How to make RAM perform at its claimed rates without using XMP?
How to make RAM perform at its claimed rates without using XMP?
Hi, it has been more than a decade since I last owned a desktop computer. I recently purchased a new one with these specifications: AMD Ryzen 9 3950x, ASRock x570 Taichi, Corsair Vengeance LPX CMK32GX4M2E3200C16 DDR4 (3200Mhz 4x16 GB), Noctua NH-D15S, Corsair RM650. After some research, I discovered that you need to manually adjust the RAM speed for it to operate at its advertised rate. I updated my BIOS and chose the XMP profile with a speed of 3200. I saved the changes and restarted my PC. The system rebooted but appeared to have issues, as it couldn't display the ASRock screen or access the BIOS settings. After several power cycles, the screen finally appeared and Windows 10 launched. I checked Task Manager and BIOS again, but the RAM speed remained at 2133Mhz. I attempted this process once more, suspecting a possible oversight, but the result was unchanged.
Currently, I just want the RAM to function at its rated speed. I thought adjusting XMP was sufficient, but it seems that wasn't the case. I found tutorials on manually setting timings with DRAM and CPUz, but I’m still unsure if I missed any steps or made a mistake. Could anyone help identify what I might have overlooked?
Ryzens do not favor 4x sticks. Run cpu-z, it will indicate whether the RAM is single or dual rank (SR or DR, distinct from single/dual channel). The situation is that you applied XMP, which mainly works with 2x sticks and should be stable. However, with four sticks this caused a bios instability, leading bios to default to 3x before XMP and revert back to the last stable configuration before XMP. Consequently, RAM operates at 2133MHz. If RAM is single rank and no other adjustments are made, the maximum stable speed with auto startup is 2933MHz. For dual rank, it's around 2667MHz, but these require manual tuning. It might be achievable to reach 3200MHz, though this would likely need changes to RAM settings, motherboard, and CPU voltages as they all interact within the memory controller system.
It's interesting how the situation unfolded with the reboot attempt. It's odd that the RAM behavior was so different from what I expected. I wonder if the person who helped me build my PC didn't inform me or perhaps assumed I already knew. Checking the rank confirmed it's dual. Should I consider moving forward to improve performance, or is there another way to address this?
I wouldn't attribute the problem to the 4 sticks of RAM. Some users are receiving four sticks to achieve speeds of 3000 series Ryzen and x570 boards at rated or higher rates. Your concern likely stems from having two separate 2x16GB kits.
F4-3200C16Q-64GTZN - Overview - G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd.
I purchased the 4 sticks from the same store, identical in model. I also verified all 4 slots and confirmed they display the same timings as the image above. Is the G Skill you linked more effective for full-speed performance with these sticks?
What is the most suitable next step to improve their speed at this stage?
4 separate modules or
a set of 4 modules or
two sets of 2 modules?
I cannot ensure anything, but the NEO series RAM is tailored specifically for the 3000 series Ryzen and x570 chipset.
CMK32GX4M2E3200C16 is not a (3200Mhz 4x16 GB) package. Combining different kits isn't assured by Corsair, and you're free to test compatibility as needed without any assurances. XMP profiles apply to the memory sold, with no promises about how multiple kits will function together.
Do you truly require 32 GB RAM? If yes, you might consider a 2x16GB 3600 kit like this:
F4-3600C16D-32GVKC - Overview - G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd.
Ripjaws V series DDR4 DRAM memory is crafted for modern looks and strong performance, making it perfect for setting up a new PC or enhancing your existing system's memory.
www.gskill.com
G.Skil claims compatibility with your motherboard.
If you're not working on 3D modeling or rendering or similar tasks, 16 GB should suffice for most systems.
I’d either remove all that RAM and install a compatible 16 GB 3600 kit, or attempt to fit just two sticks (included together) in slots A2 and B2 to test if they run at 3200 and retrieve the remaining sticks.
G.Skill also offers several 16 GB kits advertised as compatible with your motherboard (up to 3600):
https://www.gskill.com/configurator...524725289&chipset=1562578957&model=1562636787
I purchased two identical model kits, each with 2x16GB of RAM.
If I decide to return or sell the existing RAM, I’ll check the details.
According to CPUz, all four sticks share the same timings, which suggests they’re likely the same product.
I’m not planning heavy gaming; I mainly use simulations that depend on CPU and RAM performance.
Having more RAM at slower speeds seems better for my needs than fewer at faster speeds.
I’ll probably look into tutorials to manually adjust RAM timings and try to improve speeds.