Early Verdict
Patriot's Viper 4 DDR4-3400 C16 16GB (PV416G340C6K) kit provides the ultimate DRAM overclocking value.
Pros
- +
Top overclocking from a mid-priced 16GB two-DIMM kit
Cons
- -
Mid-priced kits cost more than budget kits
Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Introduction
We review a bunch of high-end memory, and usually end up with reservations concerning its price. Patriot Memory decided to help in our dilemma with a high-speed 16GB kit with a $145 MSRP. That MSRP is particularly important in this kit, since reasonable pricing and modest production volume is not a recipe for consistent availability.
The kit includes two 8GB modules rated with XMP values of DDR4-3400 CAS 16-18-18-36. Those last three number aren't great, but it's important for DDR3 lovers to remember that 16 cycles at 3400 MHz data rate have the same latency time as 8 cycles at 1700 MHz data rate.
In addition to the 1.35V XMP value, the part number PV416G340C6K kit includes non-XMP programs for DDR4-2133 CAS 15 and 16. The CAS 14 settings appear compliant with JEDEC DDR4-2133N specification, but CPU-Z reports this as an oddball DDR4-2066 setting.
As expected, our motherboard automatically configures these DDR4-3400 modules to industry-standard DDR4-2133 C15 settings, prior to enabling the XMP setting in motherboard firmware.
Patriot's 16GB Viper 4 DDR4-3400 is only the second two-DIMM DDR4 kit tested at this lab. Today, it competes against four-module 16GB sets in dual-channel mode, though I have also included G.Skill's two-DIMM DDR4-4000 8GB set for added perspective.
DDR4 Rated Specification Comparison
The Z170 motherboard used in today's test was specifically selected for its ability to support both 2-DIMM and 4-DIMM memory sets at high data rates. Other components are carried over from our current Tom's Hardware Reference PC.
Test System Configuration
MORE: Best MemoryMORE: All Memory Articles
MORE: Memory in the Forums
