People who know that I7 2670QM/2630QM works with 1600 RAM at full speed HELP! Screenshots appreciate!

Hey guys. There are couple guys who just can't imagine that Intel wrote bullish about maximum RAM supported 1333Mhz.
These guys are that stubborn and blind and... that I really need here help so I could show them this thread.

Please write here your experience with 2670QM (or 2630QM) and preferably with screenshots of CPU-z and you make me happy
Thanks in advance!

 

James, James James! What have you done?

Now, I'm off to buy at least a few pairs of 2x 8GB PC3-12800 Sodimms because of you... I'll have screenshots later - but this is true: i7 2630QM is not only compatible with PC3-12800 Sodimms; it is made for them (noticeable improvement in 'snappiness' and actual performance - the 'lag' is gone).

Because of this thread/question/request - I also tried with an AMD 350 platform - and while some of the 'scores' were worse: the system overall is better (again; less laggy).


Okay - hope you're happy (while I'm off to support the economy...).

 

Easy:
CPU-Z Validator 3.1

 

Yeah; I'm slow.

But had to do a fair test on what I'm about to report.

I'll post different posts/responses for a few system (so that it doesn't get too confusing for all).

But first; this is the direct response James D asked for - as I already stated: an i7 2630QM does indeed work with PC3-12800 RAM.

Not only compatible; but actually worth it (especially as I got about 25% savings ($$) from the quantity I bought yesterday ) from the PC3-10700 RAM that was used before.

Even WEI shows an improvement (okay; my math is too rusty - how much is this 0.2 improvement on an absolute/percentage scale (WEI is a logarithmic scale, right?) that I can notice it so much?): from 7.6 to 7.8 (out of 7.9) for the Memory score.

When I rebooted the i7 - I immediately noticed that I could log on with the fingerprint reader without a second or third swipe (it was 'ready' much faster...). When opening PS CS6 or LR4.2 or even generally navigating the O/S - the computer was noticeably faster - in some cases (LR4.2) much faster...

I then proceeded to install IRST 11.7 - and could feel again an improvement after a reboot.

All of this was proceeded by installing the latest M4 Firmware for this system - and each step brought the machine closer to running as snappy as my IB setups do. Not quite, of course... but considering that the 'cost' for this was about $50 of RAM and the time it took to do some updates the difference on the machine is almost night and day (I was thinking of giving it away before these events took place - not anymore).

Yes, yes and yes. 'Better' RAM is worth it - even for supposedly 'older' systems that don't even officially support the new specifications/speeds.

Although this is only a 20% difference in the RAM clocks - I was still surprised to see WEI take that change into account. I am still pleasantly shocked how much difference there is in the system. (Feels like more than 20% to my senses).

On an overall scale, I would say that I gained around a 13% to 15% performance increase (this is with an SSD Firmware upgrade (M4 256GB), new IRST drivers and switching 16GB PC3-10700 RAM for 16GB PC3-12800 SoDIMMS) with the RAM giving the best and most notable difference. Even if this cost $100 or more: the systems that are based on this platform have just extended their lives by at least a year.

What is most dramatic is that the 'lag' I was used to is gone (not minimized; gone). Just goes to show once again the importance of 'Balance' when setting up a system.


(Wonder how Win8x64 PRO will feel with this setup now?)...



I want to thank James D for posting his question and making me do all this running around (I have 'updated' over half a dozen systems since then...). Goes to show we never stop learning - no matter what we think we 'know'...


Of course, this made me want to see if other setups would improve with 'better' RAM too.

See the next post(s).

 

I always push to maximize the RAM of any system I work on.

I picked up a Foxconn barebones system and thought I would play with it and return it after I was convinced it was 'throw-away'.

See:
Newegg.ca - Foxconn nt-A3550-0H0WBANA AMD A45 (Hudson D1) 1 x 204Pin AMD Radeon HD 6310 Black Mini / Booksize Barebone System


I almost did just that when, after I got back to the office I noticed that the spec's said Max RAM 4GB. What???

I put in the closest DDR3 SoDIMM I found: a 2GB PC3-10700 module. After going through the process of installing Windows 8 via a USB key, I almost returned it right there (almost 25 minutes to install Windows 8. From a USB key!).

I turned the system off and looked harder. I found a 4GB SoDIMM that I thought would make a huge difference - but much to my surprise, no. It was just as sluggish and unusable as it was with the 2GB RAM stick.

Hmmm... AMD your E-350 'platform' leaves a lot to be desired...

Oh, btw; I'm doing these tests with an Intel 320 160GB SSD with 50% unallocated (75GB's 'in use') and almost 42GB 'free'.

I promptly took an unused notebook and pulled the 2x 8GB SoDIMMs from it and used one stick (max possible) on the little Foxconn unit.

Okay! Now we have some snap (btw; all the 'specs' I could find said 4GB MAX was supported) - the system has become interesting to me now (mainly as a print server...).


Right around this time I read the post by James D... (shaking my fist at James )...

so, I took one of my 'better' RAM modules (8GB PC3-12800) from an IB system and switched it with the Foxconn's PC3-10700 8GB module.

Right after booting I saw that the system now had more than just a glimpse of life in it: the desktop was already rendered after logging in and after a couple of reboots - the setup felt very, very close to my U30Jc notebook (albeit just navigating the O/S...).

What is puzzling is that the WEI scores make no sense: the RAM score went down by 1 point (as did the SSD's 'score') by using the PC3-12800 module. Also 'interesting' is that the RAM timings in CPU-Z also don't correlate (to me at least) to the improvements I'm feeling.

