Re-using DDR4-3200C14 / 3600C17 for up-coming Cascade Lake system

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

modeonoff

Honorable
Jul 16, 2017
1,356
11
11,285
Hello, as my work requires lots of I/O access, a colleague told me that meltdown and spectre patches could slow down the performance from negligible to as much as 20%. He has no idea what happens to the slowdown of his Linux system (we use Linux for work) as he has never updated those patches.

I am considering to drop the plan to build an expensive 7900X system and wait for Cascade Lake or other Intel CPUs that will have these issues fixed at hardware level. I know 8700K uses dual channel RAM but in my future system, I will probably use quad channel. If I buy quad-channel RAM Kit, say G.Skill Trident Z RGB Quad Channel 32-64GB Kit at 3200C14 or 3700C17, to build a 8700K workstation now for temporary use, can I for sure use the same RAM modules in both 8700K and those new CPUs later? Will I have problems in using Quad Channel RAM modules in a 8700K Dual Channel system?

Is Cascade Lake Xeon CPU or it has a high-end desktop version? If former, does that mean I have to buy ECC RAM for it?
 
Solution
P


That's correct.

Sort by date Sort by votes
woahwoahwilly

woahwoahwilly

Honorable
Jan 18, 2018
301
1
10,815
1st of all: You should just use an 8400, same socket, less money to pay.
2nd of all: You can use quad-channel memory with you dual-channel memory CPU as long as you don't throw in all 4 RAM sticks (which your motherboard might not let you do in the first place)
 
Upvote -1 Downvote
M

modeonoff

Honorable
Jul 16, 2017
1,356
11
11,285
Thanks. Is 8400 a step down from 8700k? The motherboard I am interested in has four memory slots. What will happen if I throw in (16GBx4) quad channel memory kit to a Z370 motherboard that supports dual memory channels?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
woahwoahwilly

woahwoahwilly

Honorable
Jan 18, 2018
301
1
10,815


1) Not really. 8700K doesn't really have very much of an improvement in performance - in fact, most people get the Core i7 either because their workloads NEED the extra threads, or for bragging rights. Core i5 and Core i7, performance-wise, are pretty much the exact same in performance. So unless you consider the tiniest performance improvement an upgrade, not really. Your workloads would be fine on the 8400, or heck, maybe you could get away with the quad-core i3 8100.

2) If you do that, the processor might only respond to two, or heck, the system might refuse to even post. I've never tried it before (because my motherboards use dual-channel memory), but I can't be sure. Try it with 2 channels as 4 channels might POSSIBLY mess something up.
 
Upvote -1 Downvote
P

Pinhedd

Champion
Aug 7, 2007
10,342
20
56,965


DIMMs are identical. A quad channel kit is nothing more than four DIMMs that have been tested together in a quad channel platform.

A quad channel kit will work just fine in a dual-channel motherboard with two DIMM slots per channel. Similarly, two or four dual-channel kits will work just fine in a quad-channel motherboard.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
M

modeonoff

Honorable
Jul 16, 2017
1,356
11
11,285
Thanks Pinhedd. So if I go for a DDR4 64GB (16GBx4) Quad channel Kit for the Cascade Lake system, I just pick any two modules from the box and put it in the Z370 motherboard if I want a 32GB system. I can also put all four modules in the Z370 motherboard to make it a 64GB system without issue?

Somewhere people mentioned that for dual channel system, it is better to put only two RAM modules in the motherboard instead of four as this will "stress" the memory controller which might lead to poor OC performance or something like that. Does that mean if I don't need 64GB for the time being, I better just put two 16GB modules in the system to avoid stressing the memory controller?


woahwoahwilly raised a concern about putting all four modules in the MB.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
woahwoahwilly

woahwoahwilly

Honorable
Jan 18, 2018
301
1
10,815


i5 8400 DOES have turbo boost, but according to the site I found the info on, the base clock is 3.8 GHz and the 4-core version (also according to the site I found the info on) has base clocks of 3.9 GHz. So unless speed is actually a big requirement, then i5 8400 is... well... I never looked up overclocking. All of the results on Bing (because I earn points for a Bing search on Microsoft Rewards) are about OC on the stock cooler. But that means you can, just you need a compatible motherboard.

Also, i5 8400 outperforms i7 7700K, just so you know... but I never went out of my way to get a 6-core CPU as I usually stick to the 2 and 4 core CPUs.
 
Upvote -1 Downvote
P

Pinhedd

Champion
Aug 7, 2007
10,342
20
56,965


That's correct.



Adding additional memory ranks to a channel will indeed have a detrimental impact on peak overclocking performance because each additional rank adds electrical load to the command and address lines, but it will not stress out or damage the memory controller unless the user far exceeds output current limits. Most of the time, all that is needed is an additional 0.05 volts of supply voltage; recall that JEDEC spec for DDR4 is 1.2 volts +/- 5%, so 1.25 volts is still within spec anyway. Adding an additional 10% to the current limit will help as well if your motherboard supports it. If you're purchasing enthusiast modules that have been tested at a higher voltage (eg, 1.3 volts) you will need to be a bit more careful.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
woahwoahwilly

woahwoahwilly

Honorable
Jan 18, 2018
301
1
10,815


It can handle a 1080. i7 4th gen could handle a Quadro (might be more powerful than a Titan) - and the i5 8400 is faster than a 7th gen i7, so it should be fine. Otherwise run it with a 1080 Ti (or 2 of them in SLI)
 
Upvote -1 Downvote
Status
Not open for further replies.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom