I recently upgraded from a Ryzen 7 2700X and ASRock B450 Pro4 to an ASUS B550-Plus Gaming WiFi II with a Ryzen 7 5800X3D. During the swap, one of my memory sticks apparently failed, leaving me with three 8GB DDR4-3200 Trident sticks. I'm considering replacing them with a matched 2x16GB kit, preferably DDR4-3600. Is that a good choice for this motherboard and processor, and are there particular speeds or timings I should look for? My graphics card is an RTX 4060 Ti and I'm using a 2TB Samsung 980 Pro SSD.
4 Answers
The motherboard’s memory support list is mostly a tested compatibility guide, not a complete list of every kit that works. If a 2x16GB DDR4-3600 kit is not listed, that does not automatically mean it is incompatible. Enable the kit’s DOCP or XMP profile after installation, then run a memory stability test.
For the 5800X3D, DDR4-3600 with timings around CL16 is a sensible sweet spot. DDR4-3600 CL14 is excellent but usually overpriced, while DDR4-3200 CL16 is perfectly usable if it is significantly cheaper. I would avoid mixing the existing sticks with a new kit; two identical modules are more likely to run reliably.
A matched 2x16GB DDR4 kit is the best choice. DDR4-3600 is generally a good target for Ryzen 5000, but DDR4-3200 will also perform well, especially with the 5800X3D. Look for a reputable brand and reasonable timings rather than paying a large premium for a tiny performance difference.
You could keep the current 24GB if your system is stable and you do not need more capacity. In most games, moving from 3200 to 3600MHz will not create a meaningful difference with an X3D processor. If you want a cleaner setup or need 32GB, buy a matched 2x16GB kit at the best price you can find.
That clears up my concern about the list. I wasn’t sure whether the missing 2x16GB entries meant the board had a limitation or the list was simply incomplete.