Oxiracetam

This is one of my favorites in the racetam family.

It has very prosocial effects, and noticeably increases my working memory.  For lecture classes, it feels like I'm back in highschool when I could get away without notes.  That said, I take even better notes when I use Oxi.

Oxi is semi famous for its stimulant effect.  Lower doses give the same creative mindset that Piracetam does, but higher doses can be too much for some people who are sensitive to stimulants. You're still creative and functioning at a high level, but the impulsiveness can get out of hand when paired with other stimulants. This morning before writing this, I left accounting class with 3 diagrams for inventions and most of a database written for a project, along with acing both quizzes in class.  You get an incredible ability to change your train of thought at any given time, and your thinking process is elevated as with any racetam.

Looking into the studies done on oxiracetam, data shows that it is most effective on hippocampally mediated functions, such as consolidation information to short and long term memory, and spatial reasoning/navigation.

Final Verdict

Social Effects:  Better social ability in general
Learning effect: Better creation of memory, items learned are retained almost perfectly
Cost Factor:  Relatively high cost, best used when needed.  About 30cents per dose, which adds up quickly.
Effective Time: Oxiracetam sets in fairly quickly, and you will usually feel it. My threshold is about half a gram, and it takes about this much to have an actual effect too. A dose of 2 grams is fairly intense and impressive as far as you ability to process and memorize even abstract information
Best Features: Heightened focus, more fun socially, easy memory.
X- Factor: It tastes sweet! Also synergizes well with Noopept+Rhodiola

Phenylpiracetam

Lifechanging.
Simply lifechanging.  For those familiar with anabolic steroids, this is the halotestin of the racetam family It is powerful and reliable.  If you take it when you need it, and you get what you want.  If you want something motivating, non addictive, and energizing, then there isn't a replacement for phenylpiracetam.

My first dose was about 200mg, and in a short amount of time, I could feel that my thinking was different.  Every decision had a confident snap to it.  My personality turned into high energy and hyperactive type, which is a huge variation for me.  On the way back up to my apartment, I caught myself dancing in the elevator.  One of my very few rules in life is that I do not dance, not even to save my life.  No movements that I can make should even be called dancing, that's an insult to more talented dancers than I, such as 2013 Miley Cyrus.

This helps with crunch-time studying, and is best taken with rhodiola and noopept in my experience.  These combine for a high-energy focus that helps you retain nearly everything.

Supplementing with this greatly intensifies motivation, and because of that I advise that it be used sparingly, and at critical times.  It has an energizing effect, and is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Final Verdict

Social Effects: Irritability.
Learning effect: Motivational, but a bit erratic.  Learn to focus and this is quite a tool
Cost Factor: Can cost as much as $1 per dose (200mg)
Effective Time: Very noticeable energizing effect.  Onset varies with meal timing, but is quick
Best Features: Increased endurance, resistance to cold, very energizing.

Mine was purchased from Liftmode.  Their link is in the "Trusted" box in the sidebar, for good reason.  Good prices and real products.  They also let you pay through your amazon account.

Rhodiola Rosea

This was first brought to my attention by an Anon on /fit/ as part of a list of supplements he took for recovery.  I looked into it a bit, and it seemed interesting, with good bang for your buck.
I found that seven double blind clinical studies, Rhodiola Rosea dosing was found to definitely decrease fatigue with a notable potency. 4 studies show that it raises cognition and subjective level of well being. It can lower depression and the rate of perceived exertion. Also lowers lactate production, stress, and muscle damage.


Usually the anecdote I give along with this is how I felt so good after my heavy day on bench that I did a speed set and managed 225x12 at the end.  Its a feelgood supplement and is incredibly cheap, especially considering the effect.  Besides muscle endurance under strain, there is also a notable increase to attention and focus endurance under strain.  As long as my motivation stays high, I can continue focusing on one topic for extended periods of time, regardless of lack of sleep or interest level.

I'm planning to test its effectiveness soon (a study measuring the increase in number of pushups to failure from trial to trial). Even though the sample size will be small, something quantifiable is useful.  If you have it yourself and want to contribute, please do so: there is a contact form at the bottom of the page for this sort of thing.

Final Verdict

Social Effects:  Not much is noticeable here, besides longer attention span and greater interest in other people.
Learning effect: Most of its benefit towards learning is produced buy its anti-fatigue effects and ability to extend attention span.
Cost Factor: Can be gotten as cheap as $3 per ounce, though there is no guarantee of potency.  what you buy in precapsulated for will be standardized for rosavins and other helpful chemicals.  The raw powder works well as a small part of an herb rub for grilled chicken.
Effective Time: Not specifically known or that noticeable. It tends to come on steadily rather than "hit," but the effects are actively noticeable. Sort of an energizing effect.
Best Features: works like a +5% buff to most of your body and psyche

Caffeine

The oldest, most common, and most likely safest stimulant to use.

In modern western society, even below the age of 10 children have caffeine tolerances built up from sodas and sweet tea.  At some point in your life, you have ingested caffeine in some way.

