Crucial Ballistix Tracer PC2-5300 Review

Final Thoughts

Overclocking

Starting at the memory divider set at 3:5 (667MHz), the voltage set to 1.9V, and latencies set to 4-4-4-12, I was able to get this memory to almost 740MHz without any tweaking on the ASUS board. The Crucial Ballstix Tracer memory topped out at almost 770MHz (768.2MHz to be exact). Regardless of what I tried, I couldn’t get any more out of the memory, but I’m not complaining.

As you can see from the graph below, while the Corsair 5400UL runs away with the speed crown, the Crucial Ballistix seperates itself from the other kits tested by a fairly wide margin.

Final Thoughts

The performance of the Ballistic Tracer memory was definitely satisfactory when compared to the other memory kits we have used. Though it had some things working against it (standard memory chips instead of the fatties, double sided configuration, looser latencies, higher voltage, etc) the Tracer memory was bested only by the top of the line Corsair PC2 5400UL memory in almost every benchmark.

When it came to overclocking, the Crucial Ballistix was again very impressive, coming in at just under 770MHz, again well behind the Corsair PC2 5400UL and its insane 1054MHz, but well ahead of the Wintech’s 720MHz. The results I achieved were impressive in my eyes, and I’d expect anyone to achieve great results with these modules

As far as aestetics, the Crucial Ballistix Tracer is second to none. Much like Corsair’s Xpert and Pro lines, the Tracer memory really stands out. The blue LEDs around the base are a great finishing touch that really seperates this memory from anything else out there. Those of you who go all out on your systems, case windows, cold cathode lighting, flourescent cables and motherboards, etc.should definitely check this stuff out.

Its hard for me to find a negative with this memory. Its ran very well at its rated speed, overclocked extremely well, it looks great, and is priced in line with other modules in its class. I do have to say, if you don’t care for the bling, or don’t have a case window, you would be better off saving a few dollars and buying some regular memory without the LEDs.

Legit Bottom Line

The Crucial Ballistix Tracer PC2 5300 mixes top notch performance with major bling, a great combination for modders. The icing on the cake is this memories overclocking ability, which puts it second only to King of the Pit Corsair.