DDR4 recommendation, Intel 12th Gen.

[8tyone]

Hi, I would be pairing the i7 12700F with an MSI B660m Mag Mortar motherboard, I need 32GB (2x16GB) Kit. I almost decided on a 16gb x2 DDR4 3600 c16 kit but stopped after reading this techpowerup forum thread: https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/if-ram-oc-is-important-avoid-locked-alder-lakes.293782/
What should I do? It seems like 12th gen even has problems with 3200mhz kits.
Any help is highly appreciated.
Thank you.

 

[ir_cow]

Well first off- don't buy a B660 if you plan on overclocking. BCLK adjustment can work, but what a hassle. Also when I reviewed the MSI B660m Mag Mortar, at the time voltage control was broken. In that the limit was lower vs stock and the offset did the same thing.

As far as DDR4 not working, I had mix results and generally was a CPU mounting issue. For dual-rank, 3600 will work fine, Above this 3800-4000 will need manually tweaking most likely unless you switch to Gear 2 (which you don't want). Just assume that you need to leave the Command Rate at 2. Usually this it is 2 with XMP auto.

I suggest buying the ram you want, enable XMP and leave everything else alone.

 

[8tyone]

Well first off- don't buy a B660 if you plan on overclocking. BCLK adjustment can work, but what a hassle. Also when I reviewed the MSI B660m Mag Mortar, at the time voltage control was broken. In that the limit was lower vs stock and the offset did the same thing.

As far as DDR4 not working, I had mix results and generally was a CPU mounting issue. For dual-rank, 3600 will work fine, Above this 3800-4000 will need manually tweaking most likely unless you switch to Gear 2 (which you don't want). Just assume that you need to leave the Command Rate at 2. Usually this it is 2 with XMP auto.

I suggest buying the ram you want, enable XMP and leave everything else alone.

I won't be overclocking at all, I just want which ram would work, yes I will be using dual-rank ram in dual-channel mode.
So, 3600mhz c16 should work well with the said mobo, right?
I would be using this ram:

Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR4-3600 Desktop Gaming Memory (White) | BL16G36C16U4W | Crucial IN

Buy Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR4-3600 Desktop Gaming Memory (White) BL16G36C16U4W. FREE US Delivery, guaranteed 100% compatibility when ordering using our online tools.

www.crucial.in

What say you? Go ahead with it...

 

[The King]

The MSI B660 Mortar Mag is currently selling for more than the MSI Z690 Pro A DDR4.


My advice don't buy the B660

₹18535​

https://www.theitdepot.com/details-MSI+PRO+Z690-A+DDR4+Intel+Motherboard_C13P35852.html

₹19,999.00

MSI MAG B660 TOMAHAWK WiFi Motherboard

Premium Thermal Solution: Extended Heatsink Design and M.2 Shield Frozr are built for high performance system and non-stop works 2.5G LAN and Intel Wi-Fi Solution: Upgraded network solution for professional and multimedia use. Delivers a secure, stable and fast network connection Lightning...

sphinxpc.in

The best memory at the lowest price in India at the moment is the Crucial Ballistix MAX 4000 and 4400

₹5775​

https://www.theitdepot.com/details-Crucial+Ballistix+MAX+16GB+Kit+(2+x+8GB)+DDR4-4000+Desktop+Gaming+Memory+(BLM2K8G40C18U4B)_C6P36666.html

Since I now saved you a ton of cash you can probably get the WD SN570 1TB to complete your setup.

 

[ir_cow]

I won't be overclocking at all, I just want which ram would work, yes I will be using dual-rank ram in dual-channel mode.
So, 3600mhz c16 should work well with the said mobo, right?
I would be using this ram:

Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR4-3600 Desktop Gaming Memory (White) | BL16G36C16U4W | Crucial IN

Buy Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR4-3600 Desktop Gaming Memory (White) BL16G36C16U4W. FREE US Delivery, guaranteed 100% compatibility when ordering using our online tools.

www.crucial.in

What say you? Go ahead with it...

