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Is Vddr @ 2.9V safe?

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The "safe" limit is 2.8v however it depends on a number of factors such as what brand and type of RAM chips and heatspreader (or lack of). Some chips such as Winbond BH5 are very voltage hungery and operate well with 3v+ while others may not.

~THT
 
I personally have never heard of anyone smokin their ram. I disagree that 2.8 is the safe limit. During a tech support phone session with a ram manufacturer I was told to up my voltage to 2.75 minimum. I'm currently putting 3.10v to my ram 24/7 without so much as a hiccup. I've seen several references saying 3.2v was the redline, but I know of numerous instances of people running above 3.2 with nothing cooked to date.

GD
 
Grandpa Dan said:
I personally have never heard of anyone smokin their ram. I disagree that 2.8 is the safe limit. During a tech support phone session with a ram manufacturer I was told to up my voltage to 2.75 minimum. I'm currently putting 3.10v to my ram 24/7 without so much as a hiccup. I've seen several references saying 3.2v was the redline, but I know of numerous instances of people running above 3.2 with nothing cooked to date.

GD

I've seen it happen. You throw 4V at your ram long enough and they will die :D

Personally I would say 3.2V is fine for 24/7
 
I'm using 3.15V for everyday use. No problem.... the ram modules are just slightly warmer during bechmarking.
 
I only recently upped my sticks of BH-5 to 2.9 from 2.8 and they finally "came alive". I'm not fond of overvolting any device more than I have to, but that is what it took for the speed and timing I was interested in achieving. They run cooler than skin temperature at that voltage in my well ventillated case.

Hoot
 
Sounds like it would be safe to up my vdimm to 2.8? I currently run 2.7 that undervolts to 2.65/2.66 on 2x 512 cmx 3500. Agree or disagree??
 
Its all about how long you want the stuff to last. Sure you can run it at 3.2 volts 24/7 without any errors or overheating. But after some time doing that, the performance will diminish, and eventually it will just burn out. Overvolting ANY chip reduces its life span. Also, you'll probably void your warranty by overvolting. There prolly wont be noticeable signs at 2.7 or 2.8, but there will be over 3 volts.
 
Rocko[DPC] said:
Its all about how long you want the stuff to last. Sure you can run it at 3.2 volts 24/7 without any errors or overheating. But after some time doing that, the performance will diminish, and eventually it will just burn out. Overvolting ANY chip reduces its life span. Also, you'll probably void your warranty by overvolting. There prolly wont be noticeable signs at 2.7 or 2.8, but there will be over 3 volts.

The real question is weather or not that time will be much sooner than without "extreme" overvolting and weather or not you will even be using it when that time comes.
 
Consider this: What lifespan under normal conditions would you expect from ram? 4-5yrs? So lets say overvolting cuts that life by 50%. Now you have 2-3 yrs. PC 3200 will be obsolete within about 1 1/2 yrs. or less. Guaranteed obsolete in 2 yrs.
 
Grandpa Dan said:
Consider this: What lifespan under normal conditions would you expect from ram? 4-5yrs? So lets say overvolting cuts that life by 50%. Now you have 2-3 yrs. PC 3200 will be obsolete within about 1 1/2 yrs. or less. Guaranteed obsolete in 2 yrs.

Yeah.... grandpa, you are absolutely right!!!

For me, I don't worry too much breaking things..... the computer system will be obsolete by 1 year span. So I keep on overvolting he... he....
 
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