Is XMP on all Intel CPUs?

Sparktown · Mar 8, 2015

My question is do all Intel CPUs have XMP (which allows Intel systems to use over 1600 mhz of RAM) or is it only on K-series (unlocked) Intel CPUs?

It is surprisingly hard to find a definitive answer to this. Nothing on XMP support appears listed in the Intel ARK Menu. It just says that current gen CPUs are meant for DDR3 1333 / 1600? Is it very unclear what specific CPUs can or cannot use XMP.

Is the mobo the only limiting factor? For example, can you not use XMP on any CPU in a H97 mobo, but you can use it on any Intel CPU in a Z97 mobo?

I'm researching my first build and I'm wondering if CPUs like the i5-4460, i5-4590, i5-4690(non-k version) support XMP.

Please let me know soon. Thanks.

k1114 · Mar 8, 2015

Any modern can use xmp but you misunderstood what xmp is for. It's pretty much just a preset so the ram has the right settings. It's not for using ram over 1600, that's ocing (depending on the cpu) and depends on the mobo/cpu. What intel ark is saying is the stock ram speed that the cpu supports.

endeavour37a · Mar 8, 2015

good question.......

Sparktown · Mar 8, 2015

k1114 :

Thanks for the response, but I don't understand. Is XMP also the name for whatever Intel BIOS utility/program handles normal (1333/1600) RAM profiles? It really seems like XMP is very specifically for using RAM over 1600, which (according to Intel at least) is OCing.

In other words, XMP gives Intel CPUs preset profiles for using RAM over 1600, even though Intel CPUs don't "officially" support RAM over 1600. Thus enabling XMP is considered OCing. This is why its not enabled default. As far as I know, you can't just plug DDR3 2400 sticks into a Z97 mobo and go. The 2400 sticks will be limited to 1600 until you specifically enable XMP (or OC another way).

According to the Intel website: "Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (Intel® XMP) allows you to overclock compatible DDR3/DDR4 memory to perform beyond standard specifications. It’s designed to enhance the gaming features built into Intel® technology–based PCs. If you like to overclock and squeeze as much performance from your PC as possible, then memory based on Intel XMP gives you that extra edge you need to dominate—without breaking a sweat."

endeavour37a · Mar 8, 2015

Let my try to address your questions as best I can. Your questions are too broad, reach across to many areas, nothing is black and white, their is no simple "yes" or "no" answer, this works and that does not. Perhaps you could research this and make a post here on your findings, serious suggestion.

Do all Intel CPU's support XMP, no. The 8088, 286, 386 and 486 don't, the i cores do. Does H97 support XMP, some do and some don't. There is a relationship between the MC and DRAM voltage, it should not get too far apart. Who controls the memory I/O speed, BIOS or PCH? Why ask here, go find the truth and let us know.

Sparktown · Mar 8, 2015

endeavour37a :

Do all Intel i-cores (i3, i5, i7), even the locked non-k i-cores (such as the i5s I listed), support XMP? Would I be able to use XMP with any modern i-core CPU as long as I had a Z97 motherboard?

Do you know if Intel lists this information anywhere? I haven't been able to find it.

k1114 · Mar 8, 2015

Yes they all support xmp. Even 1333 ram will have xmp and you can select it. It's not just ocing. There are also other jedec profiles on the ram as well. You can still manually oc ram by setting it all yourself but the mobo needs to support ram ocing. You don't need a k cpu to oc ram.

endeavour37a · Mar 8, 2015

Sparktown :

As k1114 just said, all i core CPU's (non-k included) support XMP, even the Pentium G3258, I concur. You can use XMP on any Z97 mb with any CPU you stick on it.

People come here for answers that are to lazy and stupid to find it on their own generally. We provide a simple and quick answer to their questions. You want proof, proof of what we say, prove we are wrong. I did not just happen to be here, I spent an hour finding the answer to your question, that is why I said there is no answer to your question.

