Kingston HyperX 1866mhz really boost intel HD 3000 (on x220)

Hi everyone,
I just received today my x220. I also received this week 2x 4gb of Kingston HyperX 1866mhz ram (bought for 120$ at directron.com if anyone is interested). I read a couple of post concerning those memory module reporting that it gave some people extra fps on games. I was very sceptic to be honest but I still decided to pay the extra money to get those kingston hyperX module.
The results :
3dmark 06 score : 5284
I didnt do any testing with other module so I cant garentee that the score is due to the ram upgrade. It look like most people are getting between 3000 and 4000 pts their x220, so I guess the only difference is really the extra memory bandwith that the hd3000 gives.
I will do some more testing tomorrow, maybe try some Starcraft 2
I know the x220 is not really a gaming machine, and their is probably some alternative if you want to game (for exemple an eGPU setup), but I think the 80$ extra I paid for the memory might finally be worth it if I can gain an extra 30% on my frame rate!

edit : for those interested in the complete 3dmark6 report, here it is
http://3dmark.com/3dm06/15955592;js...6/15955592?key=JCF3Qn9ubnYphTzLVyaFwEE0wQdREb

edit 2 : also I used a 90w AC adapter instead of the regular 65w (from my older t61p) ? I think this helped me overcome the i7 throttling issue.

 

I'm not sure but I think that most of the speed increase comes from having two RAM modules (dual channel) instead of original one. I bought another 4GB 1333 MHz (really cheap) and now Mafia II is much more playable ...

 

Going dual channel improve the memory bandwidth a lot more than going to 1866, as zadam suggested.

FYI, 2 x 4GB 1333 DDR3 SO-DIMM costs only $35 currently (lately there are a lot of 2x 4GB laptop memory deal for less than $40)
Corsair 8GB (2 x 4GB) 204-Pin DDR3 1333 SO-DIMM CMSO8GX3M2A1333C9 ($34.99 AR - NewEgg - Expires 8/17/11)
I wouldn't spend that much more to get 1866 memory, just to get 1 or 2 FPS more on a non-gaming machine, if there is any improvement at all.

 

You are comparing apples to oranges...

4gb of memory means the graphics get 256mb
8gb means the graphics get 384mb

Also you are running i7 while most run i5

 

Has anyone done valid tests on the reduction in battery life when running
1. single RAM
2. dual RAM
3. fast RAM against standard RAM

???

 

how does starcraft 2 play?

 

I compared 2 GB of DDR3-1333 (which came with my x220) vs 8 GB of Kingston DDR3-1866. The difference reported by the laptop was about 0.3W.

 

Ok I just installed Starcraft 2. The game run pretty well. Way better than on my older t61p (with a dedicadted Quadro FX570m 256mb, based on the geforce 8600gt mobile i think).

I can run the game with everything on High while still being playable (and max 1366x768 resolution). I get between 20 and 40 FPS.
For optimal playability, I maxed everything that run on the CPU (reflective effect + physics). I kept texture and model on HIGH. The rest was put to Medium. On those settings, the game run most of the time over 25 fps (even on heavy combat action). The great thing is that I never experienced any stuttering moment. Sometime when I played on my t61p, their would be some moments when the game drops to totally unplayable fps for a second or two. This is not the case on the X220. Those test were ran with turbo boost enabled.

I'm very impressed with the capability of the x220.

Does anyone have a GOOD benchmark replay to test the game. How can someone proceed in making a good Starcraft 2 benchmark test? What replay should I use? For how long sould I run FRAPS? I dont really know how people test starcraft 2 habitually.

Thanks!

 

I got a decent jump with my 1866mhz RAM. I got about a 300 point bump in 3DMark06 and WEI bumped up .2 for PROC and RAM. I had birthday money to spend, so I splurged, but I would say seeing how the price of RAM is dropping almost daily now, it's probably not worth the money.

 

From what? What was you memory configuration before? 4GB -> 8GB? or 8GB 1333 -> 8GB 1866?

 

Thanks for that. At a very rough guess then it will reduce the battery run time by up to 20 mins with a 9-cell battery.
On that basis I'll be sticking with my 4GB of 1333MHz.

