overclocking p4c800?

hi,
i have just got my new pc parts and i would like to overclock them but i am abit of a noob so could some point me in the right direction and tell if there are any p4 guides or something like that which could help me out?

i have:
p4 2.8c
p4c800
ocz gold 3700
etc...

thanks for your help

Use the bios, set by percentage also use the turbo setting

No, don't use the percentage. When overclocking it is important to know exactly what speed everything is set at. The auto percentages leave you guessing.

- disable legacy USB support
- disable spread spectrum
- set PCI/AGP frequency to 33/66
- set memory timings to 3-4-4-8 or 2.5-4-4-8 (some memory doesn't like CAS3)

- Set the memory to DDR320 (5:4 ratio).
- Set the FSB to 240. This is approximately the average overclocked speed of your chip.
- Boot and run Prime95 for at least 15 minutes. If it passes, raise the FSB. If it fails, lower the FSB.
- If you exceed 291 FSB , change the memory speed to DDR266 (3:2 ratio).

- Play around with memory and CPU voltages to the point where you can run Prime95 with no errors for 24 hours. Bring your memory latencies down to the point that things are as fast as possible without compromising stability. Use memtest86 to check for memory errors (5 passes at any given speed, timings, and voltage should be enough).

Remember:
memtest will just check your memory
Prime will check your memory and CPU
3DMark will check your memory, CPU, and video card

Good luck.

Hey, thanks a lot for this. Got my 2.6C to 3.2Ghz. 246 FSB stable, might go higher or might stay here. This was my intended OC anyway.

Thanks,
NORE

thanks for that
it really helped me out as i only knew a bit but now i know

thanks again

1 other thing i have ocz gold 3700 and i have changed it to 2-3-3-7 i have ran memtest and it passed should i leave it at that or should i change it to what you sed?

vcore and vdimm, what should i not go passed?
i know 1.75vcore but i am using air cooling so what should i stick to?
and vdimm what is the max?

thanks

If you are using air cooling DON'T go above 1.7 Actual Vcore. Bump your vdimm to 2.85. Your memory will only get warm to touch when stressed. If your memory passed at 2-3-3-7 tried going down to 2-2-2-6 and see if its stable. Keep us posted

well i got my p4 [email protected] with vcore 1.575 and the timings are @ 2-3-3-6

i dont know what this is like, is it any good?
(sorry for the noob questions)

thanks

*edit- i had to raise the vcore to 1.6, i think that might of done it*

what is better?
1:1, 3:2, 5:4?

also i have my timings at 2-3-3-7 if i wanted to change them do i change each 1 at a time them check it is fine or do i change the whole lot together?

First of all, N.O.R.E., good job. Glad to be of help.

Memory timings: my numbers are as high as you can get. Lower is better (more memory bandwidth). I suggested the higher numbers to reduce the possibility that the memory would be a limiting factor before the CPU would. You should lower them as much as possible without getting Prime and memtest errors. Change them all together if you think it will work. Change them one at a time if you think it will cause errors. You need to be able to figure out what chage caused an error and what change helps performance.

Vcore: 1.7 is the "safe" upper limit for your chip, and it may not be that safe. Nothing over stock voltage is 100% "safe", but 1.6 should never give you a problem. Most C chips will not really go any higher with voltage over 1.6, anyway.

Vdimm: OCZ 3700 Gold loves Vdimm. Give it all you can. 2.85V is definitley OK, and may be recommended (I'm not familiar with that memory).

Memory ratios (1:1, 5:4, 3:2): The best one is the one that allows your memory to run as fast as possible without limiting your CPU speed. This ratio is the ratio of your FSB speed (not quad-pumped) to your memory speed (not mutiplied by 2 for DDR). For example, I have my FSB at 255 with the DDR320 setting (5:4). This runs my memory at 204 MHz, or DDR408. Your memory is rated to DDR466, or a FSB of 233, so you can definitely run 1:1 up to 233. There are many reports of your memory hitting DDR500, or a FSB of 250, with some tweaking and some extra voltage; go do some researh on it and see how far you can push it.