Do you think k1114 and I are playing a game of what we think is true with you? We are serious in this to provide direction. Give us a MB, CPU and DRAM, we can tell you if it will work together. Prompt us to make a general statement of truth and false, wright or wrong, too many variables in this game to do that.

Sparktown · Mar 8, 2015

k1114 :

Thanks for clarifying. The way Intel markets XMP makes things very confusing. I think I'm starting to understand what you were saying - I found an Intel data sheet showing a bunch of 1330 and 1600 XMP profiles.

So, all current Intel CPUs support "XMP" (even locked non-k series CPUs). There are XMP profiles for 1333 & 1600 RAM - using those don't count as OCing because Intel CPUs officially supports 1333/1600 RAM There are also XMP profiles over 1600 - selecting one of those is what counts as OCing the CPU.

Many/most/all H97 mobos don't support over 1600 Mhz RAM. However, this is unrelated to whether or not an Intel CPU supports XMP. A Intel CPU in an H97 mobo that can't support over 1600 just won't support XMP profiles that go over 1600.

Do I have that all straight? Thanks again.

k1114 · Mar 9, 2015

It's not really that they don't support xmp over 1600, it's that it doesn't allow it. Only certain chipsets allow ocing. It's like an auto oc, and auto or manual oc, an oc is an oc so doesn't allow it. Xmp does not guarantee it will be stable.

endeavour37a · Mar 9, 2015

Wait a second, I found 3 MSI H97 boards that support up to DDR3 2667. So it is my assumption whether XMP is allowed or not lives in the BIOS, not the PCH/Chipset.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130784
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130782
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130786

I am not trying to beat a dead horse here, but I feel your conclusions are wrong about the H97. This is from the new DDR4 story just posted here today, it brings light to this discussion.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gskill-f4-2666c16q2-64gb-ddr4-2666,4067.html

Quote:
"It wasn’t so long ago that DDR3 was limited to 4GB per module. This became strikingly clear when one of my friends, a technician, was asked to upgrade a customer’s LGA 1156-based machines. Even with the latest firmware, none of those boards supported any of his 8GB DIMMs. It wasn’t until LGA 1155 that we saw a platform capable of addressing higher-density parts. And speaking of density, early DDR3 modules were limited by the capacity of available DRAM ICs to 2GB per module. "

This is why I think it is the BIOS that enables or disables XMP regardless of CPU or PCH.

Perhaps of interest.......
http://www.tomsitpro.com/articles/intel-xeon-processor-soc-server,1-2490.html
Quote:
"Memory can be either DDR3L or DDR4. The Intel Xeon D's controller can handle both, and it will be up to a motherboard manufacturer to decide which configuration to use."

Skylake will also be DDR3L/DDR4, I guess not reverent here but just something to look forward to.

k1114 · Mar 9, 2015

Do not confuse xmp with ocing. You're making the same mistake he did. Xmp is on all haswell chipsets and cpus. Period.

He said "Many/most/all H97 mobos don't support over 1600" so he's really not saying h97 couldn't oc ram. But let me clarify that mobo manufacturers have enabled ocing on some h97, h87, b85, h81 mobos.

endeavour37a · Mar 9, 2015

I don't think I am, confusing XMP with OCing, I agree they are 2 separate things as you say. The thing we seem to see differently is what enables XMP, I think it is a function of the BIOS, not the PCH or CPU. I think we are in agreement all Haswells will run XMP settings, all PCH will also, IF the BIOS lets them.

So it's a function of the BIOS, the way I see it anyway. Hope I explained myself right.....

Let me see if I can find someone to help us, well help me anyway get to the bottom of this.

EDIT: I asked Pinnhead, SR-71 and Tradesman to help clear this up, hope you don't mind...

Pinhedd · Mar 9, 2015

Hi,

there seems to be a little bit of confusion here.