 

I don't think the memory has that much to do with the performance.
I am using 8gb Kingston 1333mhz
My WEI:

I. Initial FRESH install of x64 windows 7 pro, no updates, just the thinkvantage suite

Graphics: 5.0
Gaming Graphics:6.1

II. After all windows updates

Graphics: 5.6
Gaming Graphics: 6.1

III. Same setup as (II), but having a fan pointed towards the bottom of my laptop for maximum cooling

Graphics: 6.3
Gaming Graphics: 6.3

 

are you able to achieve 40-50fps throughout an entire 1v1 game using low settings?? 25 fps is pretty unplayable.

Thanks for your help, this is a major factor in deciding on a x220 purchase.

 

Hi,
I get more than 100 FPS in lower settings. The game is definitely playable.

 

I can vouch for that. I have the x220 outputting through hdmi to a 1080p screen and the game is definitely playable. Laptop gets plenty hot.. and drains a TON of power while doing so.. but most of the time when outputting through hdmi I'm plugged in anyways. This laptop's performance is pretty mindblowing.

 

Wow this myth still goes around eh?

The graphics chip will get all the memory it needs when running so long as there is memory left, regardless of any static allocation.

"Oh noes my system ram allocation has run out, now I will have to take from system memory instead..... Oh wait."

 

Bandwidth is KING for integrated graphics with a little oomph behind them.

 

Thanks for clearing that up. I had to research it a bit lol.

It''s interesting how they advertise (including apple)

So this means the 1866 = far better graphics vs 1333 memory ???

Damn maybe I shouldn't have bought that 1333 ram ....

 

I had 8GB of 1333 and upgraded to 8GB of 1866.

 

To all the doubters, I'd like to add my voice to the chorus of reason and experience.

As Meaker said, bandwidth is king when it comes to integrated graphics performance, and 1866 memory adds lots of bandwidth. It had a profound impact in my experience. There's a review of it here: Kingston HyperX 8GB 1866MHz PnP Memory Kit For Notebooks - Sandy Bridge Notebooks Get HyperX Treatment - Legit Reviews .

If my laptop only had integrated graphics and also supported it, I would definitely be using it. (unfortunately the w520 has sleep/resume issues, so I switched to the 1600)

 

I take back what I said. These are WAY TOO EXPENSIVE.

Almost triple the price !!!!

imho not worth an extra fps or 2

If you want to game, go dedicated graphics.

 

Only on Windows 7. =P

 

AFAIK this happens at least since windows XP.

 

Wow, I didn't expect the difference to be so much. It's more than just a few frames difference on gaming performance; it's an increase on memory-intesive tasks across the board. As the review shows, there are definitely situations where the RAM upgrade would make games play noticeably more smoothly, too.

~17% memory performance increase is IMHO worth about $100 extra (presuming an upgrade from an existing 4 GB or 8 GB of 1333 MHz RAM hat might be sold for a little, and upgrading to 8 GB of the faster RAM), for someone who wants or needs extra performance.

For me, it would be a little silly to upgrade the RAM for so much, as I've already skimped a bit on the processor (i5-2410M) and RAM prices are constantly falling. But for someone who's chosen an i7 or even an i5-2540M, I could see it, especially if prices fall further off the $140 US mark.

For me, having spent $190 already on an mSATA boot disk, I will have to go with a $25 upgrade to 8 GB of 1333 Mhz dual-channel RAM and be happy, or risk a divorce.

 

I am getting the x220t very soon and my main concern is heat. If I upgrade my ram to 8gb 1600 will it generate more heat than 1333 recommended by the supplier? I contacted Kingston and they recommended the 1333 as well! I will be doing some lite HD video editing and play lite games like Winning eleven 2011.

By the way, what is bad about the x220t clickpad? I read many contradicting reviews regarding it. A good and smooth multi-touch clickpad is very important to me for comfortably browsing web pages and doing some gestures for launching Task Switcher by swiping four fingers like in the new HP Envy 14 2011 model.

thanks a bunch!

 

I think you will need the i7 to support memory at that speed.

