[Pro Noob]

Hey - As you can tell from my screen name, I'm new to overclocking but I've been in the IT industry for a while. Just built a new PC, and am only mildly overclocking it (which is all I'm interested in at the moment...I'll explain more later). Based on my research, I think my settings are good and they seem stable after running memtest86, Prime95, and Orthos.

Here's the rig:

Gigabyte EP35C-DS3R mobo
Intel E8400 @ 3.2 Ghz (400x8), stock voltage @ 1.1625V
OCZ Reaper 800 Mhz DDR2 PC6400 2GBx2 (4-4-4-12, 2T), 2.1V (+0.3V)
DRAM:FSB ratio = 1:1
EVGA 9600 GT @ 725/1750/1000
ABS Tagan BZ 800w PSU
Antec 900 case (moves lots of air!!)

My CPU temps are 28c idle/42c load. Case temp is approx. 25-30c. GPU temps are approx. 35c idle/47c load.

The reason I am not overclocking that much is because my Gigabyte board (as you may already know) has a current bios issue of CPU voltage changes not sticking (they default back to stock automatically). This can be bypassed by resetting CMOS, but vcore voltage will eventually default back to stock with the PC powered off for a few hours. Plus, I don't want to be a total jackoff and burn my stuff out right off the bat, being that I'm a noob.

Can someone please confirm if these are the the optimal settings at my current stock CPU voltage (i.e., is a 1:1 ratio optimal, and are these ram timings good for DDR800)? I don't want to dick with the CMOS every day, so until a bios update fixes the known issue, I plan to leave it like this.

Also, my 3DMark06 score is approx. 11285. I thought that was a little low, but perhaps not. Is that an acceptable score for my setup?

Thanks in advance for any tips or suggestions! My stuff works...so I just want to make sure I have it optimized due to the bios voltage situation.

Cheers,

Paul

[wingman99]

I would set the timing to Timing 4-4-4-15 also your doing fine. Did you contact GIGABYTE yet because that problem is been going on for a long time now

[Pro Noob]

Originally Posted by wingman99

I would set the timing to Timing 4-4-4-15 also your doing fine. Did you contact GIGABYTE yet because that problem is been going on for a long time now

Thanks for the tip; I've set the timing back to 4-4-4-15. Any particular reason why? I don't understand ram timings that well yet (I guess I assumed that the lower the better, no matter what).

I haven't called Gigabyte yet, but I may. Ya see, I' m still on the fence about aggressive overclocking...I'm even a little nervous with how it's set now. I'm not even sure I want to raise the vcore voltage or push the limits any higher. It depends on who you ask because there are those that say overclocking is not bad at all as long as the heat is taken care of, and then there are those that say it is always bad since the frequencies are being raised beyond spec. And then there's me who's not quite sure what to think. For example, if I don't raise the vcore voltage, but I raise the CPU/FSB clock, is that still harsh on the hardware? I guess I'm just paranoid I'll break me new toy.

[Zuzzz]

I would say unless they require it 2.1v on those RAMS is a little high. I have G.Skill 6400's and running them at 1800 STILL doesnt require me to go above 1.90. You are not after all overclocking the RAMat this stage. I would set it at stock voltage for now. 3.2 is a very fine OC IMHO. Nope it isnt the fastest but it is certainly respectable. You will have no problems running anything nice and snappy. The only thing that will happen if you raise the FSB and not add any vCore is the system will eventually fail at the higher frequencies. you are safe at stock vCore but at a certain point unless you ADD vCore you will not be able to make the overclock stable. Personally as I said If you are happy with the overclock you have go with it. A nice cool slightly OC'ed system that is stable is SWEET. Until you get a BIOS upgrade or Gigabyte fixes the issue I would be happy where it is. Just my 2 cents


Z

PS: You wont damage your hardware just by raising the FSB. The system will just not be stable and this might corrupt your SOFTWARE. But the hardware is not in any danger. To damage the hardware you would have to raise the voltages too high, too much heat etc...

[clocker2]

Zuzzz: 2.1v IS stock voltage for that RAM so he's perfectly fine.

Pro: Your chip probably has quite a bit more to give without resorting to excessive voltage.
A commonly bandied about figure for Intel's max recommended voltage is 1.36v.
I chose 1.3v as a cap and both my e8400's will do 4GHz at less than that.

Fortunately, my board (GA-P35-DS4) doesn't suffer from unexpected vCore changes but does seem to dislike FSBs between 440 to 490, so I've had greater success running 500 x 8 rather than 444 x 9.
Naturally, YMMV.

I'd guess you could probably run 400 x 9 (3.6GHz) at @ 1.2v or so with no increase in temps and little to no danger of hurting the chip.

[Zuzzz]

I stand corrected. I misread that and thought his RAM was 1.8v. And I did say unless they require it hehehe... I agree too. That chip has lots of room. I hope you get the voltage issues worked out.

Z

[Pro Noob]

Thanks guys! This is very helpful info. I feel a little more confident now and am not so worried. One weird thing just happened though...I just had a hard lock up and had to manually reset. I don't know if this is a coincidence, or if it's software instability caused by the overclocking (all my torture tests run fine...so I'm a little stumped). Or maybe it was just Microsoft being itself since it comes with instability out of the box, hehe (running XP Pro, btw). I have the same settings as stated above and haven't pushed the limits yet...oh well, I guess I'll just wait and see.

[wingman99]

Originally Posted by Pro Noob

Thanks guys! This is very helpful info. I feel a little more confident now and am not so worried. One weird thing just happened though...I just had a hard lock up and had to manually reset. I don't know if this is a coincidence, or if it's software instability caused by the overclocking (all my torture tests run fine...so I'm a little stumped). Or maybe it was just Microsoft being itself since it comes with instability out of the box, hehe (running XP Pro, btw). I have the same settings as stated above and haven't pushed the limits yet...oh well, I guess I'll just wait and see.

