Why it matters: A Chinese overclocker that goes by the handle baby-j has managed to set a new world record for DDR4 memory frequency that handily beats the previous high mark. Given that DDR5 is just around the corner, it's entirely possible that this record could stand for a long while.

According to the HWBot entry, baby-j hit 3502.1MHz (DDR4-7004) using Crucial Ballistix Max DDR4-4000 memory (BLM16G40C18U4B), an MSI MEG B550 UNIFY-X (MS-7D13) motherboard and an AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 4650G processor.

To reach the record speed, baby-j had to relax memory timings to 22-26-26-46-127-1 (tCAS-tRC-tRP-tRAS-tCS-tCR) and break out the liquid nitrogen. Crucial acknowledged the achievement on Tuesday via Twitter.

With the submission, baby-j bumped the previous record holder, bianbao XE, to second place with an overclock of 3333.3MHz. That mark was also obtained using Crucial Ballistix Max memory.

As Overclock 3D correctly highlights, raw memory performance often gets overlooked for capacity in the eyes of many PC builders and gamers. With such extreme measures needed to obtain an overclock like this, it's not practical (or even possible) to run 24/7. Still, it is fun to see what is possible when going all out and the results can help manufacturers push the envelope in future products.

Thumbnail courtesy Val3ri0