

Many memory vendors realize this situation and have conveyed to us that they would focus efforts on cranking out speedier DDR3 memory modules to drive interest rather than debut DDR3 memory at similar speeds as current high speed DDR2 modules. After all, DDR3 is supposed to extend and offer memory bandwidth and speeds not attainable by the current DDR2 technology. So stay tuned for more developments later in the year as 2008 looks to be the year when enthusiasts might take a bite at DDR3 for good.

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