Mainboard and RAM choice - confused about compatibility

[DrMaestro]

Budget (including currency): 800-1000 USD

Country: Turkey

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Rendering - AI

Other details (existing parts lists, whether any peripherals are needed, what you're upgrading from, when you're going to buy, what resolution and refresh rate you want to play at, etc): 

I am building a PC with the AMD 5900x CPU. That's practically the only component I've already bought. My next goal is to decide on the mainboard and RAM. My research pointed me MSI MEG Unify mainboard, which seems to have a good set of features, however I have a problem with choosing RAM. I'dlike to have 64 Gb RAM, preferably 2x32 for future proofing. The easiest to find ram online (locally) seems to be G.Skill Trident Z Neo RGB,  or G.Skill Ripjaws, all availabe with clock speeds of 3600 MHz and 4000 MHz CL18 or 3200 MHz CL 16 versions. Unfortunately the QVL for the MSI MEG Unify doesn't include those specific models. In fact the only 2x32 Gb model I can find on the list is a Corsair LPX 2x32 Gb model, but that seems to be out of stock everywhere I've looked.

 

I've read some stories with the models I've mentioned, where the users are getting BSODs when enabling XMP, or they can't boot at all (same board, same memory and CPU). I am honestly surprised: Is it that difficult to find a ram compatible with the mainboard, whitout the need to modify BIOS voltage and timing settings of the ram? Is it true that only 3200 MHz ram is officially supported with X570 mainboards, so everything above is gambling? 

 

In short, should I go with the MEG unify and one of the G.Skills and try my luck, or do you have any other mainboard/ram combinations which can be found online (Amazon or NewEgg if possible)?

 

Thanks... 

 

[Chris Pratt]

The Unify is a great board (though I'm obviously biased, as it's what I use). I'm running a 5900X with a 2x16GB G.skill Ripjaws 3600MHz CL16 kit without issue. Additional capacity shouldn't cause an issue. Trident Z Neos should work just fine as well, though.

 

QVLs are not exhaustive, particularly for niche type kits like 2x32GB. It takes a lot of time and effort to validate kits, so it's always the most common configurations that get tested.

 

Running 3600MHz is no issue, particularly with Zen 3. You might have issues with higher clocks like 4000MHz. Just stick with 3600MHz.

[DrMaestro]

2 hours ago, Chris Pratt said:

The Unify is a great board (though I'm obviously biased, as it's what I use). I'm running a 5900X with a 2x16GB G.skill Ripjaws 3600MHz CL16 kit without issue. Additional capacity shouldn't cause an issue. Trident Z Neos should work just fine as well, though.

 

QVLs are not exhaustive, particularly for niche type kits like 2x32GB. It takes a lot of time and effort to validate kits, so it's always the most common configurations that get tested.

 

Running 3600MHz is no issue, particularly with Zen 3. You might have issues with higher clocks like 4000MHz. Just stick with 3600MHz.

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. Did you have to change any settings in BIOS (except changing to XMP profile) for them to work at the advertised speeds or did they work natively?

 

And do you know how much of a difference is there between a 3200 MHz CL16 ram vs a 3600 MHz CL18 ram? Some comments say that the difference in frequency is more important than the latency and some comments say that they are almost equal in practice. 

[Bigman397]

I've had less than stellar results with MSI and memory compatibility/overclocking recently (intel and AMD). Be careful and stick with QVL listed combinations.

 

Or, better yet, grab the Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master and have better luck with ram than an MSI x570 godlike could do.

 

YMMV

[DrMaestro]

4 minutes ago, Bigman397 said:

I

 

Or, better yet, grab the Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master and have better luck with ram than an MSI x570 godlike could do.

 

 

Funny you've mentioned it, I was just comparing (or trying to find comparisons) the Unify with Aorus series. Does the Aorus Master have any apparent disadvantages compared to the former?

[Bigman397]

Not really, its got most of the VRM of the xtreme at a fraction of the cost. Better VRM heatsink, better IO section, all that fancy crap.

 

I found myself trying to compare it to the MSI godlike more than the other MSI boards.

 

The x570 Unify looks like a nice board and does have a PS/2 port if you are into that sort of thing.

 

I've got a z490 unify and its been a pain, i've worked with a number of MSI boards x570, trx4, etc and they have all just been a pain in the ass with memory this generation.

 

Edit: Dammit, was looking at the Z590 master and ogling - its a pretty even comparison 

[Chris Pratt]

45 minutes ago, DrMaestro said:

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. Did you have to change any settings in BIOS (except changing to XMP profile) for them to work at the advertised speeds or did they work natively?

 

And do you know how much of a difference is there between a 3200 MHz CL16 ram vs a 3600 MHz CL18 ram? Some comments say that the difference in frequency is more important than the latency and some comments say that they are almost equal in practice. 

 

Nope. Just enable XMP and go.

 

Frequency is more important than latency, but 3600MHz CL16 is easily available and generally not any more or negligibly more expensive. That's what you should go for.

 

How much both frequency and latency matters are both dependent on how memory-bound your workloads are. The difference between 3200MHz and 3600MHz doesn't matter all that much in gaming, but it will make a difference in some workloads, including what you're going to be doing. It also affects the infinity fabric clock, or the speed at which the CCDs communicate with each other, so for optimal CPU performance, you want as high at the FCLK can go. That's technically 3800MHz for Zen 3, but 3600MHz is close enough and far more commonly available.