2533 MHz Max Stable RAM Speed - Mobo the Weak Link?

[Barryng]

I am running an Asus Z170M Plus mobo with an Intel I7-6700K. Because reliability is so important I never overclocked the CPU but I also never have been happy with its speed. Although powerful, it has always felt noticeably sluggish with respect to how quick software opens/runs and how it handles and responds to large PDF and graphic files, etc. Recently, I noticed the G.Skill Ripjaws V Series (4X8Gb) DDR4-3200 cas 16 RAM was only running at the default 2133 MHz. Manually upping it to 3200 MHz made the machine considerably snappier and much more pleasant to use but, at that speed, the machine was too unstable to be usable. I could only go as high as 2533 Mhz and still have a stable machine. Just to see what would happen, I installed two sticks of G.Skill Trident RGB Series (2X16GB), DDR4-3200 cas 14 RAM. I still could no go faster than 2533 Mhz and maintain a stable machine.

Can I assume the weak link is the Z170 mobo and it is just a mobo limitation preventing me from running the RAM at its rated speed? This 2533 MHz cap seems to apply no matter if the CPU is overclocked or not.

As soon as the I9-10900K is available I am planning on upgrading using an Asus Z490M Plus (and the G.Skill Trident memory I mentioned above). Should I expect it to achieve faster RAM speeds with the Z490?

 

[Zerileous]

Not sure what is going on with the 6700k. Did you enable XMP or just manually set that speed? Are you using an SSD? Making a signature with your full system specs would be helpful.

Z490 will have no problem running 3200 or higher.

 

[Mr.Scott]

Ever update the bios on the Z170?

 

[Barryng]

Thanks for the responses.

I did enable XMP and that set the speed to 3200. Could not leave it there as it wont even boot sometimes at this speed.

Yes, running the latest bios and verified that a few days ago.

As soon as the I9-10900K becomes available for sale, I am going to upgrade the machine as I described above. However, it looks like this CPU will not be available for a while. When it does become available I suspect there will be a very significant premium attached to the price. After I discovered how obviously snappier the machine became by increasing the memory speed I became impatient to speed this thing up so just trying to reasonably maximize the performance of what I now have. Also, in the process, try to learn more about how to appropriately set up the Z490 when I eventually get it.

 

[Johan45]

Try setting XMP then go to VCCIO and VCCSA might not be the exact naming in your BIOS but usually comes right after the core and DRAM voltage. Set both the IO and SA voltage manually to 1.25V and verify the DRAM voltage is being set to 1.35 V. It might just need a nudged since you're using 32 GB of memory

 

[Barryng]

Johan45, Thank you! I raised both voltages to 1.1 volts, set DDR4-3000, and the machine appears stable. However, I really need more experience to tell for sure if its stable. I then raised it to DDR4-3200 and that was a bridge too far and it would not boot. I am going to limit my voltage tweaks to 1.1 volts just to err on the side of conservatism and not heat stress the memory too much. The heat is a function of the square of the current so I just have the gut feel 1.25 volts is too much. Thanks again for the good advice.

 

[BugFreak]

I had to up mine to 1.25v on my ASUS Z170 to keep it stable. As long as it stays below at or below 1.25v you should be fine. Much above that slowly degrades the CPU if I remember right.

For my 6600K, the CPU is the weak link so I would fault that before the board if I was in your situation.