Dangers of XMP?

[Marmota]

Ok, I recently got my first intel kit. It's the 6700k, gigabyte z170x gaming 7 and of course G.Skill Memory - Trident Z 3400mhz c16d 16 -.

Coming from AMD FX I was used to having DOCP, it works easily and gives great performance.

Now, while I wait for my new parts to come I've been reading up on Skylake, and some information has left me concerned, would be very thankfull for insights.

It seems that motherboards to achieve 3400 mhz will raise the BCLK by a tiny bit, which will make the CPU run faster as well as the RAM.

To run XMP profile they will also bring the RAM to 1.35 volts.

If I have to run the memory at 2133 mhz I'll be just as happy with it, it's still leagues faster then my old DDR3.

Ok, so I'd like to know if usually, running this moderate overclock is considered safe. Also if running the 1.35 volts on the IMC of the intel CPU will bring any dangers to it. Is the wear on the die enough to worry about? I'm not really going to do any overclock on the multi, but would like to keep my RAM running as fast as I can.


Thanks!

[emissary42]

Skylake-S has native memory multi for... see below

The Vdimm of 1.35 is not an issue, what can damage the CPU are the huge increases to VCCSA and IO voltages that some boards apply on AUTO for higher memory frequencies. So i and many others manually adjust / fine tune these right away. This is similar to the CPU_NB situation on AM3+ for DDR3-2400+, where you probably need to raise it a bit with most setups, but shouldn't go overboard with that, if you don't want to risk damaging your CPU (degrading the integrated memory controller).

[Marmota]

That's very interesting. Many reviewers have reported this though, that their boards automatically raised BCLK when XMP was applied.

Considering all of this though, would you recommend thath I manually input the values for the ram timings and frequency, rather then relying on the XMP profile?

I'll look up some tutorials on that, but when manually inputing, do you change the stated timings (16-18-18-38 2N 3400mhz 1.35 Vdimm) and attempt to boot? Is there more that I should change?

[emissary42]

I just fired up my 6700K+M8G and stand corrected, these are the available memory ratios:

2133-2200-2266-2300-2400-2500-2533-2600-2666-2700-2800-2900-2933-3000-3066-3100-3200-3333-3466-3600-3733-3866-4000-4133-4266

Looks like i was misremembering about that. So if you want to dodge the BCLK issue, get a kit that's utilizing one of them.

There is no need to go full manual if the XMP just works, because it is a lot more timings to change than just the primary ones. I was specifically talking about using the XMP and then manually adjusting only the VCCSA/IO to your processors actual needs (varies with IMC quality).

[GSKILL TECH]

The only potential danger is CPU heat. Make sure you are using a good cooler and it is keeping CPU temp under 80 degrees C under any circumstance.

Other than that, the motherboard, CPU, and RAM is perfectly designed to run at extreme speeds so the settings are spot on and meant to be.

[Marmota]

Let me ask you about cooling then, since we're on topic. Is the hyper 212 evo usually adequate for stock + xmp settings? I plan on upgrading to a noctua nh-d14 or nh-d15 later on so I can tinker a bit with overclocking.

Is the tridentz compatible with the noctua nh-d14? The noctua site shows 44mm compatibility and that is the exact height of the G Skill set. Will it be too tight? I ask because the nh-d14 might fit better in my case, and comes out a little bit cheaper.

Thank you for replying

[GSKILL TECH]

Yes, Hyper 212 EVO is great and can handle any XMP.

Trident Z can fit under D14 just fine. A couple mm will also sink into the memory slot.

Thank you
GSKILL SUPPORT

[Marmota]

Thanks so much for the responses.

I'll get back with results when my components arrive.

[Marmota]

Hello, I've been using my new kit for a while now, componentes are running well with XMP enabled for 3400mhz. The CPU does run at higher clock at 4.380 mhz, but stable. Setting XMP was very easy and painless, the motherboard BIOS is f7.

My CPU temperatures are around 65-75 when gaming with XMP enabled while using the Hyper 212 EVO. Is that ok for long term usage?

I've read somewhere that using the BIOS option for relaxed OC on the RAM is ok, and that it will bring temperatures down.

Would that be ok? Will it cause undesired effects?

[GSKILL TECH]

Yes, 80 is the limit so that is perfectly fine.

If your system is stable just leave it. Of course if you lower performance temps can be cooler.

[Marmota]

Thanks for the response, yes it is stable and very very fast now. One other thing that I"d like to ask, HWinfo64 shows a reading of VCSSA of 1.296, it is 1.068 without XMP enabled. Should I be concerned about the IMC of the CPU? Can it handle that much voltage without degradation? I tried to google this, but tuning of RAM is such an underrated topic.

[GSKILL TECH]

No, no problem at all, as long as the CPU remains cool.

Many people run it higher for a higher DRAM frequency

[jon666]

lower performance

Blasphemous words.