Why is my 3000MHz RAM running at 2666MHz?

Question

I just built a new PC with a Ryzen 5 3600X, an ASUS Prime A320M-K and 2x8GB RAM of 3000 MHz. Both the CPU and the motherboard support 3000 MHz as far as I understand from their specs, but when I checked the speed of the RAM I found that it's running at 2666 MHz.

Here is the information about the memory according to CPU-Z:

Why is that? Maybe some configuration of one of the three components I named above? Can I make it work faster to take advantage of its whole capabilities?

Solution

RAM does not run at its rated speed out-of-the-box. You must overclock it in your UEFI BIOS to the rated frequency. You can do this by enabling XMP. Since you're using an Asus motherboard, this should be under a tab called "AI Tweaker" or "Extreme Tweaker" while in advanced mode. Also, make sure your RAM sticks are in the correct slots; I was unable to overclock mine at first because they were in the wrong locations.

Comments

[Robert]

Check the BIOS settings, in there might be a manual setting to 2666MHz or the enable XMP feature is disabled (read speed from RAM info module). If that does not help you should also post the exact product name as shown e.g. by cpu-z for the RAM modules.

[Tendero]

@Robert I've updated the OP with the information provided by CPU-Z.

[Robert]

As I wrote check the BIOS, enable XMP feature. Also make sure the correct voltage is used - as from the CPU-Z output you can see that in XMP mode speed is 3002MHz but this requires 1.35 volt.

[harrymc]

Did you buy the RAM as two singles or as a kit of two? When combining modules sold as singles, sometimes the memory cannot operate at rated specifications.

[Tendero]

Is there any drawback in doing this? I mean, could something go wrong if I overclock the RAM speed?

[GreenJames]

@Tendero As long as you stay at the rated speed, everything should be fine. The manufacturer wouldn't advertise a dangerous speed on the box. XMP also sets the rest of the settings for you. It's designed to be as user friendly as possible. If the settings you set are invalid or your RAM sticks are in the wrong slots, your PC will try to boot up multiple times before having you redo your XMP settings, so don't get scared by this if it happens, it's normal.