Choosing Ram

[Master Jimbob]

Hi. Im building my own PC soon and Im gonna use the MAXIMUS VIII EXTREME or the MAXIMUS VIII IMPACT.So far, I've been researching and I can't find ram that's optimized for the Intel Z170 Chipset. I also need DDR4 2133Mhz ones that are preferably overclockable.  Other Specs : Non - ECC, DIMM, for Gaming/high performance

[Aytex]

have you used pcpartpicker.com?

[Master Jimbob]

No

[Master Jimbob]

i'll check now

[BenjaminC]

You don't need RAM specifically optimized for Z170. You just need memory that's on the QVL for whatever motherboard you choose. QVL for the Extreme can be found here and the QVL for the Impact is here. All memory is overclockable, but please do not attempt to overclock memory on a skylake CPU. You're much better off buying faster memory because it'll run at a voltage that's safe for your processor. Overclocking your memory would require more voltage that would damage your CPU's integrated memory controller. 

 

For the best memory performance I recommend G.SKILL RipjawsV @ 3200 MHz or G.SKILL TridentZ @ 3200 MHz.

 

What capacity were you looking for?

[Master Jimbob]

I'm looking for an 8gb or 16gb capacity. Since this is my first build I'm on a budget of around 900 dollars not including the peripherals and Windows software.

[Master Jimbob]

I'll start off with the Intel Core i3 6100 CPU, once I get more money, I'm gonna upgrade to the 6700k. Is it optimal for me to oc the 6700k?

[Master Jimbob]

Wow, the document was very good. Thanks a lot BenjaminC

[Master Jimbob]

I actually have another question : are all 6th Gen Intel Core Series have the Skylake architecture?

[MageTank]

21 hours ago, BenjaminC said:

You don't need RAM specifically optimized for Z170. You just need memory that's on the QVL for whatever motherboard you choose. QVL for the Extreme can be found here and the QVL for the Impact is here. All memory is overclockable, but please do not attempt to overclock memory on a skylake CPU. You're much better off buying faster memory because it'll run at a voltage that's safe for your processor. Overclocking your memory would require more voltage that would damage your CPU's integrated memory controller. 

 

For the best memory performance I recommend G.SKILL RipjawsV @ 3200 MHz or G.SKILL TridentZ @ 3200 MHz.

 

What capacity were you looking for?

Please, with all of your infinite wisdom, explain in detail how VDIMM can damage the CPU IMC. After seeing this claim be made several hundred times already, I need it to be explained to me. Also, do not just link the Intel DDR3 article. Explain in your own words how VDIMM damages the CPU IMC.

[SteveGrabowski0]

A $280 board or a $485 board on a $900 budget? Have fun with that.

[ApolloX75]

21 hours ago, BenjaminC said:

You don't need RAM specifically optimized for Z170. You just need memory that's on the QVL for whatever motherboard you choose. QVL for the Extreme can be found here and the QVL for the Impact is here. All memory is overclockable, but please do not attempt to overclock memory on a skylake CPU. You're much better off buying faster memory because it'll run at a voltage that's safe for your processor. Overclocking your memory would require more voltage that would damage your CPU's integrated memory controller. 

 

For the best memory performance I recommend G.SKILL RipjawsV @ 3200 MHz or G.SKILL TridentZ @ 3200 MHz.

 

What capacity were you looking for?

I gotta agree with @MageTank on this. For the whole DDR3 thing it kind of made a molecule of sense in a way; but applying the same "issue" to DDR4? I don't think that's really a thing. I've never seen RAM voltages that had an effect on an CPU-integrated memory controller even back in the Athlon 64 days. Motherboard based? Sure, seen that plenty with ViA chipsets and original DDR.

 

Still if you've seen info we haven't, please share.

[MageTank]

8 minutes ago, ApolloX75 said:

I gotta agree with @MageTank on this. For the whole DDR3 thing it kind of made a molecule of sense in a way; but applying the same "issue" to DDR4? I don't think that's really a thing. I've never seen RAM voltages that had an effect on an CPU-integrated memory controller even back in the Athlon 64 days. Motherboard based? Sure, seen that plenty with ViA chipsets and original DDR.

 

Still if you've seen info we haven't, please share.

That's not even the issue I take with this. The issue I have is, people are completely 100% wrong, and they give advice thinking they are capable of doing so. VDIMM is supplied from the board, to the ram. It does not touch the CPU at all, and no amount of it can damage a CPU. Trust me. We have people pushing 2V on their ram, even on this forum *cough* @Lays *cough*

 

VDIMM is harmless to a CPU, this is a fact. Him boldly saying "Don't overclock ram on Skylake, it's unsafe!" is just nonsense. There are two voltages directly associated with the CPU IMC that can damage it. VCCIO (A+D) which is the electrical path into and out of the IMC, and VCCSA (System Agent) which is the IMC and PCIE subdomain voltage. These two things can damage a CPU IMC, but VDIMM cannot. 

