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If you've been keeping up with Computex news, you may have already heard that Cooler Master and G.Skill have teamed up to produce DDR5 RAM that has integrated fans built straight into the memory modules. I have to admit I figured it was a classic Computex gimmick, when I first heard about this. After seeing it in action on today's show floor, however, I can officially confirm this best RAM for gaming contender is no joke.
I watched as my Cooler Master booth tour guide aimed a small smoke machine at the RAM's fans, and while operating almost silently, it managed to dissipate the stream of smoke at least a metre away with serious oomph - it was honestly really impressive power for such a small form-factor fan.
Perhaps what was even more impressive was that the RAM doesn't take a load of faff in order to work. There are no annoying little cables you'll need to find a header for on your motherboard; there are no PWM connectors or anything like that. Just slot the RAM into your DIMM slots, and you'll benefit from increased airflow.
Of course, it's not the best time to be innovating with memory thanks to global RAM shortages that are causing unheard-of spikes to DDR5 RAM prices. You won't be able to buy these memory sticks separately for a while, at least while the market stays in its current state, but Cooler Master will be including it in its upcoming full system builds.
You might be asking, why does RAM even need to be cooled? Well, according to Cooler Master's data, there's an unforeseen amount of thermal throttling that happens when it comes to DDR5 RAM performing at high speeds, and since no one ever thinks about RAM when it comes to thermal control in a gaming PC, there's a lot of performance that can be impacted if RAM isn't cooled properly.
Since no one else is making RAM with integrated fans, you can see why a brand like Cooler Master wants to own that innovation. The clue is in the name.
Particularly for the higher-end RAM kits that come from DDR5 brands like G.Skill, overclocking can cause some serious heat that won't always be handled by a simple RGB heatsink panel that's engineered into standard memory design. Cooler Master's fans, on the other hand, will ensure stability in performance during really demanding speeds and workloads.
The new RAM kits feature support for AMD EXPO up to DDR5-6000 CL26 and extreme-frequency DDR5 CU-DIMM up to DDR5-8400 with Intel XMP 3.0. Each stick still manages to operate under 35dB, while offering an improvement of up to -15°C in cooling. As I say, it's no joke.
For more on PC components, check out the best CPU for gaming, the best graphics card, and the best SSD for gaming.
