Question How to use "different" RAM sticks?

[Qzixas]

Hello,
I use 4x4GB CMK8GX4M2B3000CL15 with XMP profile on Ver. 5.20
Tried to use 2x of those + CMK16GX4M2B3000C15 with an XMP profile (Corsair) Ver 5.32
And after some time I got crashes, pc failed to start, and so on... I ran the RAM test and it failed, BUT when I run them separately it works fine.
Any idea how to fix it?
I fail to see the problem here since both are 3000Mhz and CL15

 

[USAFRet]

"How to..."

Hope and pray.

 

[Order 66]

"How to..."

Hope and pray.

well said. It is generally not a good idea to mix and match RAM. It tends to lead to issues.

 

[Qzixas]

well said. It is generally not a good idea to mix and match RAM. It tends to lead to issues.

But they are more ir less the same like same brand same mhz and cl. Only version is a bit different.
And let say it works fine without XMP, better have 16GB with XMP or 24 without?

 

[Lafong]

24 is "better" than 16 if you are using all of the 16.

Are you?

Or do you just "want" 24?

 

[Qzixas]

24 is "better" than 16 if you are using all of the 16.

Are you?

Or do you just "want" 24?

I run ram hungry modded games burn 16gb like its nothing at times and sit on 99% usage, and also use video editing, 3d modeling. So kinda curious performance should be better than 16gb even without XMP?

 

[USAFRet]

I run ram hungry modded games burn 16gb like its nothing at times and sit on 99% usage, and also use video editing, 3d modeling. So kinda curious performance should be better than 16gb even without XMP?

The best, and probably only way, is to get a 32GB or 64GB set of RAM, sold as a set.

Mix/match often fails.

Even if it "seems" like the same. It is not.

 

[bill001g]

If you are out of memory anything is going to be faster than paging it to disk.

This is where you learn what all the number XMP is setting for you really mean. There are videos that show how to overclock memory. You just mess with and set it as high as you can. When it can run the memory test overnight without errors you know you will never get a crash in normal usage.

Hard to say how good you can get the numbers you are pretty much doing what you pay the factory to do in the matched sets.

 

[Darkbreeze]

But they are more ir less the same like same brand same mhz and cl. Only version is a bit different.
And let say it works fine without XMP, better have 16GB with XMP or 24 without?

That very much depends. If you ARE using up all or most of the 16GB then having 24 GB would definitely be better, or at least, stop the system from paging to disk to make up for the lack of memory. If you are NOT using it all, then of course having the faster XMP clock frequency would likely be more beneficial. In general you are much better off with the faster frequency but that's mainly because most people never use anywhere near the full amount of installed memory. For those that do, more is certainly going to be more helpful.

As far as the "more or less the same", that really does not matter at all. Even if they are EXACTLY the same memory kit but did not come together from the factory, and were not therefore TESTED to be compatible with each other, there still can (And OFTEN are) be compatibility issues resulting in problems. Reading the section titled "Mixed memory (Or the odd man out)" at the following link should help to clarify why and how this might be.

How To - Troubleshooting problems with PC memory (RAM) and XMP profile configurations

In the beginning, there was......BIOS Before you go ANY further, go to the manufacturer product page for your specific motherboard model AND revision. Revision is an important aspect because for any given motherboard there may be more than one version of that model which will be identified...

forums.tomshardware.com

If you have a need to run more memory than is currently installed it is pretty much always wise to simply buy a whole new kit that has all the memory you require included. Mixing and matching sticks CAN work fine right out of the box, or might require some tweaking to get things working properly, but in some cases, a lot of them actually, mixing DIMMs that did not come together in one kit might never work as they simply refuse to "play nice" with each other.

 

[DSzymborski]

But they are more ir less the same like same brand same mhz and cl. Only version is a bit different.
And let say it works fine without XMP, better have 16GB with XMP or 24 without?

RAM doesn't really have "brands" in the way that, say, cars or cookies do. RAM is a binned product, specific specs and branding of RAM is basically simply assigned based on how defective it is. A kit of Corsair Vengeance RAM may be more similar to a kit of Corsair or TEAMGROUP RAM than an identically branded package of Corsair Vengeance RAM delivered by the same truck and next to each other on the same shelf. RAMs stick and CPUs are binned products because our semiconductor fabrication processes don't make truly fundamentally identical products. Differences at the atomic level *matter* here where they don't matter for, say a Toyota Camry or an Oreo cookie.

Darkbreeze and USAFRet aren't being flippant; it's basically a hope and pray situation. You can tinker around with the settings, but at the end of the day, RAM frequently just won't play with other RAM. Now, we all mix-and-match RAM plenty -- right now, I have a FrankenRAM 48 GB in my main PC because I happened to have an extra 2x16 kit I was testing another PC with -- but we're always prepared for it to not work.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Right. There is nothing wrong with trying to use disparate memory kits together, but mostly only if you already have the extra kit or come across some deal that is so ridiculously cheap you can't pass it up especially if you have another system you can use it in in case it won't play nice with your existing kit or know somebody you can sell it to without any great effort. Otherwise, it's just a much safer bet to simply buy a matched and tested set of sticks.