Last month, we checked out Crucial’s DDR4 desktop memory lineup, which operate at 2,133MHz. Crucial pumps up its Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules’ speed to 2,400MHz, thanks to a heat spreader that improves heat dissipation. Although you can buy Ballistix Sport DDR4 by the module or in a dual-channel kit, we’ll be focusing our attention on the 16GB quadchannel kit. (Crucial also has a 32GB quad-channel kit consisting of a quartet of 8GB modules if you want to stuff your X99-based rig with an obscene amount of memory.)
The modules in this kit run at the prescribed 1.2V for DDR4 memory. Crucial lets you easily optimize performance with Intel XMP 2.0; at its rated speed, the Ballistix Sport DDR4 kit features timings of 16-16-16-39. These timings are close to the latency on Crucial’s DDR4-2133 CL15 @ 1.2V desktop memory, which is pretty impressive considering the 267MHz speed increase. Part of the reason that the timings can remain so reasonably tight is that Crucial specifically selects only high-quality DRAM to use in the Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules. Crucial’s other Ballistix Sport DDR-2400 quad-channel kit and both dualchannel kits have the same timings, as well.
The Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules are designed with a matte gray heat spreader with metallic silver accents. We think the look is complemented nicely by the black PCB. The gray color also makes it easy to distinguish the Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules from Crucial’s Ballistix Sport DDR3, which are available with black or blue heat spreaders. Another plus is the Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules’ low profile — they’re only 1.18 inches high — so the modules should be compatible with virtually any CPU cooler. The top of the heat spreader doesn’t even rise above module’s black PCB. A low-profile memory kit of memory is especially important for power users that want to use a large heatstink/fan combo that would extend over the DIMM slots on a motherboard.
We tested the Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules in a system with GIGABYTE’s GA-X99-GAMING G1 WIFI and Intel’s Core i7-5960X. In SiSoftware Sandra 2014 Lite’s Memory Bandwidth tests, the Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR4-2400 kit produced speeds of 44GBps (Integer) and 45.62GBps (Floating). The Cache & Memory Latency test generated a mark of 34.6ns, which is quite a bit quicker than the 41.4ns we saw on Crucial’s DDR4-2133 CL15 @ 1.2V desktop memory. The Cache Bandwidth test results were also impressive, as the kit notched a speed of 339.9GBps.
We were able to overclock the 16GB Ballistix Sport DDR4-2400 to 2,800MHz by loosening the timings to 18-18-18-45. The memory was stable at that speed, even during benchmarking. At 2,800MHz, the Memory Bandwidth test delivered speeds of 47.8GBps (Integer) and 49.73GBps (Floating). In the Cache & Memory Latency test, the change to the modules’ timings bumped the results to 35.7ns. When overclocked, Crucial’s kit turned in a bandwidth of 348.18GBps in the Cache Bandwidth test.
We’ve come to expect good performance from Crucial’s memory, and the 16GB Ballistix Sport DDR4-2400 kit is no different. We also like the lowprofile module design; you won’t have any worries about compatibility. The neutral gray heat spreader should also fit into any rig, which is nice for modders and artistic builders. Once again, Crucial delivers a solid set of sticks for Haswell-E. NATHAN LAKE
Specs
Capacity: 16GB (4 x 4GB); Timings; 16-16-16-39; Frequency DDR4-2400 (PC4-19200); Voltage: 1.2V; Unbuffered; Non-ECC; Limited lifetime warranty