# AM3 CPU + 1600 MHz RAM = Uh oh..?



## Rasputin (Jun 4, 2011)

AM3 CPU + 1600MHz RAM = Blue screen?...

Considering buying components and building my own system and I read that AMD AM3 socket CPUs do not get on well with 1600MHz memory. I had also heard that to work correctly the memory needs to be underclocked to 1333 MHz.

Can anyone tell me whether this is true or whats the deal ?

Thanks

EDIT: this was the memory I was looking at: Kingston 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz HyperX
and this was the CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 Black Edition 1090T 3.2GHz Socket...


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## Volkszorn88 (Jun 4, 2011)

Not true, judging by my own rig.

I have a 1090t @ 3.8ghz and 4gb G.skill flare ram @ 1600 and running just beautifully.


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## Damn_Smooth (Jun 4, 2011)

Mine too, I'm running 1600Mhz fine.


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## Rasputin (Jun 4, 2011)

Exactly what I wanted to hear, thanks.


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## Damn_Smooth (Jun 4, 2011)

That's what we're here for.


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## JrRacinFan (Jun 4, 2011)

I think you might be referring to 4x1GB 1600 kits. Although heard that's limited to how good the IMC is on certain cpu's. Just mentioning it.


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## scaminatrix (Jun 4, 2011)

Another one from me too (see specs). My RAM is rated 2134MHz CL9.
I've got 4 x 2GB DDR3 @ 1600MHz C7 at less than 1.5v (can't remember exactly) so I know 4 sticks can run at 1600.


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jun 4, 2011)

yea 1600 should work but you wont see much benefit unless you can get the Northbridge speed up to 3200mhz which isnt likely

NB = 2x the rams speed

1333 cl7 = 2600nb for a 1 to 1 ratio of memory read to l3 cache read speeds 
1600 = 3200nb for the same ratio but yea all i can say is good luck.

1600mhz will run but you wont see large gains do to the memory controller on the CPU being the limiting factor.


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 4, 2011)

I cant get my 965BE to run the 1600mhz with out bsod. I'm using 2x2GB DDR3 1600.


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## Damn_Smooth (Jun 4, 2011)

Dbiggs9 said:


> I cant get my 965BE to run the 1600mhz with out bsod. I'm using 2x2GB DDR3 1600.



Probably a stupid question, but have you tried using it with everything at stock?

Stock would also set the ram at 1333, but if it runs at that speed we could rule out completely bad sticks of ram.


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 4, 2011)

1333 works fines just 1600 gives me issues.


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## erocker (Jun 4, 2011)

What sticks of RAM are you using and at what timings do you have them set at?


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 4, 2011)

CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3...
Everything @ stock.


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## erocker (Jun 4, 2011)

Dbiggs9 said:


> CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3...
> Everything @ stock.



Oh, you're on s775... Don't really know what to tell you except to try looking for people with a similar setup. Since this is newer RAM and not designed for your system, thre's probablly some timings being set by default incorrectly. If you haven't try running a command rate of 2T instead of 1T.


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 4, 2011)

no Erocker, this is on my wifes PC AM3 PII 965BE.


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## erocker (Jun 4, 2011)

Dbiggs9 said:


> no Erocker, this is on my wifes PC AM3 PII 965BE.



What motherboard? Did you look at the QVL list to see if the memory is supported?


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 4, 2011)

GIGABYTE GA-870A-USB3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3...
yes the ram is listed under the QVL.


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## Goodman (Jun 4, 2011)

crazyeyesreaper said:


> yea 1600 should work but you wont see much benefit unless you can get the Northbridge speed up to 3200mhz which isnt likely
> 
> NB = 2x the rams speed
> 
> ...



Yep! i agree with this...
I can run my ram a little over 1800 but i don't see any differences over 1460 that it is right now with lower timing , so ill say lower timing will be better than higher speed IMO


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## erocker (Jun 4, 2011)

Try this:

tCL 9 -tRCD 9 -tRP 9 -tRAS 24 -tRC 41 -CR 2T Voltage 1.65 - 1.7v


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 4, 2011)

erocker said:


> Try this:
> 
> tCL 9 -tRCD 9 -tRP 9 -tRAS 24 -tRC 41 -CR 2T Voltage 1.65 - 1.7v



I will give it a shot later tonight when she goes to bed.


