Memory overclockers can’t give DDR5 a break, as a new validated world record crosses the 13GT/s milestone yesterday, October 15. Achieved by German overclocker sergmann, this new record improves upon the last one by only 90MT/s, hinting that we’re approaching DDR5’s frequency limits. New manufacturing processes may allow a bit more headroom, but we are unlikely to see any big jumps until the launch of DDR6, expected sometime in 2027.
Sergmann used a 24GB Corsair Vengeance DDR5 module, running at 8000MT/s CL38 out of the box with XMP 3.0. After cooling it with overclockers’ favourite liquid, LN2 (Liquid Nitrogen), sergmann managed to push it up to 6504.9MHz, or 13,009.8MT/s.
Understandably, since the aim here was to achieve the highest frequency, memory timings were thrown out the metaphorical window, with Sergmann opting for CL68-127-127-127-2 (tCAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS-tCR).
As usual, this was possible with the help of Gigabyte’s Z890 Aorus Tachyon Ice motherboard and Intel’s Core Ultra 9 285K processor, both of which are well known for their capacity to handle extremely fast memory. The CPU was also reduced to just 2+2 active cores at 2GHz instead of its original 8+16, to improve stability by leaving all the power to the integrated memory controller.
That said, note that there was a higher overclock last month from saltycroissant, who reached an impressive 13,020MT/s. However, since saltycroissant didn’t validate this record on the HWBot platform, sergmann is thus technically the record holder and the first one to officially cross the 13,000MT/s barrier.
Regardless of who did it first, this is a great achievement, proving that with a lot of patience and know-how, there is always a possibility to do better. The question is, how long will this continue? Can DDR5 reach another milestone like 14GT/s, or is this the end, until DDR6? To find out, follow us on Google News to stay posted.
