OCZ EL DDR PC-4800 Platinum Elite

Introduction

From the Manufacturer OCZ Technology:

• 600MHz DDR
• CL 2.5-4-4-10
• 400MHz DDR (Dual Spec)
• CL 2-2-2-5
• Available in a 512MB module and 1GB (2x512MB) Dual Channel Optimized Kit
• Unbuffered
• Mirrored Platinum Copper Heatspreader
• Lifetime Warranty
• 2.8 Volts
• 184 Pin DIMM
• Tested to 2T, but may also run 1T on certain motherboards
• EVP - use a VDIMM of 3.0V ± 5% without invalidating the OCZ Lifetime Warranty
• ULN2 - Ultra Low Noise. Uses various printed circuit board (PCB) techniques to reduce the amount of electrical noise that is present in all high-speed ICs.
• TCCD chips guaranteed

OCZ has released the PC4800 Elite Edition in reply to user's claims that their 4800 Platinum modules used Samsung TCC5 chips instead of TCCD. While TCC5 are, according to Samsung, a lower quality than TCCD, OCZ's in-house testing and binning did sort out only the better TCC5 chips for the 4800 Platinum modules. Since some users absolutely want TCCD and nothing else, OCZ guarantees that only Samsung TCCD chips are used on the PC-4800 Platinum Elite, but at a higher cost.

TCCD memory is known for being able to run high clock speeds, without needing as much voltage as Winbond's BH-5. Another advantage is that they do not get as warm during use, so active cooling is not required. Where BH-5 shines is very aggressive timings, 2-2-2-5 is very common. OCZ does offer to run the 4800 Platinum Elite at 2-2-2-5 timings too, but as our testing later shows, there is not much overclocking headroom, nor is there much gain from increased voltage.

Packaging

OCZ uses a blister pack, which can be opened without a knife, or injuries resulting from incorrect use of the knife.


Each module has a sticker on it, which gives the rated speed and the stock timings.


The memory heatspreaders are platinum colored. They are not really needed to keep the temperature of the memory down, it only gets hand-warm during operation, even when overclocked.
However, having a heatspreader sure helps protect the fragile components on the modules. If a stick falls down, there could be a chance that a small IC breaks off, not with this memory.
Last but not least a heatspreader is sure nicer to look at than the bare memory chips.