Dave’s Ultimate Guide to Overclocking

[cadaveca]

Dave’s Guide to Overclocking



1. First makes sure your board will let you change multiplier/front side bus settings, as well as a lock on the PCI and AGP bridges. Do this by reading the manual. Best to read every last page…they make them for a reason.
2. Ensure that your processor is not locked. Doing a search on google will get you numerous results on how to figure it out.
3. Download a few programs from the net…one temperature monitoring program(mbm5/etc.), and one testing program(prime95/cpuburn-in/folding@home)
4. Install monitoring program and check your temperature. You want to have a starting point of about 45c or so…the maximum “under load” temp should not exceed 55c when overclocked
5. If your temp is high, you first need to provide sufficient cooling. Aftermarket heat compounds and heatsinks offer a multitude of combinations. Find one to suit your taste. Also ensure that you have proper airflow in your case. Opening the side panel should not cause the temps to drop. There are numerous silent case fans that will both lower temps and keep your system silent.
6. Decide on wether you want to do a “burn-in” or not. The opinions are varied, but it is believed by some that this will “stretch a proc’s legs” so to speak, and make higher overclocks possible. You do the burn-in by running @ regular settings with the voltage maxed out. Running prime95 will raise temps as well as give you error reporting. Generally you want to be running it at 1.9v or so and for @ least 24 hours…with no errors. remember the 55c temp highpoint.
7. set your multi low to 10 or so and your front side bus to 200mhz(make sure that you have memory that supports this)with loose timings like 2.5-3-3-9 or so, or whatever is recommended by the OEM for this frequency. Boot the machine. Once in windows…run prime95(or whatever) and make sure it will run without errors for at least an hour. If you get errors, you either want to up the voltage slightly or loosen your memory timings. Each has their benefit and a risk. Do some research and decide what’s best for you.
8. once you have a stable overclock, you may want to repeat the testing process, either by adjusting front side bus or multi’s. once you are comfortable with the overclock, running prime 95 for a day or 2 with no errors should confirm the stability of your system.
9. Enjoy your new-found speed!
10. fill in any details i missed!

[Gizmo]

At least one testing program, preferably 2 or three.

I use memtest for FSB/Memory stability testing, and then cpuburn for cpu stability, and then prime95/folding@home for system stability.

[cadaveca]

lol i just skip right to prime 95.
i usually will burn-in the proc on another board than the one i intend to use. as i do not have a barton i use an old ga7vxp or something(i'll have to look) that i voltmodded to give 1.925v.
i never use memory more than what is documented in manufacturer's whitepapers(which is almost always more than stock)
the biggest thing that i have found is the CAS2 memory is very important...even @ higherfrequncies the amt of data tranfsfered has never exceeded more than a few 100mb/s at the extreme for me.

[cadaveca]

it generally seems that when windows freezes(no mouse movement) you need more juice @ the cpu.give it a little and run prime 95. got errors? try a little more.
if you get memory reference errors, your timings are too tight or incorrect. loosen cas immediately upon leaving the 400 mhz mark, although some more expensive sets or ram will let you go higher with a cas2 rating

[danrok]

Some good tips there.

[Gizmo]

Also, random application crashes and reboots with things like "IRQ_LESS_THAN_OR_EQUAL" can be caused by memory timings that are too aggressive, DIMM voltage that is too low, or as I just found out, a North Bridge that is getting too hot (because the HSF stopped working).

In addition, at least with the nForce2 chipset, if you have problems with devices randomly going offline (like all of a sudden you can't access the network, or your floppy stops working), you may be having problems with the South Bridge getting too hot.

[Daniel ~]

Copied to our FAQ section!

[cadaveca]

only one last thing to add. It has been quite some time since i bought any memory..in fact the infineon 512mb 333mhz that i have was almost $500 when ibought it. although this ram provided me with many overclocking successes, i can't say how much going and spending some $$ on quality ram will make your overclock jump that hurdle that was holding you back before. if it weren't for the lack of sse2 instructions, this proc has a fx51 beat in sandra benches(with only 256L2)!
i hope my "routine", so to speak, will help some of you out. I did alot of research before ever overclocking, and that was back when 686's were king! It took me about 5 weeks to create a plan of action that has always led me to awesome results, and not one dead peice of hardware(except from the runin with coffee last night.)

[Daniel ~]

Thread moved to "General Hardware Discussion."

[jaminben]

Hi I'm a novice when it comes to jargon, but I learn fast.
I have an older system which has been over clocked by the last owner.
He told me to learn about wpcredit and the like, but i don't understand what it actually does. He claimed it would improve my ram by 80% etc the usual story.
I have formatted since and have added more ram. and would like some tips on getting the best out of my dinosoar system.
I have a intel p2 600 mhz
256Mb sd ram, via motherboard ct-6via3
geforce 3 titanium 128mb graphics card and a creative sound blaster live card.
I know It's not top of the line but any help would be great.
Ben

[bradmax57]

Originally Posted by gizmo

Also, random application crashes and reboots with things like "IRQ_LESS_THAN_OR_EQUAL" can be caused by memory timings that are too aggressive, DIMM voltage that is too low, or as I just found out, a North Bridge that is getting too hot (because the HSF stopped working).

In addition, at least with the nForce2 chipset, if you have problems with devices randomly going offline (like all of a sudden you can't access the network, or your floppy stops working), you may be having problems with the South Bridge getting too hot.

"IRQ_LESS_THAN_OR_EQUAL" one of the most useful things ive ever read, thanks gives me some good direction for my o'cs