[SOLVED] H97 mobo suddenly allows RAM overclocking after the latest bios update with i7-5775C

[HeartOfAdel]

My MSI H97 Gaming 3 motherboard officially supports only1600mhz ram. But after installing i7-5775C with the latest bios update, there's an option to run it at 1866mhz.

If the board can't run certain speeds it usually doesn't even boot and gets stuck in the on/off loop. But it posted even with tighter timings (although there were freezes and crashes but I'm pretty sure it's hyperx fury 1600mhz that can't handle cl9 at 1866mhz. The auto timings ran without issues.

At this point I'm considering upgrading to 1866mhz ram with good timings. I just want to hear your advice if I should do this or not, because, I think, such settings were not put into the bios randomly and the board is physically capable of that speed, so it should be perfectly fine for the motherboard, shouldn't it?

 

[Zerk2012]

My MSI H97 Gaming 3 motherboard officially supports 1600mhz ram. But after installing i7-5775C with the latest bios update, there's an option to run it at 1866mhz.

If the board can't run certain speeds it usually doesn't even boot and gets stuck in the on/off loop. But it posted even with tighter timings (although there were freezes and crashes but I'm pretty sure it's hyperx fury 1600mhz that can't handle cl9 at that speed. The auto timings with ran without issues.

At this point I'm considering upgrading to 1866mhz ram with good timings. I just want to hear your advice if I should do this or not, because, I think, such settings were not put into the bios randomly and the board is physically capable of that speed, so it should be perfectly fine for the motherboard, shouldn't it?

No reason to buy new memory for that PC your not really going to gain performance going from 1600 to 1866.

 

[geofelt]

If you are using integrated graphics, that is the only thing that shows a fair benefit from faster ram.
In actual use, you might be looking at a 1-2% difference in real app performance.
Not likely much worth buying new ram, even if it might work.

To test your ram,

Run memtest86 or memtest86+
They boot from a usb stick and do not use windows.
You can download them here:

MemTest86 - Official Site of the x86 Memory Testing Tool

MemTest86 is the original self booting memory testing software for x86 and ARM computers. Supporting both BIOS and UEFI, with options to boot from USB.

www.memtest86.com

Memtest86+ | The Open-Source Memory Testing Tool

Memtest86+ is an advanced, free, open-source, stand-alone memory tester for 32- and 64-bit computers (UEFI & BIOS supported)

www.memtest.org

If you can run a full pass with NO errors, your ram should be ok.

Running several more passes will sometimes uncover an issue, but it takes more time.
Probably not worth it unless you really suspect a ram issue.

 

[HeartOfAdel]

No reason to buy new memory for that PC your not really going to gain performance going from 1600 to 1866.

If you are using integrated graphics, that is the only thing that shows a fair benefit from faster ram.
In actual use, you might be looking at a 1-2% difference in real app performance.
Not likely much worth buying new ram, even if it might work.

To test your ram,

Run memtest86 or memtest86+
They boot from a usb stick and do not use windows.
You can download them here:

MemTest86 - Official Site of the x86 Memory Testing Tool

MemTest86 is the original self booting memory testing software for x86 and ARM computers. Supporting both BIOS and UEFI, with options to boot from USB.

www.memtest86.com

Memtest86+ | The Open-Source Memory Testing Tool

Memtest86+ is an advanced, free, open-source, stand-alone memory tester for 32- and 64-bit computers (UEFI & BIOS supported)

www.memtest.org

If you can run a full pass with NO errors, your ram should be ok.

Running several more passes will sometimes uncover an issue, but it takes more time.
Probably not worth it unless you really suspect a ram issue.

Every bit of performance is important.

 

[Zerk2012]

Every bit of performance is important.

Then why did you even post?

 

[HeartOfAdel]

Then why did you even post?

Read the question carefully. I'm not asking if the performance increase is worth it. I'm asking for your opinion on the motherboard and how it handles ram. If you think that this bios setting was created intentionally and it's safe to run it.
I just want your opinion if it's normal that the manufacturer at some point unlocks higher speeds, maybe you've experienced this with your motherboard or know that pattern with the latest bios updates.