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## erocker (Jun 4, 2011)

BTW here are some results at various speeds: (I'm using relatively loose subtimings)

1333mhz 5 5-5-16  3000mhz CPU/NB






1600mhz 6 6-6-18 3000mhz CPU/NB





1600mhz 6 6-6-18 3200mhz CPU/NB





1800mhz 7 7-7-21 3000mhz CPU/NB


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## Jstn7477 (Jun 4, 2011)

Cool and Quiet may cause issues if you run higher RAM speeds. My 955BE C2 would be problematic at 1600MHz and not 1333 on CnQ, because the vcore goes down to 0.975 while the RAM stays at its normal speed. That chip was a dud for overclocking, though, so results may vary.


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## claylomax (Jun 4, 2011)

To the OP: here you can get the 1090t for £131.50 http://www.ginger6.co.uk/components-cpus-c-55_9255.html?page=2&sort=6a&filter_id=25


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jun 5, 2011)

erocker said:


> BTW here are some results at various speeds: (I'm using relatively loose subtimings)
> 
> 1333mhz 5 5-5-16  3000mhz CPU/NB
> http://i403.photobucket.com/albums/pp112/erocker414/cachemem3.png
> ...



we are aware there are gains erocker but most sticks of DDR3 ive seen dont really do low timings at 1600mhz on AMD very well its luck of the draw most of the time. my Mushkins can do 6 7 6 1333 but it takes 8 8 8 to get 1600 the average DDR3 ram wont push those timings on AMD very often and you are pushing lower timings  with the high speeds again something that you usually need some higher end sticks to do.


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## cookiemonster (Jun 5, 2011)

Hi its the Deneb Core that has problems with the 1600mhz not the Thuban, when i got my 965 be for my Gigabyte mobo I was advised by them to get 1333mhz.


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jun 5, 2011)

thuban is the same

its A Deneb die with 2 extra cores nothing else really its a bit better of a chip and the IMC is better but otherwise there pretty much the same.


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## erocker (Jun 5, 2011)

crazyeyesreaper said:


> we are aware there are gains erocker but most sticks of DDR3 ive seen dont really do low timings at 1600mhz on AMD very well its luck of the draw most of the time. my Mushkins can do 6 7 6 1333 but it takes 8 8 8 to get 1600 the average DDR3 ram wont push those timings on AMD very often and you are pushing lower timings  with the high speeds again something that you usually need some higher end sticks to do.



It's still pretty easy to find 1.8-1.9v 1333 cas 6 or 1600 cas 7 sticks out there and they do great. Thing is, his chip should be able to run 1600mhz cas 9 no problem. Perhaps they need a voltage bump as sometimes AMD stuff requires more RAM volts than stock.


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jun 5, 2011)

probably does need a volt bump could also be the CPU-NB needs a small bump.


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## cookiemonster (Jun 6, 2011)

I don't know the reason but that is what i was told and so far i have no problems and I run 

 Crucial 8GB (4x2GB) DDR3 1333MHz/PC3-10600 Ballistix Memory Kit CL7 (7-7-7-24) 1.65V


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## Mussels (Jun 6, 2011)

its just that since 1600 isnt an officially supported speed, that you have to manually set timings/voltages.


with thubans at least, the gains from 1600Mhz become greater, the higher you OC the CPU-NB link.


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## breakfromyou (Jun 6, 2011)

MSI 790FX-GD70 w/Phenom II X3 720 (bought it as soon as they came out--it's a C2 rev memory controller), paired up with some G.Skill ECO 2x2gb DDR3-1600 7-8-7-20 timings, 1T @ 1.4v no problem. I can't go any higher than 1650 on this system at these timings, and I think i've had it up to 1700 at CL9 before. On an Intel 1156 i7 860, same RAM, I managed 2000 @ CL8 no problem. 2100 CL8 was kinda tough, but I did manage to get it to run for a little while 

Point is: It depends on how tough your memory controller is, and since you have a Thuban, you shouldn't have any issues AT ALL. Those memory controllers are tough as hell compared to these old C2 deneb's. Id look into tweaking the more advanced settings in BIOS.

btw: This system at 1600 CL7 only benches a little better than 1333 CL6, but with better latency...so I suck with it. My NB clock is 2600, CPU at 3.6 GHz.


