Overclocking

     Because the PQI memory has a max bus speed of 667MHz DDR, I was easily able to take the 3.0GHz CPU up to 250MHz FSB. This comes out to about 3.76GHz. As with the Ballistix DDR2, I was unable to find a higher bus speed and still maintain 100% stability in office applications, as well as games. Let's take a looks as some benchmarks at 250MHz FSB!

SiSoft Sandra Memory Bench (higher score is better)
1:1 - 250/250MHz

3:4 - 250/667MHz

Games

     Since we started testing DDR2, we've noticed that new games like Doom 3 and Halo perform about the same overclocked or not. The only thing that really makes a difference with these games is overclocking the video card, or simply having a better and faster video card. As for games like Quake 3 and Painkiller, a faster CPU and better memory performance equals much faster frame rates. Here's a similar setup showing the difference between default and overclocked:

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Doom3

800x600 Average frame rate=35.6fps
1024x768 Average frame rate=24.5fps

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Halo: Combat Evolved

800x600 Average frame rate=41.82fps
1024x768 Average frame rate=34.63fps

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Painkiller

800x600 Average frame rate=128.36fps
1024x768 Average frame rate=111.61fps

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Quake III Arena
Demo name: four.dm_67

800x600 3.2 seconds: 440.4 fps
1024x768 3.9 seconds: 338.6 fps

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3DMark01SE

1024 x 768: 14844 3DMarks

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3DMark03

800 x 600 5663 3DMarks
1024 x 768 4270 3DMarks

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Conclusion

     It's good to see PQI in the DDR2 game. As far as I can see, PQI's memory is every bit as good as Crucial's Ballistix DDR2. In fact, it out scored it in some tests when you compare the PQI to some of our recent reviews featuring the Ballistix DDR2. So in reality it all comes down to price... In this case, PQI comes out on top by nearly a $100 margin (at the time of this review). With that said, it's obvious who comes out on top in terms of value. I have no choice but to rate PQI's memory very high and give them our seal of approval!