Looking to upgrade the ram or cpu in my hp z420

[Rylin]

I'm looking for a CPU or ram upgrade for my z420, I'm thinking of a Xeon e5-2690 or an e5-2687W, I saw a video from Linus tech tips and he said for the e5-2687w I had to get the OEM water cooler but I saw if I pressed f1 I could bypass it. Will not getting the water cooler make it overheat? Also what ram should I get, I know it takes ecc ddr3 but where do I find it? Please help (if needed the z420 is the version with the 2 6 pin PCIE cables)

[Brian1965]

Hi Rylin,

What CPU or RAM configuration required for optimal system performance is very dependent on your intended use, e.g. gaming, CAD, rendering, etc. Please also check/confirm what boot block date is listed in the BIOS? This will clarify if your system supports the v2 CPU's which support higher memory clock frequencies.

With regards to pressing the F1 key to bypass the CPU cooler issue, this is not a good idea. It was cause the CPU to run hotter even with a moderate work load. It will not necessarily cause the CPU to fail, but it will throttle back the CPU frequency just to keep the CPU running within it's temperature/TDP limits. Please bare in mind that the E5-2687W is a 150W CPU, hence the reason for liquid cooling.

On the subject of RAM, check your BIOS boot block date. V2 CPU's support up to 1866MHz dimms, but the v1 CPU's can only run at 1600MHz,  or lower. I would recommend typing HP Z420 RAM in the ebay search bar to identify compatible RAM modules. As a rule, I would recommend using the same brand and specification of RAM modules in all the RAM slots. If your planning on using different sizes of dimm modules, then ensure the lowest capacity RAM modules are installed in the first 4 slots.

[ESLAM3]

I want to communicate with you. How did you allow me? I thought you could edit my Z420's bios. I'm looking for any way I can activate the turbo boost. Can you help me?

[Brian1965]

Hi ESLAM3,

Please start a new post and I will try to assist you. This thread is dealing with a different topic to your question.

Hint: When starting a new thread, please give as much detail as possible regarding your workstation hardware configuration, e.g. CPU model, RAM, BIOS version and boot block date.