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## Dbiggs9 (Jun 6, 2011)

erocker, i did them setting with no luck as op say's might be true...... 965-c3


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## JrRacinFan (Jun 6, 2011)

Dbiggs9 said:


> erocker, i did them setting with no luck as op say's might be true...... 965-c3



Erocker is running a Thuban die. Refer to the post above yours.


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## Horrux (Jun 8, 2011)

double post. Apologies.


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## Horrux (Jun 8, 2011)

crazyeyesreaper said:


> thuban is the same
> 
> its A Deneb die with 2 extra cores nothing else really its a bit better of a chip and the IMC is better but otherwise there pretty much the same.



That's pretty incorrect, given that a 6-core Thuban runs at the same TDP as a 4-core Deneb. There certainly ARE changes in the circuitry.

One example of such differences is that the Deneb only allows 4 sticks of DDR2 at 800, but 2 sticks will run at 1333. With Thuban, you can run 4 sticks of DDR2 at 1333 no problem.

So there is a difference on the memory controller, most definitely.


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jun 8, 2011)

which i mentioned unless you dont know what IMC means

and no they are the same

think of thuban as a new revision to Deneb

each core in thuban has the same performance as a core in deneb

the only real difference is thuban allows slightly better overclocks do to a tweak in the design but its by no means different

its like saying a Core 2 Duo is completely different from a Core 2 Quad when in reality its not the quad was just 2 Duos on the same die

Thuban is the same as Deneb so far as it uses the same architecture, same design, offers same features same core performance same IPC performance, it just overclocks a little better

and Deneb can run 4 sticks of 1333 without issue, the only reason they try and say a Deneb cant is do to the stock CPU-NB voltage

but yes overall THuban is a Deneb die everything is the exact same besides the 2 more cores added. theres nothing new to thuban besides 2 more cores and a better revision,


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## JrRacinFan (Jun 8, 2011)

@Reaper

I was always under the knowledge of Thuban dies have a stronger IMC. I mean is that true? Not saying they are totally different but they are unique.


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## Horrux (Jun 8, 2011)

crazyeyesreaper said:


> which i mentioned unless you dont know what IMC means
> 
> and no they are the same
> 
> ...



OK so to you "a better revision" makes them "the same", fine.

A lot of people spend time making sure they get the right revision of whatever chip they get. They don't seem to think they are "the same". Question of point of view I guess.


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## Mussels (Jun 8, 2011)

JrRacinFan said:


> @Reaper
> 
> I was always under the knowledge of Thuban dies have a stronger IMC. I mean is that true? Not saying they are totally different but they are unique.



they are stronger for sure. its known fact. while deneb did good for itself, thuban lets you go further.


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jun 8, 2011)

The IMC is better on thuban but 



Horrux said:


> That's pretty incorrect, given that a 6-core Thuban runs at the same TDP as a 4-core Deneb. There certainly ARE changes in the circuitry.
> 
> One example of such differences is that the Deneb only allows 4 sticks of DDR2 at 800, but 2 sticks will run at 1333. With Thuban, you can run 4 sticks of DDR2 at 1333 no problem.
> 
> So there is a difference on the memory controller, most definitely.



the above is a load of bullshit

Thuban dosent magically support more sticks of ram then a Deneb die, its a REVISION thats slightly better it dosent dramatically change a damn thing.

As Thuban is E0 stepping i would expect it to be better then the Aging C3 stepping of the Deneb cores but these stepping changes again dont change ram support

both are 800mhz x4 sticks or 2 sticks at 1066 same goes to DDR3 they support 2x sticks of 1333 in dualchannel it makes no mention of 4 sticks and uh Thuban never supported 1333mhz DDR2 out of box lolz but im gonna say by common sense that was a typo, eitherway it makes no difference because a simple voltage bump on the CPU-NB means everything is stable its AMDs low CPU-NB voltage that causes the ram to be unstable. and since the CPU-NB is safe to around 1.4-1.45v and its default is 1.1 theres no real issue in upping it to 1.2v to gain full stability, some chips are just more stable with 4 sticks then others.

Example this chip here is perfectly stable stock voltage with 4 sticks of ram with no tweaking on DDR3 at 1333mhz CL7 but DDR2 it requires a small volt bump for 4 sticks 1066 to be stable no chips are exactly the same, the OP just needs a small volt bump on the CPU-NB and presto problem solved. Its not rocket science the Thuban IMC scales far better but it still has the same limitation as Deneb.


