[SOLVED] G.Skill RAM XMP voltage problem on B450 MOBO

chiken_VEVO

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Hey everyone. So a friend of mine has recently decided to upgrade the ram on his system and so he decided to go with a G.Skill RipjawsV 2x8GB 3200Mhz 16CL kit that I suggested after using it myself for a couple of months.

When the DIMMs arrived he inserted them into his Asrock B450 Pro4 motherboard and both of them were recognized.

But, when tried to enable the XMP 2.0 setting and enable 3200Mhz instead of the stock 2133Mhz, he found out that the DRAM voltage limit was 1.2V, so when the XMP voltage was set to the normal 1.35V and he exited BIOS, the PC would be stuck in a restart - loop.

What's even weirder is the fact that with his older RAM the voltage limit was normal, AKA 1.4V and during troubleshooting when he tried only one of the two new sticks the voltage limit in the BIOS suddenly went up to 1.35V, barely enough for the PC to boot at 3200Mhz, but not enough for it not to crash when he tried stressing the RAM...

This is extremely weird and we're both kinda lost at the moment, so any help will really be appreciated :)
 

bfollett

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Can you post a screen shot of the SPD tab in CPU-Z. I'd be quite surprised if there wasn't an XMP profile. If there really isn't, did you use Thaiphoon Burner to identity what memory chips are used in your ram before using Dram Calculator. I doubt samsung b die is used in 3200 CL22 ram.
 

chiken_VEVO

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Sep 28, 2019
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Can you post a screen shot of the SPD tab in CPU-Z. I'd be quite surprised if there wasn't an XMP profile. If there really isn't, did you use Thaiphoon Burner to identity what memory chips are used in your ram before using Dram Calculator. I doubt samsung b die is used in 3200 CL22 ram.

First of all thanks for the reply. As I said in the OP, the correct XMP 2.0 profile does show up, but for some reason the DRAM voltage limit of the MOBO has somehow been mysteriously decreased to 1.2V (with two DIMMs installed) and then 1.35V (with one DIMM installed) from the normal 1.4V. As a result, the PC would not boot and would be stuck in a restart loop with the two new DIMMs installed and XMP enabled. When he only installed one of the 2 new DIMMs the voltage limit automatically increased to 1.35V, which was enough for the PC to boot with XMP enabled this time, but was not enough for the PC not to crash when he tried stressing the RAM.

DD4 3200 and 3600 RAM kits almost all use 1.35V when XMP is enabled:
G.Skill TridentZ RGB 16GB 3200 (F4-3200C16D-16GTZR) Timings and Voltage:
View: https://imgur.com/VWlZmWx


G.Skill Ripjaws V 16GB 3600 (F4-3600C16D-16GVKC) Timings and Voltage:
View: https://imgur.com/h2efXxr


What Exact Model RAM kit and CPU does he have ?

He has the kit displayed in the 2nd image, but the problematic part isn't the normal XMP voltage setting of 1.35V, it's the voltage limit of the MOBO that's below its normal value of 1.4V, therefore rendering the DIMMs unusable in 3200Mhz @ 1.35V.
 

DMAN999

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First of all thanks for the reply. As I said in the OP, the correct XMP 2.0 profile does show up, but for some reason the DRAM voltage limit of the MOBO has somehow been mysteriously decreased to 1.2V (with two DIMMs installed) and then 1.35V (with one DIMM installed) from the normal 1.4V. As a result, the PC would not boot and would be stuck in a restart loop with the two new DIMMs installed and XMP enabled. When he only installed one of the 2 new DIMMs the voltage limit automatically increased to 1.35V, which was enough for the PC to boot with XMP enabled this time, but was not enough for the PC not to crash when he tried stressing the RAM.


