How do I overclock my E6420??

3570 Views 18 Replies 6 Participants Last post by nachosanchezz, Mar 28, 2009

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · Mar 16, 2009

Hey all,

I'm new to overclocking, and I am unsure of what to do. I got a Asus P5Q (NB: P45) mobo, E6420 cpu, and Thermalright Ultima-90 cooler with a 120mm Raidmax Sigma fan(changing to a 120mm Scythe Kama PWM soon), and PQI DDR2-800 1GBx2.

I got my vCore set to 1.475v in the BIOS, and it reads 1.448V in CPU-Z and 1.45-1.46V in HWMoniter. My bus speed is at 300 right now and multiplier is at x8. I tried to make bus speed 350 through Asus AI Suite, which i thought was reasonable from what I've read about the 6420, and got an instant BSOD.

What am I doing wrong???

P.S. The FSB

RAM ratio is at 4:5, which puts the DRAM freq on 375, if that matters.

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1 - 19 of 19 Posts

pcguy5

· #2 · Mar 16, 2009

when overclocking you should always use the BIOS. using programs is okay, but the bios is the best way and place to achieve your overclocks.

I'm not sure of what your cpu's max multiplier is, but try to do a FSB of 400 with a 9 multiplier to keep your DRAM speed and FSB synced.

sgdude

· #3 · Mar 16, 2009

go in your bios, id say start at 333x8 you should be able to hit that at stock voltage, if not, bump up your voltage .05V and try again. Id say u should be able to do 400x8 but that might take a little more vcore. Anything under 1.5V is fine on the 65nm chips.

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #4 · Mar 16, 2009

Thanks for the advice!! Will try those soon.

BTW what do you do for testing oc stability?? I've got Prime95 but I'm not sure exactly how to use it...

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #5 · Mar 18, 2009

I just tried making the vcore 1.5v, with 375x8. It couldn't even go past the ExpressGate screen... I turned it back down to 325x8 with same voltage (1.5v), and it reads 1.47v in HWMoniter... Why is it so hard to oc my 6420...

1nfinity

· #6 · Mar 18, 2009

Personally I use Orthos either small fft's to stress the CPU for temps and stability, and blend to test the ram and cpu stability together. I have an E6420 and I was able to get it to 3.2ghz on stock vcore. Sits at [email protected] atm. If you could post your bois settings it would be great to get an idea of what your working with.

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #7 · Mar 18, 2009

Cool thanks. Will do as soon as I have time. Kinda busy with other things at the moment.

Acoma_Andy

· #8 · Mar 18, 2009

Woah! You are using a way too high vcore for that speed!

You should be able to run 400 x 8 (3.2Ghz) at around 1.35v. With 1.5v you can clock it up to 3.6Ghz or more...

Obviously something else is wrong here. I suggest you set your ram 1:1 first, for example if your FSB is at 333, set your DRAM Freq. to 667. Also make sure timings and voltage is set manually for your memory.

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #9 · Mar 18, 2009

Thanks for that Andy. But with my voltage I can't even hit 375x8...

Well I got my BIOS settings and there is a pretty big list.

CPU Multiplier: 8
FSB Freq: 325
PCIe Freq: 100
FSB Strap to NB: Auto
DRAM Freq: Auto (Its now at 815 I think)
DRAM Timing: Auto
DRAM Static Read Control: Auto
DRAM Read Training: Auto
Memory OC Charger: Auto
Ai Clock Twister: Auto
Ai Transaction Booster: Auto
CPU Voltage: 1.5v
CPU GTL Reference: Auto
CPU PLL Voltage: Auto (1.5v)
FSB Termination Voltage: Auto (1.2v)
DRAM Voltage: 1.9v
NB Voltage: 1.12v
SB Voltage: Auto (1.1v)
PCIe SATA Voltage: Auto (1.5v)
Load Line Calibration: Auto
CPU Spread Spectrum: It was on Enabled but it's now Disabled...just realised...
PCIe Spread Spectrum: Disabled
CPU Clock Skew: Auto
NB Clock Skew: Auto
CPU Margin Enhancement: Optimized
C1E Support: Enabled
Max CPUID Value Limit: Disabled
Intel Virtualization Tech: Enabled
CPU TM Function: Enabled
Execute Disable Bit: Enabled

I just turned Spread Spectrum off, and I'm not sure if that was the problem. Does it make that much of a difference??
Did I miss anything??

