Do you run XMP full time?

Do you run XMP full time?

  • Yes

    Votes: 31 79.5%

  • No

    Votes: 1 2.6%

  • Custom

    Votes: 7 17.9%
  • Total voters
    39
On the vast majority of boards I've tested I simply run XMP unless it doesn't work with the modules I have on hand. With some platforms and combinations I need to set the memory clock speed as the CPU's IMC or motherboard chipset won't hit certain speeds. 12th generation Intel CPU's for example are hard to take over DDR5 5600MHz reliably and in those cases I'll set to whatever the highest stable clock speed is for that setup and just use that. But all the timings, etc. are set by XMP and I rarely see a need to change them.
 
Why, oh why would you not run at the minimum the XMP rated speeds on your RAM? You paid for memory rated to work at a certain frequency, timings, and voltage. Why would you pay extra if you just wanted to run it at the slow JEDEC speeds? If you can overclock the frequency and/or tighten the timings, more power to you and even better.

There might be some valid scenarios to downclock, like if your CPU can't handle the speed (e.g. 4800MHz on AMD Zen 2) or if you're populating all 4 sticks. But turning off XMP and running JEDEC (like 2133MHz on DDR4) is just madness. So would be turning on XMP for certain things, and then turning it off in other scenarios.
 
Dopamin3 said:
Why, oh why would you not run at the minimum the XMP rated speeds on your RAM? You paid for memory rated to work at a certain frequency, timings, and voltage. Why would you pay extra if you just wanted to run it at the slow JEDEC speeds? If you can overclock the frequency and/or tighten the timings, more power to you and even better.

There might be some valid scenarios to downclock, like if your CPU can't handle the speed (e.g. 4800MHz on AMD Zen 2) or if you're populating all 4 sticks. But turning off XMP and running JEDEC (like 2133MHz on DDR4) is just madness. So would be turning on XMP for certain things, and then turning it off in other scenarios.
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Yea I agree good answer lol
 
Dan_D said:
On the vast majority of boards I've tested I simply run XMP unless it doesn't work with the modules I have on hand. With some platforms and combinations I need to set the memory clock speed as the CPU's IMC or motherboard chipset won't hit certain speeds. 12th generation Intel CPU's for example are hard to take over DDR5 5600MHz reliably and in those cases I'll set to whatever the highest stable clock speed is for that setup and just use that. But all the timings, etc. are set by XMP and I rarely see a need to change them.
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Interesting. Is that why the 13900KS boots up flawlessly every time on xmp 6400 but the 12700KF could get fussy once in a while booting xmp 6000? Both on the same Aorus Master Z790 board.

The only hold up I've ever experienced with RAM XMP setting is during boot. I've had a long history of either the CPU or RAM being fussy during boot up (once in a while) only when XMP is turned on.
 
III_Slyflyer_III said:
Custom 100% of the time.... not sure why anyone would ever switch this if it's stable?
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Ya the only time I've switched if off is when it was/has been acting up, particularly during boot up in my experiences (as I mentioned above) when it might need a force shut down power button 4 seconds then fresh cold power on.
 
xDiVolatilX said:
Interesting. Is that why the 13900KS boots up flawlessly every time on xmp 6400 but the 12700KF could get fussy once in a while booting xmp 6000? Both on the same Aorus Master Z790 board.

The only hold up I've ever experienced with RAM XMP setting is during boot. I've had a long history of either the CPU or RAM being fussy during boot up (once in a while) only when XMP is turned on.
Click to expand...
The last Intel I had was a 4790K... but yes the CPU's IMC is basically what lets you run the higher frequency memory. Like on AMD AM4 I couldn't hit 3200MHz on a launch Ryzen 1700, but it worked on a 2700X and even a later batch Ryzen 1700. All on the same motherboard. (Shoutout X370 Taichi, one of my favorite boards)

You'll see generational improvements typically with memory frequency, but silicon lottery of your individual CPU still plays a role.
 
It's like the Northbridge lottery of old with FSB/Memory speeds... only now, it's on your CPU and you get to roll the dice with cpu speed and memory speeds on a single chip! :)
 
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