Changing RAM 1333 to 1666/2200..

kaisterkai

kaisterkai

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Good day..

I would like to know how one would be able to change the RAM from 1333 to 1666/2200..

Thanks
 
It's only worth it to do that if you're going to overclock your CPU by adjusting the BCLK (Front side bus).

You can simply replace your existing modules with a new set of faster memory. Just make sure that the motherboard supports the modules' voltage. eg. a motherboard with 1.65V DDR3 slots won't support 1.5V memory modules, where as a motherboard with 1.5V DDR3 slots would support 1.65V memory modules.
 
Pada said:
It's only worth it to do that if you're going to overclock your CPU by adjusting the BCLK (Front side bus).

You can simply replace your existing modules with a new set of faster memory. Just make sure that the motherboard supports the modules' voltage. eg. a motherboard with 1.65V DDR3 slots won't support 1.5V memory modules, where as a motherboard with 1.5V DDR3 slots would support 1.65V memory modules.
Click to expand...

I see.. Sounds rather complex.. I guess I'll just leave it then.. But does it really make a big difference if it's changed or not?
 
LFX said:
no...

3 x 2gb sticks is better than 6 x 1gb sticks....

more stable for overclocking and less issues
Click to expand...

mm.. i see.. no, I was just saying that because I saw my friends W7 rating went up when he upgrade from 2GB to 4Gb.. so yeah..
 
kaisterkai said:
I see.. Sounds rather complex.. I guess I'll just leave it then.. But does it really make a big difference if it's changed or not?
Click to expand...

Nope. Lower latency has a greater effect than higher frequency when it does matter (damn I tried to link you but I can't remember where I saw the comparison, the one at Tomshardware I linked doesn't seem to be the one I read). If you are running 1333mhz @ CL5 you will get the best performance in most situations where it matters (games)

I've got 1600mhz RAM but I'm running them at standard DDR3 voltage with CL6 timings. So you can usually get higher clock speed rated RAM to quite easily run at 1333mhz with tight timings without even increasing voltage.

Not worth the cash tho.
 
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Gnome said:
Nope. Lower latency has a greater effect than higher frequency when it does matter (damn I tried to link you but I can't remember where I saw the comparison, the one at Tomshardware I linked doesn't seem to be the one I read). If you are running 1333mhz @ CL5 you will get the best performance in most situations where it matters (games)

I've got 1600mhz RAM but I'm running them at standard DDR3 voltage with CL6 timings. So you can usually get higher clock speed rated RAM to quite easily run at 1333mhz with tight timings without even increasing voltage.

Not worth the cash tho.
Click to expand...

I see.. another complex reply lol..

But I guess keeping it at 1333 is the best choice?
 
kaisterkai said:
But I guess keeping it at 1333 is the best choice?
Click to expand...

Yeah not much improvement, certainly not enough to justify the price of switching. Like the others said, rather get more RAM :)

BUT if you HAD a choice, go for lower latency rather than higher frequency. But the next Intel CPUs coming out now aren't restricted in terms of memory frequency (so you won't have to overclock the base clock). So if you buy a new rig based on Sandy Bridge, get the highest frequency you can.
 
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Some motherboards do allow you to change change the RAM multiplier - like with my Asus P7H55D-M Evo I can run my RAM at 1600MHz without overclocking my i7 860 CPU.

If you're buying faster RAM but not overclocking, you can manually lower the latencies.
Like if you bought DDR3 1600MHz CL8-8-8-24, then you can usually lower the latencies to: 7-7-7-20 if you're running it at 1333MHz (CL 8 / 1600MHz *1333MHz = CL 6.67 & CL 20 / 1600MHz * 1333MHz = CL 19.95).
Also note that the the Socket 1366 stuff are running at a default speed of 1066MHz, so you can lower your latencies even further if you're not overclocking.

Up till now getting higher clocked RAM was just for making overclocking simpler, because you didn't have to change the multiplier of the RAM if you wanted to overclock the BCLK, and the performance increase was unnoticeable in most applications.
 
I think I kind of understand.. But yet still very complex..

Because I don't really like over clocking, firstly, scared it's going to over heat.. and secondly.. I don't really know how it works.. So I would rather just stick to what I get... :)

But thanks.. If I do get an upgrade.. I will remember this :P
 
Pada said:
If you're buying faster RAM but not overclocking, you can manually lower the latencies.
Click to expand...

It is still being overclocked Pada, the memory controller is on the CPU and it is locked. That motherboard still just sets the BCLK higher.

EDIT: Ok actually I see some of the later stepping Intel Core i7 (LGA 1366) may in fact have unlocked memory multipliers.
 
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Gnome said:
It is still being overclocked Pada, the memory controller is on the CPU and it is locked. That motherboard still just sets the BCLK higher.

EDIT: Ok actually I see some of the later stepping Intel Core i7 (LGA 1366) may in fact have unlocked memory multipliers.
Click to expand...
I think the memory multiplier can be locked by the CPU, because I can't change the memory multiplier with my i7 940 (Engineering Sample) even though my motherboard allow me to adjust it. Currently I'm running my DDR3 1600MHz modules at 1600MHz without overclocking my BCLK with my i7 860 CPU.
 
So better to get one stick of 4gig than a 2x2gig pair? These are quite scarce.
 
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