With your chip, 250 FSB is a pretty high speed, and your chip may not go that far, although you have said it has reached that speed - good job. Does it pass Prime? If so, you have a pretty good chip. If the chip can go past 233, and the memory can't, however, you will need to change to the 5:4 or the 3:2 ratio to see how far the chip can go. It is then up to you to determine the oprimal blend of memory speed and CPU speed. Usually it is best to go for pure CPU speed, but there are instances when more memory bandwidth could be better.

thank you

werd that post was very helpful

Jkeefe pretty much nailed it all. Only thing i would reiterate is "most" OC'ers Prefer highest FSB possible from the cpu and then matching the memory to keep it there. FSB is your "pipeline" for data transfer. The higher the FSB(pipeline) the more data you can move. It just tkaes time, trial/error to find what is the right settings for your setup. Everyone's is different. Happy OCing, and keep us posted on your results.

just wondering what temps i should be look not to reach with my cpu?
it is air cooled so what temp is the limit?

thanks

In general, 50-55 is considered a max load limit. However, temperature sensors in motherboards are very innacurate.

The Pentium 4 has built-in thermal protection - it underclocks itself if it gets too hot. Also, most CPUs will error out and/or become unstable if they get too hot well before they become damaged.

This is why you should use Prime95 to check your overclock - if you are getting errors you need to fix it. Otherwise, you should be fine.

So, what I tell everyone is: If you're stable, your temps are fine.

Oh my memory woes.

2.4 P4
Corsair PC3700 (DDR466, should run at 233)

:-(

My proc runs just fine, everything stable at FSB = 270 (not stable at 280) as long as the memory is at 3/2 = 180. YUCK

Memory will NOT do 270*4/5 = 216, even though its rated speed should go there. I COULD get to about 240*4/5 192, mem seems to go unstable just under 200.

1) I have maxed out the ram voltages
2) I AM RUNNING FOUR sticks of 512mb, for a system total of 2 gig ram.

SO, is my ram bad, or am I using too many slots? Should I try to trouble shoot the ram, plug them in in just groups of 2 to try to identify a poor chip?

Anyone filled all 4 slots on this mobo? Any other tricks I should try? (yes, this memory actually seems to go higher with 2.5 than 3 cas ......)

To test your memory, you should run memtest86. This uses your memory only to as much an extent as possible (the CPU is still used because of its cache, but the effect is minimized).

Run memtest with all 4 sticks at various timings and voltages. Run it with different numbers of sticks and in different slots. Run it in dual channel and single channel. Run it at DDR466 at 1:1 (233 FSB) and at 5:4 (291 FSB) if possible.

Yes, this will take a while, but hopefully you can find your problem. The most likely issue is that one stick is bad and the other three are fine. Another possibility is that the stick will work at high latencies but not at lower latencies. Post in the Corsair help forum over at the Corsair site for an RMA if things aren't working at their advertised timings and speed. If you document your problems, you will receive an RMA number very quickly. RAMGuy will help you out (that's the handle of the online tech support person at Corsair - he can be very helpful).

hi,
when i try to get my timings down my pc turns off the monitor but the pc will start up?
i have my ocz gold 3700 at 2-2-3-6 but once i have lowered the 3 and restarted the pc troble happens. the pc will carry on loading windows but it does not turn on the monitor(it does not matter how many times i restart the pc) so the only way to get the monitor back on is to pull the power plug out for about 10secs when plug it back in, then the pc says "press f1 to go to bios or f2 to set to default settings"

does this mean i can not lower my timings any more?
i have my vdimm at 2.85

help

i have this problem
when i was trying to get my timmings lower(the 3) when i restarted my pc it sed "bad bios check" insert book up disk or cd. well for some reason i restarted my pc (dont ask why) and i had a blank screen then it could not come on so i had to keep on restarting the pc until i had a screen but there was no bad bios screen and it just loaded windows fine?

is my pc ok now or should i try to reinstall teh bios again?