OCZ PC4200 EL Platinum Edition Review - PAGE 1

In last week's review of Crucial's Ballistix PC4000 memory, we talked about how overclocking and performance tweaking has had such an impact on the PC industry that there are companies who have a whole slew of products dedicated for the people who actively participate in such things. We mentioned that Crucial was tapping into this market with their Ballistix lineup but today's focus is on OCZ Technology. OCZ, even more so than Crucial, is a manufacturer of extremely high-end memory for the most hardcore of overclockers. OCZ memory is synonymous with shiny heatspreaders, low latencies, high clocks, and superb reliability.

In today's review we will be looking at OCZ's PC4200 EL Platinum Edition memory. We have two 512 MB sticks on hand certified for in dual-channel mode. These sticks are rated at PC4200, which translates to a speed of 525 MHz DDR (262.5 MHz). After our reviews of OCZ's ModStream 520W Powersupply and their PC2-5400 memory, we have fairly high expectations today.

The Memory

OCZ's PC4200 EL Platinum Edition memory comes encased in very attractive and highly-reflective silver heatspreaders, with the OCZ logo on both sides. It is subjectively the heaviest RAM that I have ever held, which is nice, because it gives the impression of a solid product. In all honesty though, some things are just fun to hold, like Athlon 64s, iPods, and OCZ memory. :-)

Unlike Crucial's Ballistix PC4000, OCZ's PC4200 does not come with any nifty LEDs or other such gadgetry. This isn't exactly a big loss, but it could be a swaying feature for some.

As stated previously, OCZ is an overclocker's best friend, and for this reason, they will warranty their PC4200 EL Platinum Edition up to 3.0V. This is due to their EVP ("Extended Voltage Protection") technology. Officially, EVP is stated as the ability to use a VDIMM of 3.0V +/-5% without invalidating the OCZ Lifetime Warranty. Sounds good.

Let the testing begin.