HELP me push my DURON 850 ...it needs a kick in the ass

[Kev]

i have a Duron 850 and an Abit KT7E struggling at 1045Mhz (7.5 x 140). The vcore is at 1.85v, the i/o is at 1.6v and my ram is crucial cas 2 .......ive seen Duron 650s reach 1050+ and even seen one at 1102 ...why can't my Duron 850 reach 1102 or even higher? ...ive tried low FSBs, high multipliers and vice versa, but will not boot into windows past 1060+ (unstable past 1050) ......are there ANY ideas on how i can make this reach 1.1Ghz ....i really want it to ...if a duron 650 can reach 1.1, then in theory, a duron 850 should reach 1.3Ghz ...why isnt the theory working!! agh!

[UnseenMenace]

Kev (Jul 15, 2001 04:57 p.m.):
i have a Duron 850 and an Abit KT7E struggling at 1045Mhz (7.5 x 140). The vcore is at 1.85v, the i/o is at 1.6v and my ram is crucial cas 2 .......ive seen Duron 650s reach 1050+ and even seen one at 1102 ...why can't my Duron 850 reach 1102 or even higher? ...ive tried low FSBs, high multipliers and vice versa, but will not boot into windows past 1060+ (unstable past 1050) ......are there ANY ideas on how i can make this reach 1.1Ghz ....i really want it to ...if a duron 650 can reach 1.1, then in theory, a duron 850 should reach 1.3Ghz ...why isnt the theory working!! agh!

Its a fact that not all CPU's are created equal and the 600 Durons are a really good example of this. Most Durons I have seen running over 1050 usually have a voltage increase and run on at least 2.0v.
The Duron 800 and 850 appear to be a less willing CPU and as such 1045 may very well be your limit without a voltage modofication or extreme cooling.
I personally do not think a Duron 850 will ever hit 1300 mhz without such extremes that the price will not warrent doing it.

[Kev]

i see.... .... so id literally have to bump up the voltage to 2.0v or more to achieve around 1.1Ghz .....do you or anyone know of a voltage mod for the kt7e ...or perhaps the kt7a cos the two boards are very similar ......and ideas...anyone?

[Paul -The Mad Hatter]

athlonoc (http://www.athlonoc.com) has an article that covers many vmods on diff. boards. Its called "the ultimate voltage mod article" sorry I coudn"t give you the direct link (yes i'm a bit lazy)

[Kev]

cheers m8, but that url doesnt work.....dont exist!

[UnseenMenace]

http://tweakhardware.com has the voltage mod for the Abit KT7A so taking a look at that might help you

[Kev]

so is this defnintely gonna give me a performance/mhz increase?, cos it looks like hard work

[rugby]

Will it definitely give you an increase? No. If your chip is maxed out there's no amount of voltage you could give it to make it run faster. Also, with voltage mods you need to start worrying about heat and destructive forces on your cpu. My Duron 650 ran great at 1100mhz @ 2.1v but then one day just decided to burn up. I even had watercooling on my rig so go figure. Just be careful and be thankful you're not experimenting with a very expensive cpu.

[oc jason]

it dont work that way, that is a 600 hits 900 a 900 will hit 1200, cuase sometimes a 900 is just an overclocked 600 so to say-so its already overclocked 300mhz but if you go to run it to 1200 thats another 300mhz which IS asking ALOT-that why some of the lower chips have a total overclok of higher than some of hte faster chips- thats whe some 1gig 200FSB beat the 1.33 266 FSB-

[Bender]

Hey Kev I am the one with the fast duron you speak of, now its at 1104 since I got a new motherboard and can get higher FSB speeds. what kind of cooling do you have? Almost all durons whatever speed they are must have a voltage of 2.00+ in order to get above 1050 even with water cooling. As UnseenMenace said there is a voltage article for the KT7A. I think the same mod will work with the KT7E but check to make sure. What is the difference between the A and E version anyway? If the mod will not work I can help you figure out how it can be done. I think all the KT7 motherboards have the same voltage regulator IC so it wouldn't be to tough to figure out.

