JEDEC is developing a new CQDIMM standard for DDR5 CKD memory modules, which will offer higher capacities on future platforms.
CQDIMM Standard To Deliver Higher DDR5 CKD Capacities On Future Desktop CPU Platforms, JEDEC Likely To Unveil With Intel's Arrow Lake Refresh
MSI and ADATA recently collaborated on a new feature update for memory modules. This update involves upgrading the existing CUDIMM design from 2-Rank to 4-Rank, offering higher capacities of up to 128 GB per module. This would essentially double the memory capacity of existing platforms, & still retain the fast CKD implementation.
But it looks like it isn't just MSI that is working on this new memory module solution. According to Benchlife, other motherboard makers such as Gigabyte and ASUS are also working to enable 4-Rank DDR5 memory module support on current and upcoming motherboards. While the support will be currently restricted to high-end OC designs such as the Dual-DIMM Unify X from MSI, Tachyon ICE by Gigabyte, and Apex from ASUS, we would likely see more motherboards in the future that support the technology.
The reason for this is JEDEC, which is planning to introduce the technology as a new standard called CQDIMM. While CUDIMM currently supports 2-Rank CKD, CQDIMM will support 4-Rank CKD. The "Q" stands for Quad. The benefit of CKD (Clock Driver) is that these modules are said to maintain speeds of 7200 MT/s, which will be natively supported by next-gen platforms.
Based on the information available, Intel's Arrow Lake-S Refresh, which launches on Desktop and Laptop platforms early next year, is going to be the first platform to leverage the CQDIMM DDR5 standard. But at the same time, 128 GB memory modules are going to be quite expensive given the current memory price situation.
A likely scenario is that Arrow Lake-S Refresh will be a testing ground for the CQDIMM memory standard and will see wider support when the market normalizes around the time Nova Lake-S CPUs launch in the second half of 2026. CES 2026 is close by, so we are likely to hear more about the tech in the coming weeks.
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