wondering about the xeon 2011 v3 processors.

Wow, lot of misconceptions there. Let me see if I can help.

Let's focus on RAM first. It has been found that the impact of faster RAM on overall system performance is negligible and can probably only be observed in benchmarks.

Have a look at this
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6372/memory-performance-16gb-ddr31333-to-ddr32400-on-ivy-bridge-igp-with-gskill/12

Or read the entire article.

When RAM needs overclocking, the first thing (on Intel motherboards at least, I know little about AMD) is to enable the XMP profile. That is sort of a "pre-built enabler" for the RAM's characteristics. Fiddling with voltages and timings might yield additional results, but that is beyond my capabilities (and I suspect your immediate, near-term abilities as well).

I strongly recommend you consider G.SKill in your RAM selection. I find them excellent and have been using them exclusively in builds for a number of years. Not that, IMHO, there is much to choose between the various RAM manufacturers - they are all excellent to a degree.

Now on to motherboards.

There are 3 main types of motherboard (or really, the chipset on the motherbaord) that you should concern yourself with.

1. The X99 chipset.

Appears in the 2011-3 socket motherboards. Appropriate for the high-end Intel Extreme (Enthusiast) processors and low- to mid-range Xeon processors (only the Enthusiast processors can overclock - more about that in a minute.

This chipset is slightly older, but very robust. It will support one more generation of Intel processors, the upcoming Broadwell enthusiast processors. The motherboards are an absolute delight to work with.

2. The Z170 chipset (or any Z-prefix chipset)

Appears on the LGA 1150/LGA1151 appreas on the Mainstream Intel motherboards appropriate for the Intel Core series of processors as well as a few, select, non-overclockable Xeon processors. The Z-prefix indicates that there is support in the chipset for overclocking if the processor is an unlocked K-suffix model.

Note that RAM overclocking is separate from processor overclocking - ever since the FSB disappeared.


3. The H-170 or H110 chipsets

. Also appears on mainstream boards with LGA 1150/ LGA 1151 sockets. H170 is very similar to Z170, but does not have overclocking support. H110 has a little less functionality but still more than Q- or B- prefixed chipsets. H-prefix is great for most people that will not overclock.

On to processors.

In general, you should assume that Intel Xeon processors cannot be overclocked. SOme people mess with BCLK and achieve some overclock, but it's about all there is.

On both the high-end and consumer ranges, Intel has unlocked processors designated by a K-suffice, eg Core i5, 5600K, Core i7 6700K or a high-end i7-5380K (the slightly older Haswell architecture, waiting to be replaced with Broadewell for the X99 chipset).

So there you are. Now you know as much as I do.