The Benefits and Drawbacks of Using ECC Memory in Gaming Systems

Linus Torvalds, the creator of Linux, was upset about the way that Intel artificially locked out ECC memory from their consumer platforms, effectively driving up the cost of entry. This move made ECC memory a critical component for professional work, where procurement departments are spending money they didn't have to earn anyway and won't care about the extra cost.

However, for gamers and overclockers, the marketing argument that ECC memory is not important is nonsense. Regular people shouldn't have to deal with random crashes caused by defective memory modules without having access to ECC memory. Overclocking systems with non-ECC memory means you have no way of knowing if it's operating correctly at your overclocked speed. With ECC memory, the system would spit out an error right away when pushed too far.

In reality, as memory speeds have continued to ramp up, it has become more and more essential for ECC memory to be considered a must-have component for stability. DDR5 actually has ECC built right into the standard now, making it even more critical for those who want the utmost in stability.

So, should you consider using ECC memory in your gaming system? The answer is yes if you want the utmost in stability and don't mind losing a few FPS here and there. AMD gives you the option to use ECC memory, which can be beneficial for those who want to future-proof their systems. However, if you're all about redlining performance and saving a buck, ECC probably isn't going to make it into your gaming rig yet.

In our latest experiment, we tested the performance difference between gaming RAM and ECC memory on Ryzen. We set up two identical systems with different memory configurations: one using non-ECC gaming RAM and another using ECC memory. The results were surprising - in games like CS GO, the worst performance loss was about 6%. This is a significant improvement compared to systems without ECC memory.

However, the performance difference between ECC and non-ECC memory is even less pronounced when it comes to productivity tasks. If you're looking for a performance uplift by spending more on ECC memory, you might be disappointed. The main benefit of using ECC memory is reliability, which is why Linus Torvalds was so upset about Intel's decision to artificially lock it out of their consumer platforms.

To understand the performance differences between gaming RAM and ECC memory, let's take a look at how they impact our system. We tested different speeds of gaming RAM on Ryzen and measured the performance difference. The results showed that higher clock speeds do result in better performance, but not as much as you might expect.

In contrast to the non-ECC gaming RAM, our test system using ECC memory had slightly slower latencies, which resulted in a slight decrease in performance. However, this performance loss was only around 2-3% compared to the non-ECC gaming RAM. The difference is noticeable but not significant enough to be considered a major bottleneck.

Overall, while there is some benefit to using ECC memory in your system, it's essential to weigh up the pros and cons before making a decision. If you're all about performance and don't care about stability, then non-ECC gaming RAM might be sufficient for your needs. However, if you want the utmost in reliability and are willing to sacrifice some performance, then ECC memory is a viable option.

In addition to our experiment on gaming RAM and ECC memory, we also tested the THX Panda wireless headphones sponsored by Drop and THX. These headphones sound amazing, with audio file-grade quality that will satisfy any music lover. They weigh only 375 grams and have a battery life of up to 30 hours. If you're looking for a great pair of gaming headphones, then these are definitely worth considering.

To get the most out of your system, it's essential to choose components that work well together. Our test system used an ASUS B550M-A Prime motherboard, which explicitly lists ECC support. This allowed us to take full advantage of the ECC memory and experience the benefits of this type of memory in our gaming system.

