Question Do I Need to Overclock 3200Mhz Memory to Work With Motherboard?

[Boris_yo]

I saw a description on one of motherboards I want to buy and the following is what I am concerned about:

"Support for DDR4 3600(O.C.)/3466(O.C.)/3200(O.C.)/2933/2667/2400/2133 MHz memory modules"

From what I understand, it does not work with 3200Mhz memory module/s unless overclocked?

I have 2 questions:

1. What happens if I buy 3200Mhz memory module? Will motherboard work on lower tier 2933Mhz speed?

2. If my memory is already 3200Mhz out of the box, do I need to use XMP profile to overclock it to 3200Mhz
for it to work with motherboard on that speed?

 

[PC Tailor]

From what I understand, it does not work with 3200Mhz memory module/s unless overclocked?

Technically yes, it's not directly an overclock, but it is a form of overclocking. In effect you'll need to set the speed in the BIOS manually (Using XMP/DOCP) to enable higher clock speeds. This applies to pretty much all motherboards when it comes to higher RAM speeds.

1. What happens if I buy 3200Mhz memory module? Will motherboard work on lower tier 2933Mhz speed?

Usually, it will either work at the lowest native frequency (2933) or it will run at normal JEDEC standard (this is more likely) which is 2133. Until you enable DOCP/XMP.

2. If my memory is already 3200Mhz out of the box, do I need to use XMP profile to overclock it to 3200Mhz
for it to work with motherboard on that speed?

Correct.

Again, this applies to pretty much all motherboards, but all you're technically telling your motherboard to do is "apply the settings to run this RAM at it's rated speed". It doesn't necessarily hold the same risks as overclocking in the typical sense as ultimately, both components are made to run at those rated speeds. You just have to enable XMP/DOCP in order to do so.

Pretty much anyone you see running 3200+ RAM would have had to configure their BIOS to run at those speeds.

 

[Encryption+]

You don't have to overclock it as it will automatically limit itself to the 2933 MHz max non overclocked speed of the motherboard. However if you want to get the full 3200 MHz out of the RAM then yes you'll have to "overclock" it in the bios as mentioned above.

 

[alceryes]

I'm curious, what motherboard and CPU will this be running in?
The reason for the "OC" tag is because the common CPUs that are compatible with this motherboard have a memory controller that is only rated for a certain speed. Technically, running memory over this rated speed IS overclocking.

 

[gskill support]

OC tag generally means single channel capability