ASRock Z890I Nova WiFi R2.0 adds CQDIMM support, reaches 256GB DDR5-7400
ASRock says its Z890I Nova WiFi R2.0 motherboard now supports CQDIMM memory, allowing the system to run up to 256GB of DDR5 at 7400 MT/s . The company says it achieved this with two Kingston 128GB modules, which is higher than the 7200 MT/s speed typically seen with this kind of high-capacity setup.
CQDIMM is based on CUDIMM, short for Clocked Unbuffered DIMM, but uses a 4-rank design to increase capacity. In simple terms, it is a DDR5 module type designed to offer both large memory sizes and relatively high speeds. Each module can go up to 128GB, which makes 256GB possible in a two-slot system.
Source: ASRock original quality
According to ASRock, support for this memory was made possible through changes to the board design, along with hardware and software tuning. The result is DDR5-7400 operation with a full 256GB memory configuration, which is not common on current consumer platforms.
That combination is aimed at users who need both high capacity and bandwidth, such as AI workloads, content creation, and other demanding professional tasks. Still, given the timing, it is hard to see many users buying two 128GB modules. For most AI use cases, it will likely be cheaper and simpler to use four modules instead. Unless someone specifically needs 7400 MT/s speeds, capacity is probably more important than memory frequency here.
Source: ASRock
