New to OC'ing RAM. Advice please?

[Danimal1q2w3]

Hey everyone.

My system is as follows

Mobo: asrock z77m
CPU: intel i7 3770k oc'd to 3.9
Ram: gskill ripjaws x 1866 4gbx2
Psu: rosewill lightning 1000w
Gpu: evga gtx 770 4gb
Kingston 240gb ssd
WD 1tb hdd
Case: rosewill thor v2
CPU cooler: corsair h50

I have my ram set to 1866 now. Is it really worth it for me to oc the ram? How much extra heat will it add to the CPU? The memory controller is on the CPU right? The ram has heat spreaders on top so I don't think that heat will be an issue for the ram. What kind of ram voltages will I be looking at? What do all the ram timing values mean? Should I change them? Sorry for so many questions but I just want to squeeze every last bit of performance out of my pc. Except I am holding off on a bigger cpu overclock until my cpu starts to hold me back but I don't think that will be for a few years.

Thanks for looking guys. I appreciate the help.

 

[damric]

1) Every little bit helps, especially in CPU chokepoints in games where your FPS drops. 2-3 more FPS from RAM OC +5-10 from CPU OC can mean the difference between playable and choppy.
2) Not much
3) Yes
4) 1.6-1.65v
5) Tighter timings helps performance.
6) Tighten down timings after you fnd your maximum frequency.

 

[maddogfargo]

TBH OCing your ram beyond 1866 won't give you much in gaming. Instead, I would see if you can tighten the timings, even if you go down to say 1600 or 1800 speeds.

For apps, I've had G.Skill Ripjaws 1866 up to 2100, with 2T timings. And this was on an AMD system. Intel has a better IMC so you can probably go higher, maybe even with 1T and tighter timings.

 

[Danimal1q2w3]

When you guys say "tighten the timings" what am I aiming for? How do I know if it is better or worse than before?

 

[damric]

Run AIDA memory and cache test.

 

[Danimal1q2w3]

Thanks I will check that out later