Need help regarding RAM

[Plate]

Hi there guys!

 

This is actually my first time I have ever posted on a forum of some sort, so please, bear with me.

 

Okay so, off to my problem. I am still a DDR3 user (+ a Windows 7 user, too), running with FX 6300, Sapphire HD 7850 on a GIGABYTE GA-970A-UD3 motherboard. Currently I have 2x4GB Hyper X Predator 2400 MHz CL11 KHX24C11T2K2/8X, which specifications will be in the attached pdf. I have ordered additional ram (Link to them: https://www.gskill.com/specification/165/176/1532079302/F3-2400C11D-8GXM-Specification ), to have at least 16GB of capacity for now. (Very) Later on, when I have more money, I am going to build a completely new PC. My question was, if these ram sticks will work just fine with my system. I'm sadly quite a noob, when it comes to RAM so, no clue if it is safe to set both XMP profiles to run them at 2400 MHz on 1.65V , which my motherboard manual says it has 4x 1.5V slots . Thank You so much in advance from any helpful answers or tips. Have a great rest of the day! ^^

KHX24C11T2K2_8X.pdf

[Blze001]

Can you reuse them? No, the new system you're going to build will almost certainly be using DDR4.

 

You should be okay enabling XMP your current build, however.

[BenOver]

3 minutes ago, Plate said:

Hi there guys!

 

This is actually my first time I have ever posted on a forum of some sort, so please, bear with me.

 

Okay so, off to my problem. I am still a DDR3 user (+ a Windows 7 user, too), running with FX 6300, Sapphire HD 7850 on a GIGABYTE GA-970A-UD3 motherboard. Currently I have 2x4GB Hyper X Predator 2400 MHz CL11 KHX24C11T2K2/8X, which specifications will be in the attached pdf. I have ordered additional ram (Link to them: https://www.gskill.com/specification/165/176/1532079302/F3-2400C11D-8GXM-Specification ), to have at least 16GB of capacity for now. (Very) Later on, when I have more money, I am going to build a completely new PC. My question was, if these ram sticks will work just fine with my system. I'm sadly quite a noob, when it comes to RAM so, no clue if it is safe to set both XMP profiles to run them at 2400 MHz on 1.65V , which my motherboard manual says it has 4x 1.5V slots . Thank You so much in advance from any helpful answers or tips. Have a great rest of the day! ^^

KHX24C11T2K2_8X.pdf 286.01 kB · 0 downloads

i can't help you with voltage but i know that ddr 3 can support up to 32 gb ram (8 per stick)

 

[Plate]

3 hours ago, Blze001 said:

Can you reuse them? No, the new system you're going to build will almost certainly be using DDR4.

 

You should be okay enabling XMP your current build, however.

Yes, I know, that the new system will be ddr4, obviously. I wasn't thinking about reusing them. I want the new ones just as a "temporary upgrade" just for this time being. With my topic I meant to ask or to let know, if the different timings wouldnt matter too much, or enabling the xmp profile on 1.65V wouldnt destroy, or cause instability or any other bad things, even tho the slots are rated 1.5V

[BenOver]

12 hours ago, Plate said:

Yes, I know, that the new system will be ddr4, obviously. I wasn't thinking about reusing them. I want the new ones just as a "temporary upgrade" just for this time being. With my topic I meant to ask or to let know, if the different timings wouldnt matter too much, or enabling the xmp profile on 1.65V wouldnt destroy, or cause instability or any other bad things, even tho the slots are rated 1.5V

just know if they are not all the same gb size they will not work as a triple channel

[Plate]

2 hours ago, BenOver said:

just know if they are not all the same gb size they will not work as a triple channel

once these 2 stick arrive.. i will have 4x4GB.. so i guess there is no worry about this. 

[Beerzerker]

Even though the sticks are rated the same there is no guarantee they will play well together since you (From what I can tell here) are mixing RAM makes and models.
It's always best to have all sticks of the same make and model for that reason - But then again they may do just fine.

And if they do......

 

Getting them to run at the speeds you want may also be an issue since AMD's of that socket (AM3+) tend to have problems running RAM sticks at higher speeds with all 4 slots in use.

It can be done in some cases but don't count on it working in yours, you'll most likely be limited to 1866 dead-max and that's probrably it, more likely around 1600 TBH.

Also know you either have dual channel (Unganged) or all of it in ganged mode, there is no such thing as triple channel with AM3+. Has nothing to do with the sticks themselves, it's just a limitation of the hardware you've got.

[Plate]

6 hours ago, Beerzerker said:

Even though the sticks are rated the same there is no guarantee they will play well together since you (From what I can tell here) are mixing RAM makes and models.
It's always best to have all sticks of the same make and model for that reason - But then again they may do just fine.

And if they do......

 

Getting them to run at the speeds you want may also be an issue since AMD's of that socket (AM3+) tend to have problems running RAM sticks at higher speeds with all 4 slots in use.

It can be done in some cases but don't count on it working in yours, you'll most likely be limited to 1866 dead-max and that's probrably it, more likely around 1600 TBH.

Also know you either have dual channel (Unganged) or all of it in ganged mode, there is no such thing as triple channel with AM3+. Has nothing to do with the sticks themselves, it's just a limitation of the hardware you've got.

Yes, well... I had to mix the brand and model since i literally couldnt find the same exact ram i had.. even new or second-hand .. and if i actually managed to find them.. they were (obviously) discontinued/unavailable.. I'm from Slovakia.. so for me buying off of ebay or amazon or any other american site is not worth it.. therefore i was very limited with my choices... alright and.. about that problem if not running them at max speed.. setting the XMP profile on is a good idea or not ? .. lets say.. i turn it on for all .. and they would clock to 1866 and not 2400 .. would i still be able to see that change or there will be "2400 mhz" written but in reality it will be less?