Yes go for it. But as @The King pointed out, other MBs are cheaper. Since you want 32GB kit, I would stick to 3600 or less to keep the memory in Gear 1.

 

[8tyone]

The MSI B660 Mortar Mag is currently selling for more than the MSI Z690 Pro A DDR4.


My advice don't buy the B660

₹18535​

https://www.theitdepot.com/details-MSI+PRO+Z690-A+DDR4+Intel+Motherboard_C13P35852.html

₹19,999.00

MSI MAG B660 TOMAHAWK WiFi Motherboard

Premium Thermal Solution: Extended Heatsink Design and M.2 Shield Frozr are built for high performance system and non-stop works 2.5G LAN and Intel Wi-Fi Solution: Upgraded network solution for professional and multimedia use. Delivers a secure, stable and fast network connection Lightning...

sphinxpc.in

The best memory at the lowest price in India at the moment is the Crucial Ballistix MAX 4000 and 4400

₹5775​

https://www.theitdepot.com/details-Crucial+Ballistix+MAX+16GB+Kit+(2+x+8GB)+DDR4-4000+Desktop+Gaming+Memory+(BLM2K8G40C18U4B)_C6P36666.html

Since I now saved you a ton of cash you can probably get the WD SN570 1TB to complete your setup.

I am getting the b660m mag mortar at 15990 and crucial ballistix 3600 c16 @ 5510.

Yes go for it. But as @The King pointed out, other MBs are cheaper. Since you want 32GB kit, I would stick to 3600 or less to keep the memory in Gear 1.

That is my aim 3600mhz, nothing more. Thank you.

 

[The King]

I am getting the b660m mag mortar at 15990 and crucial ballistix 3600 c16 @ 5510.



That is my aim 3600mhz, nothing more. Thank you.

I linked the price for the b660 tomahawk. that was my bad.

I would still go with the Z690 Pro A DDR4 and the Crucial ballistix 4000.

 

[8tyone]

I linked the price for the b660 tomahawk. that was my bad.

I would still go with the Z690 Pro A DDR4 and the Crucial ballistix 4000.

I am already way out of budget. I have never bought a motherboard costlier than 7500 in my life till now. I am already stretching it. Also, the z690 has alc897 and mag mortar alc1200, coming from an Asus Xonar DX its important to me.
Thanks for your help.

 

[The King]

I am already way out of budget. I have never bought a motherboard costlier than 7500 in my life till now. I am already stretching it. Also, the z690 has alc897 and mag mortar alc1200, coming from an Asus Xonar DX its important to me.
Thanks for your help.

Are you building the PC for gaming? or will you use the extra cores and 32GB RAM for work or productivity?

You can save around 3000 rupees going with the 12600K instead and go with a Z690 board with ALC1200.

The ram is good. I have the same kit and it performs great. (C9BLM IC)

https://www.theitdepot.com/details-Crucial+Ballistix+16GB+DDR4+3600MHz+Desktop+Gaming+Memory+White+(BL16G36C16U4W)_C6P37380.html

If you go with the 12600K you could get 3800 to work since it should not have the locked problem you were worried about in your first post.
Also the price is 5510 per 16GB dimm so total cost for 32Gb is 11020.

I think going for the locked CPU and B660 motherboard will limit your upgrade path down the line.
If you get a good deal on a 12700K or 12900K in the future then you would be limited by the board if you want to OC the CPU/RAM.

Seems Vedantcomputers is having a sale on Gigabyte products. Good prices on this Z690 UD DDR4 and B660M Gaming AC. Not sure about the Audio though.

