Now that we have explored the modules performance, it’s time to focus on why this memory was produced – to be shown off. And what better way to show off a product geared towards case modders, than in a modified LianLi PC6085B case.
The LED’s on these modules are very bright, and emit a very vivid color. The tracers alternate red and green so even when moving slowly they are interesting to look at. The blue ground effects LED’s will easily accent any case with blue in the color scheme, and even so, aren’t bright enough to overpower any other case lighting or be annoying. They give a nice ominous glow that draws the eye and lets you show off a piece of hardware generally neglected when staring through a case window.
The following are several video clips showing how the tracer modules react to different activities or programs. The videos were encoded using Xvid codec. Use the embedded controls to view a sample video or download the files by clicking the appropriate link:.
Note: In doing basic research online I found an article that mentioned that the memory bus activity lights may be lit up differently on different chipsets. So I walked next door and stuck them in my friend’s computer, an nForce2 Ultra AMD XP machine. To my surprise the lights were lit differently, in a more asynchronous manner than on my nForce3Gb chipset. I also found through testing that sometimes at high memory speeds, the lights were being lit differently as well.
- nForce2 Ultra Bootup – (download) – 466KB
- Everest Home Memory Benchmark at 285 MHz – (download) – 324KB
Sample: Memtest86
- Downloading Files – (download) – 220KB
- Memtest86 – (download) – 274KB
- Everest Home Memory Benchmark – (download) – 152KB
- HalfLife2 – (download) – 274KB
Discussion – The “Eye Candy” Factor
After all was said and done I couldn’t sit idly by and let a product like this go without a quick discussion. I have to say I was quite surprised to see an appeal to such a small market segment, the computer modding culture. Especially from a large company like Crucial, who have gotten so worked up and excited to release a fresh product whose main selling point beyond its normal PC4000 brethren is to be just plain COOL. That is just it, this stuff is cool.
One of the things I noticed after first plugging these memory modules in and booting up was that I couldn’t stop staring at them. I have always been into the mindset about computer hardware that I didn’t care too much what the piece of hardware looked like as long as it was fast. Memory was no exception. I never had a desire for platinum heat spreaders or activity lights on my memory.
Although after having these sitting in my computer for the past several days, I seem to have befallen what I called the “Eye Candy” factor. I’ve gotten used to peering over at my case window to check out my memory activity. Even when testing and benching, I found myself staring at the tracer lights to see if the computer was going to post or had locked up.
So there is a level of real world functionality in such a feature so geared towards the cool aspect hardware.My computer also seems to have gotten quite a bit more attention from those who see the strange blinking lights from a ways away. And again the overall impression even from those not into computers was, “Cool”.
Conclusion
Taking their well performing Ballistix PC4000 memory, and adding some wow factor, Crucial seems to have hit something their Ballistix Tracer modules. Price may be a factor for some, as listed on the Crucial website these modules will cost you $23 per 512Mb more than the regular Ballistix PC4000.
I was thinking to myself however as I was finishing this article, “What is it going to take to make me take these things out of my case now that I am so used to activity lights on my memory?” I don’t know, but I can say I’m looking forward to see more Tracer modules in the future. I can say that if you’re a case modder, or looking for a bit more attention at local LAN’s for your custom built computer, you’re sure to get some heads turning with these in your case, and at no loss of performance.
I am giving the Crucial Ballistix PC4000 Tracer modules 9.5 out of 10 and the OCmodshop seal of approval. I would like to thank Crucial Technology for sending us this memory for review.
Pros
- Good packaging
- Slick black heat spreaders and PCB
- Runs stably at a wide range of speeds and timings
- Ground effects lights
- Innovative LED activity lights
- Overall very cool
Cons
- Costs more than regular PC4000
