With the launch of AMD new Ryzen Threadripper 7000-series processors and associated TRX50 platform comes the need for new memory kits. Thanks to UDIMMs and RDIMMs requiring different slot designs under DDR5, AMD has opted to go exclusively with RDIMMs for their latest generation of Threadripper processors. Which for memory makers has included putting together overclockable registered memory modules with ECC that support EXPO timings, such as the kits G.Skill and V-Color have announced this week with their Zeta R5 Neo and v-color DDR5 OC R-DIMM memory kits.
G.Skill’s Zeta R5 Neo product family and v-color’s OC R-DIMM are exclusively designed for AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper 7000-series processors. Both vendors are currently offering two types of kits: a 64 GB quad-channel kit consisting of four 16 GB RDIMMs, and a 128 GB quad-channel kit featuring four 32 GB RDIMMs. For systems using the TRX50 platform, a single kit suffices, while the high-end workstation-class WRX90 platform requires two of these quad-channel kits to fully populate all eight channels.
G.Skill’s modules with ECC are rated for of DDR5-6400 CL32 39-39-102 at massive 1.40 Volts, whereas v-color promises data transfer rates of up to 7200 MT/s, never mentions timings or voltages, but stresses that its kits are aimed at TRX50-based machines.
G.Skill and v-color note that their overclockable RDIMMs, similar to other premium memory modules, are built using hand-selected memory ICs, making them better suited for overclocking. G.Skill’s modules come with very basic heat spreaders, which in case of DDR5 may become a limiting factor for overclocking potential. By contrast, v-color’s modules come with rather serious heat spreaders akin to those used for some server-grade modules.
All the overclockable RDIMM modules from G.Skill and v-color come with AMD’s EXPO profiles for simplified setup, with G.Skill using DDR5-6400 CL32 timings, while v-color runs at DDR5-7200 at unspecified timings.
The exact overclocking potential of G.Skill’s and v-color’s Threadripper memory kits remain to be seen. The actual I/O die powering Threadripper is the same I/O die as AMD’s other server processors, which is to say it’s been optimized for stability over performance – not to mention supporting a much larger amount of memory. Still, as we’ve seen on AMD’s consumer CPU platforms, the company’s memory controllers are no slouches. All the while memory vendors are already offering high-clocked RDIMM kits for Intel’s rival Sapphire Rapids Xeon platform.
G.Skill’s Zeta R5 Neo memory kits designed for AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper 7000-series processors are already available at Newegg: the 64 GB kit is priced at $530, whereas the 128GB kit costs $1,070. This is of course a huge price premium, but this can be explained by the fact that we are talking about unique memory kits designed for very specific high-end CPUs.
As for v-color’s DDR5 OC R-DIMM memory kits for AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper TRX50 platform, the company says that they will be available in November on its website.
Sources: G.Skill, v-color
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