Can this build hit 3.6 with q6600? Plz comment

Here are some quick snapshots:
http://i29.tinypic.com/2hg8m4x.jpg
http://i30.tinypic.com/2eekgt2.jpg

Just as a side note, I don't notice any audible difference with the new 3 fans.
Case sounds the same.
:D

Cable management looks horrible, but it's really the best I can do with all the damn fans.

[edit]
Load temps are amazing, Small FFT 8K now to 47C, was going to 61C previously.
Small FFT 64k to 51C.

9x400, 1.356v:
Idle 39/39/35/35
 
Report: I have my PC now and I'm running at 355x8=3.2Ghz, prime95 stable (small ffts), vcore 1.38 and temps under load 49-55 C for all four cores. I think that's pretty good so far!

Now the problem is when I try to hit 3.6 (400x9). I tried raising vcore to 1.5 and I still can't boot into Windows, i see the loading screen, but it restarts before I get in. I guess I was going for broke! I read elsewhere that I should raise the NB voltage to 1.55, will that help? How about raising the fsb strap to 333 (instead of 266 default) - not sure what this really does?

I'm using the TRUE HS with a Scythe fan with a p5k premium MB. I bet I could hit 3.4 (will try this as well) but my goal is 3.6 :) Any tips on how to get there would be great!!! Could there be some bios setting holding me back? I've update to the latest bios (0504) as well.

Thanks, hopefully some of the experts here can figure out the bottleneck.
 
Sounds like you might get 3.4ghz. When you ran Prime95 did you run four instances to make sure all 4 cores were stressed? Check windows performance tab under task manager to make sure they are all being worked. My coworker made the mistake of only working 2 and his temps were great under load that way lol. This will also help you see which cores are failing first. Did you try 8x400 to see if your FSB limited on your chip? Also make sure your memory devider is putting you back into spec. I try to run my memory as close to 800mhz as possible initially to rule out any memory issues during my OC. When you get your cpu OC right you can go back and start pushing your memory higher. Congrats on the rig. It sounds like a nice setup!
 
Yeah I agree that its the luck of the draw sometimes.

I'm hitting a wall at 3.5Ghz methinks.

Running 390 x 9 = 3510Mhz and idling at 45/42/35/34 at 1.43v (in cpu-z). Load bumps that up to 60ish across all.

Some people hit 400 x 9 really easy and some others... don't. :D
 
Gaiden133 said:
Yeah I agree that its the luck of the draw sometimes.

I'm hitting a wall at 3.5Ghz methinks.

Running 390 x 9 = 3510Mhz and idling at 45/42/35/34 at 1.43v (in cpu-z). Load bumps that up to 60ish across all.

Some people hit 400 x 9 really easy and some others... don't. :D
Click to expand...

I hit 9x400 with my q6600 but it takes a hair over 1.5V to get stability. I can run 8x425 @ 1.38V so I just leave it there. My peak load temp on my hottest core was 62C after 10 hours of OCCT. I expect a little temp drop when the arctic silver finally cures.
 
I was able to run my Q6600 at 377 X 9 for 3.4 stable at 1.5 volts but my temps were in the high 60's. I run day to day at 3.2 and 1.4 volts with temps in the low 50s under load. Anything above that would cause errors in Prime 95 within a few minutes.

I tried running my P5K at 400 X 8 , and it appeared to be stable in Prime 95, but after 12 hours or so, the system would just blink off like I flipped a light switch and reboot. After several times of that, I went back to 355 X 9 for daily use.

I'm happy.

Don
 
Copyright said:
Sounds like you might get 3.4ghz. When you ran Prime95 did you run four instances to make sure all 4 cores were stressed? Check windows performance tab under task manager to make sure they are all being worked. My coworker made the mistake of only working 2 and his temps were great under load that way lol. This will also help you see which cores are failing first. Did you try 8x400 to see if your FSB limited on your chip? Also make sure your memory devider is putting you back into spec. I try to run my memory as close to 800mhz as possible initially to rule out any memory issues during my OC. When you get your cpu OC right you can go back and start pushing your memory higher. Congrats on the rig. It sounds like a nice setup!
Click to expand...


