Patriot Signature Line Premium 32GB DDR4-2666 Memory Kit Review

On Overclockers, we typically see higher frequency memory kits designed for gamers and PC enthusiasts. This time we will take a look at the Signature Line Premium memory from Patriot. This kit is designed to provide high performance at a reasonable price for all those who need stable RAM for daily tasks.

The tested memory kit contains two 16GB memory modules so it is perfect for content creators and all who need high capacity RAM in a home and office environment. Also, gamers more often choose 32GB memory kits as new games are getting more demanding.

A word from Patriot and we will move to specifications and features.

Patriot’s Signature Premium DDR4 Non-ECC unbuffered memory delivers the quality, reliability and performance expected for today’s mainstream computer needs. Built using the highest quality components and hand tested, Patriot ensures every module meets and exceeds industry standards to offer you a hassle-free plug-and-play memory upgrade. Patriot’s Signature Premium DDR4 memory modules are the perfect option for any PC system build or upgrade for faster performance.

Specifications and Features

FEATURES:

• Series: Signature Line Premium
• Form Factor: 288-Pin Unbuffered Dual In-Line Memory Module (UDIMM)
• Technology: DDR 4 Non-ECC Unbuffered
• 100% Tested
• Aluminum Heatshield
• RoHS Compliant

SPECIFICATIONS:

• Limited lifetime warranty
• Capacity: 32GB (2x16GB)
• Frequency: 2666MHz (PC4-21300)
• Timings: 19-19-19-43
• Voltage: 1.2V

 

As I already mentioned, the tested memory kit contains two 16GB memory modules rated at DDR4-2666 and relaxed timings of CL19-19-19-43. This is the JEDEC specification and as Patriot says, should be compatible with every motherboard. Bear in mind that some motherboard series don’t support higher memory frequency than DDR4-2666. In this review, we will use the latest AMD Ryzen platform, which doesn’t have any problems running at much higher memory clock and supports DDR4 3200 natively.

Patriot decided to use SpecTek memory IC in the Signature Premium memory series. It’s an inexpensive alternative to Hynix, Micron, or Samsung, which meets JEDEC standards and shouldn’t cause issues with stability or compatibility.

Below is a screenshot from Thaiphoon Burner software showing more details about the memory.

Thaiphoon Burner – IC

The memory has no problems to run at its rated speed. There is no programmed XMP profile, so it uses SPD settings. This ensures that the memory will be compatible with every available motherboard.

Below you can see a five-hour stability test in AIDA64. The test uses most of the available RAM, so we are sure there are no problems with our memory kit.

AIDA64 Stability Test

Packaging and Product Photos

The Signature Premium arrived in a transparent blister pack which is well-designed for retail stores. The front of the packaging will tell us what is inside while through the back we can see memory modules and the black heatsinks.

The heatsinks are low profile and made of aluminum. They are not much different from most standard memory series designed for home computers.

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Patriot designed this memory with full compatibility in mind. All users, not only gamers and overclockers, can install it quickly and enjoy their PC without wasting time on configuration or additional components.

The Signature Premium line is real ‘plug and play’ memory which works without any manual settings. It also works on all available motherboards, and there are no problems with the installation even with larger coolers.

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It, however, ends the list of features as the Signature Premium memory was designed to be inexpensive, even though high quality. There are no thermal sensors, or anything else that would raise the price and the end-user doesn’t need.

On the below photos you can see how well our memory matches Gigabyte X570 ITX motherboard and Scythe Big Shuriken 3 cooler.

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Performance

Let’s begin tests as it’s more important than how the memory presents on the motherboard.

Looking at the table with tested settings, you may wonder why there is only 1.20 V, and 1.25 V voltages tested. The answer is simple. This memory doesn’t like anything past 1.25 V, and it makes no difference in memory overclocking or stability at tighter timings or higher frequency.

It wasn’t possible to stabilize the Signature Premium DDR4-2666 memory at DDR4-3600 or higher clock. It could boot, but that’s all.

Let’s begin with the AIDA64, which is probably the most popular synthetic memory benchmark.

As we can see, Higher frequency helps a lot on the new AMD Ryzen platform, and we can count on up to 25% memory performance gain after overclocking. Default settings are providing not the highest performance but still sufficient for daily work and slightly higher than we could expect of a standard memory series.

