BD7-II-R Pre-Overclocking request for tips

Hello, all. I'm sort of a newbie overclocker.

Strictly speaking that's not true, because my previous two rigs were on an Abit BH6 (which the PSU fried so was replaced with a BX6 2.0): Celeron 300A o/c to 450, and Celeron 566 o/c to 850. But, as we all know, the 300A was the very first ultra-darling of the OC community, making OCing more mainstream, and the Celery 566 was nearly as good (though when I switched to Win2K/XP it started BSODing till I realised it needed one notch more VCore over what it needed in Win98SE )

Now, I have just put together most of a system and need advice on how to test it and what to do. First off, I have two P4 1.6A's (I posted in another thread asking for which was better, Malay or Costa) that I basically want to test to the limits to see which one I should keep and which I should return/sell. I am asking for some tips on overclocking, but I will leave that for another thread because I think the first thing I should do is make sure I set things up with everything at stock to test stability. Nothing worse than thinking you have OC probs when the problem is a faulty PSU or memory or whatnot.

So here's what I'd like to know.

1) Should I perhaps flash Mr.N's bios 9b first? Seeing as how I'm going to be running it eventually anyway when I try to OC to 150 FSB with the PCI/AGP lock *and* the CPU fan header connected. May as well flash so I eliminate the number of variables, right?

2) Should I use the PCI/AGP bus locks right off the bat even if I'm testing at 100 FSB? (pre-OC) Or use the FSB/3 divider? I'm wondering if FSB/3 is the same as PCI: 33 lock when FSB is 100. Or is the lock just a rough-and-ready approximation of a lock to make us overclockers feel better?

3) Should I use AS3 on the heatsink and CPU's for testing? I will definitely apply it once I decide which to keep, but I don't wanna waste it and don't know how many applications one tiny tube of AS3 has. Also, does AS3 wipe off completely with nail polish remover in the case of the CPU I will try to returrn?

4) How in the world do you do all the driver installations, and in what order? I've never had a mobo that wasn't "old" and totally supported in the OS (BX chipset, HX before that). I don't really understand how to use this mobo, do I install XP, and then install the chipset drivers? When do I install the video card drivers, and the drivers for my Santa Cruz? What about the HPT controller for RAID (I have only one HDD so no raid, but I thought about using the IDE3 channel)? Why does it need drivers anyway, I thought it was hardware raid?

5) Should I install the DVDROM on IDE1 master, CDRW on IDE2 master, and HDD on IDE3 master? Or will using the third and fourth IDE channels require some crazy HPT driver install, and will the OS be able to install on one of those disks or does XP have to go on IDE1 or IDE2? Is it worth the hassle of using the other channels if I don't have RAID (my drive is not ATA-133, I think it's just ATA-100)

6) I have heard some people saying stay away from ACPI at least installing XP. Does ACPI enabling make the XP install screwed up from the perspective of being able to swap cards and add/remove hardware a lot?

7) I ordered Corsair XMS3200PT memory, one 512 stick. Should I run it "By SPD" at first? Or will that mess things up? I want to, I figure, first test stock stability. Then, push the CPU FSB up and try to tweak it with voltage till I find a stable point (with PCI bus lock enabled). Then, start pushing the memory, even though it's rated for 200 MHz right away, so pushing it just involves timings. But initially, should I "underclock" this Corsair memory so that it runs at 100 MHz (using a 1:1 ratio with the FSB)? Or should I use some divider like 3:4 to make it run basically at PC2100 levels?

I realize this is a lot to ask in one post, but I'd appreciate if people chimed in with their experiences at least for the bits they know a lot about. Thanks! You guys have been a great source of info and wisdom so far....

Guess I asked too many questions at once. :frown:

First off good luck with your new rig

Do a clean install of XP - Have the HPT 2.32 or 2.33 drivers on a floppy disk and get ready to press F6 when XP starts and load the Hpt drivers when requested

Then driver order after Xp loads
1. infinst_enu.exe
2. Iaa23-beta.exe
3. usb20.exe
4. usbxpfix.exe
5. Video Card Drivers
5. Sound Drivers
6. Any other drivers

I would 4 pin wire wrap on the cpu or do the conductive paint on the socket for voltage

I would flash to Mr N 9B Bios

I would use AS3 on all tests - yes cleans up with np remover - apply per their directions

Bios suggestions:

-DRam Timing by spd
-DRam strap high
-Dram cpu ratio 1:1 (when you reach your max fsb can then try mem set at low then 3:4 and see if it runs - take your fsb times 1.33 and thats what your ram is running at under 3:4)
-ddr voltage 2.7 - max
-cpu voltage stay between 1.7 & 1.8 watch your temps
-pci bus speed fix at 37
-set cpu multiplier to 17
-start with fsb at 133 and increase in small increments booting into windows and checking for stability
-enhanced ddr - disable
-Leave ACPI enabled - no probs installing XP that way


Just my sugestions
-

Thanks for those suggestions. But why set PCI bus to 37 instead of 33?

Also I'm unclear as to when to load HPT drivers. Press F6 when XP is booting for the first time after the installation (i.e. when it reboots itself?) What if I need to partition that drive with Partition Magic off a floppy, will it detect a drive on IDE3 or IDE4? Or did you mean to press F6 on boot, after XP is all installed and ready (as in, reboot myself, then do it?)

As for the other patches you mentioned, I have to start looking them up, because I think some of those have to be downloaded, and aren't right on the BD7-II-R install CD.

Lastly, when do I do the flash? Before I start all of this? Thanks.

By setting the pci bus to 37 it gives the pci bus a little kick and my bd7-II seems to over clock better at 37 fixed

When loading Xp for the first time have to press F6 almost right away - have the hpt drivers ready on a floppy

You can get the Intel drivers and application accelerator from their website - it might also be on the Abit CD

Also read this thread over at Icrontics - gives a lot of info on the bd7-II

Icrontics Abit BD7-II

You can flash to a new bios before or after

Ok. Does that set the AGP to 74, or is there a separate lock for the AGP bus? I thought I'd try it at PCI 33, AGP 66, since I want to eliminate all the variables, but you're telling me everything works better for you at 37? Well, I can always try...