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## erocker (Jun 8, 2011)

I ran four sticks at 1333 and 1600mhz with my 965 BE C3 without an issue. Thuban can do it a little better since it has a stronger IMC. "Little better" meaning a higher IMC frequency.


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## Neuromancer (Jun 8, 2011)

Thuban IMC is noticeably stronger.  Which is why Deneb memory oc's were recorded at 1900 and Thuban was able to easily break the 2K mark. (2200 in a google search.)

The issues with running 1600 MHZ RAM on AM3, was some boards have an issue with the divider, IE, you cant set 1600 MHZ in the BIOS and boot stable, but you can set 1333 and then bring the HTREF clock up to about 240 and run fine. 

AMD also recommends CPUNB at 3 times the ACTUAL memory speed. So for 1600 MHZ RAM (800MHz) you will want to run 2400 MHz CPUNB speed. 

As stated before you may need to increase CPUNB volts to get stability.


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## erocker (Jun 8, 2011)

Neuromancer said:


> AMD also recommends CPUNB at 3 times the ACTUAL memory speed. So for 1600 MHZ RAM (800MHz) you will want to run 2400 MHz CPUNB speed.
> 
> As stated before you may need to increase CPUNB volts to get stability.



I finde that the memory bottleneck starts to alleviate when CPUNB is brought up to 3000mhz while running 1600mhz ram. Then again, if I were running my 1600mhz RAM at higher/looser timings it could probablly do with less CPUNB frequency. So really, you want as close to four times the speed on the CPUNB then the RAM. It's also a noticable performance difference be it on startup or while gaming. So really, you want your CPUNB at 3 times the acutal memory speed at minimum.

See attatchment


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## Mussels (Jun 9, 2011)

erocker said:


> I finde that the memory bottleneck starts to alleviate when CPUNB is brought up to 3000mhz while running 1600mhz ram. Then again, if I were running my 1600mhz RAM at higher/looser timings it could probablly do with less CPUNB frequency. So really, you want as close to four times the speed on the CPUNB then the RAM. It's also a noticable performance difference be it on startup or while gaming. So really, you want your CPUNB at 3 times the acutal memory speed at minimum.
> 
> See attatchment



my bottleneck started to reduce past 2.6, i didnt fight mine upto 3.


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

Read this informative post here: http://forums.guru3d.com/showpost.php?p=3887788&postcount=6

Apparently, running an AM3 CPU with ram faster than 1333 can damage the CPU's memory controller with time.


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## Mussels (Jul 1, 2011)

xsever said:


> Read this informative post here: http://forums.guru3d.com/showpost.php?p=3887788&postcount=6
> 
> Apparently, running an AM3 CPU with ram faster than 1333 can damage the CPU's memory controller with time.



nope. running stupid voltages through it could, but we all already knew that.


read his post, he doesnt actually know anything nor has he done any tests. he's just repeating stuff that others have told him (which sounds like saying "dont run it out of spec or we dont know what will happen")

i mean he literally says "dont run above 1333 or your system will fall over"

"From my own testing, RAM above 1333 Mhz can be extremely fussy if you insist on trying to run in Ganged Mode and will often return an Overclock warning at start-up and revert to 1333 Mhz."


this just sounds like he never manually set his timings/voltages properly. i dont think that post holds any valid information, its just regurgitating material from elsewhere with his own asusmptions mixed in.


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

Mussels said:


> nope. running stupid voltages through it could, but we all already knew that.
> 
> read his post, he doesnt actually know anything nor has he done any tests. he's just repeating stuff that others have told him (which sounds like saying "dont run it out of spec or we dont know what will happen")
> 
> ...



I am receiving my 955 and 1600 9-9-9-24 1.5V in the mail today. What do you suggest I do? Run them @ 1600 with their default timings and 1.5V, or run them @ 1300 with tighter timings and maybe lower voltage?

I can see you have a Thuban and 1600 RAM so I am interested in your opinion.

Thank you,


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## crazyeyesreaper (Jul 1, 2011)

tighter timings 

go for 1333mhz CL7 with 2600mhz NB speeds both should be easily attainable and will give you a memory to L3 cache speed of 1 to 1


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

crazyeyesreaper said:


> tighter timings
> 
> go for 1333mhz CL7 with 2600mhz NB speeds both should be easily attainable and will give you a memory to L3 cache speed of 1 to 1



Thanks for the tip. I use K10Stat for overclocking and it's very handy and allows all sort of modifications (voltages, NB, Core Control, etc..)