7Zip benchmark is showing up to 6% performance gain because of overclocking. What is not as spectacular as we could expect, looking at the memory bandwidth results.

Again, we can count that the performance at XMP settings will be good enough for work. Gamers, on the other hand, may think of overclocking or buying a higher series memory kit.

Rendering benchmarks like Cinebench R15 and R20 are barely reacting to memory speed. It’s a good sign if we wish to save some money and the memory is strictly for work. Rendering could benefit from faster RAM, but the money saved could be used for a higher core count CPU which is more beneficial in reducing rendering times.

Below you can see that the performance gain because of overclocking is not even 1% higher in Cinebench benchmarks.

UL benchmarks are showing similar 1% performance gain at higher memory settings. I won’t hide that I was expecting some more at least in the PCMark 10 which uses a set of tests based on a popular software used daily.

Even though we can quickly tell which setting is the fastest, all our settings are giving pretty much the same results.

It’s not a surprise that 3DMarks are also performing similarly at all our settings.

These benchmarks react much better to the CPU performance, but of course the most important is the graphics card.

I don’t think that I have to say more about 3DMarks as these benchmarks are already a reliable standard for years.

Results of additional graphics benchmarks and games are again not much different at all the settings.

Even though results could be better, most gamers should be satisfied as they won’t lose a lot comparing to faster memory kits. We are talking about 3-5% performance drops in the worst case. In our tests, it was more like up to 3% between our settings where, surprisingly, the XMP was somewhere in the middle, depends on the test.

 

Overclocking

Overclocking is never guaranteed, so the presented results may vary from results on other memory kits. I am not recommending overclocking if you do not know what are you doing. High voltages may damage hardware, and it will not be covered by warranty.

It’s not hard to notice that the overclocking of the Patriot Signature Premium memory is limited. Even though we were able to set a stable DDR4-3466, then timings are relaxed hat gives us acceptable memory bandwidth but high latency. However, similar overclocking potential, if not better, can be found in most available DDR4-2666 memory kits nowadays.

Patriot Signature Premium DDR4-2666@3466 1.25V Overclocking

I don’t think that this memory will be a popular choice for overclocking as it wasn’t designed to break world records. It’s a suitable replacement for a typical PC if we are looking for a higher capacity memory kit at a reasonable price. Gamers and overclockers should take a look at Patriot Viper RGB, Viper Steel or Viper Blackout memory series.

 

Conclusion

Patriot Signature Line Premium perfectly matches its description. It’s a quality memory kit for a typical PC user who wishes to have a higher capacity or building a new PC for everyday work. The Signature Premium DDR4-2666 memory offers as much as any DDR4-2666 memory compatible with JEDEC standards so we can’t expect any record-breaking performance or exceptional overclocking potential. It’s a solid, high-quality memory for typical work PC and shouldn’t e viewed as slow. It isn’t designed for gaming or overclocking like Viper Gaming products.

On the other hand, with so many various memory kit options on the current market and continuously dropping prices. We have to wonder if the Signature Premium memory will be an attractive product, even for those who are less advanced or are looking for a standard but well-designed memory kit. Those who are not into computers will buy anything that meets their low expectations. Those who are buying a PC for a typical daily work will probably choose a new prebuilt PC instead of separate components.

At the top of the list is a new AMD processor series which has default memory clock of DDR4-3200 well above this kits rating. We can also assume that Intel will release its new platform with higher default memory clock as well. In this case, DDR4-2666 memory is less attractive for PC builders, especially when we can find various memory kits between DDR4-2400 and DDR4-3200 at a similar price.

The Signature Premium DDR4-2666 CL19 memory kit is one of the cheapest on the current market. Listing with the price of $129 for the 32GB kit they are very affordable, but again, the Viper Steel DDR4-3200 CL16 costs only $10 more.

Patriot Signature Line Premium 32GB DDR4-2666 is an interesting option for all those who care about a solid memory for daily work.

Click to find out what this means

 

Bartosz Waluk – Woomack

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On Overclockers, we typically see higher frequency memory kits designed for gamers and PC enthusiasts. This time we will take a look at the Signature Line Premium memory from Patriot. This kit is designed to provide high performance at a reasonable price for all those who need stable RAM for daily tasks.

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