What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

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Apoptosis
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What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by Apoptosis »

I swear I get about one e-mail a day asking which memory settings in BIOS should you adjust.

Example:
You are running some Corsair XMS XL Memory. This memory is rated at 2-2-2-5 memory timings. This is where people get stuck. ASUS for example gives a million memory options in their BIOS, but you really only need to play with the 4 mentioned by the package. These four are CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS.


So for this memory you would set

CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS

2 - 2 - 2 - 5

You are done! All the other settings should be left on "AUTO" and the SPD on the memory module will auto-set them for the value pre-programmed from the factory!

<edit> STICKY!!! -infinite</edit>
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Post by LVCapo »

Most of the new corsair memory has auto adjustment features, automatically configuring itself to the lowest possible settings. One issue they are seeing though is in auto config, it sets itself to 2-3-2-5, instead of the 2-2-2-5. I have read quite a few people having this issue, and in fact have heard that 2-3-2-5 is actually the best it can do stable.
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Post by gvblake22 »

After changing memory timings it would also be a good idea to run MEMTEST86 to make sure everything is stable :)
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Post by NAiLs »

Thought I posted this, but I guess I never hit submit on my other computer.

Here is an excellent write-up explaining like everything you want to know about memory and timings.

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=257741
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Post by Sovereign »

Do be careful with memtimings! I have Mushkin Basic CL2.5 (too lazy to find other timings). I set it to CL2. I couldn't run HL2 more than ten minutes before it crashed and said "the memory could not be read." Funny thing is, I ran memtest and got 20k+ errors. My system was completely fine except for HL2. Weird huh? (Oh and incorrect memtimings caused my 6800NU to barely achieve 50k in AquaMark when OCed to 450/900. Fixed mem, ran AM again, 51k stock. Hey, it's a BFG!)
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Post by FZ1 »

And this is a VERY detailed guide...
http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showpos ... ostcount=4
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by kojak71 »

Apoptosis wrote:All the other settings should be left on "AUTO"
On AMD systems I would suggest that the command rate should be set to 1T, if your motherboard, RAM & CPU support it.
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Post by pcrobot »

FZ1 wrote:And this is a VERY detailed guide...
http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showpos ... ostcount=4
I'm going to send that to my friend. He messed up his RAM timings really bad. :rolleyes:
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Post by dgood »

what exactly does 1t vs 2t do? I know that 1t is faster than 2t or at least gets better performance but i don't understand how it does it seperate form the memory timings.
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Post by Kalko »

Yes 1T is faster than 2T, for performance it's more important than the CL setting
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Post by id86 »

can someone explain more detail about 1T and 2T?

and can someone explain what is the function for performance mode and bank interleave? how to use both features?
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Post by JohntechUPi »

The Definitive BIOS Optimization Guide
http://www.techarp.com/freebog.aspx
If you do not find the exact setting listed from your Bios choices please go to the link above and look there.

SDRAM Bank Interleave

Common Options : 2-Bank, 4-Bank, Disabled

Quick Review

This BIOS feature enables you to set the interleave mode of the SDRAM interface.

Interleaving allows banks of SDRAM to alternate their refresh and access cycles. One bank will undergo its refresh cycle while another is being accessed. This improves memory performance by masking the refresh cycles of each memory bank. A close examination will reveal that since the refresh cycles of all the memory banks are staggered, this produces a kind of pipelining effect.

However, bank interleaving only works if the addresses requested consecutively are not in the same bank. If they are in the same memory bank, then the data transactions behave as if the banks were not interleaved. The processor will have to wait until the first data transaction clears and that memory bank refreshes before it can send another address to that bank.

Each SDRAM module is internally divided into either two or four banks of memory. Double-banked SDRAM modules generally use 16Mbit SDRAM chips and are usually 32MB or smaller in size. Quad-banked SDRAM modules, on the other hand, usually use higher density (64Mbit-256Mbit) SDRAM chips. All SDRAM modules of at least 64MB in size are quad-banked in nature.

If you are using a single double-banked SDRAM module, set this feature to 2-Bank. This is the only option available for the single double-banked SDRAM module.

If you are using at least two double-banked SDRAM modules, you can use the 4-Bank option as well as the 2-Bank option. Of course, it is recommended that you select 4-Bank for better interleaving performance.

If you are using quad-banked SDRAM modules, you can use either interleave options. Of course, it is recommended that you select 4-Bank for better interleaving performance.

Because a 4-bank interleave always allows for better interleaving performance, it is highly recommended that you select the 4-Bank option if your system supports it. Use the 2-Bank option only if you are using a single double-banked SDRAM module.

