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I've got an Asrock N68C-GS FX edition motherboard, and its maximum reported RAM is 8GB. I would like to upgrade the RAM in my motherboard.

Now, I've read that manufacturers only ever place the maximum memory limit, because that is the maximum amount of memory that the motherboard was only tested with.

Am I right in saying that in theory, motherboards can go beyond their official memory limit?

Memory is limited by the CPU mostly (I have an AMD FX4100), so how true would it be if I assumed that the actual maximum memory limit is the maximum amount of memory that the CPU itself can support?

There are a few responses here, but there still seems to be no clear conclusion to this.

This page claims that the chipset can support up to 16GB RAM (listed in Compatible RAM; two times the maximum RAM that Asrock claims the motherboard can support.

Do some motherboards really support more RAM than their manufacturer claims?

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AStopher
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    Depends on the motherboard and the chipset. – Ƭᴇcʜιᴇ007 May 22 '14 at 15:43
  • The only way you'll know is to try it. It's not just the chipset that limits memory capability. There's also the capacity of the bus, the BIOS limitations, etc. The chipset might support more ram, but they probably skimped on other areas that would prevent its usage. – BBlake May 22 '14 at 15:47
  • Its all about the chipset. Use the limits of the chipset to determine the real limits, but what you heard, is not true. – Ramhound May 22 '14 at 15:49
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    At the end of the day this motherboard only has 2 DDR3 slots which indicates the 8GB is correct. 16GB would require 4 4GB modules with a similar motherboard with 4 slots. I guarantee you the limit is a hard limit. – Ramhound May 22 '14 at 15:57
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    @Ramhound Or 2x8GB sticks. – AStopher May 22 '14 at 16:00
  • @zyboxenterprises - I have big doubts that a similar board with 4 DDR3 slots would support that configuration but feel free to search for one – Ramhound May 22 '14 at 16:02
  • There have been times when the ram itself and the information for the larger gigs per chunk, were unknown at the time of manufacture, but worked ok. I always waited till someone else proved it worked first. This board being one of the backwards supporting ones, might be less likely. you could ask Asrock, hoping that your request landed where someone cared enough, and knew enough. – Psycogeek May 22 '14 at 16:16

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