To make a computer system work faster, you can “tinker” with RAM, increasing its performance. How and for what else you need to set the RAM settings, as well as where in the BIOS to change the frequency and timing settings, the article will tell.
Why you need to configure RAM in BIOS
After installing RAM, changing its settings can be useful. Indeed, without additional settings of the bar, operatives can work at the minimum of their capabilities. And by adjusting the RAM in your own way, you can overclock it – increase the frequency. This can improve the performance of your computer. However, it is worth knowing that not every operating system and not all motherboards support this. So if you need such an opportunity, you should take care of this before purchasing components.
Tip : if you plan to install new trims in your PC yourself, it is better to install complete models, such as HyperX SO-DIMM DDR3 , with the same timings and frequencies. Otherwise, the higher frequency variant will automatically operate at the speed of the slower one, or they will come into conflict and the whole system will stop working.
Note : a pair of 4GB sticks is more efficient than one 8GB one. Dual-channel mode provides an opportunity to get an increase in CPU performance by 5-10%, and GPU – up to 50%. If the PC has 4 slots, and the user has two modules, then to activate multichannel, install them after one.
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How to configure RAM in BIOS
There are three main ways to change the settings in the BIOS. Each of them corresponds to the motherboard firmware installed in the system. For this reason, the user should study the characteristics of the motherboard before changing anything.
Warning ! To touch the subsystem to an untrained user means the possibility of spoiling something, violating the terms of the guarantee. If there is uncertainty, it is better to go to a specialist.
Award BIOS
- While the computer is rebooting, enter the BIOS using a special key or a combination of keyboard buttons. It can be different depending on the motherboard.
- Use the combination Ctrl + F1 to get to the settings.
- A window will open where you need to use the keyboard arrows to go to “MB Intelligent Tweaker (MIT)” and press Enter.
- In the next menu, find “System Memory Multiplier”. Here you can set the clock speed of the RAM up or down by changing the multiplier. Do not overestimate the specified value, otherwise there is a risk of making it worse.
Important! Any changes should be made gradually: one step at a time, and after each change, restart the PC and check if everything is in order.
- Save the changes to the parameters, exit.
After that, it is recommended to run the software for testing the RAM. It can be AIDA64 or any analog available to the user.
Note : you can increase the performance of the RAM by increasing the voltage, but this should be done with extreme caution. The safe maximum is 0.15 volts.
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AMI BIOS
This system does not differ much from the previous one. Unless the names of the items have been changed. So, after entering, you need to find “Advanced BIOS Features” and go to “Advanced DRAM Configuration”, and then change the settings in the same way as in the above diagram.
UEFI BIOS
The solution that is installed in most modern motherboards. It has a clear and attractive interface, as a rule, it is Russified and supports mouse control . For owners of such boards, moving through the BIOS sections with arrows is a thing of the past.
There are much more options for configuring RAM here than in previous versions. What you can do, the table suggests.
| How to configure RAM in UEFI BIOS | |
| Step 1 | Enter BIOS. |
| Step 2 | 1. Use the F7 key to go to the “Advanced Mode” section. |
| 2. Go to the “Ai Tweaker” tab. | |
| 3. Find “Memory Frequency” and select the desired RAM frequency in the drop-down window. | |
| Step 3 | Below in the list there is a section “DRAM Timing Control” for changing timings. |
| By default, this section is set to Auto, but the response time can be changed manually. | |
| Step 4 | Return to the “Ai Tweaker” menu and enter the “DRAM Driving Control” section. Here it is possible to overclock the RAM by increasing the multiplier. |
| There is a section “DRAM Voltage” here: the process of overclocking the RAM is carried out by raising the voltage. | |
| You need to be careful with this setting: increase the values gradually and moderately. | |
| Step 5 | 1. After making changes, you need to go to the advanced settings page and go to the item and “Advanced”. |
| Enter “Northbridge” – the section of the parameters of the north bridge of the motherboard. | |
| 3. Click on the line “Memory Configuration”. This opens access to editing the configuration parameters of the RAM modules: enabling and disabling monitoring, error correction (ECC) RAM, and so on. | |
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How to change RAM timings in BIOS
Timings indicate the number of clock pulses that the RAM needs to perform a certain operation. The lower the timing, the more efficient the RAM, so changing the timings is a useful procedure.
But carrying out such operations intuitively is a dangerous undertaking, because this way you can disable the RAM, and most likely it will not be possible to reanimate the modules. Therefore, you must first test the components with basic Windows tools. If the operative is working properly, you can adjust the timings. Then in Windows you can check if the setup was successful.
| How to test RAM performance and change timings | |
| Part 1: preliminary testing of RAM in Windows | Open the control panel. |
| Select “System and Security”. | |
| Enter “Administration”. | |
| Select Windows Memory Checker → Reboot and Check Memory. | |
| Part 2: changing the timings in the BIOS | 1. Restart your computer. |
| 2. Enter advanced BIOS settings and go to the “Advanced” tab. | |
| This must be done in stages. | |
| In the paragraph “CAS Latency”: | |
| · First you need to decrease the value by 0.5. | |
| · Then – return to the main page of the subsystem, save the changes and exit. | |
| · Restart the computer and test the RAM again. | |
| If the performance indicators have increased, then you can continue to reduce the response time, but this time setting the value in the “RAS Precharge delay” item. | |
It is recommended to perform such operations precisely through the BIOS: in case of a failure, the user can quickly roll back the parameters to the factory settings.
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How to change the frequency of RAM in BIOS
Where to set the value – has already been described in the section on settings, so here’s what you should consider when changing.
Things to keep in mind:
- When the user sets the frequency himself, for example, 2400 MHz , the RAM operates at basic timings, for example, 11-14-14-33. But even with a reduced response, many models function without interruption.
- The most effective combination: timing – low, frequency – high, however, you need to consider the compatibility of values.
- To improve performance, it is recommended to activate the dual-channel mode, and if the motherboard has 8 slots for memory strips, it is even better: this is already a four-channel mode.
Interesting : the frequency of the 16 GB HyperX Predator kit is 3600 MHz. It also has backlighting and support for Extreme Memory Profiles technology, which allows faster and more convenient memory tuning.
- It should be understood that overclocking success is not 100% guaranteed. If the parameters are too high, the memory will not work.
- If, after several attempts to start the PC, the system does not respond, you need to undo anything that has changed. The Clear CMOS jumper (aka JBAT) will help with this.
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It is not difficult to “pump” RAM so that it demonstrates its best performance in order to add speed to the PC. You just need to know how to change the settings correctly and proceed with caution.
