i5 7600k which lga1151 motherboard (Must support DDR3)

MicroT · Mar 21, 2017

Hey I am thinking of buying an i5 7600k processor but am unsure of the motherboard to go for.
I currently am upgrading my current pc hich has ddr3 ram which i dont want to replace, a micro atx board would be prefered as it suits my case best, but I believe a full atz board will fit if need be. I want to be able to have an overclock so the motherboard i hope should be able to overclock this processor.
Current ones I am looking at are all by gigabyte and are:
H110M-S2PV
GA-Z170-HD3
H170 HD3
B150M-HD3
any suggestions would be greatly appreciated (Also my budget is low for the mother board so under £100 would be prefered thanks)

weberdarren97 · Mar 21, 2017

Please don't try to use DDR3 with Kaby Lake. DDR3L (low voltage) will work in theory, but DDR3 will damage the memory controller in the CPU.

Do you know the model number or part number of your current DDR3?

theyeti87 · Mar 21, 2017

The only DDR3 LGA 1151 motherboards run the B150 and I found one using Z170 chipset.

The Z170 is slightly above your budget.

The B150 boards do not allow overclocking, so your "K" series CPU would go to waste.

It would be in your best interest to move to DDR4-based motherboard so that you can get the most out of your system.

Another consideration is that there's no guarantee you will be able to boot a Kaby Lake cpu in a B150 motherboard without an update to motherboard firmware (which requires a cpu).

weberdarren97 · Mar 21, 2017

theyeti87 :

Please consider that putting standard DDR3 in a Kaby Lake system will damage the CPU. I'd like to not recommend boards until we can get the part number for his current RAM and find out if it's low voltage or not. If it's not, it'll be unusable for Kaby Lake and Skylake (they're both designed for DDR4).

theyeti87 · Mar 21, 2017

weberdarren97 :

Newegg has B150 boards that support DDR3 1600 *non-low-voltage

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132696
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132697

weberdarren97 · Mar 21, 2017

theyeti87 :

weberdarren97 :

Newegg has B150 boards that support DDR3 1600 *non-low-voltage

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132696
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132697

The boards support it, but the CPU won't. Using 1.5V DDR3 will damage the CPU.

theyeti87 · Mar 21, 2017

weberdarren97 :

theyeti87 :

The boards support it, but the CPU won't. Using 1.5V DDR3 will damage the CPU.

Apologies for my misunderstanding.

JamesSneed · Mar 21, 2017

The z170 chip set is the only one that supports overclocking. I don't think you will find a z170, supporting DDR3, and in micro atx. If you can give up overclocking then you could go with a cheaper CPU the 6600 non-K and ASUS B150M-A D3. The prior gen CPU should really be used in this case regarless so 6600 or 6600K if you get a z170 chipset.

How much DDR3 do you have that you don't just want to move to DDR4? You can get a 8GB dual channel DDR4 kit for 50 dollars. I know you said you don't want to buy new memory but if you want that mix of overclocking and form factor you should. Then you have a few choices like GIGABYTE GA-Z270M-D3H or MSI Z270M MORTAR.

weberdarren97 · Mar 21, 2017

theyeti87 :

weberdarren97 :

Apologies for my misunderstanding.

Here are the CPU memory specs: DDR4-2133/2400, DDR3L-1333/1600 @ 1.35V. http://ark.intel.com/products/97144/Intel-Core-i5-7600K-Processor-6M-Cache-up-to-4_20-GHz?q=7600k

Standard DDR3 is 1.5V. Too much voltage for Skylake and Kaby Lake.

What is DDR3L? It's low voltage DDR3. Here's a basic explanation. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/319013-30-what-ddr3l

theyeti87 · Mar 21, 2017

sudo apt-get install brain

JamesSneed · Mar 21, 2017

theyeti87 :

For those of us on cent os variants: sudo yum install brain

TJ Hooker · Mar 21, 2017

I've never actually heard of anyone damaging their skylake/kaby lake CPU by using 1.5V RAM, even if it's not officially supported. That being said, if you don't want to risk it but still want to use your existing RAM, you should be able to undervolt it to 1.35V (DDR3L is just DDR3 with lower voltage). Although if you do this you may not be able to run it at its rated frequency.

