PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5 review: incredible value without too much compromise

PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5: One-minute review

The PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5 RAM kit might not be the most eye-catching memory I've slotted into the test bench, but boy howdy does it get the job done, especially if you're looking for some more affordable options for upgrading your rig.

To be clear, this isn't the best RAM on the market if what you're looking for is the fastest raw performance. There are kits with much higher OC speeds that can honestly run circles around it, but with higher memory speeds comes power and stability issues, especially if you're going to dig in and fiddle with the timing profile of the modules. 

If what you're looking for though is a great plug-and-play kit with a respectable OC performance at the click of a BIOS button, then the XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5-6000 kit is impossible not to recommend.

This is all the more impressive given that the PNY kit holds its own against probably the venerable Corsair Dominator Platinum running at a higher memory speed, and goes toe to toe with the best G.Skill DDR5 RAM kit, the Trident Z5 Neo, running at the same speed.

And while the Corsair Dominator Platinum DDR5-6600 I had in the lab is the better bet for DDR5 RAM in terms of raw performance, you're paying a massive 54% premium ($184.99, about £140/AU$270) for a 32GB (2 x 16GB) kit, compared to the XLR8 Gaming Mako 32GB (2 x 16GB) kit, which sells for $119.99 (about £95/AU$175). 

For that price, you're getting about 93% of the performance of the Corsair kit with only about 9.4% higher latency when running with Intel XMP at the module's max-rated speeds. 

These differences aren't nothing, but you do need to ask yourself if that marginally better performance is worth the extra money, because that extra money's not nothing either. The PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5-6000 32GB kit has an average performance-per-dollar score of 253.28, compared to the Corsair Dominator Platinum RGB DDR5-6600's 148.06 – a 47.5% better showing for the PNY kit.

The baseline 4,800MHz speeds for the two kits equalized things considerably, with the PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako kit actually coming in a bit faster than the Corsair kit. The timings on the two kits are also pretty much even (38-40-40-78 for the Corsair kit and 40-40-40-77 for the PNY modules). 

On the other side of the ledger, you have the G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo, one of the most popular RAM kits out there, which comes in at the same price as the PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5 for a 32GB, two-stick, 6,000MHz kit.

Pitting these two against each other, they beat each other to an effective draw on every measure, though the G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo technically wins on points, while neither can keep up with the fully overclocked Dominator kit, which is expected given the Dominator kit is 600MHz faster.

Given that the two 6,000MHz kits perform identically and cost the same, if you can't get your hands on a G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo kit, the PNY kit is an ideal substitute (and vice versa).

All told then, the PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5 is some seriously good RAM, especially at this price. Unless you're looking to break records on your PC or need extremely fast RAM for specific memory-intensive workloads, this RAM kit is really all you'll need.

PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5: Price & availability

• How much does it cost? $119.99 (about £95/AU$175)
• When is it available? Available now
• Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK and Australia availability forthcoming

The PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5-6000 is available now, with an MSRP of $119.99 (about £95/AU$175) for a two-stick 32GB kit (2 x 16GB).

In the US, you can get a 32GB kit right now through PNY's website as well as other retailers, and while PNY's site shows a single module option for this RAM, clicking it doesn't give you an option to buy or even a price, so it's likely only going to be available in a two-stick kit for the time being.

The price puts it on par with the G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo kit at the same speed, module config, and capacity, while also matching its price. As noted before, the XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5-6000 is substantially cheaper than the Corsair Dominator Platinum RGB DDR5 kits around the same speeds, with the 6,000MHz CL36 Dominator Platinum RGB 32GB (2 x 16GB) kit going for $159.99 – about 33% more expensive than the PNY kit at the same speed and CAS Latency.

This is the best value of any RAM we've tested above 6,000MHz, though there are better-performing options that cost more, there are diminishing performance returns. Meanwhile, there are much cheaper RAM kits, but they're slower and not that much cheaper, so the PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5-6000 kit really occupies something of a memory sweet spot for those looking for a good balance of performance and affordability.

PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5: Specs

Should you buy PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5: Also consider

How I tested PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5

• I spent about a week testing the PNY XLR8 Gaming Mako DDR5
• I used it for productivity work, gaming, and creative content work
• I used our standard suite of benchmarking tools like Passmark and AIDA64

In addition to using this RAM in my personal gaming PC for about a week playing Diablo 4 and other titles, I really put this RAM to the test with creative content work like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, where I worked with many layers at once with several large files open, which has a noticeable impact on memory usage.

I also formally benchmarked the RAM kit using Passmark PerformanceTest and AIDA64's memory benchmarks. I tested the kit at its default factory speed as well as its maximum overclock speed, both as a single module and as a pair, for four rounds of testing. In addition, I tested competing RAM at or around the same speed, price, and capacity to see how it stacks up against its competition.

I've been working with PCs for many years now, as well as spending years studying computer science at an undergraduate and graduate level, so I know the ins and outs of memory microarchitecture as well as how RAM can impact actual real world performance.

We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.

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First reviewed August 2023