how to overclock

[550M]

This may sound pretty stupid, but we all have to start somewhere. I've been using computers for awhile, but i'd like to get into overclocking. I have an AMD 1.1ghz and i know about unlocking it and i have a watercooling system designed for it. The only problem is, i don't know how to overclock. I know there's a voltage increase, but how the heck do you do that? Is it jumpers or something? i have everything but the basics . . . Oh yeah, i did the watercooling thing because i like designing things like that. heh

[Yodums]

Give us everything in your system. To get a better idea of overclocking, read the beginners guide on the frontpage.

Yodums

[550M]

ok here's what i got. AMD Athalon 1.1 ghz. 384mb memory. cd, cd r-rw. 3.5 floppy. nVidia rivia tnt2 64. soundblaster soundcard. 56.6 modem. nic 10/100. 18gb hdd, 40gb hdd. ati tv card. matrix orbital lcd. ti-graphlink, palm hotsync, labermaker, webcam, canon printer, visioneer scanner, iomega zip drive and tons of other stuff that also just add more garbage to the system tray. I'm running windows ME, and i'm going to replace it soon since it can't even support my memory. I know i gave too much info, but better safe than sorry.

[phungilax]

what about your motherboard? thats probably one of the most important things because it determines how well you can overclock. some will let you do it through the bios and some will make you set jumpers. once you figure out your board you can start from there

[550M]

i list all sorts of stuff and forget the most important part. ok i have a MS-6330 Lite with the VIA KT133 chipset. i have no idea what the brand is, but thats whats i have

[SuperFLyJimmy]

well for starters there is the FSB OC which you don't need to unlock your CPU to do. Just raise your FSB from BIOS in small 5mhz incriments until you can't boot anymore into windows and run stable. There is also unlocking your CPU and raising the Multiplier. WHich you chip is running at your multiplier X FSB as shown.
12 x 133= 1900 so your chip would be running at clock speed of 1900.
If your system isn't stable running at any higher of a FSB than it already is then you can just raise your Multiplier OC your CPU to its peak but leaving the rest of your system where it is.

Best thing to do is to unlock your CPU lower your Multipler allow you to get your FSB up higher without completely stressing out your CPU. WHich inturn increases the speed of you whole system.
You FSB (FRONT SIDE BUS) controls your AGP, IDE, RAM, PCI. SO that is where you will see the biggest gain.

So if your max FSB is (lets say) 160 but your CPU won't boot at that FSB. Lower your Multipler to whatever it can do and still boot and be stable at 160. So if your multipler is at 12 and you are trying a FSB of 160 and it won't boot. Turn down your Multipler to 11.5 and try that. Keep doing this until it will boot into WIN and be stable

Now inorder to reach the highest OC you must increas your VCORE voltage( the CPU voltage) and in most cases your VCC3 voltage( Ram, AGP, PCI voltage. ) All of this can be seen from the same screen in most BIos. If your MOBO allows for BIos controlled changes. WHich most newer MOBO do. Some have the old DIP switches and jumper which must be set according to what you want your CPU to run at. I have no knowlege on those.

The best way to do it is to Unlock your CPU. Raise the multipler to its highest mark which should be 12.5. Rais your VCore up to around its max.Then start raising your FSB to Find the highest clock speed your CPU can handle. Once you have established that then lower your Multiplier to its lowest mark. Then raise the FSB to see how high you can get that booting and RUnning Stable into WIn.
Now you have your high CPU mark And your High FSB mark. Take your High CPU mark( MHZ) divide it by your FSB. Set your multiplier to the number it gives you.

Example. Lets say your highest FSB is 160 and the highest you can get your CPU is 1500MHZ

Take 1500/160=9.3 so you would set your Multiplier to 9.0 and leave your FSB at 160. Then your FSB(RAM,AGP,PCI) is at its highest most stable point, and your CPU is also at its highest most stable point.


Voltage is important becase the higher you turn up your system the more power it is going to need. Hence turning up your VCORE and VCC3.

If you have the money it is nice to have a MOBO that has the BIOS controlled OC features. BUt make sure you have one that allows Vcore and VCC3 voltage adjustments.

Hope this helps you and is easy to understand.

