Manual memory tuning can deliver meaningful performance gains, but it is also one of the most tedious forms of PC optimization. AMD's new EXPO Ultra Low Latency profiles aim to provide many of those benefits without the hours of tweaking, rebooting, and stability testing.
G.Skill is among the first manufacturers to support the new standard with DDR5 kits that include additional tuned timings beyond a conventional EXPO profile. In theory, that means lower latency and better performance straight out of the box.
You can, of course, manually tune many of these timings on almost any memory kit. The advantage of having a manufacturer such as G.Skill do it is validation. These modules use binned memory chips that have been tested and verified to run tighter timings at lower voltages while remaining stable.
In other words, EXPO ULL offers a shortcut around both the "silicon lottery" and the usual tuning grind. Finding the absolute floor for your latencies requires adjusting hexadecimal values, rebooting, and running memory stress tests for hours, or even days, to ensure the system will not crash. For those who simply want to game, this process is not exactly a fun time.
Speaking of fun... we have a few quick disclaimers for those who might find themselves triggered by this review. First and foremost, we strongly recommend that you do not purchase DDR5 memory right now, or possibly any DRAM, if you can avoid it. When purchasing memory is unavoidable, buy the absolute cheapest kit that meets your needs.