I ran the latest prime95 and all four cores were stressed (100%), I can post a screenshot I saved when I get home from work. The temps were b/w 49-55 for the 4 cores. :) I haven't tried to determine the max fsb of my chip yet, that's my next step. I'm running 355x9 at 1:1 so my memory should be unclocked (native ddr2-800) with very loose timings 5-5-5-15.
Gaiden133 said:
Yeah I agree that its the luck of the draw sometimes. Once I establish my highest stable OC, I"ll then play with my memory timings. :) Question is, if 355x9 is the highest it can go, should I run a divider for more ram bandwidth? I hate the idea of UNDERCLOCKING anything, it's like paying for something that you don't use at all! lol. Thanks for the props,

Btw, if you're curious, here's my Crysis benchmark so far (@1280x1024, everything at Very High). Avg fps ~31 !! Crazy!

2008-04-07 21:21:09 - Crysis
Frames: 1220 - Time: 39521ms - Avg: 30.870 - Min: 22 - Max: 39


Gaiden133 said:
Yeah I agree that its the luck of the draw sometimes.

I'm hitting a wall at 3.5Ghz methinks.

Running 390 x 9 = 3510Mhz and idling at 45/42/35/34 at 1.43v (in cpu-z). Load bumps that up to 60ish across all.

Some people hit 400 x 9 really easy and some others... don't. :D
Click to expand...

Idling in the 40's is a bit high isn't it? But that's a great OC, I'll do more testing today and see what happens. :)

Copyright said:
I hit 9x400 with my q6600 but it takes a hair over 1.5V to get stability. I can run 8x425 @ 1.38V so I just leave it there. My peak load temp on my hottest core was 62C after 10 hours of OCCT. I expect a little temp drop when the arctic silver finally cures.
Click to expand...

Yeah I wouldn't go over 1.5, although with Vdroop it should still be under 1.5. What were your other voltages btw? NB/FSB? I think that's my limiting factor right now, they're still on auto.

DonDon said:
I was able to run my Q6600 at 377 X 9 for 3.4 stable at 1.5 volts but my temps were in the high 60's. I run day to day at 3.2 and 1.4 volts with temps in the low 50s under load. Anything above that would cause errors in Prime 95 within a few minutes.

I tried running my P5K at 400 X 8 , and it appeared to be stable in Prime 95, but after 12 hours or so, the system would just blink off like I flipped a light switch and reboot. After several times of that, I went back to 355 X 9 for daily use.

I'm happy.

Don
Click to expand...

3.2 is pretty stable for many people it seems eh? I'm also there (355x9), but maybe I"ll go 400x8 so I can use my ram 1:1 and see if it's stable, without random reboots! Otherwise eitehr a) I under clock my ram in sync mode, or b) OC it using whatever divider (maybe run at 866) and tighten up my timings.

Can you guys please post ALL your voltages (fsb/vcore/nb/sb) please? Thanks a lot!
Click to expand...
 
I didn't know there was a version of prime that worked all 4 cores without running multiple instances. I will have to look into that. Ive been using OCCT for a while now. I only bumped up my VTT and NB voltage up one step above stock. I forget the numbers but Only thing I really applied voltage to was Vcore and Ram. Vcore under load drops to 1.36V and ram is set to 2.1V. There should be a ram devider to get your memory up and over 800mhz. I have another Q6600 I did for a coworker taht runs 9x356 3.2ghz and memory is at 1070mhz. Keep up the good work and bring on the screen shots.
 
See my sig. Not sure why people thing the TRUE is such a good cooler.

I don't even have a really good fan on my cooler, and it works very well.

I still need to LAP my CPU as well as get a good fan that has a decent static pressure instead of the skinny thing on there now.
 
Copy: How do I insert images into this forum? Do I have to upload it to imageshack first or can I post directly into this message (which is the ideal). Thanks!

Cycle: All the articles I've read show the TRUE to be the best, hence I bought it, it was $50 and all others cost the same (here in Canada).

What cooler are you using right now? Your specs only state the vcore, I'd like the other voltages you used as well (so I can replicate hopefully).