[550M]

:eek:

well yes that is extremely helpful. it's a lot to take at once, but thats the info i needed and i understand what you're saying. my mobo is new, but i have no idea of the quality because its from gateway, but gateway puts out some quality products so i have no reason to doubt them(been using gateway since i was in 5th grade) does the overclocking without unlocking the cpu produce more heat? i'm guessing yes, but i just wanted to make sure. i still have the stock heat sink on, which is the worst ever. thanks for all the info

[SuperFLyJimmy]

There is no Difference from the FSB and The Multiplier OC if your CPU is turned up. They will both produce heat. But if you have the Water cooling you should be able to get some Awesome results. Gateway MOBO are okay but they don't like to be tweaked. I have seen some that won't even let you into the bios. If you aren't using the Watercooling on your CPU then definetly go with a good HSF. One that is real good. Swiftech or Alpha both make excellent HSF. Loud but good.
Glad I could help you out there. Just ask if you have anymore questions.

[550M]

well i can definately get into bios, so that should be no problem. the case will work great for cooling so i may use a good heatsink for the time being. i'm at college now and the watercooling system i have is 3 hours away at home. it will proabaly have to wait because it needs tweaking. oh, which heatsink do you prefer, or is there no real difference?

[JAWS]

The only time heat will become an issue, is when you start bumping up your vcore.

[550M]

ok, well i can't take any heat cause the stock amd heatsind isn't very good. the air above the heatsink is around 140F, i can only imagine what the cpu temp is

[SuperFLyJimmy]

140F wow that is hot. I don't think you will be able to do any OC with that kind of heat. Heat is your enemy in OC. You will definitely need some kind of cooling. If you use your Watercooling it won't be a problem though. You said you had built one right?

[550M]

yeah i have a water block and resevoir. <-spelling? i have to go over to a true value where i can get a pump for cheap, but thats 3 hours away at home. so i'll be getting that probably over my spring break. i am truly disappointed with the cooling in my computer. the vid card was overheating to lockup with no mods at all and the cpu headsink is terrible. blue orb now on vid card :)
do you know how to measure cpu temp without motherboard support? i know they have flat thermistors and things like that i was just wondering what i could get for little money that would give good readings.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

Not sure about that. You can try MBM5 MotherBoard Monitor 5. maybe there is one built into your system somewhere. This can help you read them form within WIndows. Not sure where to get it from though. You can try a search on Google thats where I got it from. As for lockups no doubt with that kinda temps in your case. Add some more exhaust fans to that to suck out some of that heat. and then look at better intake fans. Before ou start OC you need to get the temps down. That will give you bad results and hold you back alot. If you need to make a hole in the side panel of your case and add a fan there to blow directly onto your CPU. That will be a big increase. Done't know what your cash flow is but newegg has some good deals on case fans. I just bought a 120mm 138CFM fan for 9DOllars and it is a Y.S.Tech at that. I am not sure what the limit on email items is. Think it is below 1meg but I can try email it to you if you can't find it off the internet. Actually just found the link MBM5 Download (http://mbm.livewiredev.com/) it is in the left side. Let me know if you can read anything from it. You will hae to set up the sensors to read the different thermistors but it is worth a shot and cheaper than buying something. You'll see when you download it. What kinda case you got? Basic gateway case? Need a dremmel and start making some blow holes for more fans. You should be running no more than 15C over your room temp. Right now my case temps are in the 25c range which is about 80F in there. My cpu is 44c (Folding Seti) which is around 105F. Which isn't bad. It drops to 39C idle. BUt I have the Voltage at max and the CPU OC decently. for my system.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

As for you video. I did a sweet mod on mine. I had a crashed MOBO lying around so i ripped the northbridge heat sink off it. Pulled the fan off my GF3 Ti500( threw it in a drawer) and put some ASII on the new HS then glued the HS on imy video card. I then glued a 6000 RPM YSTECH fan ontop of that. So my Video doesn't get hot anymore. Planning on a ram mod in the future. Thinking of copper ramsinks. Won't help much but will look good with that big ass fan on top of it. My system consist of 6 fans.
1x 120mm intake
1x 90 mm exhaust
1x80mm HSF(DELTA)
1x video card(Y.S.Tech)
Then 2 on PSU
It stays real cool in there. no hot air is felt exiting the case. Noise is tolerable( whatever that means). I can hear the comp anywhere in the apartment. But when it is off I kinda feel weird so i turn it back on. I guess I got use to the noise. Lets me know my system is still chuggin.