[Kev]

yep, the E and the A kt7's are VERY similar, so i think the mod for the kt7a will work on my board.... i just need to get hold of some resistors now...ive been looking at how to do the voltage mod. you people in the US have Radioshack, however, i live in the Uk, and live in a tiny little town which i doubt any shop will be able to spell 'resistor', let alone sell any. I will have to hunt on the ol' interweb and find a place that sells resistors.......oh, and i need to buy a soldering iron....d'oh! .......will the cost of the soldering iron actually be worth the Mhz increase? ....hmmm...now theres a thought ..... :/ ... ......will the voltage mod DEFINITELY give me an increase, cos i dont wanna risk damage to my board for no gain in speed.........

cheers for ya help.

[UnseenMenace]

Kev (Jul 16, 2001 12:32 p.m.):
will the voltage mod DEFINITELY give me an increase, cos i dont wanna risk damage to my board for no gain in speed.........

The voltage mod will NOT definitely give you any increase it all depends upon how willing your CPU is. The voltage mod CAN damage your motherboard if done incorrectly. The voltage increase also increases the demands placed on the CPU and CAN reduce its life expectancy.

[dozier768]

hmm my 900 hit 1.103 ghz @105x105 @ 1.85v i had to get some cas2 150 you might try changing your caslatency to 3 and running a fsb of 110 or less and getting there with the multiplier if you really want it. the durons really dont like high bus speeds. also set the voltage via the L7 bridges "connect em all to get 1.85v" this is what got me to 1103 and mine will run at 1124 but it isnt real stable i cant get any more out of the multiplier than 10.5

[Kev]

why will joining the bridges to make 1.85 help whereas i can just have at 1.85 in the bios ...?

[UnseenMenace]

Kev (Jul 16, 2001 03:10 p.m.):
why will joining the bridges to make 1.85 help whereas i can just have at 1.85 in the bios ...?

It will not make the slightest bit of difference to you apart from making the CPU default as 1.85 v rather than its standard voltage, keep things as they are if you can select your voltage in the bios

[UnseenMenace]

dozier768 (Jul 16, 2001 02:34 p.m.):
hmm my 900 hit 1.103 ghz @105x105 @ 1.85v i had to get some cas2 150 you might try changing your caslatency to 3 and running a fsb of 110 or less and getting there with the multiplier if you really want it. the durons really dont like high bus speeds. also set the voltage via the L7 bridges "connect em all to get 1.85v" this is what got me to 1103 and mine will run at 1124 but it isnt real stable i cant get any more out of the multiplier than 10.5

The Duron in general (although there are a few odd exceptions) generaly do around a 200 mhz overclock and where as the 900 Duron will usually do 1100 mhz most have trouble doing 1150 mhz. When you consider the user who started this post has a 850 Duron he should realisticly expect around 1050 mhz without expecting to do extensive modifications to increase the voltage such as those described here.
I dont see how you had to get cas2 150 to obtain 1103mhz as you are not limited by your FSB and suggest that you would be able to obtain those speeds with standard PC133 and quite possibly PC100.
My Air cooled Duron 800 has no trouble running on a fast FSB and runs all day long on 140 mhz FSB and is stable at 147 mhz FSB providing that I remove my soundblaster, it is also worth pointing out that all Duron owners in this post run a FSB higher than 133 mhz apart from yourself which suggests the opposite from what you mention, that the Duron is quite happy with a high FSB
------------------------------------------------
Duron 800 @ 1050 with Global Win FOP-32 (140 x 7.5)
CPU Temp loaded @ 41 c and system @ 25 c
Abit KT7A-Raid
512 mb (PC133 Crucial Stuff CAS 2)
Hard Drive Cooler
Elsa Eraser X2 Gforce with Blue Orb modified to display as a Quadro (http://www.tweakhardware.com/guide/quadro/) and overclocked
Sound Blaster Live Value
Full Tower with 5 (120 mm) case fans with seperate PSU