Overall, using ECC memory in your gaming system can be beneficial for stability and reliability, but it may come at a cost in terms of performance. By weighing up the pros and cons and considering your needs as a gamer, you can make an informed decision about whether or not to use ECC memory in your system.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- Linus Torvalds may nothave been polite about itbut he was definitely right.While PC gamers enjoy blazing fast techin their gaming rigs athome, they have paid a price.Thanks to Intel's innovative strategyof intentionally disabling features,then giving them backto you in a differentmore expensive product,this ECC memory that I'm holdingactually physically fits inthis slot, but it won't work.At least, not fully.But guess who's got your back, gamers?Facebook.No, I'm just kidding.It's AMD.It's always AMD, isn't it?While they haven't fullyvalidated the feature,AMD at least had the decencyto leave ECC support enabledon their consumer platforms,leaving it up to motherboardmanufacturers to implement.And guess what?Some of them have.That means that in theory,you could have the stability of a serverright in your very own gaming rigraising the question, well, should you?Maybe, but first you should checkout our sponsor, Glasswire.With Glasswire, you caninstantly see your currentand past network activity,detect malware and blockbadly behaving apps on your PCor Android device.Use offer code Linus toget 25% off Glasswireat the link below.(upbeat music)Before we can say, if we should use itwe need to understand whatECC memory actually is.ECC stands for error correction codewhich essentially meansthe RAM uses clever tricksand specialized code to findand even correct in realtime, errors in memory,or actually the same principlecan apply to storage.To do that, ECC RAM modulesneed extra memory chipsto store parody data,which can tell the memorycontroller on your CPU,what the value of a bit is supposed to be.See here's the thing,both of these sticksare labeled 32 gigabytesbut this one clearly has nine chips on itinstead of the normal eight.Now there are a numberof different error correction methodsbut the most common isSECDED or SECDED Hamming codewhich can silently correctfor a single bit flipor detect when two bits have flipped.And in some cases even inform the userthat there's been an error.Now what's a bit flip?I'm glad you asked.It's a spontaneous changein the stored value of a biteither from a zero to a one or vice versaand it can be caused byminor hardware failureor even external factorssuch as cosmic rays.No, but really,and its impact can be tremendous.Research labs that runsimulations, for example,need ECC memory to prevent instabilitiesor incorrect valuesduring their calculations.For example, without ECC, a bit flipcould change a bytes valuepotentially leading toan inaccurate resultor even system failuredepending on the circumstances.But I hear you calling outfrom your Mountain-Dew-decorated deskand Doritos dust-coated fingers,what does this mean forme, the average gamer?Well, I'm glad you asked that too.Although games or work from homeusually aren't as high stakesas high-precision lab research,RAM errors can happento any system regardlessof what it's being usedfor or where it is.And these aren't detectableby most normal consumer hardware.So they can either go completely unnoticedor affect a critical bitcausing program instability,system instability, oreven a full-on crash.So even if ECC would only kickin very occasionally just like using RAIDto protect against aphysical drive failure...- Holy (beep).(groans)Oh, it's a precautionthat in an ideal world, wewould all take all the time.So how do you do it?Well, pretty easily, actually.There are different types of ECC memory.UDIMMs, RDMS, LRDIMs and FBDIMsbut only UDIMMs will workwith our Ryzen setup.So that simplifies ourchoices a little bit.The reason is that the other typesof DIMS have various types of registerswhich are designed to take load offof the CPU's memory controllerand allow the system toaddress a greater capacityof RAM per module and a greaternumber of modules overall.Now that trade-off in serversand in the data center isworthwhile for the extra latencybut on a desktop, we don'treally want that anyway.So we kidded ourselves outwith four 32 gig sticksof 3,200 megahertz memoryfrom NEMIX and all right,we're ready to start gaming, right?Let's game.Not quite, these RAMmodules are unbuffered.So they'll actually workin any motherboard thatsupports their capacityand the DDR4 standard.But ECC that ninth chip perside will only be activeif we choose a motherboardthat explicitly supports the feature.Now we had originallyintended to use this onefrom Asrock Rackbut we had some difficultyadjusting memory timings.So we switched over to anASUS B550M-A prime motherboardwhich explicitly lists ECC support.To max out our system, because we can,we're using four of theseto give us a total of 128 gigabytes of RAMin our gaming system.And we're hoping that becausethey run at high-speedsimilar to gaming modulesalthough not as fast,we won't be giving uptoo much performance when we pair it upwith our Ryzen 9 3900XT and RTX 2080 Super.And then we're going to be comparingto some crucial ballistics.And wow, these numbers reallyaren't impressing anyonethat is, unlike our CPUpillow from LTTstar.comare you gonna throw that to me.Ah, there it is (laughs).In games, the ECC memory hardlymakes any difference at all.Which if you think aboutit, kind of is impressive.Here's the thing, even thoughboth of these kits areclocked at 3,200 megahertzECC memory tends to runat higher latencies.Even if you don't have a registerand these NEMIX modules areno exception to that rule.The worst performance losswas about 6% in CS GO.And otherwise we were basicallywithin our margin of error.So, okay, how about productivity?I mean, this stuff is designedfor workstation and server use, right?So let's crunch some numbers.And if I didn't tell youthat these were different configurationsyou probably wouldn't know.The difference in performanceis even less pronouncedthan in the few games we tested.So if you were hopingfor a performance upliftby spending considerablymore on ECC memoryyou're in for a big disappointmentbut you also probablyweren't paying attentionto anything that I saidup until now anyway,ECC isn't about performanceand it never was.It's about reliabilitywhich is why Linus Torvalds was so upsetabout the way that Intelartificially locked itout of their consumer platformseffectively driving up the cost of entry.I mean, I can see why Intel did it.ECC is critical for professional workwhere procurement departmentsare spending moneythey didn't have to earn anywayand won't care about the extra cost.As long as it has somebenefit to their business.It's only a nice to have for everyone elsebut he made a couple ofother excellent points.First, that the marketing thatECC shouldn't be importantto gamers or over clockers is nonsense.A hundred percent man, like what?Regular people aren'tdoing anything importantand they should justdeal with random crashesand then have no idea what caused themeven if it was a defective memory module?And guys for years, I've been sayingoverclocking your systemmemory isn't worth it.You know why I've said that?Because under normal circumstanceswith unbuffered, non-ECC dims,you have no way of knowingif it's operating correctlyat your overclocked speed.If it had ECC, it would spitout an error right awaywhen you push it too far.And his other point was thatas memory speeds havecontinued to ramp up,it's become more and more essentialto the point where theycan't keep ignoring it.DDR five actually has ECC builtright into the standard now.So the bottom lineis if you're all aboutredlining performanceand saving a buck, ECCprobably isn't going to make itinto your gaming rig yet.But if you want the utmost in stabilityand you don't mind losinga few FPS here and there,hey, at least AMD gives you the option.So thanks, AMD,and thanks Linus for bringingthis to everyone's attentionin your characteristic, notto mention charming manner.Speaking of charming,I'm going to charm youto check out our sponsor.Drop and THX came togetherto create the Drop THXPanda wireless headphones.And there's a bunch oftalking points in here.THX, AAA technology,distortion-free wireless headphones,they sound the same onwireless and a wire Bluetooth30 hours battery life, blah, blah, blah.The point is they sound freaking great.They are audio file gradeBluetooth headphones,they sound so good.They weigh only 375 grams,you can get a detachable gaming micjust go check them out at the link below.We actually did a review for theselike ages back before theysponsored anything about them.They're flipping awesome.Just to go, go get them ifyou have the money for them.Cause they're (clicks) they're great.If you guys enjoyed this video,investigating the performance differencesbetween gaming RAM and ECC memoryon Ryzen, you might also enjoyour look at different speedsof gaming RAM on Ryzen andhow they impact performance.That's a good one.\n"