The most interesting facet of caffeine's action on the body is that it is both lipid and water soluble, so that it permeates the blood brain barrier very efficiently.

Its less important to understand the biology behind caffeine as it is to understand which dosages do what.  200-300 mg dosage is handy for a few hours of good focus. above 500mg, GABA transmission is inhibited in a significant way, and above 1000mg, usually severe irritability and intensified anxiety occurs.  Dosages from 2-3.6 grams will cause toxicity in a 200 pound adult.

Benefits of caffeine supplementation:

Increased anaerobic capacity

Increased power output

Anti fatigue effects

Slight increase in testosterone (12% on average with 250mg taken before workout)

Increased metabolic rate (EC stack and its variants will be detailed later)

While there are many more benefits and a few insignificant drawbacks in training, it has a few mental benefits.  The anti fatigue effects help attention span and GABA inhibition helps prevent sleepiness.

Caffeine is a fairly tame stimulant overall, so I have no extreme stories to report. Personally I use it as a base for most of my dosing protocols, along with piracetam.  For sleep avoidance, I line up dosages of stimulants so that there is an immediate and continued effect.  Phenylethylamine, a fast acting neurotransmitter; Caffeine, to take over after the PEA wears off, and then Adrafninil, which begins to kick in as the caffeine edge dulls.

Final Verdict

Caffeine is always a buy and a must have for anyone* with any goal. It is dirt cheap and incredibly versatile.

*Do not use if you have a history of heart problems, as stimulants can exacerbate arrhythmia and other conditions.  Central Nervous System (CNS) stimulants can also cause heart palpitations, a scary occurrence. Always keep dosage within reason, and know yourself very well.

Piracetam

Piracetam

The oldest, best known, and most widely used of the -racetam family.

Before I review my experience using it over the past year, I'll list the facts.
Piracetam is prescribed as treatment for a variety of things, including Myoclonus.  Besides this use, it has been shown to be therapeutically effective in people with dyslexia, victims of strokes, alcoholics suffering withdrawal syndrome, and even for healthy people.  Piracetam's specific method of action is unknown, but what you need to know is that it increases communication between the left and right hemispheres of the brain by increasing activity in the corpus callosum, the connective bridge between the hemispheres. Also increases bloodflow and calorie expenditure of the brain while having anti-aging effects.
If you are just looking for final judgement, skip to the last section.

Anecdotal Data

I remember the first day I tried piracetam quite clearly, along with nearly every other day that I used it.  I picked up the package around 1:30 and ran back to my dorm, eager to try it after all the research I had put into my purchase.

I took 1 pill and felt the mood and language effects shortly after.  I was happier, colors were brighter, and even conversations felt rewarding. Before my dreaded mandatory liberal arts class, I decided to try the attack dose method I had read about, so my total dosage went to 2400mg.

Usually in that class I recorded the professors voice and made sense of what he said later, but after piracetam, I had no need to record him or decipher what he said at all. The class was supposed to be Film 110, a very basic arts class about movies and themes, but he turned it into a media arts class, discussing power structures in society, panopticism in social media culture, and requiring tweeting as part of our grade.  Students muddled and muttered through most of his lectures and assignments, and we all hoped desperately for a curve.  But that day after the attack dosage, his abstractions made more sense and I could actually see the points he was trying to make, no matter how irrelevant to class they were.  So naturally it became part of my daily routine.
Where piracetam saved me was my logic class.  Philosophy 110 had the highest fail rate of any class offered at the entire university, averaging around 83% failure or withdrawal. The professor I took, while being a very cool guy, had a 93% fail rate. The class was also structured into 8 weeks, 2 classes per week, 3 hours per class. No partial credit given on anything, ever, no exceptions.
It began with 47 students and ended with just 8 of us, one being a brilliant Vietnamese guy who had a 105 average but was so dyslexic I had to help him find and open his mailbox on 3 separate occasions. Only He, myself, and 3 others managed to pass the class. In 3 weeks I went from struggling with tautologies to speeding through coursework in 10 hour chunks every week.

Final Verdict

Social Effects:  Words seem to flow, confidence is higher. Produces a good combination of leadership and friendliness. Definitely more creative.
Learning effect:  Better creation of memory, items learned are retained almost perfectly even while not using.
Cost Factor:  Whole Kilograms( over a year's supply) can be on your doorstep in days for about 60$. reliable cost scale is 500 grams for around $40, whole kilo for $60. at this price point theres very little reason to not use it, and its best to order bulk rather than the 125gram samples offered by some sites for about $12 on average.
Effective Time: piracetam kicks in fairly quickly, though you may not always feel it.  The half-life is about 4 to 5 hours, from experience and everything I have read, and my subjective threshold is about half a gram, though amounts less than this will have effect. A dose of 2 grams could be felt as long as or longer than 10 hours.
Best Features: Heightened focus, and sharper memory.
X- Factor: In my experience, Piracetam intensifies everything: happiness, marijuana, alcohol, and all other nootropics.

Your powder should have the consistency and texture of fine sugar, a slight clumping nature, and a bitter taste. Best taken mixed in water with creatine to taste, or in capsules.