Can I use 2400 RAM on i5 6400?

[MonoAlice]

Some people told me that the RAM compatibility is based on the motherboard.
I want another 2400 RAM, to replace my 2133 old prebuilt PC RAM.
Can I use 2400 RAM on i5 6400?
By the way, my motherboard is Asus Strix H270F

[Clint E]

Yes and No according to this statement, you have Gen 6 not Gen 7, look like it will run slower at 2133


4 x DIMM, Max. 64GB, DDR4 3300(O.C.)/3000(O.C.)/2400/2133 MHz Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory
Dual Channel Memory Architecture
Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
** Refer to www.asus.com for the Memory QVL (Qualified Vendors Lists).
* Due to Intel® chipset limitation, DDR4 2400MHz memory frequency is only supported by 7th Generation Intel® processors. Higher memory modules will run at the maximum transfer rate of DDR4 2400MHz.
** Due to Intel® chipset limitation, DDR4 2133MHz and higher memory modules on 6th Generation Intel® processors will run at the maximum transfer rate of DDR4 2133MHz.

[tacoshy]

You need a Z270 or Z170 Motherboard to overclock the RAM and run it with an XMP profile.

Outside of that. you cant. Beside of that, if you mix RAM, the slwoest speed going to take effect of all moduels. means you drop then to 2133MHz anyways.

[MonoAlice]

Originally posted by W8lifts:

Yes and No according to this statement, you have Gen 6 not Gen 7, look like it will run slower at 2133


4 x DIMM, Max. 64GB, DDR4 3300(O.C.)/3000(O.C.)/2400/2133 MHz Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory
Dual Channel Memory Architecture
Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
** Refer to www.asus.com for the Memory QVL (Qualified Vendors Lists).
* Due to Intel® chipset limitation, DDR4 2400MHz memory frequency is only supported by 7th Generation Intel® processors. Higher memory modules will run at the maximum transfer rate of DDR4 2400MHz.
** Due to Intel® chipset limitation, DDR4 2133MHz and higher memory modules on 6th Generation Intel® processors will run at the maximum transfer rate of DDR4 2133MHz.

Well, guess I'll just stick with what I have now.
Thank you for answering!

Originally posted by tacoshy:

You need a Z270 or Z170 Motherboard to overclock the RAM and run it with an XMP profile.

Outside of that. you cant. Beside of that, if you mix RAM, the slwoest speed going to take effect of all moduels. means you drop then to 2133MHz anyways.

Thanks for telling me that!

[OLDMAN🎅]

While there are a number of differences between the two consumer chipsets, the first and most commonly known difference is that the Z270 chipset fully supports CPU overclocking, while the H270 does not. Some motherboard manufacturers will likely allow some overclocking capability with H270, but full overclocking (including core multiplier, BCLK, and voltage) should be limited to Z270.

The second major difference is in regards to how the CPU PCI-E lanes can be used. Of the 16 PCI-E 3.0 lanes that are available from all Kaby Lake and Skylake CPUs, Z270 allows you to use them either as one full x16 lane, two x8 lanes, or one x8 and two x4 lanes. The primary use of this feature is to allow for the use of multiple video cards in SLI or Crossfire, but it can also be used to allow for a higher number of other PCI-E add-on cards as well.

The chipset lanes are a bit different: while a few may be used for add-on devices, they are mostly there for additional features the manufacturer has built into the motherboard that are not native to the chipset like WiFi, more USB ports, additional LAN ports, and the new M.2 or U.2 storage drives. The number of lanes available changes based on the chipset with Z270 having 24 PCI-E 3.0 lanes whereas H270 has 20 PCI-E 3.0 lanes. The biggest impact of having fewer lanes is that there is less opportunity for manufacturers to add additional features to the board, although another factor is the number of x4 M.2 devices that can be used on the chipset: Z270 can support 3 such devices while H270 can only support 2.

As far as connectivity goes, Z270 and H270 can both support 6 SATA drives and have the same total number of USB ports (14) - although Z270 can have two more USB 3.0 ports than H270 (10 versus 8). Regarding additional feature sets, both support Smart Sound Technology, Rapid Storage Technology, although only Z270 supports Smart Response Technology (otherwise known as SSD Caching). For business-based customers who need the upgrade stability and security features of vPro and SIPP, it is worth noting that neither of these chipsets support this feature. https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Z270-H270-Q270-Q250-B250---What-is-the-Difference-876/