I haven't been totally sold on lapping (personally), it seems to risk to destroy my warranties and possibly physically damange things.Isn't it a pain to take out our your board and do all of this? I dunno, just not sold on that concept (from what I've read) so far. :)
 
dignatec said:
Idling in the 40's is a bit high isn't it? But that's a great OC, I'll do more testing today and see what happens. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks.

Yeah, If I drop it back down to 3.2 Ghz, I can get low 30's, high 20's on a good day pretty easily. Also, I just realized those temps were due to me turning all my fans on low on my fan controller lol :D Now they're more like high 30's to mid 30's. In any case, it makes no different to me whether I run in low 30's idle or high 30's idle, but the performance I can somewhat tell from 3.2 to 3.5 Ghz, and I'll definitely take it!

I did hit a wall on my old ip35 pro though at 3.4 at no matter what vCore.. Kinda bummed me out. I can hit 3.6 with this DFI board I think.. im just waiting for my 9800gx2 to get in so I can max out my system since there's no point trying to get a max OC on my CPU without taking into account the heat the gx2 is going to give out.

Good luck!
 
Idling in the 40's is no big deal.
Anything over 45C idle is pushing it, 50C idle is too much.
 
I'm getting high 28-38 idle temps without C1E enabled. I plan to enable it and make sure my system stays stable so my vcore will drop at idle and bring my idle temps down with it. I have my heatsink and CPU lapped. This gave me about an ~8C drop from my initial temps. My system is very very quiet and runs 24/7. I am using the latest Noctua Heatsink with dual push/pull Noctua P12 fans ~1100rpm. Fan speeds never change and either does the noise. They are very quiet at this speed. Day to day use including xvid conversions I have never seen it hit the 60s.. only after hours and hours of stressing.

dignatec, I use photobucket to put my images on here.
 
Copy: Sounds like your system @3.4 is rock solid, good to hear. I'll keep playing with mine. Given that I'm around 55C (max) @3.2, hopefully I can go to 3.4 without the need of getting into lapping. That's a bit beyond me to do (time constraints as well).

Thats great that you're under 60 as well, looks like you built it well. I'm using the true with a Scythe sflex (1600rpm), it's pretty quiet as well, not whisper, but better tahn my old p4 so I'm happy with that.

I'll check out photobucket tonight and upload my pics. I think c1e is disabled as well, but I forget right now (I just followed the guide on tomshardware for what to disable/enable, the manual doesn't explain these things very well).

Let's see if lady luck is on my side tonight. :)
 
dignatec said:
Copy: Sounds like your system @3.4 is rock solid, good to hear. I'll keep playing with mine. Given that I'm around 55C (max) @3.2, hopefully I can go to 3.4 without the need of getting into lapping. That's a bit beyond me to do (time constraints as well).

Thats great that you're under 60 as well, looks like you built it well. I'm using the true with a Scythe sflex (1600rpm), it's pretty quiet as well, not whisper, but better tahn my old p4 so I'm happy with that.

I'll check out photobucket tonight and upload my pics. I think c1e is disabled as well, but I forget right now (I just followed the guide on tomshardware for what to disable/enable, the manual doesn't explain these things very well).

Let's see if lady luck is on my side tonight. :)
Click to expand...

I have a lapped TRUE on my gaming machine with the same fan. It is the best setup I have ran so far for cooling. I run the fan ~800rpm and it is temp controlled through my uguru software. I think you can hit 3.4ghz with yours.
 
I'm idling at 3.6GHz with temps around 33C, under load using OCCT I never broke 55C. Love me a TRUE 120 and being in the basement. We'll see what happens this august when I move back upstairs...=P
 
Yeah thats what I'm thinking (but was hoping for 3.6 lol, just a bit jealous). Sounds good, let me try upping the fsb/nb tonight and see if that helps. Otherwise I'll post bios pics (gonna need my digi cam for that one!).
 
Caw: ha, being in a basement would definately bias your temps downwards! Here's a fun experiement for ya. Take a room fan, those small desk ones, open your case and have it blow right on it on max, watch your temps go down like crazy! Pretty funny what a $15 fan can do for cooling. It's not practical, but it works.
 
