ASUS Z87-A Memory Compatibility

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dbrook007

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Jan 9, 2009
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Hi,

i have an Asus Z87-A board with 16GB of RAM.

I wish to upgrade to 32GB. The m/b supports 32GB but it also says it's dual-channel, not quad-channel.

Most of the kits I've seen for 4x8GB state they are quad-channel, and don't state whether or not they'd work with dual-channel or my m/b specifically.

Are these different - i.e., do I have to buy 2 lots of 2x8GB dual-channel for it to work properly? Or can I just buy 1 lot of 4x8GB quad-channel ?

(I ask this because I cannot find 4x8GB dual channel) ???

For example, there's this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/HyperX-Savage-32-Memory-Module/dp/B00N9PVZAC/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1418761120&sr=8-6&keywords=ddr3+32GB+savage

But on manufacturers website, it's hard to tell whether it's compatible or not with my m/b ?

It also uses an XMP profile for the stats I want, rather than the Jedec. My current memory is CL9 but I don't have XMP currently on.

Are there possible problems when using XMP?

Then, there is the frequency... the m/b specs say 1600MHz - can I go beyond that or am I stuck at 1600?

Any help appreciated, thank you.

UPDATE:

The reason I asked about XMP - please have a look at the spec sheet - http://www.kingston.com/datasheets/HX316C9SRK4_32.pdf

It was the difference on the timings that concerned me a bit between XMP and JEDEC

How does this memory compare with other reliable brands etc?

The PC is used for complex music production.

Thanks again.

 
Solution
Tradesman1
XMP and JEDEC are two entirely different things - JEDEC is the organization that sets 'standards' for DRAM, XMP is is a thing Intel designed for , well basically, auto setup of DRAM at 1600 and higher as the original JEDEC specs for DDR3 only went to 1600. The DRAM manufacturers were producing higher freq DRAM 1866, 2133, 2400 before JEDEC ever even published 'standards' for those freq (1866 and 2133 anyway) and by the time they were published they were already out of date also . The Kingstons you mentioned are considered slow with the CL11 at 1600, common norm for entry level DRAM these days is 1600/9 and the sweet spot for DRAM and a Z87/Z97 with a K CPU is generally 1866 or 2133
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a Quad channel kit WILL work in your board. Quad channel kits are the same as dual channel kits just labeled differently. they are interchangeable.

XMP stands for Extreme Memory Profile and sets the ram to the XMP setting programmed into the Jedec. Yes XMP is part of the Jedec programming. It is just a fast way to set the memory to the maximum programmed speed and settings.

It is best to by a kit with all 4 modules in it to prevent stick incompatibility. running the max memory can cause issues with different sticks so please get 1 set of 32 GB ram of your choice.

There is no need to have to run XMP. You can set everything manually if you want but it is quicker and easier using XMP.

Can your board go past the 1600? well it is possible but no guaranty because you will need to OC the board inorder to reach those settings so no one can really answer that.
 
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The motherboard does support sticks that run higher than 1600mhz,

4 x DIMM, Max. 32GB, DDR3 3000(O.C.)/2933(O.C.)/2800(O.C.)/2666(O.C.)/2600(O.C.)/2500(O.C.)/2400(O.C.)/2200(O.C.)/2133(O.C.)/2000(O.C.)/1866(O.C.)/1800(O.C.)
Click to expand...
you don't need to o.c. the board for that,but the ram itself.XMP will make these settings mor easy.The ram does need to be able to reach higher speeds than 1600mhz of course.
It is possible that you need to overclock the cpu to reach certain higher speeds and probably over 2133mhz,but that's something you need to find out.It also depends on which cpu you use.
There should be no problems using xmp.
Quad channel says probably more about the amount of sticks in the set than that it is only for quad channel boards .

 
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Since you want to quibble over semantics:

DDR3 3000(OC)/2933(OC)/2800(OC)/2666(OC)/2600(OC)/2500(OC)/2400(OC)/2200(OC)/2133(OC)/2000(OC)/1866(OC)/1800(OC)/1600/1333

The board supports up 1600 before Over clocking is necessary , hence the inclusion of the (OC) Label. Since the Phenom II's, for AMD, and Core I series, for Intel, the memory controller has been moved to the CPU so any thing over 1600MHz will include OCing the CPU's memory controller, technically. The highest stable Ram setting will depend on the exact CPU that is used as the lower end CPU's memory controller will not support as high of an OC.

OCing the ram would be pushing the ram to a Higher frequency than it was designed for, even higher than the XMP profile. There fore, IF XMP is used, you are not OCing the Ram. IF the standard frequency, lets use 1866MHz, is higher than the 1600 Mhz the board says is standard, you would actually be OCing the memory controller on the CPU even if the BIOS allows and shows 1866 or higher for a setting.

Other than having an issue with me saying OCing hte board you had no other helpful info to add... Sorry
 
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You're pretty much stuck at 1600MHz as if you get higher MHz RAM sticks it will default them to 1600MHz.
 
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You left out the important part, What CPU, the mobo can support basically any DRAM available (DDR3), but the CPU is the key as it has the MC (memory controller). In short though if you have a K model, again basically any freq. The DRAM advertising is basically a misnomer in that with a 4 stick set it can run in any config (single, dual, tri or quad channel mode), many think they say quad as it's a 4 stick set. On your mobo it will run in dual channel as long as you have an equal amount of DRAM in each channel - with unequal amounts it runs in flex mode (a combo of single and dual channel). The savage sticks you mention will be fine
 
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Like I tried to explain before The XMP settings set the ram to its highest frequency and tightest timings that they, the company, can reliably get out of the ram constantly and be reproduced with out faults, barring a bad run or the occasional bad ram sticks. XMP stands for extreme memory profile. This refers to its, the ram, fastest setting programmed into the Jedec. The standard settings in the Jedec are for systems that have issues running the XMP profile for what ever reason. Not all CPU/motherboard combos can run every XMP setting out there so a lower setting is added to help with first time boot. From there you can select the XMP or manually set the timings or just leave it alone.

You are concerning yourself over nothing really. Just confusion on how it works. There is no need to run XMP unless you want to and it will not harm the system if you do or don't run it. Obviously the lower timings the faster it will run.

As Tradesman said that ram you have selected will be fine for your system.
 
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XMP and JEDEC are two entirely different things - JEDEC is the organization that sets 'standards' for DRAM, XMP is is a thing Intel designed for , well basically, auto setup of DRAM at 1600 and higher as the original JEDEC specs for DDR3 only went to 1600. The DRAM manufacturers were producing higher freq DRAM 1866, 2133, 2400 before JEDEC ever even published 'standards' for those freq (1866 and 2133 anyway) and by the time they were published they were already out of date also . The Kingstons you mentioned are considered slow with the CL11 at 1600, common norm for entry level DRAM these days is 1600/9 and the sweet spot for DRAM and a Z87/Z97 with a K CPU is generally 1866 or 2133
 
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