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## cheesy999 (Jul 1, 2011)

cookiemonster said:


> Hi its the Deneb Core that has problems with the 1600mhz not the Thuban, when i got my 965 be for my Gigabyte mobo I was advised by them to get 1333mhz.



no, it just takes some work since its hard to get a good NB clock on Deneb when using DDR3, i'm managing to run 1600mhz cas 8 at the moment

(a lot of Denebs can't go too high but be sure to get every last mhz out of your NB clock, makes so much difference its almost unbelievable)


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## erocker (Jul 1, 2011)

With Deneb's, stepping matters also. C2 = not so good, C3 = better. My 965BE C3 can run 1600mhz cas 6 with a 2750mhz NB. Anything after 2750mhz it requires too many volts or I have to reduce RAM frequency. My 1100T can do 1600 cas 6 with 3200mhz on the NB at 1.3v. Results vary from chip to chip. If xsever has a c3 stepping chip, I would try for 1400mhz on the RAM with cl6 or 7 and 2800mhz NB would give optimal performance.


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

erocker said:


> If xsever has a c3 stepping chip, I would try for 1400mhz on the RAM with cl6 or 7 and 2800mhz NB.



I'll keep that in mind, but if I were going to go with 1400, I might as well stick to 1333, which is standard, and then focus on timings instead of voltage and NB.


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## erocker (Jul 1, 2011)

xsever said:


> I'll keep that in mind, but if I were going to go with 1400, I might as well stick to 1333, which is standard, and then focus on timings instead of voltage and NB.



Without focusing on your NB, all the rest is useless. NB directly affects it all.


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

erocker said:


> Without focusing on your NB, all the rest is useless. NB directly affects it all.



If I change my 1600 RAM's speed in BIOS to 1333 and use 1333 timings, would I still need to modify the NB to accommodate this "underclocking"?


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## erocker (Jul 1, 2011)

xsever said:


> If I change my 1600 RAM's speed in BIOS to 1333 and use 1333 timings, would I still need to modify the NB to accommodate this "underclocking"?



For maximum benefit, yes. Just set it to 2600mhz 1.25v. (It's all perfectly safe and well within AMD specifications.)


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

erocker said:


> For maximum benefit, yes. Just set it to 2600mhz 1.25v. (It's all perfectly safe and well within AMD specifications.)



I'll go with that and start fine-tuning as I progress. So this should be better than running the memory controller of the 955 at 1600?

I mean if there is no harm to the CPU, I would rather run the RAM at their full speed.


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## erocker (Jul 1, 2011)

xsever said:


> I'll go with that and start fine-tuning as I progress. So this should be better than running the memory controller of the 955 at 1600?
> 
> I mean if there is no harm to the CPU, I would rather run the RAM at their full speed.



The memory controller is actually the NB. It doesn't make much sense to run the RAM at full speed if you're not going to get any performance out of it. AMD likes lower timings as opposed to a higher frequency.


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## xsever (Jul 1, 2011)

erocker said:


> The memory controller is actually the NB. It doesn't make much sense to run the RAM at full speed if you're not going to get any performance out of it. AMD likes lower timings as opposed to a higher frequency.



NOTED. We can then conclude that 1333 & tight timings > 1600 & regular timings.

Thank you!


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## erocker (Jul 1, 2011)

xsever said:


> NOTED. We can then conclude that 1333 & tight timings > 1600 & regular timings.
> 
> Thank you!



Absolutely!


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

erocker said:


> Absolutely!



I benchmarked 1333 with tight timings vs 1600 with stock 9-9-9-24 and the 1600 configuration beats the 1333 one in both bandwidths and latency.

Care to comment? Am I missing something?


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## Pestilence (Jul 2, 2011)

Those are some dismal memory benchmark figures


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

Pestilence said:


> Those are some dismal memory benchmark figures



Done using AIDA64 Memory Benchmark Tool.

*RAM/Timings    Read Write Copy Latency*
1333 7-7-7-21     8945 7484 11248 50.1
1600 9-9-9-24     9095 7486 11524 49.5


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## erocker (Jul 2, 2011)

xsever said:


> I benchmarked 1333 with tight timings vs 1600 with stock 9-9-9-24 and the 1600 configuration beats the 1333 one in both bandwidths and latency.
> 
> Care to comment? Am I missing something?



