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Review on ๐Ÿ’ฅ Enhance Laptop Gaming Performance with Crucial Ballistix 3200 MHz DDR4 DRAM Memory Kit - 32GB (16GBx2) by Matt Ellis

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Works great albeit at slower JEDEC speeds on non-XMP systems.

Improved new Asus TUF506IV from stock 8GB 3200MHz CL22. The Crucial 64GB memory installed easily, had a PassMark system score of 4575 (vs. the original 4490), and MemTest86 ran 8-10 hours without errors. Sounds good, but it runs at its (unadvertised) JEDEC 2666MHz CL20 speed on my non-XMP system. So this is really solid and reliable memory from a trusted vendor that has increased my system's memory by 4x without sacrificing speed. However, another vendor's product advertised a JEDEC (not XMP) 3200MHz CL18 speed at a similar price. The first delivery failed at MemTest86 within the first hour. The replacement passed MemTest86 over 11 hours and is now running at advertised speeds, reducing latency from the standard CL22 to the CL18. PassMark now gains 4793 points (up from 4575). My biggest disappointment is that the Crucial brand I trusted didn't state up front that XMP is required to reach advertised speeds. Maybe it's my stupidity, but not everyone knows the subtle difference between XMP 1.35 V and JEDEC 1.2 V interchangeable products. Their product's support people defend their website's claim that it is "compatible" with my system, and find that it actually works and is reliable, just slower. I don't know if the difference of 300 PassMark points (not that much) matters if the speed difference matters. I only note that I only became aware of the problem (due to my ignorance of the XMP/JEDEC speed difference). only after purchase, and this made it difficult to update easily with hours of additional research and support. Calls when the goods were already on their way. Review: When Crucial's first shipment arrived, the package was empty (wrongly sealed); Revine was easily replaced, the second set worked well, albeit slower than expected. The first batch of "other brand" failed the test; Replaced Revain with no problems, the second set worked fine and at the expected speed, and now it works on my system. Help us understand Crucial. You have been trusted for years. It would help to say ahead of time that "non-XMP systems revert memory to JEDEC speeds" or even say "XMP > 3200, JEDEC > 2666" somewhere.

Pros
  • Great for a small home
Cons
  • Sad packaging