XMP is not a CPU feature, it is a firmware feature. In particular, it is a feature that allows the firmware to interpret sections of the DRAM SPD beyond the standard JEDEC configuration region and use the data stored within that region to calculate and configure non-standard performance profiles.

By default, x86 firmware will always configure the SDRAM according to JEDEC specifications stored in the SPD (the DIMM's parameter ROM) and the memory controller's parameters. This ensures maximum probability of baseline operation. When JEDEC specifications are adhered to, the probability of the memory not operating at all is minimized; when JEDEC specifications are violated, the probability that the memory will not work, or will not work consistently, rises dramatically.

The capabilities of XMP are limited by the memory controller's capabilities. For example, if the memory controller is physically incapable of being programmed to generate the clock frequency specified by the XMP profile then XMP is worthless. Furthermore, even if the memory controller is capable of being programmed to generate the necessary clock rate there's no guarantee that the memory controller will be able to train the signals, keep jitter in check, properly compensate for signal skew, centre the eye, etc... there are a huge number of things that can go wrong and it only takes one to render everything inoperable.

In addition to being a technical feature, XMP is also an Intel trademark. DIMM vendors that wish to use the XMP trademark must submit their designs for testing and validation by Intel. Intel does perform significant testing to ensure that XMP branded memory is going to work as well as possible when operating outside of JEDEC specifications; however, Intel does not provide a guarantee like they do when the memory is configured within Intel's specifications (which are a platform specific extension of JEDEC's). With that said, many users often take memory even further, often by installing multiple identical sets of DIMMs. Whereas a single set of DIMM's (one DIMM per channel) are tested to work nicely with the XMP profile alone, two sets installed together (two DIMMs per channel) may require additional tweaking above and beyond simply enabling XMP.

endeavour37a · Mar 9, 2015

Thank you Pinhedd for taking the time helping us here. I asked you because of the long conversation we had sometime ago about DRAM, you pointed me in the right direction to educate myself a bit, Thanks.

Just to be clear, you said XMP is a firmware feature, right? If so then it is a BIOS feature, not a CPU (MC) or PCH (Chipset) feature. The MC must of course be able to carry out the XMP profile setting, the proper bus clock, CL and voltage, if I understand you right. the PCH really has nothing to do with it because the MC lives in the CPU now days, right?

Let me pose a hypothetical question for you if I could. I have a MSI H97 Guard-Pro LGA1150 Motherboard that supports DDR3-1333 / 1600 / 1866 / 2133 / 2200. I plug a i5-4440 in it and also some DDR3 2133 CL10 1.6V 2x8GB set into it. Am I good to go if the MC can handle it and the etch work of the board is working as advertised? Also, would something in 1.65V be advisable on this type of board? Thanks!

Pinhedd · Mar 9, 2015

endeavour37a :

That's correct. BIOS is simply the older PC firmware standard. The newer PC firmware standard is UEFI. The actual firmware code is stored on a ROM that is connected to the PCH via an LPC bus

endeavour37a · Mar 9, 2015

Thank you !

Tradesman1 · Mar 9, 2015

Just an add on here, when having problems it's always a good idea to look to BIOS updates. WHile when you check the updates they will generally list one or two key items in the BIOS update, most every update is full of a variety of updates for DRAM and in particular XMP profiles to help keep up with all the DRAM out there

endeavour37a · Mar 9, 2015

Thank you Tradesman for stopping by and your advice here on updates. I noticed on the new DDR4 story I referenced above the guy went right for a BIOS update like you are saying, never questioned the board or CPU. Thanks again

Tradesman1 · Mar 9, 2015

No worries!

Kurodax · Mar 10, 2016

Pinhedd :

Hi,

there seems to be a little bit of confusion here.

XMP is not a CPU feature, it is a firmware feature. In particular, it is a feature that allows the firmware to interpret sections of the DRAM SPD beyond the standard JEDEC configuration region and use the data stored within that region to calculate and configure non-standard performance profiles.