Strange. All the testing I've done and others have done say otherwise. Honestly, go with whatever works best for you. What is your CPU/NB frequency set at?  Based off of the post above me, you need to increase the CPU/NB frequency.



Pestilence said:


> Those are some dismal memory benchmark figures



What are you speaking of? Where are these figures?


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

erocker said:


> What is your CPU/NB frequency set at?



Currently at 2200.


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## erocker (Jul 2, 2011)

Try getting it to at least 2600mhz. I'm not sure if your chip is a C2 or C3 stepping though. You can check that in CPU-Z.


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

erocker said:


> Try getting it to at least 2600mhz. I'm not sure if your chip is a C2 or C3 stepping though. You can check that in CPU-Z.



My CPU is a C3 as confirmed by CPU-Z. If I were to overclock the NB further, wouldn't the gain of 1600 over 1333 remain relatively the same? I am trying to stay away from overclocking the CPU/NB and 1600 seems to be a better performer in that case.

I am open for tips though.


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## erocker (Jul 2, 2011)

xsever said:


> My CPU is a C3 as confirmed by CPU-Z. If I were to overclock the NB further, wouldn't the gain of 1600 over 1333 remain relatively the same? I am trying to stay away from overclocking the CPU/NB and 1600 seems to be a better performer in that case.
> 
> I am open for tips though.



The CPU/NB is still bottlenecking the system.


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

erocker said:


> The CPU/NB is still bottlenecking the system.



So you're saying raise the NB and achieve better timings with 1600? What are the safe limits for the NB?


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## erocker (Jul 2, 2011)

xsever said:


> So you're saying raise the NB and achieve better timings with 1600? What are the safe limits for the NB?



Keep it under 1.35v and watch CPU temps. I gave the screenshot to show what a high CPU/NB can do. Pay no attention to my RAM.

Try for 2600mhz. I can achieve that on my 720 x3.... which I'm trying to get running again...


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

erocker said:


> Keep it under 1.35v and watch CPU temps. I gave the screenshot to show what a high CPU/NB can do. Pay no attention to my RAM.



I'll test and see how much performance gain there is and then decide whether it's worth it or not.

Thanks again.


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## xsever (Jul 2, 2011)

How do you personally test the stability of timings? By stress testing the CPU using prime95 and such?


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## erocker (Jul 2, 2011)

xsever said:


> How do you personally test the stability of timings? By stress testing the CPU using prime95 and such?



Most use Memtest, as do I however I find that playing any Source engine game really loves to let you know if your RAM is stable or not. It's more fun that way.


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## Hayder_Master (Jul 2, 2011)

WTF, i pass 1600mhz with gigabyte mother board


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

Hayder_Master said:


> WTF, i pass 1600mhz with gigabyte mother board



Why so?


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## scaminatrix (Jul 3, 2011)

I hit 1933mhz C9-9-9 with my old RAM (2x2GB OCZ Reaper HPC 1600 C7) with my gammy un-unlockable 555 BE and C4F if it's relevant (see specs).


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## repman244 (Jul 3, 2011)

I have a different CPU but may help a little anyway, I was playing around with CPU/NB and RAM for the whole day today. I concluded that overclocking CPU/NB gave "massive" gains. Even if you do run RAM at 1600MHz it does not give such a boost from 1333MHz as CPU/NB does from stock 2000 to 2600/2800MHz.
I'm currently running CPU at 3.5GHz ~1.27V (not much but it's hot here and I mostly do rendering all the time), CPU/NB  2800MHz at I think ~1.25V, RAM running 1333MHz 7-7-7-21 1.65V. I haven't done a lot of stability testing but it's stable rendering for 3 hours now, I'll run stability tests after I finish.

From my experience I see no point in ramping RAM freq. since the IMC on AMD is weak. That's why you see quite a big boost when overclocking the CPU/NB. Try 1333MHz with tight timings (try using 1T command rate, sometimes it can provide 4-5% boost but it's harder to get it stable at 1T) and ramp up CPU/NB as high as you can.


