[:Francis:]

Hi all, this is my first post on the forums

.

My system specs are:

ASUS M4A89GTD-PRO/USB3
AMD 1090T
Corsair XMS3 2x4GB (1600MHz)
EVGA GeForce 285GTX SSC (not water-cooled)
WDC Raptor 74GB
Corsair HX750
Thermochill PA120.3 (3x slow and silent fans pulling air from inside the case)
Watercool Heatkiller Rev3
Swiftech MCP655

I haven't done any overclocking since I had a P4 3.2C, but I'd like to get back into it after many years of absence.

My current overclock is @ 4GHz, but still isn't completely stable. I'd like to get the system stable @ 4.2GHz or more.

My parameters are:

CPU-multiplier: 18
BUS speed: 223MHz
v-core: 1.428V (read from CPU-Z), 1.464V under load
HT-link: 2GHz (auto)
CPU/NB voltage: 1.2V
CPU-LLC: AUTO
CPU/NB-LLC: AUTO
NB frequency: 2685MHz
RAM frequency: 745 MHz (3/10 ratio)
Timings: 9-9-9-24-34-1T
RAM-voltage: 1.65V

My CPU-temps (measured using CoreTemp) are in the low twenties idle, and are approximately 40-41*C with all six cores fully loaded.

All tips to getting a higher and more stable OC will be much appreciated! Please don't hesitate to ask if I have forgotten to provide any necessary details

.

Thanks,

Francis

 

[railfan844]

1. Use the multiplier to OC rather than the FSB, as you have a black edition this should be possible.
2. Best method if you have a target speed in mind is to set it @ 4.2ghz, then raise voltage until you hit 1.5 OR you become stable. If you hit 1.5v and still aren't stable then start decreasing the multiplier (above 1.5 for 24/7 is not recommended).

For stability testing I recommend Intel burn test, if it passes that then do at least 5 hours of OCCT linpack.

 

[willibj]

I disagree with the 1st point above - the FSB and Multi should be used together to overclock especially given the standard of the OP's motherboard. This typically provides more flexibility on the RAM/NB overclocks, and allows for higher CPU freq. on lower volts/temps through balancing the multi/fsb limitations.

Feel free to hit 1.5v on the CPU, potentially up to .5v higher. Temps are well within reason.

The standout problem with your overclock to me is your NB voltage:

1) Increase your CPU/NB voltage to as high as 1.35 volts (perhaps 1.4v) and you can probably get your NB to 2800mhz+.
2) ALSO up your NB voltage to 1.2v or 1.3v. (separate from the CPU/NB voltage)

Should see more stability.

 

[railfan844]

Quote:

Originally Posted by willibj I disagree with the 1st point above - the FSB and Multi should be used together to overclock especially given the standard of the OP's motherboard. This typically provides more flexibility on the RAM/NB overclocks, and allows for higher CPU freq. on lower volts/temps through balancing the multi/fsb limitations. Feel free to hit 1.5v on the CPU, potentially up to .5v higher. Temps are well within reason. The standout problem with your overclock to me is your NB voltage: 1) Increase your CPU/NB voltage to as high as 1.35 volts (perhaps 1.4v) and you can probably get your NB to 2800mhz+. 2) ALSO up your NB voltage to 1.2v or 1.3v. (separate from the CPU/NB voltage) Should see more stability.

^^this. I must have been misinformed about how much benefit an unlocked multi was.

*but I think you meant .05 volts over 1.5....+.5 would be 2 volts

 

[The Sandman]

I have both CPU LLC and CPU/NB LLC on "FULL" rather than auto. You may have to lower current voltages in bios and redo your OC a bit. But you'll find LLC can be your friend if you just work with it, and not against it. That'd be a start. Also by using Offset voltage instead of Manual this will allow you to use C&Q when going for 4.2 and save some wear and tear with increased voltages.

 

[:Francis:]

Thanks for the tips guys!