[stompah]

You can O/C by changing the bridges on your CPU. First you need to break some of your bridges.



OK hold on I got ahead of myself is your chip a 200fsb of 266 fsb chip? Check here (http://www.ocinside.de/index_e.html?/html/workshop/socketa_id.html) to see what your chip is.


Is your chip a true 1.1g? or 1.13g? a 1.1g would be a 100fsb by a 11 multiplier. A 1.13g would be a 133fsb by a 8.5 multiplier.

When you figure out what you have then you need to break the bridges and use the multiplier to up your CPU speed. Do so in increments of .5. Use this chart (http://www.ocinside.de/index_e.html?/html/workshop/socketa/socketa_resistors.html.) to decipher the bridges. Use an ordinary No. 2 pencil to remake the bridges... each time you are stable up the mult another .5 by manipulating the birdges again. When you reach your max O/C you should use a more permeanant solution to make your bridges solid.




Or you could buy a new motherboard taht allows for FSB O/Cing. <~~my advice to you. I hope you take the latter route.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

even with the FSB you still need the multiplier unlocked in order to achieve the greates OC from the FSB and the CPU. One will max out before the other if you don't . Unless you have awesome cooling. Like a pelter or something. But for us mild manner folk the greates OC comes from a FSB OC and a Multiplier drop inorder to succesfully raise the CPU to its speed and raise the FSB to its speed. This has already been said 3 post ago. Read my solution. It is the same.

[550M]

ok the case is a gateway case, but the thing has some awsome fan mounts that comes with it. there's even ducting built into the front to cool hard drives. i love the vid card. i have ramsinks on mine too, they do nothing, but the look cool. as for the motherboard, i may look into that, but i'd rather not spend that kind of carh right now. all this info is good cause i do have a freon system designed using an old dehumidifier i have... that would be a lot of fun, but i think i'll start with the basics :) oh and what is the risk involved in all this? the computer in question has to work without a doubt all the time. and i have no idea what the chip is, but the mhz reads as 1101 mhz on my lcd.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

well when you start expect frequent crashes until you find your Sweet spot. A few days maybe. See the higher you push your system the more unstable it becomes. It may take a while for it to crash. Like it may run everything fine in WIndows, but then you start a game and it crashes. Everything in your system determines what you will be able to do. If you clock to high for your video card it will crash on you, but if you go like we said and find your stable point it will all be okay. You can OC and it run stable, crashes occur only when clokced to high. You don't need to worry to much about that if you follow the steps. As for risk. You will shorten the life of your system. Possible fry a component. Burn up the CPU. Destroy your HD. BAsically when you OC anything and everything will happen. BUt as I said before there is a limit on where you will be able to go, and you have to find that. Like my system runs sweet at 149x11.5 but if I push it to 150x11.5 I start getting lockups and crashes. Programs won't load. You'll figure it out. It isn't hard just alot to work with to get the best results. YOu can alos burn in your system prior to OC, but we will get into that later.

[550M]

ok the chip is 200fsb. and while checking, i found out there was almost no thermal grease on the chip/heatsink. i put some on and it seems to be running cooler. i'll check the temp later. i also downloaded MBM. i'll have to try running it. the risk involved is acceptable to me, but since this is my only computer, i have to have it working. i've been thinking about ocing something old first just to get the feel. is it a good idea to start on a good computer or try out on an old one first.

[550M]

i just checked and with the thermal grease the temp is now 104F, a 36F improvement

[SuperFLyJimmy]