 

I wouldn't be having this extreme of a reaction if he prefaced his posts with "I think" or "probably cause damage". He says it with certainty, and gives such statements as if its solid advice to follow. This is how rumors start, and it makes what I do extremely difficult. 

 

DDR3 won't kill Skylake either. Intel gave that warning not because of VDIMM, but because of the VCCIO and VCCSA voltages i mentioned earlier. Notice in that original article they said "voltages". The S on the end implies plural, meaning more than one. It was basically saying "Don't load your 1.65V memory XMP's, because the extra VCCIO/SA voltages to make that pre-overclocked kit stable, might harm the CPU" which is true. DDR3 in and of itself is perfectly safe on Skylake, and anyone that says otherwise is just plain wrong.

[Lays]

22 hours ago, BenjaminC said:

You don't need RAM specifically optimized for Z170. You just need memory that's on the QVL for whatever motherboard you choose. QVL for the Extreme can be found here and the QVL for the Impact is here. All memory is overclockable, but please do not attempt to overclock memory on a skylake CPU. You're much better off buying faster memory because it'll run at a voltage that's safe for your processor. Overclocking your memory would require more voltage that would damage your CPU's integrated memory controller. 

 

For the best memory performance I recommend G.SKILL RipjawsV @ 3200 MHz or G.SKILL TridentZ @ 3200 MHz.

 

What capacity were you looking for?

 

I know people who have been running 1.7v to 1.95v for daily benchmark sessions for months now on DDR4 at crazy speeds like 4000 mhz 12-12-12-28 2T,  I haven't heard of anyone who's experienced any sort of IMC degradation.  With how talkative everyone is on the HWBOT forum about experimenting with high volts and extreme speeds, if there was a case of someone degrading the crap out of their IMC with high ram voltage, there would be LOTS of talk about it already. Especially for how hard these guys push the limits.

 

 

A quick read in here will show you how far people push things, http://forum.hwbot.org/showthread.php?t=144801 

 

Even on Z97 I was running 2.1-2.2v 3-4 times a week on a TridentX kit with Samsung memory chips on it to achieve 2800-2860 mhz 9-12-12-17 1T, never saw any sort of degradation on my memory or my IMC, even after months of that abuse.  One of my friends, "GtiJason" on HWBOT, has been running a kit of 4x4gb TridentX 2400 CL9 ram at 2800 9-12-12-18 1T for almost a year straight in his everyday PC "24/7 rig if you will" at 1.98 volts, and hasn't had to add any extra voltages to the IMC or RAM since he started his experiment. 

 

 

[Master Jimbob]

K Thanks everyone so much for the help and support. Just wondering if anyone here is interested in Minecraft. If yes, then pls sub to my Youtube Channel "Master Jimbob - Everything In Minecraft"

[MageTank]

We've been had! This was all a ruse to advertise a Minecraft Youtube channel. I feel so... used.

[BenjaminC]

@ApolloX75 @MageTank @Lays OP seems a bit new, I was playing it safe.

[MageTank]

Just now, BenjaminC said:

@ApolloX75 @MageTank @Lays OP seems a bit new, I was playing it safe.

It isn't that much of a safety risk though. Boards these days are a lot smarter than the boards of the past. They will normally train your timings automatically as you increase speed. So long as he is mindful of his VCCIO/SA voltages, VDIMM won't really matter. For 24/7 use, VCCIO/SA voltages can safely handle 1.25v each, though I personally never pass 1.15v each. With proper adjustment of the tertiary timings, I can even get my VCCIO/SA voltages down to 1.05v with very little impact on my memory bandwidth.

 

These XMP profiles are nothing more than pre-overclocked kits of ram anyways. Manually overclocking is no more dangerous, as I have seen boards kill IMC's with XMP profiles before. Luckily, I have not seen that since Sandy, so it seems like a lot of manufacturers have improved upon their training/auto settings. 

 

When overclocking memory, I give people the same advice i give when overclocking CPU's. Manually dial in voltages. Do not leave them on auto. When you hit a wall, then slowly increase voltage. That way, the board won't automatically go out of control and kill something. While these newer boards seem safer, I still do not trust letting them determine the voltage my hardware runs at. 

[Master Jimbob]

K guys. Mind u mange tank, I'm not advertising my mc channel. Im a serious tech geek and i'll post a video of my first build to prove that.