ADATA XPG Z1 DDR4-2400 16GB Memory Kit Review

ADATA offers a full line of DDR4 memory ranging in speeds from 2133 MHz all the way up to 3333 MHz. Today, we’ll be looking at a 16 GB kit of their XPG Z1 DDR4 2400 MHz (Part#AX4U2400W4G16-QRZ). ADATA has sent us quite a few kits to review over the years, and we always come away impressed with their performance, overclocking ability, and stability. So, let’s get started and see if that tradition continues.

Specifications and Features

Below are the specifications as provided by ADATA. The timings are respectable at 16-16-16, and the 1.2 V needed for operation is very power efficient. As mentioned above, there is a full complement of quad-channel kits available that range anywhere from 2133 MHz all the way up to 3333 MHz. Below the specifications table is a full list of quad-channel DDR4 kits ADATA offers. All of the kits up to DDR4-2800 speed hold to the 1.2 V requirement, while the DDR4-3000 and above kits will require 1.35 V.

DDR4 Quad-Channel Series Available Kits

Once the memory is installed, here is what the motherboard’s UEFI BIOS and CPU-Z show. Other than the ASUS RVE motherboard over-volting the memory slightly, everything is reported as per specifications. We’re off to a good start.

Here is what ADATA has to say about their XPG Z1 DDR4 memory. As you can see, it’s aimed at the overclocking, gaming, and enthusiast users.

ADATA XPG Z1 DDR4 overclocking memory is designed as the ultimate upgrade for overclockers, enthusiasts, and gamers thanks to its remarkable performance and power efficiency. Even with speeds of up to 3333MHz and a transfer bandwidth reaching up to 26.6GB/s, XPG Z1 consumes 20% less power when compared to DDR3. Utilizing Thermal Conductive Technology and 10-layer PCB with 2oz of copper, XPG Z1 provides excellent cooling performance, as well as great stability whether you are on the battlefield gaming or trying to achieve higher benchmarks while overclocking.

The XPG Z1 memory is said to use a strict filtering process to ensure only top quality chips are used.

Top-Quality Chips For High Durability XPG Z1 DDR4 DRAM Module is made of high-quality chips selected through a strict filtering process. It also uses the top quality PCBs (Printed Circuit Board) that effectively extend the lifespan of memory modules.

ADATA outfits the XPG Z1 modules with what they call heatsinks… not heatspreaders. According to ADATA, these heatsinks work in conjunction with the 2oz of copper found in the 10-layer PCB to lower temperatures, improve signal integrity, and increase stability.

Looks Cool, Acts Cool The jet wing-inspired design of XPG Z1 combines the carbon texture used for race cars, symbolizing the pursuit of extreme performance. It also features excellent cooling and stable data transfer due to Thermal Conductive Technology and 10-layer PCBs with 2oz of copper to effectively reduce electric resistance and consume less power, which greatly enhances the quality of signal transfer. Advanced Heatsink Design for Better Cooling Efficiency Our specifically designed heatsink has better cooling efficiency when compared to the most popular “heat spreader” design on the market. The Best Choice Gamers & DIY Users For gamers and DIY users who are always asking for better performance while remaining cool, the XPG Z1 Series module meets their requirements. 2OZ Copper 10 Layer Black PCB First adopted in DRAM modules by ADATA. This feature was first introduced to the motherboard market by Gigabyte. ADATA was the first to use 2oz of copper in the production of DRAM modules. Lower Resistance, Lower Temperature, Better Stability 2oz of Copper 10 Layer PCB is helpful in lowering the electrical resistance which comes with the great benefits of a lower temperature, better signal integrity, and better stability.

The evolution of memory is depicted in the picture below. Memory used to require up to 3.3 V to operate, but improved technology has brought us incredible increases in speed and impressive power efficiency.

Amazing Performance with Great Power Efficiency DDR4 outperforms DDR3 with improved performance and lower power consumption. The operating voltage has decreased from 1.5V to 1.2V, which is a 20% reduction of power, and keeps the system at a low temperature for stable operation. It only requires 1.2V to achieve high clock frequency of 2800MHz for overclockers. Additionally, the SPD (Serial Presence Detect) of XPG Z1 allows direct application without changing settings in the BIOS, facilitating usage and system stability.

Packaging and Product Tour

The memory kit comes in a blister pack with a graphical cardboard insert. The front of the package gives you a good look at the memory through the clear plastic and also offers up a few high level features and specifications. At the back, you’ll find a sticker with the timings, part number, and voltage requirements printed on it. The other two modules can be seen from the back of the package, along with contact information for ADATA’s home office in Taiwan. The cardboard insert unfolds and contains installation instructions and warranty information inside.

With the memory removed from the blister pack, we see the attractive heatsinks covering a black PCB. The modules have a quality feel to them once in your hand and will blend in nicely with any red/black themed system build. Definitely nothing to complain about on the aesthetic front.