Update: I was able to get into windows with 450x8, but I only saw two cores!! Did I reach my motherboard limit? Just for testing sake I used vcore of 1.5 and nb volt of 1.55. I might have to try lower, again shooting for the stars here :)
 
dignatec said:
Update: I was able to get into windows with 450x8, but I only saw two cores!! Did I reach my motherboard limit? Just for testing sake I used vcore of 1.5 and nb volt of 1.55. I might have to try lower, again shooting for the stars here :)
Click to expand...

You try 8x425? The two core thing is weird. Here is a snap shot of mine at idle with an ambient of 76F in the house. I enabled C1E and it helped a bit.

idletemp76Fambient.jpg
 
more likely cpu limit. i get that when overclock is unstable.

dignatec said:
Update: I was able to get into windows with 450x8, but I only saw two cores!! Did I reach my motherboard limit? Just for testing sake I used vcore of 1.5 and nb volt of 1.55. I might have to try lower, again shooting for the stars here :)
Click to expand...
 
Meh, for prime95 stable @3.6, i need at least 1.47v bios voltage for my q6600. Even then, temps are still high for me... 66-71c. I have a TRUE and scythe s-flex 1600 fan, and both my q6600 and true are lapped, using as5. >.> Horrible temps, and its not even that hot right now in my room.

But at 3.2, i never get passed 52c.

Pretty dissappointing, but it works...

ps, do you guys also up your nb voltage/fsb volts/ or pci-e volts?
 
Copyright said:
You try 8x425? The two core thing is weird. Here is a snap shot of mine at idle with an ambient of 76F in the house. I enabled C1E and it helped a bit.

idletemp76Fambient.jpg
Click to expand...

Copy: I didn't try 8x425 yet, but will give that a shot. This is time consuming eh? What's the deal with c1e some say enable, some say disable...?

Here are my screenshots as promised:

3.2 after 10 hrs prime95

32OCafterprime14hrs.jpg


3.3 only 20 mins of testing (was experimenting with 3.4 more so last night, will test 3.3 more later)

33OCafterprime20mins.jpg


demiurge3141 said:
more likely cpu limit. i get that when overclock is unstable.
Click to expand...

Ah I see, i figured i reach some limitation somewhere.

FinalAura said:
Meh, for prime95 stable @3.6, i need at least 1.47v bios voltage for my q6600. Even then, temps are still high for me... 66-71c. I have a TRUE and scythe s-flex 1600 fan, and both my q6600 and true are lapped, using as5. >.> Horrible temps, and its not even that hot right now in my room.

But at 3.2, i never get passed 52c.

Pretty dissappointing, but it works...

ps, do you guys also up your nb voltage/fsb volts/ or pci-e volts?
Click to expand...

Aura: those temps seem high at 3.6. I have a similar system as yours but not lapped, no as5.

Here's a quick summary what I found so far Using cpu-z / h-w monitor /coretemp

@3.2 (355x9)--- vcore on auto (bios 1.43 , vdroop 1.34) - temps b/w 49-55 for the 4 cores - prime95 stable 10 hrs.

@3.3 (367x9) - vcore (bios 1.45, vdroop 1.36), temps b/w 50-58 -prime95 20 mins (will do more later)

@3.4 (378x9) - vcore (bios 1.5, vdroop 1.41), , nb 1.55 temps b/w 51-59, prime95 FAILS after 15 mins.

@3.6 (450x8) - vcore (bios 1.5, vdroop ?), nb 1.55, windows only recognized two cores, did not test further.

So here's something strange. When I started OCing to 3.3 onwards, ASUS PC Probe II (latest version) had it's alarm go off saying my MB was 178 C !!! Kinda panicked but put my hand into my case and it was no where near that hot. I think there's something wrong with the sensor/software, anyone know what's up with this? I don't believe it was anywhere near that high, so I ignored it.

As for 3.4, I used max voltages and I can't seem to get it stable, 3.6 seems out of the question as windows wouldn't recognize 2 of my cores. Also there is quite a bit of vdroop, I might just try setting vcore at vdrrop levels in bios and see what happens. What's more important towards chip stability/damage, bios vcore or OS vcore (from cpu-z/h-w monitor)

Suggestions?

