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Overclocking SB, RAM speed doesn't matter?

M

metallicaband

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 3, 2007
Messages
489
Hey all,

I've got a quick (and rather stupid lol) question, I'm going to put together a new SB build soon and plan to do a mild overclock, I know 1600Mhz kinda helped me when I overclocked my i7 930 because raising the BCLK was involved.

AFAIK when overclocking SB K CPUs, you're mostly just changing the CPU multiplier and some voltage tweaks, so RAM speed won't help overclocking the CPU in any way, right?
 
when overclocking your cpu first, you can ensure some stability by setting ram to lower than rated frequency/loose timings so when you overclock it doesnt raise it above jedec ratings.

when you find you cpu's max oc, then you can overclock your memory by raising multi's
 
Is there even any real gains from higher RAM speed other than higher synthetic test scores? AFAIK it doesn't change anything when it comes to gaming, unlike CPU speed which some games love (e.g Skyrim).

Because if that's the case, I have 0 interest in overclocking the RAM, just CPU, so would like to know if RAM speed has any effect in overclocking the CPU in SB K builds so I'd decide on whether I should get a 1600mhz or slower RAM.
 
It certainly helps with Folding, but in most games, it's negligeable. I'd say just stick with 1600 @ cas 8-9 and be done with it.
 
metallicaband said:
Is there even any real gains from higher RAM speed other than higher synthetic test scores? AFAIK it doesn't change anything when it comes to gaming, unlike CPU speed which some games love (e.g Skyrim).

Because if that's the case, I have 0 interest in overclocking the RAM, just CPU, so would like to know if RAM speed has any effect in overclocking the CPU in SB K builds so I'd decide on whether I should get a 1600mhz or slower RAM.
Click to expand...

Unless you're doing something that will love higher memory throughput, there's not much point to oc'ing the ram on sb. Video/photo editing/rendering comes to mind.
 
boushidosan said:
when overclocking your cpu first, you can ensure some stability by setting ram to lower than rated frequency/loose timings so when you overclock it doesnt raise it above jedec ratings.
when you find you cpu's max oc, then you can overclock your memory by raising multi's
Click to expand...

No need to do that with SB. They don't OC with same method as AMD/older Intel.

@metallicaband: You are right, memory speed won't affect or 'limit' your OC on Sandy (unless you OC the ram really high, then max cpu OC may suffer a little).

I also agree there is not much worth in OC'ing the memory or buying super fast modules for gaming. 1600 is usually the sweet spot because pricing differences vs 1333 is generally not much if any. If you're on a budget, I would just buy the best deal you can find (whatever speed) and put the rest towards as much GPU power as I could afford for a gaming machine, better bang for buck.
 
jthomas said:
1600 is usually the sweet spot...
Click to expand...

This was I was told by the manufacturer I bought my RAM from. I find it to be correct. I bought some 1600 RAM with good timings. For a test I bumped it up to 1866 and ran some tests. Only RAM benchmarks were any different. Games had the exact same framerate, nothing else was faster by any amount, so I went back to 1600 and tuned in the voltage, which ended up being lower than it was rated at.
 
If you want the performance it can be had. Buy good ram if high performance is desired.
 
As stated, it matters little with SB and the like for most things. However if you are looking for some good RAM, try these sticks (OOS but the single sticks are still in stock). They are cheaper than allot of the RAM out there, as well as being beasts at OCing should you want to. Most people are getting 2000Mhz+ out of them with good timings and 1.5v.
 
Get whatever is cheaper in the quantity you want. Really, anything above 1333 will yield zero noticeable benefits. Quite a few SB memory speed reviews out on the web highlighting this fact.
 
Thanks for replying everyone, that's all I needed to know, will get whatever good deal I manage to get for 2x4GB RAM from Corsair, Crucial, G.Skill..etc
 
Last edited:
metallicaband said:
RAM speed won't help overclocking the CPU in any way, right?
Click to expand...

It does play a factor in over all system stability. Higher quality ram is more stable. I have ran different sets of ram on SB and IB and both cpus over clock ability is limited by the quality of ram. IB is even more touchy.

I recommend getting the fastest low voltage ram you can afford if you are serious about over clocking.
 
I don't know why people are recommending faster RAM. Several sites have tested it, and for normal use there is no appreciable difference between 1333 RAM and faster stuff. Get a decent set of 1.5V DDR3-1600 (which is barely more expensive than 1333, so worth the extra buck or two) and be happy. CAS speed also matters very little, so DDR3-1600 CAS 9, like the G.Skil Ripjaws, is perfectly fine for Sandy Bridge - even when overclocking. Buying DDR3-2133 is basically just throwing money away.
 
^^ +1.

Basically, the only reason to get faster RAM is if you're trying to BCLK overclock, where the RAM multiplier might limit you to say 1300, then 1733, etc. This was only relevant to the X58 and P55 platform. If you're getting faster RAM to strap overclock a 3820, the money you spent on the faster RAM could have gone towards getting an unlocked 3930K.
 
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