RAM Compatibility Blues -- Is there a way?

[Gavination]

Hello! So I've run into a bit of a pickle in upgrading my system. I'd been doing incremental upgrades over time, and this CPU/Motherboard (Ryzen 3900X/Aorus X570 Pro Wifi)  was supposed to be the final one. Unfortunately, after quite some time troubleshooting, I found that it wasn't booting properly because of the RAM I was using (32 GB Corsair Vengeance RGB @ 3000Mhz). After switching over to some older 16GB kit, it worked without a hitch. So, I went through the Motherboard's compatibility site and saw the weirdest thing: it supports 3200 MHz and 2933 MHz, but not 3000? I thought that was weird, but I was wondering if there was any way I could overclock or downclock to match the required speeds? Problem is, I can't boot with this RAM installed. Has anyone else experienced a weird issue like this and gotten around it? Would be a shame if I have to buy another set of memory. Thanks for any help!

[j9n]

First post on this forum, forgive me. 

 

As of right now, I am running my G.Skill Trident Z memory at 3000MHz (although it supports 3200MHz, I was experiencing issues at this frequency myself). Although I have had no issues with that specific memory frequency, AM4 is known to be pretty finicky when it comes to ram. You say that you aren't "booting properly"; by this do you mean into windows or is nothing happening at all? If you can access the bios, try to set the memory to 2933 and see if it solves your problem.

[porina]

To confirm, do you have the latest bios installed? Ram support has improved with more recent releases than older ones.

 

Generally speaking ram would default to a lower speed on first boot and it is unusual to not even make that. Problems usually only appear once higher speeds (XMP) are enabled. On Asus boards they have DOCP and DOCP Standard settings. One tries to reach rated ram speed, whereas the other sticks to preferred values. I don't know if Gigabyte has similar.

[Gavination]

Many thanks for the replies. So in regards to the first comment:
 

2 minutes ago, j9n said:

First post on this forum, forgive me. 

 

As of right now, I am running my G.Skill Trident Z memory at 3000MHz (although it supports 3200MHz, I was experiencing issues at this frequency myself). Although I have had no issues with that specific memory frequency, AM4 is known to be pretty finicky when it comes to ram. You say that you aren't "booting properly"; by this do you mean into windows or is nothing happening at all? If you can access the bios, try to set the memory to 2933 and see if it solves your problem.

By "booting properly", I mean I might see a BIOS screen 1x every 5 times i try to boot. then, the screen is either frozen or input isn't registered. So sadly, changing the RAM speed wasn't possible.

 

3 minutes ago, porina said:

To confirm, do you have the latest bios installed? Ram support has improved with more recent releases than older ones.

 

Generally speaking ram would default to a lower speed on first boot and it is unusual to not even make that. Problems usually only appear once higher speeds (XMP) are enabled. On Asus boards they have DOCP and DOCP Standard settings. One tries to reach rated ram speed, whereas the other sticks to preferred values. I don't know if Gigabyte has similar.

That's a fantastic question...that I hadn't even considered haha. Please forgive me. I'll double check BIOS version and get back with results!

[F___M]

Hummmmmm> would be tough to flash the chip if it can't post, eh?

 

My mantra>

 

(Special Attention to Gamers.)  Always, ALWAYS check the QVL for compatibility.  If it isn't on there, don't buy it.

 

Always, ALWAYS check the memory with a bootable memory test, (memtest) BEFORE installing an OS.  If you are booting to windows with RAM that you are going to upgrade or replace, please type memory in the search bar and choose windows memory diagnostics from the results. Set it to run on next boot. shut it down and replace the RAM.  Just because it is on the QVL doesn't mean it shouldn't be checked.  Better safe than sorry. 

 

What isn't tested as compatible probably isn't.

[Mathieu9836]

QVL only mean that particular SKU was tested and known to work on that particular board, at that particular speed and timings, and the motherboard MIGHT set XMP profile by itself because it recognize this particular memory stick. I've never bought RAM because of the QVL and never ever add an issue.

The common issue we see with RAM ''not compatible'' is that the motherboard set ridiculous timings when training the RAM that can't be achieved with that kit. Set timings and speed manually with rated sticks voltage (usually 1.35volts) and i doubt it won't work. I've seen RAM kits with four sticks listed on the QVL and the same kit with only 2 or 1 stick not on the list, thats because motherboard manufacturer don't have all the existing kits on hand, not other reasons.

Edit: And note that on the QVL list they never say what CPU was used to get those timings, how many CPU they have tested to get the best memory controller of them all. It's like 5000mhz RAM sticks, most CPU can't reach over 4000mhz....

[Gavination]

5 minutes ago, F___M said:

Hummmmmm> would be tough to flash the chip if it can't post, eh?

