Is it worth overclocking ram memories?

A large part of the PC community likes being able to have absolute control over the components that make up their computer; as well as having the possibility of messing with the capabilities of these components. One of the most common practices in this regard is overclocking (or raising the clock), an action usually applied to the processor and graphics; but also extensible to other PC components, such as RAM memory.

Index of contents

A little context

The RAM memories are intrinsically related to the processor of our equipment and works together with it to load and contain crucial data for it. Due to its operation, overclocking these memories differs from what we would normally do in a processor (control of voltages and frequency increases); This practice in memories revolves much more around " trial and error techniques" through which we raise some of the many parameters that affect the speed at which these memory modules operate through our BIOS. All this with the aim of increasing the value of the multiplier of this memory.

The value of this multiplier is given by the base speed of the RAM and the value of the BCLK ( Base Clock of our motherboard), but on the current parameters such as the range of voltages, latencies, and even the configuration of the channels of our memory. Working on each of these values and modifying the appropriate ones is necessary to perform an outstanding overclock to this component of our computers.

The role of the XMP profile

The RAM memories have, depending on their type, a base speed that does not usually correspond to the real capacity of these modules. If we talk about DDR3 memories, this value is 1066 MHz at 1.5 volts, but 2400 MHz modules are common in the market; normally with higher voltages, around 1.8 volts, and with higher latencies. Generally, the lower the latency and the more MHz, the higher the speed, but these values are exclusive.

These values higher than those of the memory specification correspond to the capacity that the manufacturer believes each module has. The values necessary for the memory to operate at that speed are collected in a standard established by the Joint Electron Decive Engineering Council (JEDEC) and included in the XMP profile: a factory overclock around safe values that equals the memory speed with that established by the manufacturer.

We explain how to activate the XMP profile step by step with this guide

However, the XMP profile does not do everything for the user; They are usually conservative in terms of the capabilities of each module, and these can reach much higher speeds. Something similar to what happens with processors in their process of selection and adaptation of voltages and frequencies ( binning ), where most of the chips reach higher frequencies than those established. To get the most out of our RAM, you have to make your own adjustments.

Can all RAM memories give more of themselves?

At this point and with this information, some readers may be wondering what the actual capacity of their RAM modules is. Technically, all memory modules have slightly more than the manufacturer's advertised capacity. As each module is different, we would have to carry out tests changing parameters until we can see how well we have come out of this silicon lottery; The reality is that we can apply a couple of simple tools to get an idea of the real capacity of this piece of our equipment.

Personally, I find Ryzen DRAM Calculator quite easy to use, a tool developed to favor overclocking of RAM during the years of the first generation of Ryzen processors, due to how susceptible they were to the speed of this component.

The tool can be used whether you are an Intel or AMD user (although with the second one the results are more accurate); and includes a memory test to check the status of the memory before making any changes. To use this tool, we just have to start it, change our processor in the drop-down (if applicable), click on "R - XMP" and "Calculate SAFE" to generate a stable profile of values and generally superior to the factory. Knowing these values, it only remains to assimilate them from the BIOS of our board to apply them.

Overclocked RAM performance

As you can see, if there is improvement. If you want to see more results, take a look at our article on RAM memory scaling with AMD Ryzen 3000.

Advantages and disadvantages if you are thinking about overclocking your memories

As we have already written. Although there are a large number of manufacturers of RAM memory modules on the market and the characteristics and qualities of these modules may seem very different from each other; the reality is that all these manufacturers use the same chips from manufacturers such as Micron or Samsung to achieve these values.

Advantages that we highlight

Bringing out the potential of our components is the main attraction of overclocking , but not the only one. Among the advantages that we can find to carry out this practice we see the following:

The ability to get superior performance for less investment with a lightweight component OC. The ability to improve the performance of our equipment without incurring a part change. Especially noteworthy in certain equipment (1st and 2nd generation Ryzen). Knowing the values of voltages and frequencies at which your RAM memory operates can help you modify these values to reduce its consumption in equipment where energy management is a priority. (Portable) Although there is less documentation, the OC for RAM is a safer practice than the OC for other components.

Main problems

As for the less gentle side of this practice, we would highlight the need to acquire certain knowledge before commenting on operating on parameters of our BIOS, a task that is not as Herculean as it may seem (and we have several tutorials on it), but that can exceed the capabilities of some users. Apart from this, it is important:

Know that we will be losing the warranty of our modules if the manufacturer detects that the damage of the module comes from the OC to the RAM modules. The heatsinks of the RAM memories are passive and much less capable than those of other components, so it is not usually It is a good idea to do an intense OC for everyday use in these modules. Getting the most out of the OC in these modules is a relatively tedious and trial and error based task.

Is it necessary to do this practice on your RAM?

In our opinion, and although it is a more innocuous task than other types of OC, OC to your memories does not seem worthwhile in most scenarios. If our team works correctly through the XMP profile and its values, forcing us to modify, test and change the different parameters that intercede in this activity do not correspond to the benefit that we can see in our team.

If we really need extra power to run a program, focusing our efforts on practicing an OC to components such as the processor will, in most cases, be more effective than overclocking the memories.

We recommend reading our guide to the best RAM memory

We do not urge you not to, especially if you like to modify all the elements that take part in the operation of your equipment; But we do warn you that you will not see such a clear transformation in the performance of your computer as when doing OC on your processor or graphics card.