Question Questions about running G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL16GB (2 x 8GB) on ASUS P8Z68-V

[TECHSENSI]

Hello, I didn't do much research prior to purchasing these memory sticks for a good deal on ebay yesterday ($20 shipped). I want more memory overhead for applications and VM's. Since I can't really only use two memory modules on my ASUS P8Z68-V because of my giant Heat Sink Fan that goes over one of the memory modules I decided to buy the F3-12800CL10D modules that are slightly slower CAS/Memory timings than the two 4 GB modules I'm currently running. I'm running the Blue G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series F3-12800CL8-4GBXM now without issues. I've been running my Intel Sandy Bridge I5-2500 at 4500 overclocked without any issues since I built this rig back in 2011. Stock overboost is 3700 MHz. It runs smooth as silk and I'm hoping I can just put the F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL16GB and not have any issues. I'm running the Blue ones at 800 MHz and they work great with my overclock settings. Does anyone know if I might potentially have issues with my overclocked setup with the slightly slower F3-12800CL10D 2x8GB modules I just bought? Thanks for any ideas and here's some screen shots of my current RAM modules. I'm also going to gaming again after years of taking a break since I just bought a 1070 GTX to replace my 680 GTX. Thanks for any ideas! 🤔
F3-12800CL8-4GBXM
F3-12800CL8-4GBXM-clocks
F3-12800CL8-4GBXM-memory-settings

 

[COLGeek]

Mixing memory always carries risk of not working as intended. It may or may not work. Assuming they work together, they'll typically operate at the slower speed of what ever memory you have installed. OCing mixed memory is likely to be frustrating, if it works at all.

 

[TECHSENSI]

Thanks for the prompt reply. I'm not going to be running my current two 4GB (F3-12800CL8-4GBXM) modules because I can only use two slots on my MB. I would of bought two more 4GB F3-12800CL8-4GBXM if my CPU heat sink didn't get in the way. I'm only going to be running the F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL16GB (2 x 8GB) with my setup.

 

[COLGeek]

Understood. The new memory should be okay if not mixing.

What CPU cooler are you using?

 

[TECHSENSI]

Understood. The new memory should be okay if not mixing.

What CPU cooler are you using?

Coolermaster Hyper 212+ with fans on both sides.

 

[COLGeek]

Is the heatsink in the way of the memory slot (common with older motherboards) or is the fan in the way?

If just the fan, you can raise the fan away from the memory slot a bit (as long as your case has room) to allow for slot access. It really doesn't affect cooling performance. May just look odd.

 

[TECHSENSI]

Ok, thanks for that info! I wish I did a little more research before pulling the trigger on the two 8GB F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL16GB modules I just bought. It turns out I could of bought the same Blue 8GB modules F3-12800CL8 for the same or even cheaper! So, if the Red ones with the slightly slower timings give me issues I'll have to try and resell those and buy the F3-12800CL8 two 8GB modules I should of purchased in the first place. I'm hoping I don't have any issues but I guess I'll find out.

 

[COLGeek]

Good luck.

Given the age of this venerable rig, it might be time to start thinking seriously about a much more modern and capable system. Just a suggestion.

 

[TECHSENSI]

Thanks man. Yeah, I like my old rig and it's not in my budget to do any upgrades. I had to replace the power supply about 5 years ago and my system does everything I need. It should be a really nice upgrade for cheap going to 16GB and the 1070 GTX! So, I'm pretty psyched to try this new/used card out.

 

[COLGeek]

It will struggle with many games (you mentioned interest in getting back to gaming). Just something to be aware of.

 

[TECHSENSI]

Yeah, but not any of the old school games I want to play in my steam library that I never really started or finished. I recently bought a GTX 970 and it played Doom 2016 with Ultra Settings at 60+ frames with no hiccups at all. That was a huge leap over my 680. However, the DVI video kept cutting out so I had to return that to the seller at a $15 shipping loss. The 1070 will probably play all my old games at max settings in 1080p. That would be more than adequate. I also still use 3D Vision for movies and some games by using 3Dfix utility and no cards beyond the 1070 support 3D vision anymore. It will be cool to see how some of the old 3D games run with this card when my 680 struggled hard with a lot of 3D game like Metro 2033 Redux.

 

[COLGeek]

Let us know how the memory upgrade goes.

 

[TECHSENSI]

Welp, I finally got the G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series F3-12800CL10D-16GBXL16GB (2 x 8GB) memory today. This memory DOES NOT work with my over-clocked I-2500. It registered the 16GB on boot-up but It crashed my PC and I thought I almost borked my nice old school rig!! I even tried lowering it to 1333 speeds and that also crashed my rig. I was NOT willing to drop my processor speed down to get this working. I also stressed out BAD because when I put my old memory back into the same slots my PC would not boot! I took them out again then inserted them again and thankfully my rig booted back up to the same settings I had beforehand. Not that anybody is probably working on an old setup like mine but you would need to stick with the Blue G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series F3-12800CL8-4GBXM faster/BETTER memory timings for over-clocking. Lesson learned. I might of been able to get a slight over-clock with this memory but I like my 4500 MHz speed!

 

[COLGeek]

Have you tested the new memory? Resetting the BIOS may help. Maybe not, too. Really dependent on how you have things configured.

I assume the failures were pre-Windows booting. Is that correct?

I thought the red vs. blue thing was just aesthetic. Not functional.

 

[TECHSENSI]

Have you tested the new memory? Resetting the BIOS may help. Maybe not, too. Really dependent on how you have things configured.

I assume the failures were pre-Windows booting. Is that correct?

I thought the red vs. blue thing was just aesthetic. Not functional.

I didn't have time to try to mess with it aside from lower the speed to 1333. After installing it I was happy to see no issues registering 16GB in pre-boot but once the Windows logo came up I did not see any spinning dots and knew things were not looking good. I then hit reset on my PC and lowered it to 1333 and then it BSOD on boot up. I tried booting one more time and Windows went into a nasty recovery mode and things were not looking good. Outside of changing my multiplier from the 45 to a lower setting for the CPU cores I didn't even bother. I run the hard-coded Front Side Bus 100 (FSB) with 45 CPU multipliers for a 4500 speed. The Blue memory is way better IMO because of the faster/tighter timings. I'm guessing I should of been able to get a slight over-clock with the red modules but definitely not worth it. Also, I hit the internal power / reset button a few times when I first put my Blue sticks back in and my system didn't boot or pass a video signal and that didn't help. I nearly had a heart attack because I was in the middle of signing documents for a new job I finally landed!

I'm going to re-sell these on ebay and mention I can only guarantee they work on stock CPU clock speeds. On a side note, the GTX 1070 I bought on ebay is blazing fast and works great! Way better than the GTX 970 the other guy sold me where the DVI kept cutting out. Good times!