I reset all the parameters and started from scratch a few days ago. First I set CPU/NB + 0.1V, which gave me 1.25V. I then started increasing the CPU/NB multiplier until I reached 3GHz. For each increase I ran 3 passes of LinX with the largest problem size.
The memory controller seemed stable all the way up to 3GHz @ 1.25V.

Load line calibration was on for both CPU and CPU/NB for all the tests.

I then increased the CPU-multiplier to 18 and ran LinX again for 3 passes, which went fine.

I don't want to have a CPU multiplier > 18, as this prevents CnQ from working, so I increased the bus speed to 213 and reduced the CPU/NB and HT-link multipliers sligtly, so I didn't exceed 3GHz and 2GHz respectively.
This configuration passed 3 passes of LinX with no V-CORE increase.

For 3,9 GHz I had to increase the V-CORE offset +0.6 (1.3 + 0.6) to manage 3 passes of LinX.

I'm still working on 4GHz. I increased the CPU/NB voltage to 1.3V to be on the safe side, and have got 2 of 3 passes in LinX passing with +0.11V V-CORE.
My cores are about 45*C at full load with this configuration, but the CPU-temp has been as high as 58*C.
Which of the two temps need to be kept < 62*C?

Thanks a lot for your help so far! Hopefully I can get 4GHz stable for everyday use.

Thans,

Francis

 

[blakmumba]

CPU - 55*C if poss - MAX 62*C

Hope that helps

 

[:Francis:]

Maybe I should try re-seating my water block, as I used 6 year old AS5 to mount it. I also think that I may have to upgrade the 3x120mm fans on my radiator to something more potent. My current fans only shift 54.4m³/h.

Wold Noctua NF-S12B FLX be a good choice?

Thanks,

Francis

 

[blakmumba]

Id personally go for Gentle Typhoons 1850 as the Noctua fans you mentioned have a problem of vibrating (just look up 'Noctua NF-S12B FLX vs Gentle Typhoons 1850' and read the forums')

 

[:Francis:]

Cheers!

I'll upgrade my fans and TIM soon and see if my temps improve

.

Francis

 

[huhh]

Just so you know there is an issue with reading your CPU temp on anything but pc probe 2 on the x6 CPUs. 12c lower than it is, which needs to be adjusted in core temp.

 

[:Francis:]

I have been overclocking this evening and got these settings (4,02GHz) to run LinX for 1,5h (never crashed, I stopped it):

Multiplier: 18
Bus: 223
Dram: 1189
CPU/NB: 2899
HT-link: 2007
V-CORE: 1.3 + 0,13V
CPU/NB: 1.15 + 0.15V
V-DIMM: 1.65
Load line calibrations enabled

If I increase the RAM speed to ~1600 it crashes on me. Do you have any tips as to how I can optimalise my OC for even better performance?

Thanks,

Francis

 

[1337LutZ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by :Francis:;13126841
I have been overclocking this evening and got these settings (4,02GHz) to run LinX for 1,5h (never crashed, I stopped it):

Multiplier: 18
Bus: 223
Dram: 1189
CPU/NB: 2899
HT-link: 2007
V-CORE: 1.3 + 0,13V
CPU/NB: 1.15 + 0.15V
V-DIMM: 1.65
Load line calibrations enabled

If I increase the RAM speed to ~1600 it crashes on me. Do you have any tips as to how I can optimalise my OC for even better performance?

Thanks,

Francis

Up V-DIMM to 1.7 and try the NBv @ 1.2v to get ur ram stable @ 1600

 

[The Sandman]

With a 2900MHz NB Freq you may find it ness to increase the CPU/NB voltage, your current setting looks very to low me. I'd guess maybe in the area of 1.3-1.35. Depending how much OC or tightening of ram you have it could as much as 1.4v for CPU/NB.

My ram is both tightened and freq is OC'd and I'm running 1.468v CPU/NB, but my CPU is running 4222MHz also. Max is same as CPU, 1.5-1.55v for CPU/NB voltage. When I ran a 4013MHz CPU my CPU/NB was running 1.370v.