₹16,276.00

Gigabyte Z690 UD DDR4 Motherboard

Z690 UD DDR4 (rev. 1.0) Intel® Z690 Motherboard with Direct 16+1+2 Phases Digital VRM Design, PCIe 5.0 Design, Ultra Performance VRM Heatsinks, 3 x PCIe 4.0 M.2 with Thermal Guard, 2.5 GbE LAN, Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C®, Q-Flash Plus Supports 12th Gen I

www.vedantcomputers.com

₹11,540.00

Gigabyte B660M Gaming AC DDR4 Motherboard

B660M GAMING AC DDR4 (rev. 1.0)Intel® B660 GAMING Motherboard with 6+2+1 Phases Hybrid Digital VRM with MOS Heatsink, 2 x PCIe 4.0 M.2, 2.5GbE LAN, 802.11ac Wireless, Rear USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C®, RGB FUSION 2.0, Q-Flash Plus Supports 12th Gen Intel® Core™ Series ProcessorsDual

www.vedantcomputers.com

 

[8tyone]

Are you building the PC for gaming? or will you use the extra cores and 32GB RAM for work or productivity?

Yes, gaming + work/productivity.

You can save around 3000 rupees going with the 12600K instead and go with a Z690 board with ALC1200.

I was interested in the i5 12600K but the price difference between i7 12700F is very low to not warrant buying the i7(has +2 p cores). Also the i7 without even tweaking is really fast, even in games esp. in the 1080p/1440p resolution. I do not prefer dlss/fsr so it should be pretty futureproof for me.

Seems Vedantcomputers is having a sale on Gigabyte products. Good prices on this Z690 UD DDR4 and B660M Gaming AC. Not sure about the Audio though.

₹16,276.00

Gigabyte Z690 UD DDR4 Motherboard

Z690 UD DDR4 (rev. 1.0) Intel® Z690 Motherboard with Direct 16+1+2 Phases Digital VRM Design, PCIe 5.0 Design, Ultra Performance VRM Heatsinks, 3 x PCIe 4.0 M.2 with Thermal Guard, 2.5 GbE LAN, Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C®, Q-Flash Plus Supports 12th Gen I

www.vedantcomputers.com

₹11,540.00

Gigabyte B660M Gaming AC DDR4 Motherboard

B660M GAMING AC DDR4 (rev. 1.0)Intel® B660 GAMING Motherboard with 6+2+1 Phases Hybrid Digital VRM with MOS Heatsink, 2 x PCIe 4.0 M.2, 2.5GbE LAN, 802.11ac Wireless, Rear USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C®, RGB FUSION 2.0, Q-Flash Plus Supports 12th Gen Intel® Core™ Series ProcessorsDual

www.vedantcomputers.com

The first motherboard you recommended doesnt have alc1200 and is costlier than the mag mortar. The second motherboard has bad vrm + bad vrm cooling + no 6x sata3 connectors + no alc1200. So no, I'll just stick to the 3600 16gb c16 x2 ram kits. And as you said they work great I am relieved.

I havent upgraded in 7 years! I want to wait but just cant anymore.

 

[opheen]

F4-3200C14D-32GVK - G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd. (gskill.com) or F4-3200C14D-32GFX - G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd. (gskill.com) TeamGroup T-Create 3200Mhz 14-14-14-34@1.35v

 

[8tyone]

This thread could be closed, ram ordered

 

[opheen]

This thread could be closed, ram ordered

What RAM did you go for ?

 

[8tyone]

What RAM did you go for ?

Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR4-3600 Desktop Gaming Memory (White) | BL16G36C16U4W | Crucial IN

Buy Crucial Ballistix 16GB DDR4-3600 Desktop Gaming Memory (White) BL16G36C16U4W. FREE US Delivery, guaranteed 100% compatibility when ordering using our online tools.

www.crucial.in

 

[opheen]

Micron IC's ?

 

[8tyone]

Micron IC's ?

Don't know.

 

[The King]

Don't know.

Should be Micron Rev. E (C9BLM) if you went with the Crucial Ballistix 3600 CL16 White 16GBx2 kit.

 

[8tyone]

Should be Micron Rev. E (C9BLM) if you went with the Crucial Ballistix 3600 CL16 White 16GBx2 kit.

Hasn't arrived yet, somehow got cancelled, then they said they had to check stocks. Only after confirmation was shipped. Should arrive by the 2nd.

 

[8tyone]

...if you went with the Crucial Ballistix 3600 CL16 White 16GBx

Its the black one.

Linked the wrong colour ram version site.