SUBSIM Radio Room Forums - View Single Post - overclocking question too shy to ask elsewhere

Zantham · 09-13-07, 09:42 PM

Well, overclocking involves a fair amount of know-how overall. You will not really find step-by-step guides on how to overclock your system.

First: overclocking any component of your system can UNRECOVERABLY physically damage your hardware, and will most likely VOID your warranty.

If that doesn't matter to you, I can give you several tips to get you started.
__________________________________________________ __________________

Currently, I have an Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 that runs normally at 2.66GHz. It currently runs at 3.60GHz, at 1.6 volts. I also have an aftermarket CPU cooler, tho not quite as good as yours. My case is VERY optimised for airflow however.
I run on an Asus P5N32-E SLI motherboard, which is similar to yours, and runs on a 680i chipset.
My video card is a BFG 8800GTX that is factory overclocked (almost to 8800Ultra speeds) and I have chosen not to overclock my GPU.
My RAM is OCZ DDR2-800, and I also chose to run it at stock speeds, tho I have overclocked it to DDR2-950 speeds successfully. Its not the best RAM I've overclocked with.

You will need some utilities before you begin overclocking.

1) Memtest, possibly the best memory testing utility out there.
http://www.memtest.org/

2) Core Temp, widely regarded as the most accurate CPU temp program available.
http://www.overclock.net/attachments...retemp.095.zip

3) Orthos, very intense CPU and RAM stress testing in Windows, multithreaded.
http://sp2004.fre3.com/beta/orthos_exe_20060420.cab

4) 3DMark 2006, which will generally stress your entire system while also benchmarking it and allowing you to compare scores (mine got 12,500)
http://www.futuremark.com/download/3dmark06

I prefer to overclock straight from the BIOS, rather than using nTune to overclock.
You can use nTune (an nVidia utility) to overclock your system as well. You will use this if you wish to overclock your video card.

I generally start with the CPU, then do RAM, then video card.

For the CPU, you need to understand a little about the Front Side Bus (FSB). My e6700 and your e6600 both run on the same FSB, that speed being 1066MHz. Now technically thats not your 'real' FSB tho. The Core 2 Duo's are 'quad-pumped' to 1066, but really run at 266MHz. 266 X 4 = 1066. Your CPU runs at a multiple of this setting. Some bios you will change the 266MHz, others you change the 1066. Mine works on the 1066MHz setting. The math, either way, is quite simple.

Lets take your CPU for example, the e6600. Now it runs at 2.4GHz, which is 2400MHz. That means it runs on a multiple of 9 (2400 / 266 = 9). Its actually 9.022556..... but thats dealing with fractions and we don't have to worry about this. You will not be able to change this number higher (only the Core 2 Extreme is unlocked). Hence, to speed up your CPU, you must raise the FSB. Now I mentioned before that my CPU is an e6700. This means mine runs at the same 266MHz, but because my CPU runs at a multiple of 10, it turns out its a 2.66GHz CPU.

Now i have mentioned my CPU is overclocked to 3.6GHz, and here is how the math works. To overclock it, i had to raise my FSB speeds up over 266. Now on my Asus board it doesnt allow you to change the 266 setting, but I can change the quad-pumped FSB (QDR). Whichever yours uses has the exact same result. To get mine to 3600MHz, I had to raise my FSB to 360MHz from 266. Actually I set my 1066 QDR to 1440.

To simplify:
266FSB X 10 (CPU Multiplier) = 2660MHz (actual speed of CPU)
266FSB X 4 (Quad pump to CPU) = 1066QDR.

Raise the FSB:

360FSB X 10 = 3600MHz
360 X 4 = 1440MHZ (QDR)

And that is the heart of the CPU overclock.

09-13-07, 09:42 PM	#2
Zantham 中国水兵 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Canada Posts: 283 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 1	Well, overclocking involves a fair amount of know-how overall. You will not really find step-by-step guides on how to overclock your system. First: overclocking any component of your system can UNRECOVERABLY physically damage your hardware, and will most likely VOID your warranty. If that doesn't matter to you, I can give you several tips to get you started. __________________________________________________ __________________ Currently, I have an Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 that runs normally at 2.66GHz. It currently runs at 3.60GHz, at 1.6 volts. I also have an aftermarket CPU cooler, tho not quite as good as yours. My case is VERY optimised for airflow however. I run on an Asus P5N32-E SLI motherboard, which is similar to yours, and runs on a 680i chipset. My video card is a BFG 8800GTX that is factory overclocked (almost to 8800Ultra speeds) and I have chosen not to overclock my GPU. My RAM is OCZ DDR2-800, and I also chose to run it at stock speeds, tho I have overclocked it to DDR2-950 speeds successfully. Its not the best RAM I've overclocked with. You will need some utilities before you begin overclocking. 1) Memtest, possibly the best memory testing utility out there. http://www.memtest.org/ 2) Core Temp, widely regarded as the most accurate CPU temp program available. http://www.overclock.net/attachments...retemp.095.zip 3) Orthos, very intense CPU and RAM stress testing in Windows, multithreaded. http://sp2004.fre3.com/beta/orthos_exe_20060420.cab 4) 3DMark 2006, which will generally stress your entire system while also benchmarking it and allowing you to compare scores (mine got 12,500) http://www.futuremark.com/download/3dmark06 I prefer to overclock straight from the BIOS, rather than using nTune to overclock. You can use nTune (an nVidia utility) to overclock your system as well. You will use this if you wish to overclock your video card. I generally start with the CPU, then do RAM, then video card. For the CPU, you need to understand a little about the Front Side Bus (FSB). My e6700 and your e6600 both run on the same FSB, that speed being 1066MHz. Now technically thats not your 'real' FSB tho. The Core 2 Duo's are 'quad-pumped' to 1066, but really run at 266MHz. 266 X 4 = 1066. Your CPU runs at a multiple of this setting. Some bios you will change the 266MHz, others you change the 1066. Mine works on the 1066MHz setting. The math, either way, is quite simple. Lets take your CPU for example, the e6600. Now it runs at 2.4GHz, which is 2400MHz. That means it runs on a multiple of 9 (2400 / 266 = 9). Its actually 9.022556..... but thats dealing with fractions and we don't have to worry about this. You will not be able to change this number higher (only the Core 2 Extreme is unlocked). Hence, to speed up your CPU, you must raise the FSB. Now I mentioned before that my CPU is an e6700. This means mine runs at the same 266MHz, but because my CPU runs at a multiple of 10, it turns out its a 2.66GHz CPU. Now i have mentioned my CPU is overclocked to 3.6GHz, and here is how the math works. To overclock it, i had to raise my FSB speeds up over 266. Now on my Asus board it doesnt allow you to change the 266 setting, but I can change the quad-pumped FSB (QDR). Whichever yours uses has the exact same result. To get mine to 3600MHz, I had to raise my FSB to 360MHz from 266. Actually I set my 1066 QDR to 1440. To simplify: 266FSB X 10 (CPU Multiplier) = 2660MHz (actual speed of CPU) 266FSB X 4 (Quad pump to CPU) = 1066QDR. Raise the FSB: 360FSB X 10 = 3600MHz 360 X 4 = 1440MHZ (QDR) And that is the heart of the CPU overclock.