1333 7-7-7-20 @ 1.65v

[darkling]

I would like to know if the following setup is combatible :

i5-750
gigabyte ga-p55-usb3
KHX1333C7D3K2/4GX Intel X.M.P, DDR3-1333, unbuffered DIMM. 4GB 7-7-7-20 1.65V (default)

If i want to overclock the CPU am i limited by the 1.65v on the ram? I mean does ram voltage has to do anything with CPU overclock? Also what should i check in the bios of the board because i have been reading that in most cases you have to set the correct timings of the rams and im not keen to that

 

[abully]

DIMM voltage is crucial for the sticks to function properly... if the vendor has specified 1333 Mhz at 1.65v default then thats the max you should go... the board should take the default settings upon installation and may reduce the memory speed to 1064-1066 initially by having 8 multiplier... you can then set the multiplier manually to 10 to achieve 1333 and check whether the timings are are specified by the manufacturer... i have a inkling that 1333 can be done in 1.5v but i'll never know for sure...

 

[Twoboxer]

Go into BIOS and tell it to use the XMP setting for memory. If all goes well, it will use 7-7-7-20 and 1.65V as asked for by the memory. Once in Windows, use CPUID's CPU-Z to check what settings are actually being used. If the settings shown in the "Memory" tab do not equal the settings shown in the "SPD" tab in the XMP column, you need to go back into BIOS and make those settings (each one is labelled) manually. Reboot and check again that CPU-Z shows "memory" matches what you have asked for.

Then run Prime95 for an hour, using CPUID's Hardware Monitor to watch temperatures. Do not let the cpu core temps go over 75C for very long. If they do, you have a cooling problem - not related to this memory issue.

If Prime95 crashes or reports "Hardware Error", there may be more work needed in BIOS to get your mobo to run this memory at XMP. Let us know.

Download links for the utilities I mentioned:

http://forums.tweaktown.com/gigabyte/30530-latest-overclocking-programs-system-info-benchmarking-stability-tools.html

 

[darkling]

Best answer selected by darkling.

 

[darkling]

Great reply, i have some questions on this. Lets say i am aware of how to set the timings manually and don't use XMP. Do i lose anything from the capabilities of the RAM? Or XMP is just a trick for users that don't have the knowledge to set up their RAM manually? Do i need enabled or not? Thanks.

 

[Twoboxer]

XMP should be a "sure" way to get all the seetings made without making it necessary for a fat-fingered rookie to go deep into bios and screw things up horribly lol.

Personally, if using XMP resulted in the XMP settings actually being used, I'd leave it that way. If i couldn't get XMP to work, I'd try it manually. Either way, the settings are ultimately the same.