[eobard]

dozier768 (Jul 16, 2001 02:34 p.m.):
also set the voltage via the L7 bridges "connect em all to get 1.85v" this is what got me to 1103 and mine will run at 1124 but it isnt real stable i cant get any more out of the multiplier than 10.5


Is there a chart somewhere that lists the different voltages for the L7 bridges? I'm gonna need to know soon for myself and my ASUS A7V-E doesn't have a way to set the voltage. (or I've missed something obvious)

[theflyingrat]

If I'm not mistaken, don't most of the A7V variants all have voltage control through the jumpers on the motherboard? I know my A7V did, and the A7V-E is just an updated version of the old one. If they changed it, I'd like to know. What would be the point of having a board like the A7V-E with no voltage controls?

[Kev]

well if you look at my stats below, you can see i have successfully got my Duron to run with a 147Mhz FSB multiplied by 7 ....i can vary these by lowering the fsb and raising the multiplier...no matter what combination, my Duron doesnt like 1050+ , so maybe a voltage increase IS required. UnseenMenace, you seem to know quite a bit about Durons and their limits. I see that you have reached 1050 with your Duron ...i assume thats at 1.85v. My ram ISN'T struggling at 147Mhz @ cas 2 @ turbo @ 4-way interleave, nor is my KT7E struggling at 147FSB (although its only a 100fsb chipset! :) ). So its obvious the limiting factor is my vcore voltage....its essential to find out what the limiting factor is, and now i think ive reached my peak for FSB (the main thing), and maybe if i increase the voltage from 1.85 to 2.0+, i may be able to have the multiplier at 7.5 to give 1102.5Mhz, or even have the multiplier at 8 to give 1176Mhz, however 1150 is my goal, so a small drop in fsb will sort that out ( 144x8 ? ) ........once i can get hold of some resistors and the confidence to do the mod, i may be reaching my dreams ..........possibly still with air cooling!................fat chance.

[Kev]

eobard (Jul 16, 2001 04:52 p.m.):
dozier768 (Jul 16, 2001 02:34 p.m.):
also set the voltage via the L7 bridges "connect em all to get 1.85v" this is what got me to 1103 and mine will run at 1124 but it isnt real stable i cant get any more out of the multiplier than 10.5


Is there a chart somewhere that lists the different voltages for the L7 bridges? I'm gonna need to know soon for myself and my ASUS A7V-E doesn't have a way to set the voltage. (or I've missed something obvious)

Heres a site with a chart and stuff about the L7 bridges....enjoy!

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/d280201.html

[UnseenMenace]

I think that with air cooling Kev you have every possibilty of reaching your goal of 1150 although I am unsure of the actual gain this modification can obtain, but why not be a optimist, it doesnt hurt :) . I wish you every luck in getting there, I am going to be doing the modification myself shortly and hope to be somewhere near you speed wise, and hopefully with a bit of luck and watching our temps we can join the 1100 mhz gang :)

[dozier768]

UnseenMenace (Jul 16, 2001 03:24 p.m.):
Kev (Jul 16, 2001 03:10 p.m.):
why will joining the bridges to make 1.85 help whereas i can just have at 1.85 in the bios ...?

It will not make the slightest bit of difference to you apart from making the CPU default as 1.85 v rather than its standard voltage, keep things as they are if you can select your voltage in the bios

I beg to differ menace when you change the L7's so they default to 1.85 that is what the system initially posts at when you doit in the bios it post at the default then steps it up to 1.85 "or however high it is set" and sometimes this will alow you to post higher and do a warm restart without getting a bios checksum error or a bootblock message

[james1972]

I've gotten my Duron 800 up to 1099 right now. Its running 7x157, with a 8K7A board, and WBK38 heatsink. My temps aren't too accurate, as I am just using whatever is on the MB and MBM5, it says my cpu@idle is 41 and 45@load. I just got it up to that speed today and haven't really tested stability, as I have no idea what to use to test it, so I just play alot of Unreal tournament, and so far, so good. This is my first exp. with overclocking and so far it seems to be getting what I wanted initially, 1100mhz, from my 800.

