What is the lowest level you can reach? 3200MHz DDR4
What is the lowest level you can reach? 3200MHz DDR4
Hey everyone. I recently purchased some stunning G.Skill Flair X 3200 CL14 16GB (8x2) RAM and have started adjusting the clock speeds to boost performance a bit more. I didn’t even attempt to push the frequency beyond 3200MHz since my setup uses an ASUS TUF B-450m Plus Gaming motherboard, which only supports up to 3200MHz. I’m not even considering higher frequencies. Using Ryzen’s DRAM calculator helped me fine-tune the settings, and I’ve compiled a set that I think will work well. For your reference, my current configuration is: ASUS TUF B-450m Plus Gaming, Ryzen 5 3400G @4.1GHz (PBO off), Flair X F4-3200 CL14 16GB (8x2), MSI Armour 8GB OC RX580 GFX card, TX-750M Corsair 80 Plus Bronze power supply. My timing table is here as a guide for anyone interested. Let me know if you think I can push it even higher!
Typically it's suggested to reduce your clock latency by one, which is usually straightforward to do initially. Gradually adjust from there while remembering that clock latency has a bigger impact on RAM speed than you might think. For instance, if your system runs at stock speeds with a 3200 MHz clock, lowering the timing to 1300 and reducing the frequency to 3000 (especially if your memory controller isn't optimal or lacks proper binning) will still provide similar performance.
This conversation mainly focused on adjusting the CL timing. I can reduce it by one, but loading into BIOS always displays CL13. In Windows, CPU-Z under memory shows correct timings, yet still lists CL14 instead of 13. However, using CL12 would trigger a blue screen when entering my pin to log in. I understand that lowering the frequency and tightening timings can match performance with higher frequencies, but achieving very tight settings isn't straightforward. The idea of how far you can push 3200 MHz and timing precision was a bit unclear to me.