cont'd
One thing to understand about the CPU overclock is that your results will vary. I've overclocked a few e6600's now, and I can generally get 3.2GHz out of them stable without a lot of work.
And here is where the work starts:
Start small. Don't jump from 2.4GHz to 3.2GHz just because someone said it would work. Overclocking takes time, and to get stable, takes lots of time.
Generally, you have to go into your BIOS, and set it somewhere to allow Manual Settings. This will open up a lot more menus. You are interested in the CPU speed adjustments for now. Find where it allows you to adjust your FSB (or QDR as the case may be). I will assume yours works off the actual 266FSB.
REMEMBER!!! Setting this too high can cause your system NOT TO BOOT. Generally you can simply clear the CMOS if this happens, and try again. but it CAN cause PERMANENT damage, to your motherboard and/or your CPU. It can also cause unrecoverable data loss on your hard drives. BACK UP YOUR DATA.
First, run Memtest. We need to establish that your system is stable at the stock settings before we can overclock. Ideally you will run it overnight, and come back in the morning to no errors.
Second, Boot to XP, and run Core Temp. You may want to make this autostart with windows for now. Note your CPU temperatures. They will generally be around 30 Celcius at idle, and not uncommon to be 25C. It can take up to 30 mins for your temps to be accurate, but a quick reading is all we need here.
Third, run Orthos. Start with the Blend test first. Make sure you can see your core Temp window. As you run Orthos watch your temperature climb rapidly. It should NOT go to 60C at this point, maybe high 40's low 50's. This test is also generally run overnight, with a close eye kept on temps for the first 30 mins.
After you run Orthos for a min 30 mins (longer is recommended), you can stop it and select the Small FFTs test. This test will max out your CPU temp. If your computer stays stable with this test running...you know you have a good CPU. Again as you run it watch your temps rise. under no circumstances should your CPU go past 70 Celcius!!!! At 70C you are still safe from overheating (most can take 80C), but you will become unstable from the heat. If it hits 70....71....STOP THE TEST. You should not get close to 70C on a stock clocked CPU.
Finally, install 3DMark 2006 and reboot. We want to reboot before running 3D Mark because we've been a bit hard on your system and rebooting will reset Windows. After your system has rebooted completely 9hard drive activity stopped) run 3DMark and enjoy the movie. You may want to write your score so you can see the improvements as you overclock. I generally run it 3 times, rebooting between each time, to get a better average.
IF your system had no errors during testing, lockups, or any other problems, you are ready to overclock!
First try a small overclock. Let's see if we can get the CPU to run at 2.66GHz. In the old days of P4's that would be a large overclock, but with the Core 2 Dou's...its a small jump.
The math: 2666MHz / 9 = 296MHz. This is what we need to change the FSB to.
You can do this, save your settings, and reboot. My normal procedure is:
Run memtest. It is normal practice to let it run overnight. You don't have to do this yet. Let it go for a couple loops, this can still take a while.
Boot XP, run Core Temp at idle CPU, note your temps. They may be slightly higher than before from your over clock.
Run Orthos Blend. Now you have to start watching your temps more. Remember, 70C you want to cut it off. 30 mins again is a good start. If your temps were good, and no errors, run Small FFTs test for 30 mins or more, and again, watch your temps. If no errors, you've done well, and successfully overclocked your CPU.
You will now probly want to reboot and try a higher overclock. Just keep repeating the steps, each time raising the FSB a little more. Do all the tests to check temps and stability. Eventually, you will have a problem....
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