1a2bcio8 Posted May 30, 2012 Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 (edited) I used to be relatively knowledgeable about these matters in my teens to the extent that I probably used to know the answer but, alas, I no longer know or am unsure. In the first instance, I want to upgrade my ram. Presently I have 3x2gb (6gb) and I'd like to make a movement toward 12gb+ with regards to my recent upgrade to Adobe CS6 (it recommends 8gb). I have three spare dimm slots but if I remember correctly certain sizes need to be grouped in certain ways? In the sense that I can't just add a single 8gb of ram but rather I need to add further 2gb pieces? I'd prefer to not have to use the final dimm slot however because it's a bit awkward with the cpu fan placement. I will be purchasing the same model of ram as I understand this will avoid problems. Secondly, how do I overclock my cpu? I've done this in the past but I was unable to see an obvious means of doing this in the bios. I think in the past I've also done this via jumpers on the motherboard but should I be looking more closely in the bios? The cpu was supposed to be overclocked already as I bought it from overclockers but this wasn't the case and they charge a significant amount for phoning them on how to do it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated Edited May 30, 2012 by Ben Rowlands Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD™ Posted May 30, 2012 Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 In terms of the first one Ben, as far as I know Ram likes to be in 'matched pairs' as in running the same type of ram throughout the slots. If I were you I'd probably be just looking into buying either another 3x2gb or getting yourself 3x4gb and leaving some more free for future upgrades. You could probably flog the current 3x2gb sticks to offset some of the cash... 2nd one, I have no idea if it's not obvious in the BIOS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezgonzo Posted May 30, 2012 Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 i'm assuming your rig is the x58 platform, if so running only five sticks would mean that your ram wouldn't be running in triple channel mode which would hurt performance, so your best options would be what JD has recommended, which is either get another set of modules the same as your running @ the moment or replace your current modules with 3x4gb modules, in regards to oc'in it all depends what your running hardware wise to be honest and also what sort of cooling you are using, this will determine roughly what you can realistically achieve using safe voltages as well as being able to keep the temps in check, it's been a while since i benched my old x58 rig but i should still be able to offer some advice in regards to what voltages and frequency's you will need to change in the bios too oc your rig, if you could post up what hardware your running that would be great. ez Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1a2bcio8 Posted May 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 Actually it's resolved but thank you, both of you. It seems the cpu frequency was overclocked to 4ghz (it's an i7 3ghz cpu). I think I thought it was running at the 3ghz because the boot menu was stating what the cpu actually was rather than what I was running it at however the bios shows a frequency of 4ghz. Although strangely it also measured it as running at around 3.2ghz which is a bit confusing. Is it the case, like everything else (broadband, hard drives, etc. that it never runs at what it says it can; the statement it's 4ghz is only a theoretical, mathematical one that is never obtained in reality?) The frequency is definitely set higher though. I'm running a Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R. The rig is set up to support the overclocking as I bought it for that express purpose. I'm going to go with another 3x2gb of memory I think. I'm mostly interested in keep premiere smooth so I'm sure 4gb over the recommended should mean things run nicely enough. Thanks again chaps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weirdoku Posted May 30, 2012 Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 Don't listen to JD, he got himself DDR3 ram for a cpu that doesn't support it 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezgonzo Posted May 30, 2012 Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 no probs , in regards to your query regarding the frequency that it should be running @, the cpu should be psychically running @ 4ghz if the right parameters have been set in the bios, basicly if it's been set to run @ 4ghz then it will run @ 4ghz, there's a little app called cpu-z, which is basically an app that displays your real time cpu frequency as well as the voltage, it also displays all sorts of other info regarding your ram, moby as well, it is quite a handy app. ez. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azarathal Posted May 31, 2012 Report Share Posted May 31, 2012 Your cpu will also downclock and downvolt when idle if overclocked correctly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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