[Potence]

Hi, I am new to overclocking and was wondering if i could get a little help

Motherboard: ASUS M3N72-D
CPU: AMD X2 250
RAM: OCZ DDR2 PC2-8500 REAPER HPC EDI (2x 2gb)
PSU: CORSAIR MEMORY 650W TX SERIES AT
FANS: 2x 80mm (Front & Side) 1x 120mm (Rear)
OS: Windows XP Home

I know using windows programs is a big no no but when i open BIOS i don't really know what to look at.
Could anyone give me a basic idea of roughly what i should be modifying?

Thanks

[trents]

To start with it would be helpful for us if you would go into your user profile and put your system info into your "sig" instead of the body of your first post. That way as the string gets longer we can have a ready reference of what your are working with. Also, there are some hardware reporting/monitoring freeware programs we would ask you to install, run and upload screenshots of at various junctures so we can follow the progress and effect of the overclocking adjustments you try: CPU-z, HWMonitor, and Prime95. Post back to us when these things are in place. In the meantime, I'll download your user manual to see what kind of options in bios you have to work with. By the way:

WELCOME to OverClockers Forums!

[Potence]

Thanks for the welcome
Here are the screenshots (got everything so i didn't miss something i needed.
Which Stress tests should i use with Prime95?
MWMonitor

CPU-z

Sorry for the big pictures :S

[coonmanx]

Memory is fine where it's at but will require 2.1 volts. Set AI Tuning to Manual in BIOS. That gets you the options you need to OC.

[trents]

Originally Posted by Potence

Thanks for the welcome
Here are the screenshots (got everything so i didn't miss something i needed.
Which Stress tests should i use with Prime95?

Sorry for the big pictures :S

"Blend" is fine for the present purpose.

Download a freeware pic resizer called "PIXresizer".

[Potence]

is that too high for core temperature?
was after 15 mins of testing

[trents]

Your CPU voltage (vcore) is already at 1.5+. I wouldn't feel comfortable with jacking that up any more, which is what we usually recommend. So, in this case we see how far the stock volts will allow you to overclock. To make adjustments in bios use "Manual" instead of "Auto" with the relevant menu items.

You temps are fine so far. Report temps after running Prime95 blend for at least 10 min. At the 10 min. mark you are within about 2c of what your max temps will be during a longer run. That 10 min. rule of thumb saves time when you are experimenting with different settings.

So, what you will want to do now is:

1. Lower your memory speed from DDR 400 to DDR 333. As you raise the CPU frequency (see #2 below) you will also be increasing your memory speed back toward DDR 400.

2. Begin increasing your CPU frequency from 200 in increments, say 10 mhz at a time until you encounter instability (e.g., machine won't boot, won't load windows, or you get BSOD or dropped cores when running Prime). Then put the CPU frequency back to the last stable setting.

3. As you are running prime, monitor core temp. You want to limit core temps to about 55c so if you begin to exceed that you will need to cut back on the overclock settings or get a better cooler.

4. Also monitor your HT Link speed (see CPU-z "CPU" tab). Keep it at or below 2000 mhz. In your bios this adjustment is K8<>NB HT Speed. Choose manual instead of auto.

5. Post back to us with pics of CPU tabs (only need "CPU", "Memory" and "SPD" tabs) when you begin to encournter instability and have retarded settings to last stable overclock. The we can give some more advice.

Are you using the OEM box cpu cooler?

Please put your system specs in your "sig".

[Potence]

Yes i am using the OEM cooler.
and is that temp too high? it looks pretty big to me...

[trents]

Sorry, my original comment about your temps being okay was based on the first pic of HWMonitor. Yes, 63c is too high. It's not good for the CPU and it will prove to be unstable due to heat-related increase in electrical resistance. You will need to get a good aftermarket cooler to proceed further. How far did you get the CPU speed up to by the time you got that 63c max temp? Or was that temp at stock settings?

[Potence]

That was stock with Prime95 running.
Could you recommend any cheapish solutions?
Anything under £30/$45 would be great

[trents]

I can make some recommendations but I'm in the USA so what is available to me here may not be available to you. Before I make any recommendations, however, I need to know how wide your case is. The best air coolers are the tower style with 120mm fans and require a case width of at least 120cm. If not that wide then you would need to go with a 92mm fan cooler.

Your turn.

By the way, what were your ambient temps as you were loading with Prime95 and got that 63c max?

[trents]

This would be my first recommendation if your case will accommodate it:

http://viewitem.eim.ebay.eu/CoolerMa...452872851/item

[Potence]

45cm long
50cm deep (15cm taken up to hold HDDs and DVD drives)
15cm wideIs ambient when the CPU is idle? If so then it's the first picture.

[trents]

Ambient refers to what the room temperature is. The hotter the air being used to cool the higher will be the core temps.

How about this one, since your case isn't wide enough for a 120mm fan-based tower cooler:

http://viewitem.eim.ebay.eu/XigmaTek...064176084/item

It should give a good improvement over the puny stock cooler. Also get some good thermal paste like Arctic Silver 5 or Arctic Cooling MX-2. A good thermal paste can lower your temps 2+c over most of the junky oem stuff the coolers are shipped with.

[trents]

No wait. If you case is only 15cm wide from left to right (outside dimensions) then a 92mm fan cooler won't work either. Is this a mini tower case or something? That's pretty skinny.

What is the make and model of your case? I'd like to look the specs up.

[Potence]

To be honest I've never bought a CPU fan before so I don't really know what specs are good. I will ask my uncle tomorrow and take a look at some to get a few opinions etc.
I really apreciate the help I am off now though. Hopefully I will have something ordered within he next day or 2 and can coninue with the overclock.

[Potence]

It is a novatech tornado

[trents]

One more thought. I wonder if your high temps are in part cause by poor air flow inside your case. To test that, take the side panel off and position a window fan so that it blows into the open computer case. See if that brings those temps down.

[QuietIce]

to OCF!


Case airflow can be a problem but my guess is the high vCore for the temp problem. 1.50 vCore just isn't needed for the CPU to start with ...

[coonmanx]

Might it be a good idea to lower voltage (VCore) down to say 1.4. That would help with temps and surely at this point it doesn't need that much VCore.