Settings Just Won't Work

right - running a Gigabyte P35-DS3, latest bios and all. Had it originally overclocked my E6550 from stock to 2.975 (425x7). Now though, when i enter the bios to change the bus speed up to 440, the settings just don't seem to work.

i exit the bios saving settings, and the system hangs. Manually reset, and the loadup screen recognises the old settings of 425x7. But when i enter the bios, the new settings are still there (440x7). So the settings are saving, but they do not seem to be taking effect. Can't even change it in the EasyTune6 program.

Anybody got any hints? I was going to get some faster RAM so i can set the bus speed higher, but if it isn't going to work, then i'm going to have to get a new mobo first.

Welcome to O/C Forums

What are your full specs? Stock cooling? Psu? Ram? Etc.

Umm, full specs eh

Gigabyte P35-DS3 Rev 2.1
C2D E6550
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro
OCZ DDR2 Platinum 2GB 800 Rev2
Gainward Geforce 8600GT 1GB
Thermaltake 430W PSU

Anything else?

Have you tried clearing the cmos and starting from scratch? Another thing is that Thermaltake 430W PSU. I have a funny feeling it's under powering your system.

Nebulous said:

Have you tried clearing the cmos and starting from scratch? Another thing is that Thermaltake 430W PSU. I have a funny feeling it's under powering your system.

Click to expand...

could be - i do have 2 optical drives

and 5 HDD - soon to be 6.....

what would you recommend for the minimum watts?

For the PSU, I would recommend the Corsair . Check the specs on it. Sweet deal for $80 after MIR. Any other Corsair unit with 500+ watts will do very nicely. You want something with a beefy 12v rail .

whats the effect of the smaller PSU?

Lower voltages/amps = underpowering the system. Thus in turn the components "starve" resulting in overall instability issues: ( reboots, random shutdowns, BSOD's, etc).

The stronger and more stable rails on the psu, the better the pc will function as it has an uninterrupted flow of power to the components.

the resetting of the CMOS helped fix the problems though

that 430w PSU has 18a 12v rail tho... ive seen high spec TR2 450 with only 16a.... how does that work

If you're not getting any issues, that's all fine and good, but you are pushing the limits of that PSU. If you do any upgrades in the future it would be wise to upgrade the PSU to something 500W+, as Nebulous said, or you risk stability issues. But I don't know why he's saying to only go with a Corsair PSU, go with any PSU that gets good reviews overall regardless of the manufacturer.

would i get away with the 450VX?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139003

how would it go up against the OCZ from this thread that my mate got?
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=568199
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010


whats more important? - a higher wattage or a bigger 12V Rail? or are they equally important?