Yes grease does help and Artic silver 2 is the best.
It really doesn't matter. If you would feel more comfortable playing with a old system first go for it. BUt, I have OC many systems and no matter what you do you will go through the crash and burn stage. Every system has its limits, so you will have to just find yours. I would just use the one you have. Start off with small adjustments of the FSB like, if you are at 200, go to 205. Run that alittle while see how it does doing everything you normally would. If it holds go up another 5. Remember though you will have to incease your voltages. If it crashes and your voltages are at stock a small increase of you Vcore could help the CPU hold up better. Same with you ram and video. But before you start OC any, make sure your Cooling is good. Taking of the case will help but inturn you will get large amounts of dust which is bad. Alot of fans will also generate large amounts of dust. In general you want your exhaust CFM to match your intake CFM to get good circulation. Meaning if you have a 1000 RPM intake you want a 1000 RPM exhaust. Make sure they are powerful. Just becuase they have high RPM doesn't mean they push air good. Like my 6000 RPM is only 60CFM while my 4000RPM is 138 CFM. Im not sure how high you CPU can go safely Temp wise. SO get MBM5 working and see where it is now. Once you start OC make sure it doesn't increase any more that 10C of that. If it does look into more cooling. The cooler the better.

[550M]

i 'm running mbm, but i wan't sure exactly what my core voltage is. it said choose which one was closer to core voltage, and one was 0 so i chose the 1.85 and slected 1.80 for what my core voltage was in the part above. set like that it gives me a reading of 127C. i don't think thats right. i wouldn't even be able to touch the heatsink then. i didn't know you could overclock ram, i only knew about video. video is a software overclock right? but what is the ram oc. also, the back of my case is designed for a 120mm fan, so i think i'll get one of those to improve the cooling now.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

you OC ram with the FSB. OC the FSB OC the RAM, AGP slots, PCI slots. Which is why I said OC your FSB is where you get the most results. Yes Video is through Programs or tweak utilities. 120MM for a exhaust is pretty good just make sure you have good intake also. 127c doesn't sound right. Are you sure you don't hve it set to Farenheit? there is a option in general that allows you to set it from C to F. Look and make sure it is set right.

[550M]

ok i see what the fsb is now. that makes sense. when i change to farenheit i get 260. i'm sure something is wrong, but i don't know what the chip is or what my core voltage is, so that must be why the temp is wrong. i'll work with it some more until i get resonable readings.

[550M]

ok i'm having technical diffuculties with mbm. i used sisoft sandra and i'm getting temperature readings of 29C. makes a lot more sense. the odd thing is is that my thermometer on the heatsink is still reading 104. i'm not really sure whats wrong. maybe the motherboard is getting bad temps. or possibly my other thermometer is broken.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

104 isn't bad. not fopr your cpu. those tend to run hott.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

Swiftech mcx462-a or one of the new Alpha will do you just fine for now. Warning loud noise will come or this. You can find them on HardcoreCooling (www.hardcorecooling.com) ,Newegg (www.newegg.com) the price for the Swifetch is around 70$ but if you are going water later then I might not spend that much on one. Try the Alpha not sure on the price but they are cheaper. Yes it makes a difference on which HS you use. Make sure it has copper on it. And remember to check the CFM the more the better. Make sure it will mount to your board. the Swiftech uses the four holes around the Socket to mount so it screws directly to your MOBO, so make sure the holes are there. The SK6 is also good. cheap and will hold you for the time being i believe around 30$.

[550M]

those prices aren't bad. being as impatient as i am i think i'll get one till i get the watercooling setup. i'll probably get the 120mm case fan to help the cooling too.

[Sonny]

Originally posted by 550M
.....ok i have a MS-6330 Lite with the VIA KT133 chipset.....If your sure that you only have the KT133 & NOT the KT133A chipset you will be limited in your FSB overclock. Most of the older KT133 could run up to 115MHz/230FSB if your lucky.

[Tabatha]

Hi everyone..I'm new to O/C also. I rasied my FSB by 5 and now my CPU is showing up as a 1900 instead of a 1800. Is that normal?

[550M]

well, i can't tell for sure what chipset i have. i know that both chipsets are available with this motherboard. i did pull the motherboard out and pull the heatsink of the chip and it says,
VIA
VT8363
0043CD
1EE415331
I have no idea what this tells me, but if you know where i could find out how to read this code, or another way to determine the particular chipset it would be helpful.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

Yes when you OC your Post will show the MHZ of your CPU. So if you have a 1800 and turned up the FSB to where a 1900 would be it will show up as a 1900. Same at the 2000 point. IF your bios knows how to read the CPU it will. a 1900XP is @1600Mhz and a 2000XP is at 1667. So yes this is normal.