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Acoma_Andy

· #10 · Mar 18, 2009

Here try this:

CPU Multiplier: 8
FSB Freq: 325
PCIe Freq: 100
FSB Strap to NB: Auto
DRAM Freq: Auto (Its now at 815 I think) - Set this to manual, 625
DRAM Timing: Auto - Manual 5-5-5-15 timings
DRAM Static Read Control: Auto - Disabled
DRAM Read Training: Auto - Disabled
Memory OC Charger: Auto
Ai Clock Twister: Auto
Ai Transaction Booster: Auto
CPU Voltage: 1.5v - Lower this to at least 1.35v
CPU GTL Reference: Auto
CPU PLL Voltage: Auto (1.5v)
FSB Termination Voltage: Auto (1.2v)
DRAM Voltage: 1.9v
NB Voltage: 1.12v - Set this to 1.2v
SB Voltage: Auto (1.1v)
PCIe SATA Voltage: Auto (1.5v)
Load Line Calibration: Auto - Disabled
CPU Spread Spectrum: It was on Enabled but it's now Disabled...just realised...
PCIe Spread Spectrum: Disabled
CPU Clock Skew: Auto
NB Clock Skew: Auto
CPU Margin Enhancement: Optimized
C1E Support: Enabled - Disabled
Max CPUID Value Limit: Disabled
Intel Virtualization Tech: Enabled - Disabled
CPU TM Function: Enabled - Disabled
Execute Disable Bit: Enabled

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1nfinity

· #11 · Mar 18, 2009

Aw Andy, you beat me to it! lol, hope it works for him!

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #12 · Mar 18, 2009

Under the DRAM timing settings, my bios said setting it under 800mhz could cause system boot failure, and it did. I couldn't boot into Windows. Thats before I changed all the settings you suggested though. I might try 400x8 at 1:1 tomorrow when I have time.

P.S. I'm in NZ so in a diff time zone...

Acoma_Andy

· #13 · Mar 18, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by nachosanchezz

View Post

Under the DRAM timing settings, my bios said setting it under 800mhz could cause system boot failure, and it did. I couldn't boot into Windows. Thats before I changed all the settings you suggested though. I might try 400x8 at 1:1 tomorrow when I have time.

P.S. I'm in NZ so in a diff time zone...

Yeah the older P5Q biosses are notorious for having problems with certain memory and settings. Your best bet is to flash it with the latest bios and then give it another shot. But 400 x 8 should work at 1:1 as well.

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nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #14 · Mar 19, 2009

I just tried those settings, and I couldn't boot into Windows

One thing though, my memory runs at 5-5-5-18, and in BIOS I set it to 5-5-5-15 and lower the voltage back down to 1.8v, will that matter?

EDIT: I just tried loosening the timing to 5-5-5-18, and it still doesn't boot into Windows, any ideas??

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nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #15 · Mar 22, 2009

Thanks for your help guys!!

I played around with my NB voltage and vCore a bit, and finally got my computer boot into Windows!

Right now, my NB voltage is at 1.3v and vCore is at 1.45v(both BIOS setting values). I'll try to play around with them a bit more and see how low I can go with them!!

I wouldn't have got here without the advice on BIOS settings!! So thanks again!

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Mr. Stroker

· #16 · Mar 22, 2009

What are your bio settings?

As for stability I use OCCT. You can find it in the download section. I use the linpack for quick testing and then run reg occt overnight.

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #17 · Mar 23, 2009

It's the settings Andy posted on the 1st page, except the CPU Margin Enhancement is set to Performance coz I think it helps.

nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #18 · Mar 27, 2009

These are my BIOS settings, but it's not stable @ 400x8 @ 1.475v? The voltage sounds quite high from what I've read, any suggestions on the BIOS settings?

Thanks!

Attachment 103213

Attachment 103214

Attachment 103215

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nachosanchezz

Discussion Starter · #19 · Mar 28, 2009

Sorry for double posting, but what temp would be too high for a 65nm c2d? Just wanna get an idea so I don't go over it.

Thanks

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