[oc jason]

start running prime 95 and While doing that Run 3dmark benchmark in loop for a few hours- if it dont lockup id say its stsable-thats a hard enough test

[Kev]

dozier, i thoguht that voltahe thing was like that.....being as you put it that way, theres a good chance of getting higher speeds by bypassing the bios bootlock...thats stopping me aswell....ill do the ol' 1.85 all L7 bridges now....got nothing else to do!

[dozier768]

Kev (Jul 17, 2001 12:23 p.m.):
dozier, i thoguht that voltahe thing was like that.....being as you put it that way, theres a good chance of getting higher speeds by bypassing the bios bootlock...thats stopping me aswell....ill do the ol' 1.85 all L7 bridges now....got nothing else to do!
all i know is it worked for me. i couldnt post past 1gig now im at 1.1 and it was a tip that someone around here gave me,i cant remeber who though

[Kev]

yep. changing the default voltage to 1.85 has offered me posting at thigher speeds.....still fails to boot into windows at high speeds (i.e. 1050+) ......im dying to join the 1.1 gang ......1030Mhz doesnt sound as good as '1.1 gigahertz; .................im dying to do this voltage mod but NOWHERE near me sells resistors 'n' stuff....its crap where i live....can i use fuse wire?, thats about all i have related to amps and ohms in my house and vecinity (is that spelled right?).

[M@€$†®Ö™]

I honestly believe the limit of 1.1ghz for any duron is the top end period for the time being. I have tried probably 7 or 8 Duron and I get less then a 50 mhz difference in the max overclocked speed.

Maestro

[dozier768]

Kev (Jul 17, 2001 02:48 p.m.):
yep. changing the default voltage to 1.85 has offered me posting at thigher speeds.....still fails to boot into windows at high speeds (i.e. 1050+) ......im dying to join the 1.1 gang ......1030Mhz doesnt sound as good as '1.1 gigahertz; .................im dying to do this voltage mod but NOWHERE near me sells resistors 'n' stuff....its crap where i live....can i use fuse wire?, thats about all i have related to amps and ohms in my house and vecinity (is that spelled right?).

try these sites www.mouser.com www.digikey.com you should be able to find any resistor under the sun
oh ya, and the thing about the ram in my case was that i had some veryold pc100 generic ram and it wouldnot run with a fsb over 101 weird huh when i stuck the new stuff in there i quit locking up, but i obviosly overlooked what ram he had in his post and what i also should have said is that the kt133 chipset i have doesnt like higher bus speeds and i shouldn't have assumed it was the durons fault sorry if it caused any confusion. good luck with your mod kev

[Kev]

man!! im really making my ram Duron and motherboard scream....well...sorta......my fsb is 150!...thats excellent considering my motherboard is a kt7e (100fsb shipset) it took a lot of work to get it to that....ive now hit 1978 3dmark2k1 marks...its rising baby! - whoo-pah! ....i cant really get stuff from digikey and mouser cos they're US sites...i live the UK. ...im DYING to do the mod....i need resistors!!!!....what will happen if i dont use a resistor and use just a peice of wire?.....hmmm.....

consider this thread closed now....basically i need to the mod and all will be well......thanks everyone for ya help...much appreciated.

[dozier768]

well im glad to hear you are progressing "ididnt know you were in the uk" also i wouldnt just use a wire the regulators are adjusted by the resistance so that would more then likely have grave results

[Kev]

cheers!.....seems like this thread is going on and on! ....woo-hoo! .....im upgrading to Windows 2000 pro tomorrow...hopefully that will stop the odd random Explorer crashes im starting to get....hhmmmm.....apparently win2kpro is more stable ..and slightly faster....as long as i can still play CS!....:) ....we'll see......i cant be bothered waiting for XP ..

[eobard]

Kev (Jul 16, 2001 05:45 p.m.):
Heres a site with a chart and stuff about the L7 bridges....enjoy!

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/d280201.html

Thank you :)