The 'scores' though are easy for me to ignore: I know which RAM module makes the system faster overall (PC3-12800) and I had to make sure I bought an extra stick for this system too.

So far: all the setups I've tested (whether 'officially' supported or not) have benefitted from higher quality RAM.

Speaking of which... what would my 'worst' platform do with something even crazier than PC3-12800 modules?

See next post.

 

In my experience, Intel's specs are always based on RAM available at the time (and like what they themselves tested) rather than what the memory controller on the CPU is actually capable of delivering. They are after all the ones that said the i7-920xm can't handle more than 8GB of RAM and it does.

Speaking of RAM, i need another set of 2x8GB, but that is unrelated to the thread. I'd test it in my G73 for kicks if the thing wasn't such a pain to disassemble.

 

Okay, the platform that has given me the worst 'performance' is also the one that I'm still using as my 'digital' notebook.

My U30Jc. With 8GB RAM (originally 2x 4GB PC3-10700) and currently a SanDisk Extreme SSD.

Why? Because of the size (13.3"), the keyboard and the battery life.


The reason it has given me the 'worst' performance is mostly because of it's chipset (HM55) with horrible SSD performance as 'standard' vs. other more recent platforms.

But, as I was about to find out: the RAM I had available to me did not help this system either.

I tried the PC3-12800 modules and found that there was a noticeable difference (I wasn't too surprised by this point)... and the only 'hint' in CPU-Z was that the clocks were at 6 instead of 7 with the PC3-10700 RAM I had for the last couple of years.

Instead of being satisfied with a small boost: I wanted to see how much (if any) difference there might be with something like the HyperX branded RAM or the 'spec-wise' better Vengeance PC3 1866MHz brand.

So after buying both and comparing all four in this well used (and 'known') setup; which have I kept?

Looking at the CPU-Z 'scores' is deceiving - they all run at ~528MHz with 4:16 FSB : RAM ratio.

(Sorry, I didn't keep the PC3-10700 'scores' - only the PC3-12800 and the HyperX 1866MHz and the Vengeance 1866MHz 'scores' are included here).


After using the system with the different modules for at least a few hours each: the HyperX modules were the most impressive performers in my use. Especially puzzling if I were to go by the 'scores' of CPU-Z and Windows WEI. But, I'll leave the analysis up to others: all I know is that the notebook has never felt this capable before, and along with the AMD E-350 and the Intel i7 2630M setups I also tried with 'better' RAM - the 'lagginess' I would experience with this system is all but gone. Sure, I spent a few hundred dollars with this little 'experiment' - but I've saved thousands replacing all the systems that I thought were 'done' too.

Along with IRST 11.7, 8GB DDR3 1866MHz RAM (HyperX), a 240GB SSD (SanDisk Extreme partitioned to less than 100GB...) and Windows 8 x64... and using the 'unpark cores' utility from Coder bag.com - this system feels like it will last me a few more years at least - hopefully, I am now done upgrading it.



In another thread,

See:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sol...64-smartplacement-defragging-perfectdisk.html


I asked how others go against 'conventional' wisdom and discover things that better their computing experience.

I think this thread by James D belongs there.


(Thanks James!).

 

To quickly summarize:

I am not saying that higher speed RAM will make a system 'current' again. No, similar to an SSD - higher clocked RAM (whether the system actually uses the faster clocks or not) will give a system a sense of urgency or 'snap' again and will help it get out of it's own way (so we can get what we need done with it).

But it is enough of a difference for me to buy new RAM modules (the store ran out...) for most of my systems.

And, I know if/when faster modules come out at 8GB and 16GB sizes - I'll be doing this again for my 'current' level (IB) platforms too.


This fits right in with my philosophy of 'Balance' in systems - take the bottlenecks out and see an almost indefinite lifespan of the systems we're using now (I'm sure Intel, MS, Apple and a few others don't want to hear this).

A new platform will always be faster - but there is nothing wrong with taking a known/trusted setup and making it feel 'current' again - for the price of a few StarBucks coffees - or a dinner at a five star McD's.

 

tilleroftheearth, I am admired by the work you have done and the time you spent for writing it. I even will reread it once more
I will help you to reach even better results with your Foxconn. Maybe tomorrow I will write you PM.

 

James D, thanks. But wouldn't it be better if you responded here?

I mean, then everyone would have a chance to benefit.

Either way, looking forward to see what this is...

 

A little update: on the U30Jc setup (with the HyperX RAM) the MSE quick scan option is consistently faster (vs. the PC3-10700 modules) by at least 30 seconds or more (at least 25% faster on a ~2 minute scan which took up to 3+ minutes previously).

Very impressed. I wish all upgrades were so instantly gratifying.

 

32GB DDR3-1600, reads and works FINE according to HWINFO64

 

3610QM works well with 2133MHz RAM.

 

Hey guys i have a dell inspiron 15r n5110 laptop with Intel Core i7 2630QM, Dell Inc. 0HVRTTmotherboard with HM67 Southbridge Model and 2nd Generation Intel(R) Core(TM) Processor Family DRAM Controller - 0104.

Can I use 16gb of memory? I am especially interested in Crucial BLS8G3N169ES4CEU.
Thanks in advance

 

You can use 16GB RAM - that particular Crucial part, I'm not sure...

 

Something wrong with it? The voltage?

 

Nothing wrong with it; I just don't know (or have any experience with it; therefore cannot recommend).

 

Any specific recomandations? Corsair vengeance?