CH5 Memory not stable below 3.1v!!

Hey guys, My memory is mushkin pc3500 level 1, 1 gig. I can only get it stable at 220 fsb at 3.1v. I have heard this to be a common problem. Will running this memory at this voltage be dangerous? I really dont want to burn up my memory. Mushkin only reccommends 2.8v, but my mem fails at 2.8, 2.9, and 3.0. So far it seems stable at 3.1v. Any input?

3.1v is quite alot there, with the stock aluminium heatspreaders and thermal pads, as a rule i leave mine at 3.0v with these default spreaders. If you wana run them above 3.0v, i suggest at LEAST putting a fan over them. Recommend some new copper heatspreaders and white thermal paste (silver stuff can be dodgey with the memory legs)

If you are going to mod your mobo 3.3v+, you probably want watercooling on the ram.

Good luck, be careful over 3.0v ;-)

~t0m

Hmmm, I was going to crank it up to 3.2v, and maybe 3.3V!! LMAO. I have done a lot of research online, and it seems that 3.4v is the magic number that begins to kill the ch5 modules. I have heard of people running 3.3v for over a year with no problems... Why would dfi give us the 3.3v option if it were to fry our precious ram?

MadInsane said:

Hey guys, My memory is mushkin pc3500 level 1, 1 gig. I can only get it stable at 220 fsb at 3.1v. I have heard this to be a common problem. Will running this memory at this voltage be dangerous? I really dont want to burn up my memory. Mushkin only reccommends 2.8v, but my mem fails at 2.8, 2.9, and 3.0. So far it seems stable at 3.1v. Any input?

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CH-5 chips have built in voltage regulators that are known to limit voltages from 2.9-3.1v (resulting in 2.9v to chips). To beat the limiters u need to feed 3.1v (or a little more), you've proven this need with your requirement for 3.1v.

If you have good airflow in your case you should be fine with 3.1v. Have one hand on your case metal, and carefully place a finger on your ddr chips after running prime95 for an hour or so, and if you can't leave your finger there for a minute it's too damn hot! Mine are barely lukewarm but I have good case airflow. My sticks don't have heatspreaders so if yours do of course touching it would be the best you could do. IMHO heatspreaders do more harm then good on ddr ram. If they're hot direct a small fan to the ram area.

You also may want to try 2-3-2-11 timings. Most CH-5 live long and prosper with those settings.

afaik, it doesn't make a difference what timing you runs in, only voltage and heat will effect the ram's life, according to what you are saying, then bh5 should be dying left and right because they run at 2-2-2-5?

MadInsane: I have heard quite a few people killed their ch5 with 3.3v, so not really true 3.4v is the magic number.

glasszon said:

afaik, it doesn't make a difference what timing you runs in, only voltage and heat will effect the ram's life, according to what you are saying, then bh5 should be dying left and right because they run at 2-2-2-5?

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LOL, I didn't mean to imply that their actual working life would be longer. I meant that they perform best with those timings. Shouldn't have used those words

lol, sorry, but he is using a AMD cpu which I guess he would enjoy more from having tight timing than high fsb, unless his cpu happened to be superlocked.

I had my ch-5's at 3.26V and it was running fine

and mine was stable at 222fsb at 3.01V (2.9 in the bios)