Why wont it go any faster!?

[Henry Rollins II]

Hi all

Got a BH6 motherboard with a 300A CPU, that I´ve had for the last 2½ years. Currently it runs at 374 Mhz, but it used to do 463 Mhz. My 128 Mb memory module doesn´t seem to cope with 100 Mhz. I had a 64 Mb before that also was marked "PC-100", it actually made the specified 100 Mhz.

Question 1: Is it common that memory DIMMs doesn´t perform as they should?

I bought a new CPU yesterday, a Celeron 700. With it an adapter, Aopen FC-PGA and a big fan: Thermaltake Orb fit.
In all performance is a disapponiment. I haven´t run any test programs, but nothing feels any faster, rather the opposite. Boot-up takes a few secs longer. And I cannot make it go any faster than 700!!!??

Question 2: On boot-up error message "CPU is unworkable blabla...." appears on everything but 700/66. I´ve tried to boost voltage up to 2,00 v. But I´m not sure if that works though. There are voltage jumpers on the Aopen adapter, but if set to "auto" it appears to be changable in the ABit "CPU soft menu", showing correct voltage. Is it really possible to set voltage from the soft menu, or do I have to mess with jumpers on the adapter?

Question 3: Is it possible that my CPU actually won´t go any faster? Anyone experienced this with the Cel 700? (Maybe that is a stupid question, but out of 11 tested Cel 300/300A two years ago all 11 were able to reach at least 374 Mhz)

Tip: Don´t throw your Abit BH6 away. Upgrade the BIOS instead. There are 12 versions for BH6 rev1.0x and 7 for BH6 rev1.1. I went from version 1(FL) to version 12(SS) on my 1.01 board. Theretically it now supports at least a 1.6 GHz CPU. :D

Regards,
Henry

[Allan Nielsen]

Hey Henry

Answer 1:
I have never heard of any RAM that wouldn't do the speed it was labeled to do. You could try using another stick, but I really don't think that is the issue. At 374 MHz your FSB is "only" 83Mhz, which certainly shouldn't be a problem for a 100MHz RAM stick. The answer to this one must be: NO!

Answer 2:
Congrats on your new CPU. However, the Thermaltake Orb you have for it isn't exactly a great performer - especially if you want to overclock it (and who wouldn't?). You should be able to set both voltage and FSB from the soft menu.

Answer 3:
I would say the odds are a million to one - It is very unlikely that it won't overclock at all.

Turning the tables - Questions for YOU:
Maybe your temps are running high? What do they show? (In celsius if you can, please). Have you remembered to use thermal grease, and only a thin layer of it? What graphics card do you have?

Advice:
If the temps are high (like 40-50+ C), I would go get a better cooler. Cooling is essential to overclocking. Look into Alpha or Global Win, they both have some good air coolers. Try using some other RAM stick, to completely eliminate the RAM as the culprit.
If you are up to it, a format and reinstall of windows and everything might speed things up for you as well.

Hope this helps you out a bit. Feel free to ask more questions anytime! :)

[Henry Rollins II]

Sorry for the late answer.

The temperature indicated by Motherboard monitor was a high 57 degrees, but when I looked in BIOS setup it was only 37 degrees(both Celcius). Im running at 1,85 volts. Strange thing is - I used SoftFSB and was able to reach 787 Mhz. It always works - but I can´t boot from this speed.

There was a thin layer of thermal grease on the Orb fan(gold vers) when I got it.

Graphics setup - se signature.

I don´t know if there is a need for "burn-in"? I cant tell where and when it is made but the S code is SL4E6.

/Henry

[Henry Rollins II]

UPDATE: I can now run it @875 Mhz, 1.8 v.

But I still can´t boot at anything other than 700! WHy?!? :(

[OldOverclocker]

I'm having exactly the same problem (look at my thread too) although MB Monitor reports the right temp back.

As for the boot problem, did you disable "speed error" in the soft menu?

[Henry Rollins II]

LOL!! :D
Aint I the stupid one?!?! Of course I forgot that. It now boots w/o problem at 874 Mhz.

Gonna buy some new memory - 1050 Mhz here I come.

regards,
Henry.

[Spacepiston]

Before you buy new memory, consider pushing your I/O voltage up a bit.

I couldnt run my 600@900 stable, until i pushed the I/O voltage up to 1.8volts, from its 1.5v default. Perhaps the problem was the 3 sticks made up of 2 different brands, or that the 2 sticks of cheaper memory couldnt hack the 100mhz bus. Either way, after upping the I/O, my cpu is now 100% stable

[DocClock aka MadClocker]

I just wanted to add that I had a stick of HSDRAM 150mhz, that wouldn't do more than 124mhz...so it is possible that you could have a marginal stick of ram, and I would try each seperately and you might ferret out the offending module...the key word here is might.
It sounds like you got it just about licked...persistance pays off sometimes.
Of course you might meed to increase the core voltage a bit.