How to OC ram.
How to OC ram.
In short, I aim to boost my RAM speed. I have a 3200Mhz DDR4 unit from Colorful Battle-Ax (believed to be an Asian manufacturer). The product has XMP support which is currently active in my BIOS. I'm curious if I can enable it further for performance gains and need guidance on how to adjust it. Here are my system details if required: AMD Ryzen 5 5500 Gigabyte GA-A520M-DS3H-AC-Rev.1 Colorful Battle-Ax x2 8GB (16GB), 3200Mhz DDR4 Kingston 2.5 240GB SSD | WDC 3.5 1TB HDD (planned replacement soon), GTX 1050 Ti (scheduled replacement next week), Corsair CX550 550w 80+ Bronze. The link you shared appears to point to my RAM.
The simplest approach is to boost RAM capacity and verify stability, then continue with further adjustments. A reliable resource is available here: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/...k-ram.html
First step is to gather some software: CPU-Z ZenTimings, Thaiphoon Burner, Linpack Xtreme, Benchmate, TestMem5, and PYPrime. These tools help assess OC settings, evaluate performance, verify stability, and provide an initial estimate of what to expect. I’ll explain each as I proceed. Before starting, it’s wise to run some benchmark tests to confirm your system can improve. Benchmarking is essential; it lets you see how much gain you can achieve. Benchmate is ideal for memory-intensive tasks, so I’ll begin there, but feel free to explore others too. Keep monitoring performance regularly to ensure improvements are real. When entering Windows, execute these tests and record the outcomes.
Next, download Thaiphoon Burner. This utility reads your system’s specifications and identifies the memory type, which is crucial for determining how effectively your RAM can be optimized. Launch it, select a stick, and take a screenshot to verify the data was captured correctly—sometimes it doesn’t display properly.
Once you have the specs, set initial parameters: 1.35V DRAM voltage, 1.15V SOC voltage, and memory timings in the sequence tCL-tRCD-tRP-tRAS. Set tRCDRD and tRCDWR to match the standard tRCD value, configure the DRAM speed at 3200MT/s, set FCLK to 1600MHz, and adjust UCLK DIV1 to match MEMCLK.
Begin with these settings and confirm a successful boot. Gradually increase the memory frequency while simultaneously raising the FCLK to double the data rate (for example, from 3200MT/s to 3600MT/s). Continue until the system boots without issues. As you boost the DRAM speed, adjust the FCLK accordingly—halve it if you hit 3600MT/s, or switch to SOC or DRAM voltage if you exceed 4000MT/s.
If you’re unsure about your memory type, opt for 1.4V DRAM as a safe upper limit; most modern chips can handle up to 1.4V, though 1.45–1.5V is usually fine. For SOC voltage, the maximum is around 1.2V, but monolithic chips often support 1.3V.
After reaching the highest stable frequency, enter Windows and run stress tests—Linpack Xtreme is a solid choice for this workload (especially with a 14GB benchmark). Use CPU-Z to verify the actual RAM frequency, noting that the reported rate in CPU-Z reflects half of what your BIOS sets.
Proceed by systematically lowering timings until the system stalls, then incrementally increase them until stress tests pass. For timing data, start with the values provided by ZenTimings and aim for the lowest possible settings across all available options, focusing on subtimings since they often drive performance gains.
Allocate time for this process—optimizing timings can take several hours. Save BIOS profiles frequently to avoid losing progress, and consider splitting tests into smaller groups to streamline the evaluation. If you have further questions or need clarification on any step, feel free to ask.
It appears the density isn't specified, but SK Hynix production gives clues about the IC type. You can identify it by checking its maximum frequency capabilities. AFR/MFR won’t exceed around 3600, while CJR could reach roughly 3733-4000 and DJR might go up to 4400+. The timing settings will vary by kit, but you can find others’ tuning details on Reddit for guidance.
I’d like that, at least until the timing details are clear. Look for the highest frequency as I asked, and if it exceeds 4000MT/s, you can increase it to 1.5V memory voltage—though I’ll still aim to keep it lower since 1.5V isn’t risky with the DJR.
If your PC won't boot, checking the CMOS battery might be a good first step.
Reset the CMOS. It's also likely the system will start in safe mode if the frequency isn't working, either quietly by keeping memory active at 2133 or displaying a warning like "OC Failed! Enter BIOS to fix."