[Beerzerker]

Unfortunately AMD's of that socket are limited in that way, the max I'd ever expect you to see would be 1866 as said but the likely limit would be around 1600. The CPU's IMC is one of the big factors in play here, having all four slots populated means the IMC is under more stress than it would be if only using two sticks in dual channel.

 

XMP in this instance will not help if you have all four slots filled and the profile for these sticks calls for 2400 - Again the IMC can only handle so much and once it reaches it's limit, that's it.

What the CPU's IMC can handle literally becomes the speed limit, doesn't matter what's written on the stick's label and yes, where it finally stops at can be seen in CPU-Z if you check the memory tab once you get it to boot the system.

I do hope you have success with it and you never know - I did get one of mine to top 2000 with all four but it never did 2400, my sticks were rated for 2800 running in a top of the line board.

Here's an old screenie of what I did and where it finally was in the end. Look at all the info you see, inspite of what the SPD tabs says these came up far short because of the IMC simply not being able to push all four sticks any higher.

 

[Plate]

6 minutes ago, Beerzerker said:

Unfortunately AMD's of that socket are limited in that way, the max I'd ever expect you to see would be 1866 as said but the likely limit would be around 1600. The CPU's IMC is one of the big factors in play here, having all four slots populated means the IMC is under more stress than it would be if only using two sticks in dual channel.

 

XMP in this instance will not help if you have all four slots filled and the profile for these sticks calls for 2400 - Again the IMC can only handle so much and once it reaches it's limit, that's it.

What the CPU's IMC can handle literally becomes the speed limit, doesn't matter what's written on the stick's label and yes, where it finally stops at can be seen in CPU-Z if you check the memory tab once you get it to boot the system.

I do hope you have success with it and you never know - I did get one of mine to top 2000 with all four but it never did 2400, my sticks were rated for 2800 running in a top of the line board.

Here's an old screenie of what I did and where it finally was in the end. Look at all the info you see, inspite of what the SPD tabs says these came up far short because of the IMC simply not being able to push all four sticks any higher.

 

Ahhh okay, I see now. Thank you man. I will try to do that, when the sticks will finally be delivered.. might take a few days.. idk..then install cpu-z, enabling the XMP .. and seeing.. how far the speed will go .. should i worry about something damaging ? maybe the cpu cuz of the stress ? or the ram will get optimised with the speed to the maximum point of which my cpu can handle without any issue? 

[Beerzerker]

Optimizing will only come with careful tweaking, something you'll have to do yourself and it's a simple process of trial and error.

As long as you're not trying to shove excess voltage to components it's fine, once the IMC tops out it will let you know and that's it. Once you find out where this limit is you'll have an idea of what to do with the rest.

 

BTW, another small thing is your CPU-NB speeds, that can add a bit of boost to RAM performance but there is also a limit. 

CPU-NB speeds for a Vishera should always be set for 2400 or less, takes too much voltage to push it much higher and these chips tend to flake out once it gets around 2500 or so anyway. Higher speeds can be done but it takes enough voltage the CPU itself will run hotter. 

For the small performance gain vs the heat generated it's best to leave it at 2400 or less and be done with it.

[Plate]

43 minutes ago, Beerzerker said:

Optimizing will only come with careful tweaking, something you'll have to do yourself and it's a simple process of trial and error.

As long as you're not trying to shove excess voltage to components it's fine, once the IMC tops out it will let you know and that's it. Once you find out where this limit is you'll have an idea of what to do with the rest.

 

BTW, another small thing is your CPU-NB speeds, that can add a bit of boost to RAM performance but there is also a limit. 

CPU-NB speeds for a Vishera should always be set for 2400 or less, takes too much voltage to push it much higher and these chips tend to flake out once it gets around 2500 or so anyway. Higher speeds can be done but it takes enough voltage the CPU itself will run hotter. 

For the small performance gain vs the heat generated it's best to leave it at 2400 or less and be done with it.

Daamn. Okay. Well... doing something like this for the first time...I seriously hope, I'm not going to really mess something up

[Beerzerker]

It's OK, if it fails to boot after tweaking some boards can be triggered to do a "Default" boot indicated by a "Overclock Failed" message when it POST's. Usually it will tell you to check your settings and to hit F1 to access the BIOS when it does, whether you trigger it yourself or the system does it on it's own.

 

To trigger it yourself, here's how to do that:

Simply press and hold the powerbutton, it will turn on, begin it's POST sequence and then cut back off.

 

You have to press and hold the button for the entire time to trigger it, sometimes it takes two or three times cycling the system in this way to do it. Once the system cuts off, you will have to momentarily release it to restart the powerup cycle but that's it.

Some boards though won't do it, depending on the board in use.

 

If you can't get it to trigger a default boot then you'll have to either press the BIOS reset button on the board or remove the CMOS battery and leave it out for about two minutes, making sure the PSU itself is either switched off or unplugged from the wall - Main thing is to have no power to the system during this or the board will never clear CMOS.

 

No need to unplug or switch if off if you have a reset button, that's only for removal of the CMOS battery and you'd simply hold that button for about 10 seconds.

 

Most boards today have the ability to save a profile, before doing any tweaking whatsoever save a profile of the system's current settings so that can be reloaded once in the BIOS and you can label it so you know what it is.

This way things that were enabled or disabled will be restored to what they were set for when the profile is loaded, you'd still have to reset the system clock itself but that's about it.

If you don't or cannot save a profile you will have to reset everything yourself related to features being enabled/disabled and so on.