Isokolon · Mar 21, 2017

Intel tested it and there were threads on reddit.
1.5V fries the ram controller of skylake CPUs. Maybe not immediately but over time.

TJ Hooker · Mar 21, 2017

Isokolon :

Do you have a link to any of those reddit threads?

Everything I've seen about LGA 1151 CPUs and 1.5V RAM ends up just being people parroting Intel's statement (which I can't actually find in its original form from Intel). And obviously one shouldn't just ignore the fact that Intel warns against using full voltage DDR3 with Skylake. However, Intel says pretty much the same thing about overclocking/overvolting your CPU, and yet people recommend that left, right, and centre...

I'm not recommending that one use full voltage DDR3 with Sky/Kaby Lake, just saying I haven't actually seen any evidence of the negative effects.

weberdarren97 · Mar 21, 2017

TJ Hooker :

Isokolon :

Do you have a link to any of those reddit threads?

Everything I've seen about LGA 1151 CPUs and 1.5V RAM ends up just being people parroting Intel's statement (which I can't actually find in its original form from Intel). And obviously one shouldn't just ignore the fact that Intel warns against using full voltage DDR3 with Skylake. However, Intel says pretty much the same thing about overclocking/overvolting your CPU, and yet people recommend that left, right, and centre...

I'm not recommending that one use full voltage DDR3 with Sky/Kaby Lake, just saying I haven't actually seen any evidence of the negative effects.

https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/5oz9ki/ddr3_kaby_lake/

Paul NZ · Mar 21, 2017

And you would also need a BIOS update if you get a B150,H110,Z170 mobo

But you wont be able to update it without a Skylake CPU

TJ Hooker · Mar 21, 2017

weberdarren97 :

I meant a reddit thread where someone reported damage from running 1.5V RAM with Skylake, which is what I assumed @Isokolon was referring to. That's just more people advising against it based on Intel's recommendation. Although unfortunately it would likely be difficult or impossible for a consumer to distinguish a damaged IMC vs any other of a host of possible issues.

weberdarren97 · Mar 21, 2017

TJ Hooker :

Well if everyone is recommending against it, then maybe there's a reason for that.

TJ Hooker · Mar 21, 2017

weberdarren97 :

And that reason—the only reason—is that Intel states that running the IMC outside of rated voltages/frequencies can damage it. Which is exactly what Intel says about CPU core voltage and frequency, yet nobody seems to have a problem recommending CPU overclocking. I mean, people in this very thread are implicitly advising the OP to disregard Intel's warning about running the CPU outside of rated specs (buying a -k CPU to overclock), while at the same time telling the OP to heed Intel's warning about running the IMC outside of rated specs.

Edit: At this point I'm arguably just derailing the OP's thread to play devil's advocate, so I'll drop it.

JamesSneed · Mar 22, 2017

TJ Hooker :

Not everyone in this thread. I'm completely with you here. With DDR4 so cheap there really is no reason to do this odd mix. Plus you will have to lock yourself into an old platform because you already have an old platform you want to reuse. For $50 more the OP can simply move onto the 200 series chip sets, DDR4 and Kaby Lake, welcome to the future.

OP if this is just some side project to play around then do whatever you want but if this is your main PC listen to people who are advising you to not go Kaby Lake. You may not kill your CPU but I assure you will have your share of hurdles as this is pretty far out of the normal mix.

MicroT · Mar 23, 2017

weberdarren97 :

thanks for the heads about that, am going to get ddr4 memory instead

tristerin · Jan 17, 2018

Good thread to read answered some of my questions I was having. However I may still go this route as DDR4 is no longer cheap - at all - if I can find me a used processor / mobo for a multimedia center as I have 32 gigs of DDR3 rotting away, and while my new builds use DDR4 I felt raped purchasing it even on Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale prices.

i5 7600k which lga1151 motherboard (Must support DDR3)

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