By default, x86 firmware will always configure the SDRAM according to JEDEC specifications stored in the SPD (the DIMM's parameter ROM) and the memory controller's parameters. This ensures maximum probability of baseline operation. When JEDEC specifications are adhered to, the probability of the memory not operating at all is minimized; when JEDEC specifications are violated, the probability that the memory will not work, or will not work consistently, rises dramatically.

The capabilities of XMP are limited by the memory controller's capabilities. For example, if the memory controller is physically incapable of being programmed to generate the clock frequency specified by the XMP profile then XMP is worthless. Furthermore, even if the memory controller is capable of being programmed to generate the necessary clock rate there's no guarantee that the memory controller will be able to train the signals, keep jitter in check, properly compensate for signal skew, centre the eye, etc... there are a huge number of things that can go wrong and it only takes one to render everything inoperable.

In addition to being a technical feature, XMP is also an Intel trademark. DIMM vendors that wish to use the XMP trademark must submit their designs for testing and validation by Intel. Intel does perform significant testing to ensure that XMP branded memory is going to work as well as possible when operating outside of JEDEC specifications; however, Intel does not provide a guarantee like they do when the memory is configured within Intel's specifications (which are a platform specific extension of JEDEC's). With that said, many users often take memory even further, often by installing multiple identical sets of DIMMs. Whereas a single set of DIMM's (one DIMM per channel) are tested to work nicely with the XMP profile alone, two sets installed together (two DIMMs per channel) may require additional tweaking above and beyond simply enabling XMP.

So i got a question. I got a MSI H97 gaming 3 Mobo, I5 - 4460 CPU, 4x4 GB Gskill sniper 2400 mhz. I saw the XMP option in the bios and enable it, but my pc just show as 1600 mhz. So if the XMP depend on firmware, why it isn't working ?

Pinhedd · Mar 10, 2016

Kurodax :

Pinhedd :

So i got a question. I got a MSI H97 gaming 3 Mobo, I5 - 4460 CPU, 4x4 GB Gskill sniper 2400 mhz. I saw the XMP option in the bios and enable it, but my pc just show as 1600 mhz. So if the XMP depend on firmware, why it isn't working ?

Hi,

Many DIMMs that feature XMP profiles often include more than one profile. Typically, only the profile for the highest data rate is advertised. Your DIMM may contain an XMP profile for DDR3-1600 as well as DDR3-2400. This enables customers whose motherboards may be incapable of operating at the advertised data rate to still benefit from the XMP feature. In almost all cases, XMP-1600 will have tighter timings than the JEDEC DDR3-1600 profile that would be configured automatically if XMP-2400 fails. Please make sure that you have selected the appropriate XMP profile in the BIOS/UEFI setup. In most cases this will be the numerically largest XMP profile number.

Tradesman1 · Mar 11, 2016

First XMP does not apply to all DDR3 as was mentioned above, XMP is for DRAM 1600 and up. Also typically the SPD of the DRAM will have 2 XMP profiles, generally at the same data rate (say 2400) there will be profile 1 which is the spec profile, and then profile 2 which is more often than not an enthusiast profile (quite typically the primary difference between 1 and 2 is 2 has a tighter CR (Command rate) of 1T or 1N vs the 'norm' or 2T or 2N (the T and N designators are interchangeable and don't really mean anything (AMD used to primarily use the N and Intel the T). In the SPD there are also numerous sets of suggested settings for lower end data rates like 1600 and 1333, which can be used depending on the mobos set default boot up data rate or as a guide for you to use to set up manually

Kurodax · Mar 11, 2016

Tradesman1 :

Ok so i got some pictures here. Also i just check the bios and XMP option is still enable but i can't find any tab has profile like you said. So where i can change those profile ?

Tradesman1 · Mar 11, 2016

In your upper image (the CPU-Z) it shows the XMP profile which is for 2400, which the mobo isn't capable of as it's an H97, so I would try the at 1600 9-9-9-24 1.5

Is XMP on all Intel CPUs?

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