RAM Voltage Question

[TwentyTwelve]

Hi so i've been messing about with OCing and made various threads here - i'm now wondering about how RAM oc works;

The ram i have is :https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Now if i'm not mistaken without XMP/OC it should run at 2400mhz - Voltage 1.2?
With XMP - it auto sets to 3000mhz which is good, but the voltage is 1.353 - my motherboard (Asus z170-a) supports 3000mhz but a MAX of 1.35v

Is this an issue? Can i run the ram @ 3000mhz at 1.35v (instead of the 1.353v) or do i need the extra volt, and also if i don't OC the ram, should it be set to 1.2v? (I have my mobo running ram voltage on auto as i'm unsure)


Last question - OCing ram causes heat increase on cpu ofc but does having ram OC'd require higher cpu voltage?
e.g:
XMP RAM 3000mhz + Cpu @ 4.6 = cpu voltage 1.35
Ram @ 2400mhz + cpu @ 4.6 = cpu voltage ? can i drop voltage due to ram being stock clocked.

Asking cause if this is the case i'll keep ram on stock cause my main game is wow, i care more about higher cpu clocks than ram.

Messing around with settings because recently i've been having blue screens (one every 18 days) with my normal OC setup -
i7 6700k @ 4.6 1.345v + Ram xmp 3000mhz
But i also have a weird issue where after pc is on for a long while, most of the time it dosen't shut down - The monitors shut off when i shut down the pc in the start menu - but the GPU/FAns/LEDs stay on. Not sure if it's unstable OC OR the RAM settings, I even tried my cpu on a different stable OC (4.4 @ 1.25v) and the shutdown thing persists so i'm assuming it's the ram - maybe the over volt since mobo only supports 1.35v.

[TwentyTwelve]

Okay so Bumping as i think i may have found something regarding my failure to shutdown issue;
I put my ram back to stock however after a few hours of playing, if i was to shutdown my computer, only the screens would actually turn of, so issue remained.

I have read a lot of people with this issue say it could be;
- PSU (brand new with build)
- BIOS
- MEI - Intel management engine interface

I very much doubt the PSU since it is BRAND new - i have tried updating MEI and that did not work unfortunately, the last thing i haven't tried is updating the BIOS.

I am too scared to update the BIOS as i have heard it is not really safe - I was wondering if that is true.

My MOBO in reference is Asus z170-a ---

If you google "z170-a wont shut down" there are quite a lot of people with the same issue of the pc not fully shuting down - I mean i can FORCE the shutdown with holding power button, but that can't be healthy.

Also - If someone does know the answer to my original post i would really appreciate it: does having ram OC'd require higher cpu voltage? - Asking because if it does it means i can leave ram at stock to get higher cpu clocks at lower voltage. (for wow)

[Thunderball]

ASUS motherboards have a known problem of overclocked RAM causing system instability. It's probably not related to your issue though.

Regarding DRAM and CPU voltage. They are completely separate, issues by different chips, physical power systems on the motherboard are also separate so changing Vcore wont have any effect on your RAM. The only thing that changes for RAM when you're overclocking your processor on modern systems is north bridge bus clock, which is used by the processor, aswell as memory.

[TwentyTwelve]

ASUS motherboards have a known problem of overclocked RAM causing system instability. It's probably not related to your issue though.

Regarding DRAM and CPU voltage. They are completely separate, issues by different chips, physical power systems on the motherboard are also separate so changing Vcore wont have any effect on your RAM. The only thing that changes for RAM when you're overclocking your processor on modern systems is north bridge bus clock, which is used by the processor, aswell as memory.

Thanks for the reply, yeah as the issue happens with ram set to stock speed i don't think its an OC issue with the ram - i'm just worried about flashing a bios as i've never done it.

Also about the RAM/Cpu Voltage, the Vcore may not effect my RAM but to run OC RAM don't i need to feed more voltage to my cpu?
I'm running at:
i7 6700k 4.4 @ 1.25v
DDR4 2400mhz

I was running
i7 6700k 4.4 @ 1.25v
DDR4 3000mhz

So basically as i've dropped my RAM speed - would my CPU require less voltage to be stable? Or is this not changed at all - if not i'll up my ram speeds again.

[Warrax]

For the RAM to be stable, it need more voltage (RAM voltage, not cpu voltage). 1.2-1.35v is standard, over this might damage the memory so tweak at your own risk.

The bluescreens might be caused by the overclock, it usually mean it need more voltage.

[Thunderball]

Thanks for the reply, yeah as the issue happens with ram set to stock speed i don't think its an OC issue with the ram - i'm just worried about flashing a bios as i've never done it.

Also about the RAM/Cpu Voltage, the Vcore may not effect my RAM but to run OC RAM don't i need to feed more voltage to my cpu?
I'm running at:
i7 6700k 4.4 @ 1.25v
DDR4 2400mhz

I was running
i7 6700k 4.4 @ 1.25v
DDR4 3000mhz

So basically as i've dropped my RAM speed - would my CPU require less voltage to be stable? Or is this not changed at all - if not i'll up my ram speeds again.

No. They are completely separate.

[TwentyTwelve]

Okay so I kept reading people with my board was having the same shutdown issue as I was - apprently updating the bios fixed it so i decided to give it a try

my bios was something like version 1702 - and i updated to the most recent; 2001, i used the bios tool Asus EZ Flash 3 - using a usb.

It completed sucessfully apparently and then i loaded up my bios to change my OC settings (set it to default for updating the bios), as i was messing with the fan settings my bios froze...

Should i be worried? I mean I've set the settings now and i'm currently using the pc fine.

[Thunderball]

Okay so I kept reading people with my board was having the same shutdown issue as I was - apprently updating the bios fixed it so i decided to give it a try

my bios was something like version 1702 - and i updated to the most recent; 2001, i used the bios tool Asus EZ Flash 3 - using a usb.

It completed sucessfully apparently and then i loaded up my bios to change my OC settings (set it to default for updating the bios), as i was messing with the fan settings my bios froze...

Should i be worried? I mean I've set the settings now and i'm currently using the pc fine.

I have the same problem on my K6+ (different manufacturer too), apparently it's quite a widespread issue, so I dont think you should be worried.

[Deleted]

bios freezing could very well be a ram issue, heck my old computer had ram going bad, blue screens then it froze in bios and finally it would not boot when the stick was inserted. now funny thing is the ram was ok(just OLD) so just the contact surfaced had corroded so much(gone dark) it would not work until I cleaned them with a soft eraser and wiped with cloth after, and zero issues ever since. Now I would no go cleaning them with eraser if they are working fine to begin with.