Ram overclocking questions

lexidobe · January 7, 2021

Hello everyone, I have a couple questions about ram overclocking and voltages that no one seems to have definitive answers to and I would appreciate any input on.

1. Can increasing ram voltage damage or degrade the CPU's IMC in any way. I have read that the IMC could not be damaged since the voltage is supplied to only the modules and isn't sent to the IMC, but I have also read that the ram's voltage is sent to the IMC also and therefore excessive voltage can cause damage. I have looked at my CPU socket's pinout, but I'm far from an electrical engineer so that didn't answer my question.

2. Can increasing the speed beyond what the CPU officially supports degrade the IMC? Intel says it can and has denied warranty claims due to higher speed memory being used, but of course Intel is going to look for any excuse they can to deny a claim so I take that with a huge grain of salt. Hell for that matter there's a page on Intel's website that says that using higher speed ram can "completely short out motherboard, the higher frequency RAM, processor. etc", which I really do not see happening.

I understand that most enthusiasts upgrade their stuff every few years and therefore usually don't see the long term effects of the choices they make, but I need this system to last me as long as possible as I will not have money to replace it for the foreseeable future, so I will hopefully be able to use it for the next 10+ years before having to make any major changes to it and I don't want to do anything that could compromise its longevity or long term reliability.

Thank you in advance as always!

EDIT: I have a Core i7-6850K, Asus X99-E WS motherboard, and 32GB of G Skill Tritent Z RGB 3200 MHz RAM.

Edited January 7, 2021 by lexidobe
added system info

5GigsOrBust · January 7, 2021

3 hours ago, lexidobe said:

Hello everyone, I have a couple questions about ram overclocking and voltages that no one seems to have definitive answers to and I would appreciate any input on.

1. Can increasing ram voltage damage or degrade the CPU's IMC in any way. I have read that the IMC could not be damaged since the voltage is supplied to only the modules and isn't sent to the IMC, but I have also read that the ram's voltage is sent to the IMC also and therefore excessive voltage can cause damage. I have looked at my CPU socket's pinout, but I'm far from an electrical engineer so that didn't answer my question.

2. Can increasing the speed beyond what the CPU officially supports degrade the IMC? Intel says it can and has denied warranty claims due to higher speed memory being used, but of course Intel is going to look for any excuse they can to deny a claim so I take that with a huge grain of salt. Hell for that matter there's a page on Intel's website that says that using higher speed ram can "completely short out motherboard, the higher frequency RAM, processor. etc", which I really do not see happening.

I understand that most enthusiasts upgrade their stuff every few years and therefore usually don't see the long term effects of the choices they make, but I need this system to last me as long as possible as I will not have money to replace it for the foreseeable future, so I will hopefully be able to use it for the next 10+ years before having to make any major changes to it and I don't want to do anything that could compromise its longevity or long term reliability.

Thank you in advance as always!

EDIT: I have a Core i7-6850K, Asus X99-E WS motherboard, and 32GB of G Skill Tritent Z RGB 3200 MHz RAM.

Increasing ram frequency & voltage will not degrade the CPU. VCCSA & VCCIO are the two main memory-related voltages on Intel. Setting those voltages too high can degrade the IMC. Usual advice is to not go over 1.30-1.35v longterm on those. Usual advice for ram voltage depends on the specific memory IC, but on B-die its not recommended to go over about 1.5v for daily usage. I run mine a bit higher because I have fans above the ram sticks and I don't mind replacing them, but that's not recommended for everyone. I would recommend before you overclock your ram, find out what IC you have, and look up common OC settings for that specific IC.

lexidobe · January 7, 2021

8 minutes ago, 5GigsOrBust said:

Increasing ram frequency & voltage will not degrade the CPU. VCCSA & VCCIO are the two main memory-related voltages on Intel. Setting those voltages too high can degrade the IMC. Usual advice is to not go over 1.30-1.35v longterm on those. Usual advice for ram voltage depends on the specific memory IC, but on B-die its not recommended to not go over about 1.5v for daily usage. I run mine a bit higher because I have fans above the ram sticks and I don't mind replacing them, but that's not recommended for everyone. I would recommend before you overclock your ram, find out what IC you have, and look up common OC settings for that specific IC.

That makes sense, thank you for clarifying! I will not be increasing the IMC voltages but I may try a little higher voltage on my ram (up to its rated 1.35V) then to see if that helps stability at higher speeds since that is what it's rated for. I won't abuse my ram with crazy high voltages, but I'm not overly concerned about its longevity since it has a lifetime warranty.