Please note that Award (now part of Phoenix Technologies) recommends that SDRAM bank interleaving be disabled if 16Mbit SDRAM modules are used. This is because early 16Mbit SDRAM modules have stability problems with bank interleaving. The good news is all current SDRAM modules support bank interleaving.

OR

Force 4-Way Interleave

Common Options : Enabled, Disabled

Quick Review

This BIOS feature allows you to force the memory controller to use the 4-bank SDRAM interleave mode which provides better performance than the 2-bank interleave mode. However, you must have at least 4 banks of memory in the system for this feature to work properly.

Normally, SDRAM modules that use 16Mbit memory chips (usually 32MB or smaller in size) have only two memory banks. So, if you are using such a small capacity DIMM, you should disable Force 4-Way Interleave. But if you use two or more of such DIMMs, you can still enable Force-4-Way Interleave.

SDRAM modules that use 64Mbit or larger memory chips are four-banked in nature. These modules are at least 64MB in size. If you are using such four-banked modules, it no longer matters if you are using just one module or several of them. You can enable Force 4-Way Interleave without fear.

Therefore, it is recommended that you enable this BIOS feature if you are using 64MB or larger memory modules or at least two 32MB or smaller memory modules. Otherwise, it is best to disable this BIOS feature.

For more information on memory bank interleaving, you should check out the details of the SDRAM Bank Interleave BIOS feature.


OR

DRAM Interleave Time

Common Options : 0ms, 0.5ms

Quick Review

This BIOS feature determines the amount of additional delay between successive bank accesses when the SDRAM Bank Interleave feature has been enabled. Naturally, the shorter the delay, the faster the memory module can switch between banks and consequently perform better.

Therefore, it is recommended that you set the DRAM Interleave Time as low as possible for better memory performance. In this case, it would be 0ms which introduces no additional delay between bank accesses. Increase the DRAM Interleave Time to 0.5ms only if you experience instability with the 0ms setting

Command Rate!
Common Options : 1T, 2T

Quick Review

This BIOS feature allows you to select the delay between the assertion of the Chip Select signal till the time the memory controller starts sending commands to the memory bank. The lower the value, the sooner the memory controller can send commands out to the activated memory bank.

If the SDRAM command delay is too long, it can reduce performance by unnecessarily preventing the memory controller from issuing the commands sooner.

However, if the SDRAM command delay is too short, the memory controller may not be able to translate the addresses in time and the "bad commands" that result will cause data loss and corruption.

It is recommended that you try the 1T command delay for better memory performance. But if you face stability issues, increase the command delay to 2T.

OR

SDRAM 1T Command

Common Options : Enabled, Disabled, Auto

Quick Review

This BIOS feature allows you to select the delay between the assertion of the Chip Select signal till the time the memory controller starts sending commands to the memory bank. The lower the value, the sooner the memory controller can send commands out to the activated memory bank.

When this feature is enabled, the memory controller will only insert a command delay of one clock cycle or 1T.

When this feature is disabled, the memory controller will insert a command delay of two clock cycles or 2T.

The Auto option allows the memory controller to use the memory module's SPD value for command delay.

If the SDRAM command delay is too long, it can reduce performance by unnecessarily preventing the memory controller from issuing the commands sooner.

However, if the SDRAM command delay is too short, the memory controller may not be able to translate the addresses in time and the "bad commands" that result will cause data loss and corruption.

It is recommended that you try enabling SDRAM 1T Command for better memory performance. But if you face stability issues, disable this BIOS feature.
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by /dev/null »

Great bit of info here, I remember when I got 4gb of new CAS4 ram for my AMD machine a couple months back I was vehemently trying to find out what the best options were for the non-standard timings because my mobo was having problems auto-detecting the proper values. I had to dig through countless web pages to get the info I've found consolidated in this one thread... very nice.

=D>
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by blckhaze1 »

I have a P6T, and just ordered 3x2gb ocz 1600 pc3-12800, the timings on the ram are 8-8-8-24, voltage is 1.65.

When I set everything to auto except the timing, it runs it at 1066 even if i change the voltage to 1.65

There is another option also where you can pick "1600mhz" "1333mhz" etc, when i choose 1600, then it runs the ram at 1600 at the 1.65 voltage, and 8-8-8-24 timing while everything else is at auto
(my sli enabled 250 geforce cards are updated as of 2-3 hours ago) so i test the ram on crysis, and i get blue screens and freezes with memory dumps and errors on unable to write "page fault in non page area" etc.

Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong, or what I can do right?
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by blckhaze1 »

Nevermind this question, thanks FZ1 for replying to my PM with the correct timings and voltages :)
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by DJ Tucker »

heres a quick question. check my sig for my memory i was wondering if a could maybe get that to 1T from 2T or would that damage the memory?
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by peko20 »

Hello i new in this and wanted to ask if somebody could help me with timings and the voltages... I get a lot of freezing in my pc and i have been told that this could help me :) i put here some of the screenshots where you can see if somethings are set wrong... I hope this can help... i m really new to this...

Image Image

Image Image



Thank you guys .)
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by PWANJO »

I'm new here & I have a problem. I have an ASUS P5QC Motherboard with an Intel Core 2 DUO Processor E8400 and most imortantly for me is the CRUCIAL 8GBKit(4GB x 2) 240 Pin DDR3 PC3-10600 Memory Module. I've often come up to my loft to use the computer & find it has rebooted on its own. I've had Unexpected shutdown Errors occur(Blue Screen) specifically when I'm sometimes Reencoding Video streams in Blu Ray. I run Windows 7 Professional and have posted PDF's of my shutdowns & the Windows 7 people feel it is a Memory problem. I've used Memtest 86+ V 4.20 on it and it either freezes or shows errors.

I've spoken to the techs at Crucial and with their suggestion I've pulled out one stick and ran a Memtest on the one still there . I've done this with each 4GB stick in one slot & each stick in the other DDR3 slot and all pass the MEMTEST 86+ with no errors(checking one stick at a time). When both sticks are in place, even though I've switched them around(from slot to slot) I stll have errors when they are both there.

Crucial has asked me to go into the Motherboard Bios Setup and tchange the AUTO settings for the items shown below but I'm not a Tech & I haven't found these items. They are as follows:

MEMORY TIMING
TCL set to 9
TRCD set to 9
TRP set to 9
TRAS set to 28

They also wanted me to change COMMAND RATE(CLOCK) to 2 and not 1 or AUTO.
I know this Memory is Plug & Play but they inform me , that with the high end motherboards today, the board chooses the settings & most all are set to AUTO.

Can you tell me what area in the BIOS I can find these items so I may change them to their Memory recommended settings.

I sure would appreciate your help. Crucial has told me to test the system once more after the new settings & then call them back.

I hopefully await your reply.
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by kenc51 »

PWANJO wrote:I'm new here & I have a problem. I have an ASUS P5QC Motherboard with an Intel Core 2 DUO Processor E8400 and most imortantly for me is the CRUCIAL 8GBKit(4GB x 2) 240 Pin DDR3 PC3-10600 Memory Module. I've often come up to my loft to use the computer & find it has rebooted on its own. I've had Unexpected shutdown Errors occur(Blue Screen) specifically when I'm sometimes Reencoding Video streams in Blu Ray. I run Windows 7 Professional and have posted PDF's of my shutdowns & the Windows 7 people feel it is a Memory problem. I've used Memtest 86+ V 4.20 on it and it either freezes or shows errors.

I've spoken to the techs at Crucial and with their suggestion I've pulled out one stick and ran a Memtest on the one still there . I've done this with each 4GB stick in one slot & each stick in the other DDR3 slot and all pass the MEMTEST 86+ with no errors(checking one stick at a time). When both sticks are in place, even though I've switched them around(from slot to slot) I stll have errors when they are both there.

Crucial has asked me to go into the Motherboard Bios Setup and tchange the AUTO settings for the items shown below but I'm not a Tech & I haven't found these items. They are as follows:

MEMORY TIMING
TCL set to 9
TRCD set to 9
TRP set to 9
TRAS set to 28

They also wanted me to change COMMAND RATE(CLOCK) to 2 and not 1 or AUTO.
I know this Memory is Plug & Play but they inform me , that with the high end motherboards today, the board chooses the settings & most all are set to AUTO.

Can you tell me what area in the BIOS I can find these items so I may change them to their Memory recommended settings.

I sure would appreciate your help. Crucial has told me to test the system once more after the new settings & then call them back.

I hopefully await your reply.
Press "delete" when the pc is first powered on, this will get you into the bios menu.
i cant remember exactly, but it's "ai tweaker" where you want to go or it could be "Advanced" then "chipset settings"
(i havent got an asus board anymore)

Can you post a screenshot of cpuz, the memory tab specifically. this will tell us if your board is already running the required settings or not.


btw, welcome to the forums :)
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Re: What memory timings in BIOS should I adjust?

Post by PWANJO »

I've checked the AI Tweaker & Advanced in the BIOS , went to Chip Set Settings but there was nothing there for the codes I've listed. I don't follow what you mean by "screenshot of cpuz"(memory tab). where do I go for CPUZ?

I'm not a techie, I do, however know how to take a screen shot.

Hope U can bear with me.

Pwanjo

Wayne
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