 

Yes. But maybe 1600 MHz RAM has slightly lower latency when running at 1333 MHz.

Has anyone here changed from 8GB 1333 Mhz RAM to 8GHz HyperX? That would help sort out whether the improvement people are reporting is due to moving up to 8GB or moving to HyperX. Any 2 module RAM combination gives a substantial performance boost for Sandybridge integrated graphics compared with the single module performance (which tends to be the default configuration).

John

 

The Kingston PlugnPlay hyperX 1600 MHz Ram has the same latency as their 1333 ram. However, their sales rep advised me to use the 1333 because it is the supported version from Lenovo although the 1600 MHz will work with the system so I was wondering what are my risks of using 1600 MHz CL9 with heatsink.

 

they might look awesome?

 

That doesn't make sense to me. In any event check this out:
Kingston HyperX 8GB 1866MHz PnP Memory Kit For Notebooks - The Test System - Legit Reviews

 

Hmz, their max official speed is 1333mhz, interesting.

 

What I heard is that all Sandy Bridge based laptop support completely 1866mhz memory. The thing is, when most of those laptop came out, no memory running at 1866mhz was available yet, so they were not yet approved or compliant with the JEDEC settings. But I can assure you that those are running at full speed on my laptop :
here is a quote from legitreviews.com

Kingston HyperX 8GB 1866MHz PnP Memory Kit For Notebooks - Sandy Bridge Notebooks Get HyperX Treatment - Legit Reviews

 

Is this correct. For those who have upgraded to Kingston HyperX 1866mhz, do you find that your x220 runs hotter?

 

Is it hotter and louder?...meaning that the fans come on more often and run at higher fan speed. I just hate computer noise.

 

Haven't noticed anything of the sort. That seems to be hogwash. Also.. theres only 1 fan in the X220, and the only thing it affects is the copperblock from the CPU.. unless the additional RAM affects the northbridge to any significant degree..

 

Yes, I have, and the performance increase is significant. I didn't save different pcmark scores or anything, but the WEI graphics and memory scores went up a few notches, as well as gaming frame-rates.

 

Well when I had an i3 2310m, it ran the memory at 1333mhz, rather than the 1600mhz it was rated for.

 

I don't think i3 supports higher speeds. Only i5 and i7.

 

According to Intel the i5-2520M only goes up to 1333 MHz. Same for i7-2620M. I thought it was only the quad core CPUs which used the faster bandwidth.

John

 

But that review used an I5, maybe only the I3s are truly locked.

Maybe the 1866 modules bypass that =/

 

I have this memory and can not say what it's running at. I can say that it is fast and that there is no added noise or heat. i5 runs as cool and quiet as ever.

 

CPU-z will show the RAM frequency and timings being used on its memory page.

John

 

Do you need to set bios to 1866 with new memory, or will it do it on it's own?

 

Seems to do it on its own. I was surprised that it accepted the full 1866 speed, as even the intel spec sheet for the 2620 says it only supports up to 1600mhz ram.

 

I am also curious if that 1600 kit is better? It's almost half the price, haha...with lower CAS?

Anyone test 1866 8gb kit vs 1600 8gb kit?

 

I have 8gb of the 1600 Mhz hyperX ram installed...
(which is ~$30 cheaper and has CAS = 9, rather than 11
for the 1866 Mhz ram)

As far as 3DMark06 goes I have tested three times
with my 65W adapter, getting scores ranging from
5274 to 5300.

Note: I uninstalled Lenovo's HD 3000 graphics driver and
installed intel's driver version 15.22.1.64. 2361

 

I installed the 1866, and my windows index only went up in memory, graphics and gaming graphics were the exact same

 

Do a full re-run of WEI. It needs a couple of attempts to realise that more needs to be tested than just the RAM.

John

 

Just as reference for anyone.
I got with latest intel drivers and maximum performance power scheme and got about 5050 in 3dmark 06.
Config:
i5-2520M
8GB Kingston 1333
320 GB 7200rpm
x220

My WEI index is:
7.1
7.5
6.3
6.3
5.9

Score

 

okay, gaming in league of legends was awesome ... fps bumped up a good 25-30FPS.