550m as for you chip. I have no idea. Go to Viatech (www.viatech.com) And see if that tells you anything. It is Vias website. Hows your temps comign? And when are you planning on buying the new HSF? Let me know how it goes.

[550M]

i'll have to check that site. i am currently ordering Alpha PAL6035 w/ 35CFM Fan and a 120mm fan from www.hardcorecooling.com, so that i can start ocing now. i have decided to use the computer i have now because it costs $40 to get an old 486, and the price is the same to get the hsf and fan. plus i'm sure i'll see more of a mhz increase :) the chipset looks to be 200 fsb, and its an Apollo KT133, i don't know why i had an incorrect numbering before, but this number is direct from the chip, so there's no doubt. does this mean its locked?

[bobt17]

you'll probly be limited to useing your multiplier to overclock then with the kt133 chipset because the fsb isnt going to let u get very far

[SuperFLyJimmy]

I suggest getting a HS with a copper base. It will keep cool better. Just a suggestion. maybe order just the HS and a seperate fan with more throughput. 38 isn't bad but 60 is better.

[550M]

ok, that heatsink has a copper base, but they don't sell any 60mm fans that get higher than 38cfm. i am getting the 120mm fan though and that will sit about 1 inch away from the cpu, so that should pull a lot of heat out. as for the chipset, it there a way to fix that problem, or is the only solution a new mobo?

[SuperFLyJimmy]

The Pal6035 doesn't have a coppper base. But it doesn.t matter that much. yes the only solution for the chipset ius a anew mobo. as for the fan, if yoiu wanted to get crazy you could buy a adapter for a 80mm fan and strap that on there.what kinda intake do you have?

[Sonny]

Originally posted by 550M
.....i have a watercooling system designed for it..... Since you have spent some money on it then it would be best to get it working properly since even a poorly designed watercooling rig should beat out any HSF combo.

[550M]

ok, can i really do much without a new motherboard, or will get some increse? i'll make sure to get a copper base, i just have to do somechecking. currently the only intake is an 80mm fan, but the whole front is just a screen, so a lot of air can come in. the only problem i have with getting the watercooling setup working is that its almost impossible to get the parts i need here and i have no tools. i would have to wait at least until march 17 till i have spring break and can get it and finish the work on it. i have a whole week then i can work on it so it should be no problem finishing it then. how much does a new mobo cost? i'd rather not replace the one i have, but if i put watercooling on it seems it would be a waste if tht was fised.

[SuperFLyJimmy]

I agree. If you spent your time making a good watercooling system you want it on a good MOBO. I don't know about your CPU and the MOBO involoved with it, but i would say no more than the most expensive being 160$. Thats for a socket A mobo.
Gateway is good, but they are also OEM. And all OEM is crap no matter what it is. I feel that even after you go thru the time to finsh your watershed, your MOBO will be holking you back. Check out TomsHardware (www.Tomshardware.com) Everything you need to do your research on the best MOBO for you. Once you see one you like ask in the forums how people like it and the problems associated with it. But it won't hurt to wait either and see what you can do with the MOBO you already have. Then if you feel it is your MOBO holding you back and you know you can go higher then get another MOBO. It isn't somethying you need to go right now and get, unless you want to. Your system runs fine now and the only reason for you to get another is for better OC results.

As for increase. Yes you will see a increase in perfomance with a new MOBO and there are MOBO designed around OC. So it wouldn't hurt to eventually get a new one with more of OC in mind. And as mentione OEM are bottom barrel MOBO. Look at it like this. If you like the Gateway and it performs good think of what a real built MOBO can do. OEM design there stuff just to do the basics. They don't worry about the fancy stuff or the quality parts they need.

[550M]

that sounds like a good plan. i'm not overclocking to get more speed, my computer is fast as it. its just that i like working on the system, doing things with watercooling, seeing what i can get my system to do, and lower the time for seti work units :) the though that my motherboard isn't the best comes at an odd time, since i just saw my roomate's motherboard. it doesn' have a slot for video card, video and sound are build in. the only cards he has are modem and nic. now thats a bad motherboard :D anyways i think i'll work with what i have and look into motherboards after i see what i can do with this one.

[Tabatha]

Thanks SuperFly

I figured that was what it was doing. I just wanted to make sure. :)