Trying to understand XMP to decide whether to return Ripjaws and get Dominators

Hi,

First off, here are the details of the rig:

Asus Rampage V Extreme/U3.1 running bios 3202
32GB Ripjaws V 3200 MHz at 16CAS
Intel i7 5930K
Samsung MZVPV512HDGL-00000 M.2 PCIe NVME
2x Gigabyte GTX 1080 Founders in SLI

The problem: I can't get the RAM to overclock to 3200 MHz reliably.

What I've done:
1. I followed Chino's guide - went from 0.8V to 1.3V - couldn't get the ram to work.
2. I tried to enter the XMP data manually, but that got me the bF QCODE.
3. Tried Asus' EzTuning option in the bios - it did overclock the ram to 2400 MHz, but even then it wasn't exactly stable (some errors in MemTest and HyperPi).
4. I loosened the screws a bit on the CPU block just to be sure I didn't bend the PCB - didn't help.
5. When I run on stock settings, I can get MemTest to do 400% coverage without issues.


I know the XMP profile for the Ripjaws is not meant for X99, but I was hoping I could replicate what Chino did - I would be able to make the RAM work.

The most common effect I see is that the machine only sees 24GB of RAM once I start overclocking.

I am only getting into overclocking and a lot of the things still are very new to me, so this might be a nub question.

I can still return the Ripjaws and try to get Dominator Platinums. I need to make that decision by the end of today, but quite frankly, I don't know if that will help.
I understand Dominators have their XMP profiles tuned for X99. But is this enough? For now, I just want the RAM to work with the advertised overclock.
I'll start learning more about manual overclocking later on.

So the questions I am hoping you can help me answer is: should I return the RAM and go for Dominators in hope that they will work with XMP out of the box? If yes, which ones should I get?

Or is there still anything else I might try to see if the Ripjaws will work?

EDIT: Corrected typos.

Did you try 1.35-1.4V on the RAM?

Changing RAM won't help you much. First question is what RAM you have ?
Some tips:
- Set rampage tweak 2 ( 1st option in memory tab )
- Set voltage manually to 1.35V
- Set main timings exactly as you have in the specification so if it's 16-16-16-36 then set it like that and manually set command rate 2N ( can be 2T )
- Be sure that you placed RAM in correct slots so looking from left side 1, 3 <cpu> 6, 8
- If motherboard can't see memory then remove it and install again or clean pins and install it again. It's common issue on X99 motherboards and I have it in my RVE too.
- Set VCCSA voltage to 1.05V manually ( stock is 0.95V ), I doubt it will need more.
- Use the latest BIOS
- Don't use any auto overclocking options, usually it causes only additional problems
- Check if you can find any memory profile which matches your memory kit ( there is long list of overclocking profiles )
- Clear BIOS settings and check if after enabling XMP it works ( like only this one option to be sure it's XMP issue and not something else )

Dominators won't work better but will cost more. Actually there are more issues with Corsair memory kits than G.Skill. However there is a chance that something isn't right with your memory so if above tips won't help then you can try with other memory kit or ask G.Skill support as they usually reply fast and are helpful.

The RAM I have is 2x F4-3200C16D-16GVKB.

When you say set timings - do I also do the ones besides what you wrote? Like tRRD and tFAW?

Cleaning pins - with a special contact cleaning spray or something else?

Looking for profiles - you mean in the bios or on the web? The bios only has one XMP profile for the RAM.

I'll check the 1.35 to 1.4 as well with increments of 0.01.

Dorje said:

The RAM I have is 2x F4-3200C16D-16GVKB.

Click to expand...

This memory can have profiles designed for Z170 motherboards and it may not work good at XMP profile on X99. There are little changes in sub timings that sometimes cause issues. It will work at manual settings.
Best is to get quad channel kit designed for X99.

When you say set timings - do I also do the ones besides what you wrote? Like tRRD and tFAW?

Click to expand...

All other timings should work at auto.

Cleaning pins - with a special contact cleaning spray or something else?

Click to expand...

Higher % alcohol works good but you can even use paper towel or toilet paper and just wipe it. Usually removing memory from slot and installing it again works fine. Sometimes there are contact issues in memory slots. Sometimes it's dust or something else but you have new PC if I'm right then it shouldn't happen.

Looking for profiles - you mean in the bios or on the web? The bios only has one XMP profile for the RAM.

Click to expand...

In BIOS there is tab with memory profiles but I guess it won't help you much as most are for higher overclocking and competitive benchmarking.

I'll check the 1.35 to 1.4 as well with increments of 0.01.

Click to expand...

Just set 1.4 and check if it's working. If you make it work then check if it's fine at lower voltage.

Hi,

Unfortunately none of these worked. I again tried all of the VCCSA steps, but it didn't help. Either 24gigs were visible or I kept getting blue screens.

In this case, I will use the option of returning the RAM while I still can and will go for a quad kit for X99. Any recommendations here?
I was going to go for Dominators, but based on what you are writing, I will probably revise my plan (depending on availability).

Trident Z 3000 cl14 and 3200 cl15 should be good. In my brother's PC on RVE are working 2x8GB Trident Z 3000 cl14 + 2x8GB Trident Z 3600 ( both the same memory chips ). There are quad channel kits tested on RVE too.
Dominators in quad channel kits should be also good if were tested on RVE but I think that will cost more and won't be really faster.

Great. Thank you for the suggestions. I'll see about those Tridents then.