Copy mentioned enable c1e.

Anyone else? If someone has the p5k premium (with the latest bios 0504) would you mind sending me your settings so I can compare? PM me. :)
 
I dont use C1E when im trying to find my max OC. I turn off pretty much anything that can adjust the speed or voltage. I just turned C1E on to see if it remains stable. It brings my Vcore down to 1.26 which is how I got my idle temps. Without C1E my idle vcore I think is about 1.38V. I will have to double check that tho. 3.2 still isnt a bad OC. Keep playing with it and let us know what your memory is running at also.
 
Hey,
Yeah I have c1e disabled currently as well. My memory is running 1:1 with 5-5-5-15 timings, basically underclocked for now.

I'm happy with 3.2, I'm just tweaking at this point to see what my max OC is so I can post on the database here :p Most likely given that the temps/voltages are pretty good @3.2, that will be my 24/7 system.

Again, what matters more the bios vcore or the vcore in windows?

I might create a new thread on this to get more exposure.... :)
 
What do you mean "matters more"?
If someone asks for your cpu vcore, always tell them your bios setting. Only use the CPUZ vcore when you specify "This is what CPUZ shows".
 
I simply meant what voltage is actually going to the CPU? Is it the bios voltage or the voltage displayed in windows (by cpu-z). Just wanted clarification (with reference to my previous post), that's all.

I posted both vcores in my earlier post.
 
dignatec said:
I simply meant what voltage is actually going to the CPU? Is it the bios voltage or the voltage displayed in windows (by cpu-z). Just wanted clarification (with reference to my previous post), that's all.

I posted both vcores in my earlier post.
Click to expand...
Well bios isn't accurate because the vcore is never totally constant (Vdroop etc).
CPUZ isn't accurate because it's software monitoring. Those are never 100%.

The best way to get an accurate reading is with a meter of some kind. But I don't know anything about those...

Why do you need such an accurate reading anyway?
 
Ive been using my software that comes with the board. Its probably not the most accurate but what is. I turn C1E off to get a better idea of my vcore @ idle. I know under load it droops to about 1.36V.

Dignatec, do you have screen shots of the memory page you can show me? With it at 8x425 what is the memory speed in CPU-Z?
 
I don't really, I was just curious. I'd like to minimize the vcore going to the chip for my OC so I wanted to know which vcore was more relevant.

From your specs, you don't OC for daily use at all? how did you hit 9x400? Vcore of 1.36 (bios) and any other voltage changes?
 
dignatec said:
From your specs, you don't OC for daily use at all? how did you hit 9x400? Vcore of 1.36 (bios) and any other voltage changes?
Click to expand...
No I don't run any OC for daily use, since I don't see much performance increase. I don't need that much speed.
:p

For 9x400 I ran my mem at 5-5-5-18 with 1.8v.
Only other changes were vdroop disabled. I probably could have tweaked my NB a bit, though.
 
I saw a major performance increase in Crysis from 2.4 to 3.2. It went from unplayable under very high (low 20s fps) to very playable avg 31 fps! Everything else stayed constant.

Maybe you're not playing crysis or your vid card is much better than my 8800gt.
 
Nope not playing Crysis.
Already played through it months ago. The only game I've played since January is Guitar Hero 3.
:(

Might bump up my OC when I play Assassin's Creed or Vegas 2 PC.
Already have the OC settings memorized so I can boot into bios and switch to 3.6 GHZ pretty easily.
:D
 
Every setup ive ever had I have overclocked and ran it for daily use since my Celeron 300A ~450mhz. I've never had a chip die on me and I have never seen one die from overclocking. I know its very possible but you understand the limits of your chips voltage and temps you can run an OC daily with no issues for years.

Dignatec... @ 8x400 is your memory @ 800mhz? CPU-Z would say 400mhz. I'm curious. 5-5-5-18 will loosen the timings but you will probably have to move your memory devider around to stay within its limitations. 3.2ghz might just be it for your chip but see if you can get that @ 8x400.
 
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