Performance Score Mystery

[Guest]

I just built a new PC with all quality parts. I have all 5.9's except memory
and primary hard disc. For memory I have 4 GB (had 2 but bumped it up) of OCZ
DDR2 6400 ram. The hard drives are 2 Samsung 500GB SATA drives. I'm running
32 bit Vista Ultimate. Just what does it take to get 5.9 in memory at least?
I have more than it even recognizes for 32 bit Vista.

 

[P. Di Stolfo]

Hello,

what timings does your RAM have? When I set mine better (to 3-4-3-8), I had
a 5.9. Some motherboards and BIOS set the timings worse than they could be.

Greetings,
P. Di Stolfo

 

[phypps]

I have a high performance machine made for me, that has a similar tale.
5.9 all round except for 5.2 memory.
However, on the last two machines (with the latest motherboards at that
time) I could have 2 memory slots (out of 4) with high speed memory
(whatever that was at the time) which would presumably give a 5.9.
But ..... filling all 4 slots (in the latest case wit 4 x 1GB) meant that
the overall speed went down a level.(therefore the 5.2 score)
Whether this is just the specific combination of components that were used
in my systems or a more widespread occurence I don't have the technical
knowledge to say.
However its something to think about.
Personally I consider the performance benefits of twice the amount of memory
outweighs the (debateable real world value of) increase in memory speed.
Ideally we would all choose more memory AND speed, but if I have to choose I
know which way I would (and did) go.

Phypps

 

[Richard G. Harper]

Apparently your opinion doesn't matter to the scoring system.

This is a synthetic benchmark and aside from bragging rights the difference
between a couple points isn't going to be noticeable to users.

And for what it's worth I agree with you - I'd rather have 4gb of 5.6 memory
than 2gb of 5.9 memory ... THAT will make a noticeable change in
performance for high-end users.

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Richard G. Harper [MVP Shell/User] (e-mail address removed)
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[Guest]

Here is some examples of the different scores I get for the Windows
Experience Index of the RAM at different settings. RAM timing is set at
4-4-4-12

I have 4x1GB DDR667 RAM which gives experience index of 5.6 at stock
settings.
If I overclock the RAM to 350MHz (DDR700) and also overclock the FSB to
350MHz (1:1 ratio) I get 5.9.
If I increase the RAM speed up to DDR800, leaving the FSB unlocked (2:3
ratio at 267MHz), I only get an index of 5.7.

So I don't know how the score is calculated, although I don't think it is
soley reliant on RAM speed. I /think/ the Windows Experience Index measures
memory throughput which can be faster if the RAM is at 1:1 ratio to FSB. If
you are insistant on getting a high index number, then try some overclocking,
linking RAM speed to FSB.

A bit off topic: I am finding my system in Vista is not as stable as XP when
overclocking the RAM, possibly due to overheating. Although I tested
overclocking the RAM simply to get some high benchmark scores, it leaves my
system unstable. Therefore, I keep my system at stock speed for everyday
use. If you do try overclocking the RAM, make sure you have good cooling and
be prepared for some Blue Screen of Death.

 

[Guest]

Thanks to all. I guess that I'll just stick to the default speed and not
overclock the memory. Funny, with 4 gig of DDR2 800 MHz memory and 2 SATA 500
GB hard drives Vista still isn't satified unless you overclock.
Worst thing is that XP is still faster!

 

[Metta]

Just to add to this scoring stuff

I have 4x1gb PC1066 and still only get a score of 5.4 for memory (1066fsb)
5.5.5.15 timings!!!

So I wonder what one has to have to get 5.9!

M

 

[Marjay]

I have some Patriot DDR6400 with timing of 4-4-4-12 and my score is
5.9!!! I am disappointed that my AMD X2 5600 only gets a score of 5.4
though