My new E8400 pc never locks up incase your wondering about xp
i have it over clocked to 4.0 ghz 1.39vots v core cpu

You should go to the the GIGABYTE form and submit your tech problem because you need to put some pressure on them, everyone always thinks the other guy will call in. I have dealt with them for 3 week about my GA-P35-DS3L problem they finally have given up arguing and are going to send my screen shots to the lab to duplicate the problem with voltage being off specs.

[Pro Noob]

Originally Posted by wingman99

My new E8400 pc never locks up incase your wondering about xp
i have it over clocked to 4.0 ghz 1.39vots v core cpu

You should go to the the GIGABYTE form and submit your tech problem because you need to put some pressure on them, everyone always thinks the other guy will call in. I have dealt with them for 3 week about my GA-P35-DS3L problem they finally have given up arguing and are going to send my screen shots to the lab to duplicate the problem with voltage being off specs.

Yeah, I'm going to call them ASAP. In the mean time (until they fix the bios) I might try reverting back to version F2 (currently have F3e, and it's a beta version). I haven't had any more lock ups, so I'm guessing it was just a one time fluke or maybe an xp hiccup. Thanks again for the help.

[cyberfish]

The voltage not sticking problem on GA-EP35-DS3L has been fixed (confirmed by many people including myself) by a not-yet-released but floating around beta BIOS F5c that people got from Gigabyte tech support. So Gigabyte is certainly going to fix that problem for your very similar board, too, if not already (have you tried googling for a beta BIOS for your board?).

[Pro Noob]

Originally Posted by cyberfish

The voltage not sticking problem on GA-EP35-DS3L has been fixed (confirmed by many people including myself) by a not-yet-released but floating around beta BIOS F5c that people got from Gigabyte tech support. So Gigabyte is certainly going to fix that problem for your very similar board, too, if not already (have you tried googling for a beta BIOS for your board?).

I haven't searched for a newer beta bios yet, but I most definitely will. Thanks for the heads up!

[wingman99]

Originally Posted by Pro Noob

I haven't searched for a newer beta bios yet, but I most definitely will. Thanks for the heads up!

Get it at GIGABYT

[cyberfish]

Google, too. The beta BIOS for GA-EP35-DS3L, for example, is not available on the website.

[wingman99]

Originally Posted by cyberfish

Google, too. The beta BIOS for GA-EP35-DS3L, for example, is not available on the website.

Cant you get it through the tech support.

[cyberfish]

At least not until my 3rd email. They don't reply all that fast either.

[EchoTheDolphin]

Pro, about a year ago I was in much the same mindset as you. However, the more I learned and found out about OC'ing in general, as I'm sure you will, the more I found out that anymore it's extremely hard to burn out equipment if you're even marginally careful.

The only thing that I even know of that could damage your components, under normal air-cooled clocking conditions, is putting way too much voltage to something. Generally a simple search on the forums for your CPU/Mobo can tell you what the average person maxes their voltage out at.

Don't worry! You'll have tons of fun learning in the process too and welcome to the forums!

[wingman99]

Originally Posted by EchoTheDolphin

Pro, about a year ago I was in much the same mindset as you. However, the more I learned and found out about OC'ing in general, as I'm sure you will, the more I found out that anymore it's extremely hard to burn out equipment if you're even marginally careful.

The only thing that I even know of that could damage your components, under normal air-cooled clocking conditions, is putting way too much voltage to something. Generally a simple search on the forums for your CPU/Mobo can tell you what the average person maxes their voltage out at.

Don't worry! You'll have tons of fun learning in the process too and welcome to the forums!

Good advice

[wingman99]

Originally Posted by cyberfish

At least not until my 3rd email. They don't reply all that fast either.

I've been in communication with them for 3 week dally and we still argue hopefully they fix some simple things with my GA-P35-DS3L i am making progress they said that they would send my screen shots to the lab for duplication squeaky wheel gets the Grease

I use the tech support form it takes more time to setup but you can keep going dally.

[Pro Noob]

Originally Posted by EchoTheDolphin

Pro, about a year ago I was in much the same mindset as you. However, the more I learned and found out about OC'ing in general, as I'm sure you will, the more I found out that anymore it's extremely hard to burn out equipment if you're even marginally careful.

The only thing that I even know of that could damage your components, under normal air-cooled clocking conditions, is putting way too much voltage to something. Generally a simple search on the forums for your CPU/Mobo can tell you what the average person maxes their voltage out at.

Don't worry! You'll have tons of fun learning in the process too and welcome to the forums!

Thanks, that makes a lot of sense. And you're right, I've already started finding that out while doing some research. For example, I didn't originally take into consideration that during the testing phases manufacturers push this stuff to it's absolute limit and must be able to get the specified speeds even under extreme conditions. Since no one with a proper setup runs their system at extreme conditions all the time, I suppose that is what allows the possibility of overclocking in the first place. But I'm sure everyone here already knows that, lol.....sorry for the noobness! I think I'm getting the hang of it.

[Pro Noob]

OK, here's one more question for you guys. It's not really a problem, but it's kind of weird. Like I mentioned earlier my CPU is at 3.2 Ghz (400x8), and CPU-Z reports it correctly. Windows, 3DMark06, and EasyTune on the other hand say that I'm running at 3.6 Ghz (which isn't possible at my current vcore voltage). Does anyone know why that is? Are those programs assuming that I'm using a multiplier of 9??

Thanks,

Paul