He has the kit displayed in the 2nd image, but the problematic part isn't the normal XMP voltage setting of 1.35V, it's the voltage limit of the MOBO that's below its normal value of 1.4V, therefore rendering the DIMMs unusable in 3200Mhz @ 1.35V.
The Normal RAM voltage when RAM is running at 2133 is 1.2 V.
When you enable XMP it goes up to 1.35V.
It is NEVER 1.4V (unless you have 4000 or faster RAM), so why do you keep saying that 1.4V for RAM is normal, it is NOT normal for that RAM.

So he has this RAM kit F4-3600C16D-16GVKC, correct ?
What CPU does he have ???
If he has a Ryzen 1000 or Ryzen 2000 on that Asrock B450 Pro4 then that RAM will NOT run at 3600 and possibly NOT at 3200 either.
Have him enable the XMP Profile BUT then change the Memory (RAM) Frequency to 2933.
And see if that will boot.
 

chiken_VEVO

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Sep 28, 2019
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so why do you keep saying that 1.4V for RAM is normal, it is NOT normal for that RAM.

The normal voltage limit of this B450 board is 1.4V, but due to the fact that it has somehow been reduced to 1.2 - 1.35V, the 2 DIMMs cannot run with XMP 2.0 enabled, which required 1.35V from the board.


What CPU does he have ???
If he has a Ryzen 1000 or Ryzen 2000 on that Asrock B450 Pro4 then that RAM will NOT run at 3600 and possibly NOT at 3200 either.
Have him enable the XMP Profile BUT then change the Memory (RAM) Frequency to 2933.
And see if that will boot.

You're right. I guess we got mixed up along the way and I thought he had a Ryzen 5 3600X, but after all he had a 2600X, which is a Pinnacle Ridge CPU which allows max RAM speed of 2933Mhz.

Thanks for all the help. We may return the kit if we can, but until then, with XMP 2.0 enabled and the frequency set to 2933 manually, what voltage should I set or will it adjust automatically?
 

chiken_VEVO

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Sep 28, 2019
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I would Enable the DOCP Profile (that will set the proper timings and DRAM Voltage to 1.35V) and then set the Memory Frequency to 2933 and see if it boots.
View: https://imgur.com/ZGtTQT1

Yep, it worked now at 2933Mhz @ 1.3V, thanks! When my friend tried running MemTest64 though his PC and mouse froze completely when he started stress - testing the RAM... Is that normal? (I don't have a PC right now to test it)
 
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DMAN999

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Yep, it worked now at 2933Mhz @ 1.3V, thanks! When my friend tried running MemTest64 though his PC and mouse froze completely when he started stress - testing the RAM... Is that normal? (I don't have a PC right now to test it)
When running a Memory Test he should NOT move the mouse or touch the keyboard until the test completes.
I would have him run Memtest86:
Download MemTest86 Free (Version 8.4)

If doesn't return any errors that will let him know that the RAM is not faulty.
Then he can run some Memory tests in Windows (like Memtest64, HCI Memtest, etc.) to make sure it is stable in Windows.
 

chiken_VEVO

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Sep 28, 2019
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When running a Memory Test he should NOT move the mouse or touch the keyboard until the test completes.
I would have him run Memtest86:
Download MemTest86 Free (Version 8.4)

If doesn't return any errors that will let him know that the RAM is not faulty.
Then he can run some Memory tests in Windows (like Memtest64, HCI Memtest, etc.) to make sure it is stable in Windows.

Great! Thanks a lot again for the help!


I unfortunately can't, because as I said, the DRAM voltage limit for the board for some reason is set to 1.3V instead of the normal 1.4V, so when I try increasing the DRAM voltage to 1.35V it turns red in the BIOS and the PC then gets stuck in a restart loop.
 

DMAN999

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Great! Thanks a lot again for the help!



I unfortunately can't, because as I said, the DRAM voltage limit for the board for some reason is set to 1.3V instead of the normal 1.4V, so when I try increasing the DRAM voltage to 1.35V it turns red in the BIOS and the PC then gets stuck in a restart loop.
As long as it is working and stable I'd just leave it as is.

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