RAM that Posts DDR2 1066 with no Bios Changes

[OdinAEon]

Hi, I was just wondering if there was any ram that would just run at DDR2 1066 without adjusting timings. I purchased OCZ Reaper 1066, but I can't get it to post at 1066. I want just plug and play, no mucking about with any settings.

Leonard Mueller

 

[hellwig]

What speed the RAM posts at depends on what speeds are supported by your motherboard's FSB (for Intel Core 2/Pentium) or the processor itself (Athlon, Phenom).

If you have an older AM2 motherboard or an Athlon processor, these do not officially support 1066 speeds. The Phenom processors do support 1066 speeds, but only on AM2+ motherboards.

If you have an old Core 2 or Pentium processor, you need to make sure the FSB supports the faster memory speeds. Depending on the motherboard, BIOS updates *might* be available, might.

 

[OdinAEon]

Right, my computer specs are as follows

Motherboard: Asus m3a78-em
Processor: AMD Phenom 9600 Black Edition
RAM: OCZ Reaper 1066
Video: ATI Radeon 3870 Sapphire

Should have posted that before.

Thanks hellwig

 

[OdinAEon]

bump

 

[Mongox]

OdinAEon,
If your 1066 RAM comes up as 800 the most likely cause is you're not giving it sufficient voltage to be recognized as 1066. All OCZ Reaper RAM that I've seen requires 2.1V to 2.2V. Your motherboard likely defaults to 1.8V RAM voltage.

If your BIOS can increase the DDR voltage to 2.1V, then the Reaper RAM will likely POST as 1066. If you can't increase it, it'll always be 800.

If you look at this list of OCZ 1066 DDR2's, you'll see they have one module that only needs 1.8V - this is to solve the issues you have.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010170147%2050001550%201052420643&name=DDR2%201066%20%28PC2%208500%29
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Look at pages 2-21 2-22 of your manual. "Memory Overvoltage" Base voltage is 1.85V - increase it by about 35 steps of 0.00625V - enough to get 2.1V and it should fix your problem. 35 steps - sheesh! Some micro-adjustments there! If that's not enough, keep increasing until you have 2.2V.

 

[OvrClkr]

You have to manually change the settings in the Bios.... There is no such thing as a mobo that will recognize 1066Mhz at boot without making any changes unless the Ram you purchased is rated at 1.8/1.9v. The reason is due to 1066Mhz is actually 800Mhz designed to run at 1066Mhz with a voltage increase. It only takes a minute to make the changes....

 

[OdinAEon]

Thanks so much guys. I did try to change my settings before, but with 1.8 volts, it will only post at 667. I couldn't even get 800 out of it, I might try the over voltage to get 1066, but I think I may have to replace the ram to get everything working.

 

[Mongox]

Remember, it's not overvoltage if the RAM specs say "2.1V - 2.2V" as the Reaper does. Isn't considered overclocking.

I did have some Crucial 1066 RAM that came up as 1066 with no changes in BIOS and everything set to Auto - but it had lousy CL numbers. So you can get DDR2 1066 that will come up as 1066.