Best ram to pair with a i9 14900k

Ripper-X- · 14 Nov 2023 at 15:41

Looking for recommendations for 32gb of DDR5 to pair with an i9 14900K on a MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk WIFI motherboard (& an RTX 4900 FE).
I think the specs for the mobo says it can use DDR 7200mhz, is it best to go for that speed or is there a reason to get something slower?

Ripper-X- · 14 Nov 2023 at 21:36

On the MSI website for my mobo it gives the memory info below, does anyone know what the figures with the bullet points mean, like the • 1DPC 1R etc.

4x DDR5, Maximum Memory Capacity 192GB
Memory Support 7200+(OC)/ 7000(OC)/ 6800(OC)/ 6600(OC)/ 6400(OC)/ 6200(OC)/ 6000(OC)/ 5800(OC)/ 5600(JEDEC)/ 5400(JEDEC)/ 5200(JEDEC)/ 5000(JEDEC)/ 4800(JEDEC) MHz
Max. overclocking frequency:
• 1DPC 1R Max speed up to 7200+ MHz
• 1DPC 2R Max speed up to 6600+ MHz
• 2DPC 1R Max speed up to 6400+ MHz
• 2DPC 2R Max speed up to 5600+ MHz

I don't see any CL30 6600mhz ram? But done a bit of reading & found an article that says the best performing ram to go with a i9 14900k is Corsair Dominator platinum DDR5 7200MT/s CL34 memory kit, (but apparently there is newer Dominator Titanium that's supposed to be even better). And seems quite reasonably priced.

Ripper-X- · 14 Nov 2023 at 22:44

Tetras said:
1 dimm per channel, single rank
1 dimm per channel, dual rank

Like Wing-Man said though, you need to check what the CPU you're buying is likely to top out at, because these numbers may not mean much in reality.

That doesn't mean that it will only run 6600mhz with 2 sticks or ram in does it? I'm looking at the Corsair Dominator Titanium rgb 32gb DDr5 7200MT/s CL34 Intel xmp memory kit as being my best choice atm, will it run at full speed with 2 sticks?

Ripper-X- · 14 Nov 2023 at 22:51

Wing-Man said:
You would need a magic ball to know that.
You would have to buy and try….

The sweet spot right now is 6000 cl30

What I mean is in the figures below, is that saying that with one stick its 7200mhz, & with 2 sticks its 6600mhz?
I already have ddr5 6000mhz cl30 just looking for something better to go with a i9 14900k.

• 1DPC 1R Max speed up to 7200+ MHz
• 1DPC 2R Max speed up to 6600+ MHz
• 2DPC 1R Max speed up to 6400+ MHz
• 2DPC 2R Max speed up to 5600+ MHz

Ripper-X- · 14 Nov 2023 at 23:02

Tetras said:
single (1R) or dual rank (2R) is the memory chips on the module, not the number of sticks. 32GB (e.g. 64GB kit, 2x32) is dual rank, I believe the other capacities are single rank. I haven't checked 24GB or 48GB.

Ah ok thanks, so in theory the Corsair Dominator Titanium rgb 32gb DDr5 7200MT/s CL34 Intel xmp memory kit should be able to run at 7200mhz all being well seeing at my mobo says it supports 7200mhz?

Ripper-X- · 14 Nov 2023 at 23:18

Tetras said:
The sticks are rated for that speed and the motherboard manufacturer claims it can support it:

In other words: you're asking for a 30% overclock on the CPU's memory controller. I don't know if the 14900K achieves this (or more), on average. This video may be of interest:

intel XMPs and motherboard QVLs are a useless mess.

My Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/buildzoidTeespring: https://teespring.com/stores/actually-hardcore-overclockingBandcamp: https://machineforscreams.bandca...

www.youtube.com

Thanks I'll take a look. I was basing my opinion on the article I read here --> https://tech4gamers.com/best-ram-for-i9-14900k/#:~:text=Here is a selection of the best RAM,Ripjaws S5 32GB (2x16GB) 6000MHz CL30 More items They do have a typo tho, it should say best performance ram not best white ram in their chart.

Ripper-X- · 15 Nov 2023 at 00:16

Tetras said:
I'm not interested in overclocking memory, but the sources I use most of the time (for memory) are buildzoid (linked you his video), this video, this article and Puget for non-gaming stuff, here. There are also videos on YouTube like this one:

DDR5-7200 vs DDR5-6800 vs DDR5-6400 w/ i9-13900KF + RTX 4090: Tets in 4 games at 1080p

- Test Bench -- Intel Core i9-13900KF- ASUS PRIME Z790-A WIFI- Palit GeForce RTX 4090 GameRock OC - DeepCool LS720- Kingston KC3000 1TB- Kingston FURY Renega...

www.youtube.com

My impression from what I've seen is that for 4K gaming with a 4090, the impact of memory on FPS is not worth worrying about (i.e. just buy any half-decent kit that suits your needs).

Thanks I'll take a look. What in your opinion would be a good choice of kit to go with a i9 14900k? Bearing in mind I already have a Kingston Fury Renegade ddr5 6000mhz cl30 kit & would want a bit of an upgrade from that?

Ripper-X- · 15 Nov 2023 at 13:22

JollyJamma said:
Yes, agree with this. Intel loves faster RAM but RAM pricing as you go past 7200 and closer to 8000 gets really high and makes little difference to most peoples gaming experience.

OP, If you're an extreme overclocker like Buildzoid or K|ngp|n who are chasing points on 3D mark, you know what RAM you want, will use LN2 and will buy multiple sticks of the best to bin modules until you can run insane speeds.

Any Hynix module with good enough speeds at a reasonable price will be great, realistically.

I don't really want to get into overclocking, I just want a good fast pc for gaming.
The i9 14900k is replacing my i7 13700k so with the spare CPU I thought I could build another pc, I already have a lot of other bits so if I replace the ram as well all I would need is a cheap B760 mobo & I'm nearly there (or I could just sell it I guess).
But yeah it seems there's no point in going mad with the ram as it looks to make little difference.. :/

Ripper-X- · 16 Nov 2023 at 13:56

GoRedwings19 said:
I have this memory. Funnily enough it was more pricier than the 7800mhz gskills I got as well but quite a bit but that is Corsair tax for you.

What motherboard are you using with the ram, what is you experience with it would you say its good ram & worth me getting it over others?

Ripper-X- · 25 Nov 2023 at 14:57

GoRedwings19 said:
well at the moment it booted up at 6600mhz on the z690 platform whihc iirc really only supports up to 6400mhz. It's difficult to know how far it will go. Currently I am running a 129000k whihc I thought was a crappy overclocker in another z690 motherboard. But in this motherboard it has pleasantly suprised me. Before I couldn;t run it with more than a -0.07v offset before it would throw a hissy fit and started to crash and all sorts.
Currently it's at -0.1v offset and has been rock solid.

So hopefully with this motherboard maybe I could get higher. I think 6800 mhz is doable without any major changes. But I think 7000mhz and 7200 might be a bit sketch. Of course If I popped it in the z790 motherboard it would be a no brainer.

Would I be able to overclock it higher? Possibly but for these past few years Corsair have kinda fallen by the wayside to the likes of G.Skill and others when it comes to good quality ram modules whihc can be overclocked.

Does it look snazzy AF? You betcha. Is it the best quality ram for clocking? not even close.

Thats interesting, what G.Skill 7200mt/s ddr5 would you recommend?