 

My mantra>

 

(Special Attention to Gamers.)  Always, ALWAYS check the QVL for compatibility.  If it isn't on there, don't buy it.

 

Always, ALWAYS check the memory with a bootable memory test, (memtest) BEFORE installing an OS.  If you are booting to windows with RAM that you are going to upgrade or replace, please type memory in the search bar and choose windows memory diagnostics from the results. Set it to run on next boot. shut it down and replace the RAM.  Just because it is on the QVL doesn't mean it shouldn't be checked.  Better safe than sorry. 

 

What isn't tested as compatible probably isn't.

Honestly, it was just the order in which i purchased things. I've had these RAM modules well before I knew I'd be going Ryzen, and well, this is where I ended up.

[F___M]

Well, my comment wasn't to accuse you of anything.  Just want to help you sort it out so when you buy more, you're golden..  Sorrie if you took it wrong.

[Gavination]

Hahaha no I didn't. Just giving my perspective. I'd hope my skin was a bit thicker than a recommendation tearing me down.

[porina]

13 minutes ago, F___M said:

(Special Attention to Gamers.)  Always, ALWAYS check the QVL for compatibility.  If it isn't on there, don't buy it.

 

[Snip]

 

What isn't tested as compatible probably isn't.

Bad assumption there. The QVL is of very limited value as the manufacturers will never be able to test every version of every kit out there. More so with Zen 2, compatibility will vary with bios version also. I don't bother to look at it at all these days.

[F___M]

3 minutes ago, porina said:

I don't bother to look at it at all these days.

Hummmm. Do you test it?

[F___M]

17 minutes ago, Gavination said:

Hahaha no I didn't. Just giving my perspective. I'd hope my skin was a bit thicker than a recommendation tearing me down.

HAHA is right!  Good one.

[porina]

4 minutes ago, F___M said:

Hummmm. Do you test it?

If you mean something like memtest, then no. I do run ram intensive workloads and any errors will get picked up quickly in those anyway. I mix and match ram kits and systems quite a bit since I dabble with competitive overclocking. Most of the time if the ram is unstable, you will know about it very quickly. I've only had one situation ever where ram was erroring at a rate of less than once a day. It would pass memtest as long as you like but errors only eventually showed up with 24/7 sustained loading, presumably as it also required some interaction with the IMC that memtest wasn't stressing enough.

[F___M]

OK, OK.  What I have observed in this forum since I discovered it is that there is ALOT of 1st and 2nd time builders.  There is ALOT of screen lockup, reboots, no boots that go on.  This is especially true of the extreme builds that people are doing.  I am just stating my opinion as a word of caution, not necessarily for people who are truly the enthusiast.  That's my 2 cents, and I'm sticking to it.

[Gavination]

Folks, I'd like to thank you all as well as the power of the forum. A combination of updating the BIOS, clearing the CMOS, and swapping RAM in and out seems to have worked (though not individually lol). I was a bit nervous, but it looks like everything is on the up and up. You're all awesome.

[Mathieu9836]

24 minutes ago, Gavination said:

Folks, I'd like to thank you all as well as the power of the forum. A combination of updating the BIOS, clearing the CMOS, and swapping RAM in and out seems to have worked (though not individually lol). I was a bit nervous, but it looks like everything is on the up and up. You're all awesome.

Be sure to use the correct slots for RAM sticks, usually A2 and B2. Make sure with the user manual (who really read this).

[Gavination]

13 minutes ago, Mathieu9836 said:

Be sure to use the correct slots for RAM sticks, usually A2 and B2. Make sure with the user manual (who really read this).

I certainly have it running in dual channel, but thanks for the note!

[Gavination]

So update for all those interested. I replaced my CPU cooler with the liquid AIO I'd already had (didn't do it the first time cause I'd run out of thermal paste, it's a long story). Anyways, without changing ANYTHING else, the machine wouldn't post. At first, I thought "damn did i put too much pressure on the cpu?", but that turned out to be wrong. It was the RAM. Again. Even after the BIOS update, it still came back to bite me. Swapped in the old RAM, booted no problem. Put in the new one, gets stuck on the DRAM debug light or, weirdly, the VGA light sometimes. So after leaving it for the night, coming back the next morning and trying it with one stick of the new ram, it worked. Putting in the other didn't work. Putting them both in the same channel didn't work. Was going to give up hope after doing one last thing: swapping the order of the RAM sticks. It boots. In dual channel. It also boots cold, after a shutdown. I have 0 idea why. Idk if I'm happy it works or angry it doesn't make sense. Just to be clear, this certainly isn't the first machine I've worked on, I've just never seen this issue before.

My only guess is since it's not rated for any specific speed supported by the motherboard manufacturer, it's probably not *supposed* to work, and the fact that it does is sort of a fluke. Other than that, I got nothing lol. Anyways, thanks a ton for the assist, just thought it'd be fun to report back.