Crucial Pro DDR5-6000 & 6400 White OC Edition Review

Final Score:

Crucial Pro DDR5-6000 OC Edition 94%

Crucial Pro DDR5-6400 OC Edition 96%

Before we begin, we do need to make one thing crystal clear. Without testing we cannot and will not comment on the smaller 16GB per DIMM kits. The same is true for the 24/48GB per DIMM kits. We are simply basing our opinion on these 32GB per DIMM kits. As such we are only comparing and contrasting against 64GB DDR5 kits we have used in the recent (and not so recent) past. We say all that because by ‘small’ 2x16GB kits standards anything over CL38 would be a hard pass for us. That is because these days building a rig with ‘only’ 32GB of total RAM means the build is focused mainly on super high frequencies and super low timings. Neither of which apply to the two large’ish kits reviewed today. Conversely, we know that Micron D-die based 24GB and 48GB DIMMS are some of the best value DIMMS going with extremely good timing and overclocking potential when compared against other 24/48GB DIMMS. So by that standard these 2x32GB kits would equally fail to impress.

Thankfully, neither standard applies. DDR5 64GB kits have a terrible track record when it comes to both timings and frequencies. For whatever reason Intel is hell bent on tuning (or at least mostly inhouse testing) their IMC for CUDIMMs that are both expensive and rare. As for AMD… well AMD does as AMD does, and just like the box of chocolates they love to carry around, their Infinity Fabric design hates large capacity DDR5 sticks. Almost as if they only test and tune for 2x16GB configurations. As a professional this sorry state of the industry is anger inducing. In the DDR4 days we would routinely rock out 128GB and even 256GB worth of RAM. Now? 96GB is the highest one can go unless you want your RAM to turn into a veritable turtle.

Thankfully the Crucial Pro 6000 and 6400 will help change that. Yes. The timings are still not great compared to smaller kits but these ‘large’ kits offer what few others can: excellent frequencies (DDR5-6000 and DDR5-6400 are right in the sweet spot “value” zone for both AMD and Intel) without much in the way of a hassle factor. Hell, and unlike most 64GB kits, they actively work with your motherboard to self-tune themselves. So much so they will POST. First time. Every time. All one has to do is enable their EXPO/XMP profile and see if their IMC is up to snuff. If it’s not. That ‘fallback’ DDR-5600 is not too shabby by 2x32GB standards. Put bluntly. You are not buying anything Pro for the “adventure” they offer. You buy it because they Just Work™… and these kits just work. They will make a new build easier than before. They will take the stress out of tuning and stability testing. They really are designed to be user friendly and (gasp) act like the professional(s) they are named after. Which is such a breath of fresh air it is not even funny.

This ease of use alone should make both new Pro edition options be at the top of your priority list. We would say that even if they were dog ugly. Dog ugly and covered in holograms… LEDs… ugly paint jobs. You name it and we would not care as their professionalism would be worth the risk of epileptic seizures. Thankfully, you do not have to make that judgement call. Instead Crucial bestowed upon their new DDR5 Pro kits rather elegant, certainly unique, heat spreaders that will enhance the overall aesthetics of your build. Basic Black works in a good 8 or even 9 out of 10 builds. Enhanced White works similarly well. Thus, it really will only be the oddball build where these Pro kits are not a good enough fit. Once again, this lack of drama; lack of hassle factor; going above and beyond to make your life easier… those are all the things that professionals actually look for in set of RAM to keep in stock.

When one then takes into account the extremely reasonable, by DDR5-6K and above, asking price the only tough decision is not on whether one should start carrying a stock of these kits for their future client builds, it is which option is “best”. That. That is a tough call. For AMD builds we would be more inclined to stock the DDR5-6000 options. Many an AMD IMC will punish you if you try to push too much past DDR5-6000. So saving fifteen dollars per build without any real-world impact is probably worth it. Conversely, for Intel we would be more inclined to stock the 6400 OC Edition kits as their (latest) IMC is a bit better and will typically allow for 6200 and even 6400 frequencies with 32GB DIMMS. Of course most professional system builders should carry both. With the default being the 6400 and the ‘fall back’ option being the 6000 kit. All this however is splitting hairs as both kits are worthy of your hard earned dollar. So with only fifteen USD separating the two, it really will come down to if your budget can justify the added DDR5-6400 kit’s asking price or not.

Just understand that you will not be leaving much performance on the table if you do go the DDR5-6000 Pro edition route. Conversely, the DDR5-6400 kit’s overall value is still so high that spending the extra couple of bucks to guarantee you get every last drop of memory performance from your CPU is certainly not a hardship. As such, both are great. Both are worthy of buying in bulk. Both will make your build better from both an aesthetics and ease of use point of view… and still offer excellent real-world performance. So don’t stress too much over which option is ‘best’. Both are. Thank you Crucial for finally offering an attractively priced option that sacrifices neither aesthetics nor performance on the altar of expediency.