Aurora R16, XMP memory?

Yes, for certain Intel Core processors, you can upgrade memory with XMP.  See memory specs for reference

https://www.dell.com/support/manuals/en-us/alienware-aurora-r16-desktop/alienware-aurora-r16-owners-manual/memory?guid=guid-e9d2ea83-38a4-431d-803c-96d63c1dbc34&lang=en-us

Re: prebuilt Aurora that could be customized/upgraded/etc

Dell meant it has validated a list of upgrade using Dell oem memory, gpu, cpu, psu, ssd etc.

Users can experiment with non oem memory upgrade but positive results are not guaranteed.

Unfortunately they can be customized at time of purchase, but they are not designed to be upgraded afterwards.

RAM upgrades can be done using the OEM memory, but due to pricing the suggestion is always to order what you need at time of ordering, as doing it afterwards can become costly very fast.

@Vanadiel​ You have to be kidding me. These systems are that flaky? I am rethinking my recent purchase.

@irsh_​ They are not flaky. They are simply designed around very specific parts and do not take well to other parts besides OEM parts.

And the OEM parts carry a hefty premium if you want to buy them afterwards.

Memory is built to an industry standard for a reason. If an retail MB doesn't except most off the shelf memory it's flaky.

That said, I purchased the Crucial Pro 32GB kit and it works fine and boots at 5600. The only drawback is it's CL46 which is ridiculously slow timing.

@irsh_​ These are not retail boards though. These are OEM, and they come with their own quirks...

@Vanadiel​ Lol, your quirks are my flaky. :)

I already responded to OP question at the beginning at this thread that memory for R16 can be upgraded including XMP memory.  A memory configurations supported table was provided as reference.  There is no need to repost the same answer with different wordings.  

However, if you do, word it right, except has the opposite meaning of accept.  Also, Dell does not use retail motherboards in their systems.  Don't spread misleading information.

Still glad that the information helped and the memory upgrade works fine for you.  At least, it changes your negative view about unupgradable of the R16.

@Chino de Oro​ 

oh, so because i got 6,000 it just defaults to the 4,800 instead of just maxing out to what its capable of ? i guess…

@Hollowed , when you look at the system specs link from my first post, you will see that the processors generations would affect the memory speed.  If your computer shipped with 12th gen Intel Core processors, the memory will run at 4800 MT/s.

Higher speed memory if used, will be downclocked and run at the speed the CPU is rated for.  XMP memory will work with supported configurations only.  Review this link for validated part number of XMP memory  https://www.dell.com/community/en/conversations/alienware-desktops/faq-aurora-r16/64d49537b523343667823633

I think what they are saying is that on a retail board you can almost plug in whatever memory kit you bought on the market, and as long as it has an XMP profile it will just work, at the advertised speed of the memory kit.

That is the whole point of XMP, no more fiddling with manual memory settings as all the proper settings are included in the XMP profile.

Then you have the R16, who only supports very specific OEM memory and only supports very specific memory timings/frequencies.

Aftermarket might work or not, and when it does it often revert to the 4800 Mhz default instead of the XMP profile of the kit.

The whole point of XMP is a standard for memory profiles, to ensure it "just works" when you plug it in.

In the end this all goes back to the gear modes, which was I believe an issue since R12 or so, as Alienware does not fully support the gear modes available. That is why you cannot properly run high speed memory kits, as the gear mode setting is missing to do so.

@Chino de Oro​ Glad to see pedantry is alive and well.

It's funny that you feel threatened somehow even though I was talking about something else. Don't worry, you'll still get your props.

@Hollowed​ Yes, that is basically what it will do. Without going into all the fine details, anything over 4800/5200 is considered overclocked by Intel, and requires a setting that as far as I know is not available on the Alienware systems. (Gear 2 mode is what you would need to reach 6,000 or higher frequency)

1. Gear 1: The memory controller and memory frequency operate at the same speed (1:1), providing the lowest latency and best performance in lightly-threaded workloads, such as gaming.
2. Gear 2: The memory operates at twice the frequency of the memory controller (2:1), resulting in higher data transfer rates (frequency) but also higher latency, which can impact performance in some applications.

I am currently experiencing this issue. Purchased Corsair Vengeance 64GB DDR5 Ram kit advertised at 5600 mhz. Only running at 4800 mhz, no way to OC in AWCC or in the BIOS… kind of disappointed by this. I was hoping my Alienware R16 would be more customizable.