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

repman244 said:


> I have a different CPU but may help a little anyway, I was playing around with CPU/NB and RAM for the whole day today. I concluded that overclocking CPU/NB gave "massive" gains. Even if you do run RAM at 1600MHz it does not give such a boost from 1333MHz as CPU/NB does from stock 2000 to 2600/2800MHz.
> I'm currently running CPU at 3.5GHz ~1.27V (not much but it's hot here and I mostly do rendering all the time), CPU/NB  2800MHz at I think ~1.25V, RAM running 1333MHz 7-7-7-21 1.65V. I haven't done a lot of stability testing but it's stable rendering for 3 hours now, I'll run stability tests after I finish.
> 
> From my experience I see no point in ramping RAM freq. since the IMC on AMD is weak. That's why you see quite a big boost when overclocking the CPU/NB. Try 1333MHz with tight timings (try using 1T command rate, sometimes it can provide 4-5% boost but it's harder to get it stable at 1T) and ramp up CPU/NB as high as you can.



Thanks for all the information you provided. I will keep the thread updated with my tests.


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## repman244 (Jul 3, 2011)

Don't know if it's any help to you since you have a different CPU and RAM but I ran AIDA64:


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## erocker (Jul 3, 2011)

repman244 said:


> Don't know if it's any help to you since you have a different CPU and RAM but I ran AIDA64:
> 
> http://img838.imageshack.us/img838/3826/unledzwe.png



Are you able to run a command rate of 1 with those sticks? You should be able to and it may help get you more performance.


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## repman244 (Jul 3, 2011)

erocker said:


> Are you able to run a command rate of 1 with those sticks? You should be able to and it may help get you more performance.



I did try but not with these clocks, I ran 1T with RAM at 1333MHz 8-8-8-34 and CPU/NB at 2400MHz and I was stable.
I'll try to get it to 1T with the clocks I have now but I'm not sure if it will be stable since I'm running 4 sticks and it puts more strain on the IMC than just 2. I'll try that tomorrow, need some sleep now...2:30 AM -.-


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

Here are my results:





1333 @ 7-7-7-21 and NB @2200





1600 @ 9-9-9-24 and NB @2200


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## erocker (Jul 3, 2011)

xsever said:


> Here are my results:
> 
> 
> [url]http://img818.imageshack.us/img818/7571/133377721.png[/URL]
> ...



Your NB is still at 2200mhz.


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

erocker said:


> Your NB is still at 2200mhz.



These are old tests. I just got back home and I am going to get started now. Going for 8-8-8-21 first @ 1600.


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## repman244 (Jul 3, 2011)

Get the CPU/NB at least to 2600MHz or even 2800MHz, after that you need to start using a lot more voltage so for me it's not worth it. Also, try using 1T and compare it to 2T.


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

The BIOS won't post with NB @ 2600 1.25V and RAM @ 1600 8-8-8-21 and 1.610V.

I tried many times and had to clear the CMOS each time.


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## erocker (Jul 3, 2011)

xsever said:


> The BIOS won't post with NB @ 2600 1.25V and RAM @ 1600 8-8-8-21 and 1.610V.
> 
> I tried many times and had to clear the CMOS each time.



You can try 8-8-8-24 1.65v. It is very possible that your chip has a weak memory controller. I can run 2600 NB on my x3 720 C2 at stock volts. Try 1.3v on the CPU/NB


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## repman244 (Jul 3, 2011)

Tried running 1T command rate, so far no issues but I'll have run run some stability tests.






@xsever try the setup erocker recommended, maybe try RAM at 1333MHz 8-8-8-24 1.65V (if stable try with 1T command rate), and NB at 2600 (if not stable try 2400) with 1.27-1.30V

@erocker how could I test if CPU/NB is stable (or will it just bomb at post), I want to try with lowest volts as possible.


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

I raised the FSB from 200 to 206 so the CPU now runs at 4.12GHz (1.376V) and RAM now runs at 1648 9-9-9-24 1.5V.

Here are the results:




I am going to try 1372 @ 7-7-7-20 1T and see if it's better than 1648 9-9-9-24 2T.


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## repman244 (Jul 3, 2011)

And at what frequency is the CPU/NB running? Yes try those timings and see if it's better (is your RAM rated for 1.5V or 1.65V?).


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## xsever (Jul 3, 2011)

1372 @ 7-7-7-20 1T proved to be a tad slower than 1648 9-9-9-24 2T.

CPU/NB at 2200.

I tried 1648 8-8-8-24 2T with 1.65V but the BIOS would display boot failure and force me to revert.

I think this concludes my journey for now.


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