Received my new Ryzen CPU and motherboard, curious about the RAM selection.
Received my new Ryzen CPU and motherboard, curious about the RAM selection.
My earlier setup, about two days ago, started acting up and hasn't been reliable lately. Over the past year it's been inconsistent. It runs on MSI Z170 Gaming M7 with a 6700k, and newer BIOS versions have caused more problems. The RTX 3070 Ti and Soundblaster AE-5 (mostly 3070) put extra strain on the system. It works without overclocking, without a sound card, and with an RX 580—perfect for my wife. Unfortunately, I'm not ready to upgrade to a more expensive model (still need roughly $800 more). At Bestbuy I picked an ASUS B550-F Gaming, Ryzen 7 5800X, and Corsair Vengeance RGB RAM with two 16GB sticks. After further research it looks better to use four sticks rather than two (Gamers Nexus, various guides). Dual-rank is preferable to single-rank. If I misunderstood anything, let me know. I ended up with a 64GB configuration. The RAM isn't listed for QVL on ASUS's site and doesn't appear in CORSAIR's memory finder. The packaging only mentions Intel XMP certified, but CORSAIR's page says it's optimized for Ryzen and Intel. With DOCP enabled, the RAM runs at 18-22-22-42 with a 1T command rate (per CPU-Z and HWiNFO64). CPU-Z also shows dual-rank. 64GB is more than enough for gaming but I was considering 32GB for my 6700K build. Since I often have many tabs open in Chrome, it made sense. I'm planning to try Windows 11 soon, which might make the extra RAM useful. I don't mind spending $100-$120 more for 64GB if it performs better than four single sticks, most likely single-rank ones. The RAM is running at spec—18-22-22-42 at 3600MHz—and 1T is a nice improvement. They're dual-rank, which I appreciate. I've run some gaming benchmarks, including Cinebench and will test Heaven overnight. So, I'm feeling confident about this setup? Thanks for your help!
Not quite the same. Dual rank performs better than single rank, and using four sticks of single rank can simulate dual rank sticks, though it won’t give you the full advantage of four sticks. With dual rank sticks, you won’t see any extra benefit from having more memory, and you’re likely to run into problems at higher speeds. If you have dual rank sticks, consider swapping in the second kit—probably you don’t need 64GB and there’s no real speed gain. Essentially, it’s a waste of about $100. XMP equals DOCP; the main difference is Intel’s copyright. With Ryzen, the QVL isn’t as critical, except for the first and second generation models which struggled with it. If it boots at XMP, that’s okay. Your current timings aren’t great for Ryzen—aim for more CL16, but this build is decent if you don’t intend to overclock.
Ryzen 5000 and possibly 3000 should work with the specified DDR and speed. DDR4 and 3600 are usually compatible. Timing tweaks may vary, but XMP/DOCP should function without issues. Occasionally settings might cause problems or require a BIOS update, so testing is recommended.
I’m unsure about purchasing an x570 due to its fan, but the B550 looks more appealing. Through years of overclocking—from a Pentium 100MHz to an Athlon XP at 1.8GHz—I haven’t noticed significant gains beyond bragging rights when running an Athlon XP at 2.5GHz. I tried the 6700k at 4.5GHz on air with a Ryzen 360 AIO, but I tend to opt for higher-end models rather than slightly lower specs. If DDR5 were available, I’d have considered the i9 12900K. Right now I’m experimenting with timing adjustments and achieving solid FPS in games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Control using ray tracing without DLSS or FSR at 1440p.
B550 is fine, even better for a lot of people. Unless you need a ton of connectivity and/or a ton of Gen4 devices, there isn't really much of a reason to go X570. Honestly, I wouldn't bother. Corsair Vengeance RAM is very poorly binned, so getting it to overclock at all is an achievement. Odds of getting it to go any faster are slim to none.