Is DDR5-6000 CL30 faster than DDR5-7200 CL34?

In true latency, the DDR5-7200 CL34 kit is: 34 × 2000 ÷ 7200 = 9.44 ns, against 30 × 2000 ÷ 6000 = 10.0 ns for the CL30 kit. The higher-stated CL is the quicker one because its clock is higher.

Does lower true latency always mean better performance?

It is the right single figure for the speed-versus-timings trade-off, but capacity and bandwidth still matter more for some workloads. It settles the CL argument, not the whole buying decision.

RAM PRIX

True-latency calculator

CAS latency is measured in clock cycles, not time, so a bigger CL number is not automatically slower — it depends on the clock. True latency converts both into one figure that compares directly. Type a speed and CAS latency below, or pull a real kit from the catalog to see which is genuinely quicker.

Configurations

Configuration 1

Memory typeSpeedCAS latency

True latency10.00 ns

Slowest

Configuration 2

Memory typeSpeedCAS latency

True latency9.44 ns

Fastest

DDR5-7200 CL34 has the lowest true latency at 9.44 ns, against 10.00 ns on the DDR5-6000 CL30 — a 0.56 ns gap, or 5.6% less.

Add a kit from the catalog

Kingston DDR4-2666 ECC RDIMM 1x64GB
DDR4 · 2666 MT/s · CL19 · 64GB · £3.906
14.25 ns
Netac Shadow II DDR4-3200 2x16GB
DDR4 · 3200 MT/s · CL16 · 32GB · £4.675
10.00 ns
Timetec Premium DDR4-2666 UDIMM 2x16GB
DDR4 · 2666 MT/s · CL19 · 32GB · £5.281
14.25 ns
Timetec Premium DDR4-2666 UDIMM 2x16GB 2400 CL17
DDR4 · 2400 MT/s · CL17 · 32GB · £5.343
14.17 ns
Timetec Premium DDR4-2666 UDIMM 1x16GB
DDR4 · 2666 MT/s · CL19 · 16GB · £5.562
14.25 ns
Timetec Premium DDR4-3200 UDIMM 2x16GB
DDR4 · 3200 MT/s · CL22 · 32GB · £5.789
13.75 ns
Timetec Premium DDR4-3200 UDIMM 2x8GB
DDR4 · 3200 MT/s · CL22 · 16GB · £6.124
13.75 ns
Patriot Viper Venom RGB DDR4-3200 2x8GB
DDR4 · 3200 MT/s · CL16 · 16GB · £6.249
10.00 ns
Crucial DDR4 SODIMM 2666 1x16GB 2400 CL17
DDR4 · 2400 MT/s · CL17 · 16GB · £6.25
14.17 ns
TeamGroup Elite DDR4-3200 2x8GB
DDR4 · 3200 MT/s · CL22 · 16GB · £6.275
13.75 ns
Crucial DDR4 SODIMM 2666 1x32GB
DDR4 · 2666 MT/s · CL19 · 32GB · £6.348
14.25 ns
Netac Shadow II DDR4-3200 2x8GB
DDR4 · 3200 MT/s · CL16 · 16GB · £6.374
10.00 ns

How true latency is calculated

True latency (ns) = CAS latency × 2000 ÷ data rate (MT/s)

Because CAS latency counts clock cycles, a slower clock with a tight CL can beat a faster clock with a loose CL. DDR4-3200 CL16 and DDR5-6000 CL30 both land at exactly 10.0 ns; DDR5-7200 CL34 is quicker again at 9.4 ns.

Read the full explanation of CAS vs true latency →

Common questions

Is DDR5-6000 CL30 faster than DDR5-7200 CL34?: In true latency, the DDR5-7200 CL34 kit is: 34 × 2000 ÷ 7200 = 9.44 ns, against 30 × 2000 ÷ 6000 = 10.0 ns for the CL30 kit. The higher-stated CL is the quicker one because its clock is higher.
Does lower true latency always mean better performance?: It is the right single figure for the speed-versus-timings trade-off, but capacity and bandwidth still matter more for some workloads. It settles the CL argument, not the whole buying decision.