Testing for Stability at Rated Speed/Timings

With the memory installed in our test bed, we start off with a stability check at the advertised speed/timings/voltage. To perform the stability check, we use our Ultra-X R.S.T. Premium USB memory tester. The folks at Ultra-X provided us with the tester, and we’re proud to be one of only a few review sites that have one. The reason we like the Ultra-X memory tester so much is because, quite frankly, it’s a memory module’s worst nightmare. This bootable USB device is a relentless, memory pounding animal that will definitely find any weakness or potential problem a memory kit may have. The five passes we like to run can take quite a while to complete depending on the capacity of the kit being tested. It took just over 7-1/2 hours to test this 16 GB kit, and it finished with no errors found.

Our in-OS testing is performed with a 32M run of HyperPi, which is a great stability test in its own right. We didn’t expect a problem after the kit passed the Ultra-X R.S.T. test, and none were found. Looks like we have a perfectly stable set of memory on our hands!

Benchmarks

Here are the components used in our test bed with all of today’s comparison kits listed just below. The four DDR4 memory kits we have in our comparison group include today’s XPG Z1 DDR4 2400 MHz kit and a few other previously reviewed DDR4 kits. The links are to their respective reviews.

The Corsair kit was tested using the ASUS X99 Deluxe motherboard, and all the other kits on the ASUS Rampage V Extreme motherboard. Both motherboards were set to use the memory’s XMP Profile, and the CPU was at stock settings for all tests. Given that all the other components used are identical and both motherboards utilize the ASUS OC Socket, results should be consistent between the two different motherboards.

The graphs below show percentage values with the ADATA XPG Z1 2400 MHz (today’s review sample) being the basis and therefore, always 100%. For the scored benchmarks, a higher percentage is better, while for timed benchmarks, a lower percentage is better. Below each graph is a table with the raw data used to compile it.

Synthetic Testing

Our first set of benchmarks come via AIDA64 and its read/write/copy/latency tests. Even though the ADATA kit has the slowest out-of-box MHz rating, it managed to hold its own here and actually top a couple of the faster kits in a few of the tests.

The SuperPi and wPrime tests show little difference between all the samples with less than a 2% difference all around. The ADATA kit did manage to squeak out a win in a couple of these tests, which is impressive given it’s the lowest speed kit in the bunch.

Rendering, Compression, and Video Conversion Testing

Rendering is tested using all three Cinebench versions. It was another impressive showing here for the ADATA kit as it beat out a couple of the faster kits in the R11.5 and R10 tests. There was less the 1% difference between all the samples in the R15 test.

7zip’s built-in benchmark is used to test compression performance, and here we see the ADATA kit hanging tight to all the others in the group. The PoV Ray and x264 benchmarks are used to test video compression and conversion. The ADATA kit again performed admirably and even managed to top a couple of the faster kits in the PoV Ray test.

All in all, a great showing for the ADATA kit as it had no problem keeping up with the faster and more expensive kits in the comparison group. Definitely nothing to complain about here.

Overclocking

Overclocking the ADATA XPG Z1 DDR4-2400 MHz kit proved to be simple and quite rewarding. By setting the BCLK to 125 and raising the voltage to 1.35 V, the kit was perfectly stable at 3000 MHz. Incidentally, those are the same settings ADATA’s DDR4-3000 MHz kits are rated at, just as many other manufacturers DDR4-3000 MHz kits are as well. That certainly adds a ton of value to the kit.

We wanted to see just how high we could set the speed and get to the desktop to complete a suicide run of SuperPi 1M. By setting the voltage to 1.45 V and the timings to 18-18-18-39, we got to 3250 Mhz. The system wasn’t stable at these settings, but we did manage to complete the SuperPi 1M run.

Returning the memory speed to its default 2400 MHz, we went to work on the timings. About the best we could do here was 13-14-14-36-1T at 1.4 V, which is still pretty impressive. The timings could probably be reduced even more if you’re willing to toss more voltage to the kit, but our results definitely show this kit overclocks quite well on both the the MHz and timings front.

Conclusion

ADATA has a 16 GB kit to be proud of in the XPG Z1 DDR4-2400 MHz. It’s a great performer at stock speeds, but is more than willing to accept pretty hefty overclocks to both speed and timings. Aesthetically speaking, it’s a nice looking kit that would fit in nicely with a variety of different system builds.

The lowest price we found for the kit is $199 at Amazon, which is an attractive price for a DDR4 quad channel kit that can overclock like this. Certainly nothing to complain about on the pricing front.

Excellent performance, terrific overclocking, and an attractive price means ADATA checked all the right boxes with this XPG Z1 DDR4 kit. We have no problem recommending this kit to anyone looking for enthusiast-level DDR4 memory… Overclockers approved!

Click the stamp for an explanation of what this means.

–Dino DeCesari (Lvcoyote)