RAM is often intentionally limited by manufacturers to processing speed. With a few minutes in the BIOS and a bit of experimentation, you can overclock RAM to run faster than the manufacturer’s specifications.
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Things you need to know before overclocking RAM
Overclocking RAM is quite complicated compared to CPU overclocking or GPU, simply increase the clock rate and hope your heatsink can handle the temperature of the system. With RAM, there are many things that need to be tweaked, but it is also much safer because RAM does not generate too much heat.
Every program you use stores activity data into RAM before loading it into the CPU’s cache. In games, improvements in RAM latency can significantly reduce frame load times. This can improve fps and most importantly reduce stutter in CPU-intensive areas where new data needs to be loaded from RAM into cache or VRAM.
RAM speed is usually measured in megahertz (Mhz). The speed of DDR4 RAM is usually 2133 Mhz or 2400 Mhz, although the actual speed is only half as it is Double Data Rate (DDR). On top of that, RAM has a lot of different latency control points and read and write speeds. They are measured in cycles and are often grouped under the abbreviation βCAS Latency (CL)β. For example, a mid-range DDR4 RAM kit might get 3200 Mhz CL16. Improving speed or timing will improve latency.
RAM communicates with the rest of the computer using a system called Serial Presence Detect. Through it, it gives the BIOS the main frequencies and times at which it can operate, known as the JEDEC specification. This is the stock speed and it is included in every DDR4 stick ever produced.
However, Intel found a way to cheat the system. By providing another configuration on JEDEC, called XMP (Extreme Memory Profile), they can run RAM higher than standard speed. If you buy RAM clocked above 2400 Mhz, you can get an XMP profile that you can enable anytime.
Manufacturers do not allow the product to work at 100%. They have to do this to push the price of components higher, so it’s often the case that RAM comes with XMP configurations due to product segmentation. RAM also operates within a certain voltage, usually 1,350 volts for DDR4, but you can adjust the voltage a bit yourself.
But the main problem is that the SPD is not activated all the time. According to a Kingston representative, they “adjust only for the ‘Main’ time (CL, RCD, RP, RAS)” and since the SPD system used to store XMP records has a limited number of entries, the rest It’s up to the motherboard to decide. In my case the βautoβ setting on the ASUS motherboard set some strange values ββsome of the time. RAM refuses to run with XMP profile until I fix that time myself.
How to determine response time of RAM
While overclocking RAM is pretty safe, it’s also a bit more complicated than just increasing the values ββwhen overclocking the CPU. If you are running AMD Ryzen then overclocking the ram is simpler because there is a tool called βRyzen DRAM Calculatorβ will make this whole process easier. The computer will eliminate some headaches and you won’t have to leave the RAM in the “AUTO” setting on the mainboard.
For Intel, the tool can still identify key times, and the built-in memory checker will work in a similar way. You will also download this software even if you are not using AMD.
Open the software and enter the code of the Ryzen CPU you are using (select Ryzen 2 Gen if you are using Intel) and the type of memory you have. If you do not know, you can search google to check the components of RAM.
Press the button “R β XMPβ purple at the bottom to load Profile XMP. Enter your Ryzen CPU code and memory type, then press βCalculate SAFEβ to calculate the running time of RAM. You can press the button βCompare Timingsβ to compare with my XMP settings.
The SAFE setting will almost always work, I’ve had no problems at many fixed voltages. The FAST feature will probably work, but may not be stable.
You need to take a screenshot (there is a button on the bottom left) and view it while in the BIOS.
How to Overclock RAM in BIOS
You should have taken a screenshot of the computer with the available parameters because the next steps will be performed in the BIOS.
Turn off the PC and boot into BIOS or UEFI. Continuously press the Del or F2 button (depending on the Main type), access the BIOS similar to this screen:
Find tabs Memory or RAM and download your XMP Profile to get started. Make sure the clock is what you want. You can increase the clock while keeping the response time the same (especially on Intel CPUs).
Now, open the screenshot on your phone and start typing the corresponding number. In your case, the numbers match, but you should still check again.
ASUS BIOS displays the full names of multiple key times, here is a list of key times and their associated terms:
- tCL β Main CAS Latency
- tRCDRD β Read delay from RAS to CAS
- tRCDWR β RAS to CAS write delay.
- tRP β RAS Preload Time (PRE)
- tRAS β RAS Active Time (ACT)
The rest should exactly match the screenshot.
Once you’re done entering the time, look for the voltage control section. You’ll enter the recommended DRAM voltage (the calculator shows potentially unsafe voltages in red. Any voltage below 1,450v is probably safe). If you’re using Ryzen, you’ll enter the recommended SOC voltage, which powers the memory controller on the CPU.
Save the settings and exit the BIOS. Your computer will reboot and if it gets into Windows, you can move on to the next step.
What to do if it won’t boot
If the system fails to boot, your motherboard may not be able to perform a power check (POST) self check, you may have to wait about 30 seconds for the BIOS to boot into safe mode and restore the most recent settings. . You could try increasing the memory voltage to 25 millivolts (0.025v) before the maximum recommended voltage is reached. You can also try increasing the SOC voltage a bit on Ryzen PCs, as 1st and 2nd Gen Ryzens are very difficult to overclock RAM. Intel doesn’t have the same SOC as Ryzen and probably won’t have this problem.
If your computer won’t boot into safe mode, don’t worry. Your BIOS may not have that feature and you will need to clear the CMOS manually. CMOS is the battery on the motherboard that you can remove and re-insert. After re-inserting the CMOS, the PC will return to its normal state.
Guaranteed stable overclock
After returning to Windows, you need to make sure the overclock is stable. Switch to the βMEMbenchβ tab to check. Set the mode to βCustomβ and the task scope to 400%. Click βMax RAMβ at the bottom to allocate all your remaining RAM. The software will check and find errors on RAM 4 times.
Click βRunβ to start running the RAM test. In my case, testing 32GB of RAM at task scope 400% took less than ten minutes.
If there are no errors, you can overclock the RAM again or check the βFASTβ setting. This is the whole overclocking process. If possible, test the RAM overnight, set the task scope to about 100,000% and leave the computer overnight. If there are no errors, then you have successfully overclocked the RAM.
Benchmark RAM
If you want to see how much power RAM has increased, you can download UserBenchmark to benchmark your entire PC, including your RAM. My RAM has increased 23% performance after overclocking.