Overclocking help

Hey, i have recently been thinking about overclocking my cpu. But i don't really have any experience with overclocking im a average person trying to learn more about computer building overclocking but i think i have the luxuary of easy overclocking(i hope). I went into my motherbord bios and i saw something called Jumperfree Configuration, so i checked it out and it had options for overclocking (pic's) i heard that when overclocking u want to increase the multiplier im not 100% how to do this but these options should make it really easy for someone who knows what hes doing basicly i'm wondering what options i would have to use to overclock best and by how much.

Spec's

CPU: ''AMD Athlon II X3 455'' (this is the cpu i bought but for some reason my bios is saying that its a AMD Phenom(tm) II X4 B55 think it changed when i activated 4th core, idk...)
GPU: ''Radeon HD 6770''
RAM: 2x ''Corsair XMS3 4GB''
Motherboard: ''ASUS M5A78L''
Power supply: I belive it was 600 or 700 Watt

You heard but you did not finish the hearing...CPU: ''AMD Athlon II X3 455'' << does n0t have an upward unlocked multiplier so you cann0t use the multiplier to overclock your cpu speed. Must use increaseing of FSB/HT Frequency or HT Ref Frequency whatever it is called in your bios.

RGone said:

You heard but you did not finish the hearing...CPU: ''AMD Athlon II X3 455'' << does n0t have an upward unlocked multiplier so you cann0t use the multiplier to overclock your cpu speed. Must use increaseing of FSB/HT Frequency or HT Ref Frequency whatever it is called in your bios.

Click to expand...

Again im a beginner when it comes to this but are you refering to the ''CPU/HT reference clock'' that would make more sense i guess, should i try increasing slowly or increase by a higher number?

We need more info. Please download and install CPU-z. Post pics of tabs: "CPU", "Memory" and "SPD". Also download and install HWMonitor and Prime95 for future reference. What make and model of case do you have? What about case fans and ventilation? How many fans? How big? Where are they located in the case?

What are you cooling the CPU with? The stock OEM cooler and aftermarket cooler and if the latter, what make and model?

trents said:

We need more info. Please download and install CPU-z. Post pics of tabs: "CPU", "Memory" and "SPD". Also download and install HWMonitor and Prime95 for future reference. What make and model of case do you have? What about case fans and ventilation? How many fans? How big? Where are they located in the case?

What are you cooling the CPU with? The stock OEM cooler and aftermarket cooler and if the latter, what make and model?

Click to expand...

Alright, i have the stock cooler (the one that came with the cpu) and 1x 120mm fan in the back of the case. If need be il buy a better cooler. Il take more pictures if needed for more info

Case model: Ace Ecco 420 Midi Tower black

With HWMonitor already open on the desktop, run Prime95 blend stress test for 20 minutes. If your max core temps approach or exceed 55 C. (which they will, I think because they are already at 47 C. at idle) then you have no head room for overclocking and need a better cooler. You also need another 120mm fan in the front panel of the case.

Bed time for me. Report back with what you find out about temps.

trents said:

With HWMonitor already open on the desktop, run Prime95 blend stress test for 20 minutes. If your max core temps approach or exceed 55 C. (which they will, I think because they are already at 47 C. at idle) then you have no head room for overclocking and need a better cooler. You also need another 120mm fan in the front panel of the case.

Bed time for me. Report back with what you find out about temps.

Click to expand...

Ok, i ran Prime95 and i had it running on ''In-place large FFTs (maximum heat, power consumption, some RAM tested) option lasted 8 minutes untill the cpu went up to 73 C and i turned it off. So its clear i need better cooling btw another question if i ever overclock (will happen sooner or later) should i use all of my 4 cores? for the last 3days i've been using 3 to see if it could stay cooler and so on, and you guys have any coolers to recommend? otherwise il look it up myself. It has to be for my motherboard and cpu ofc.

Idle the cpu is at about 35 C with 1.0V and 46 at 1.45V

Huh, Core Temp says athlon III X3 Rana and the CPU-Z says X4 B55. Weird

and sorry for small pic zoom in to read it better

Here is a possible candidate

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master...1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1330340812&sr=1-1

The Hyper 212+ is a lovely fan, and one that was recommended to me, and I've always recommended to anyone looking for an after market fan. It can have two fans on it, for push and pull, or just one for whatever you desire.

Warning: It's HUGE and has a custom bracket. You may have to remove your mobo to install it.

kimser, three things:

1. It's better to run the Prime95 blend test than the large or the small FFT test, IMO. The blend test is more balanced and will stress both the CPU cores and the memory to a good amount. It's more like real life computing.
2. Yes, you do need a better cooler but you need to be careful that you get one that fits in your case. The CoolerMaster Hyper 212+ mentioned by skpwn is a very good cooler and a very good value but like all the tower style coolers with 120mm fans it is tall. It requires a case at least 8" (203 mm) whereas your case is only 197 mm wide (about 7.75 in.). Therefore your cooler must be no taller than about 154 mm. I think all the 120 mm fan-based tower style coolers are taller than that, being closer to 160 mm. This means you will need to go with a 92 mm fan-based tower style cooler if you choose that style. The "top down" cooler you reference would fit, however, and gets good reviews. If your ram has tall heat spreaders it might not work, however. See the NewEgg reviews: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103100&Tpk=Cooler Master GeminII S524
3. You need to install a front intake fan. Good case ventilation is critical to keeping temps down. You might try taking the side panel off your case and see if temps drop, just as a test.

Kimser said:

Huh, Core Temp says athlon III X3 Rana and the CPU-Z says X4 B55. Weird

and sorry for small pic zoom in to read it better

Click to expand...

Not weird. You unlocked the 4th core. If its stable in four cores that's great but you would need to do some thorough stress testing to confirm that and without better cooling you can't do that. That's a major reason, by the way, your temps are so high. The stock cooler is not made to handle a four core CPU. Of course, you could also turn the core unlocker feature off in bios. Did you know that you had turned that on?

trents said:

Not weird. You unlocked the 4th core. If its stable in four cores that's great but you would need to do some thorough stress testing to confirm that and without better cooling you can't do that. That's a major reason, by the way, your temps are so high. The stock cooler is not made to handle a four core CPU. Of course, you could also turn the core unlocker feature off in bios. Did you know that you had turned that on?

Click to expand...

When i got the cpu it had 3cores turned on with a 4th one unlockable with a push of a button basicly, i've had it on 4cores from the start without issues it still only went to about 73-75 with 4cores on (when i did Prime95 test) but if i overclock il use 3 cores ofcourse

I could open up my PC, take some pictures and try to give a better way to judge what would fit

If it will be stable on 4 cores and if you get better cooling why not overclock it as a four core?

Kimser said:

I could open up my PC, take some pictures and try to give a better way to judge what would fit

Click to expand...

That probably wouldn't help much. You already gave a pic of the empty case. The only possible issue is the ram clearance and since your ram is low profile that shouldn't gen issue with that cooler you referenced.

trents said:

That probably wouldn't help much. You already gave a pic of the empty case. The only possible issue is the ram clearance and since your ram is low profile that shouldn't gen issue with that cooler you referenced.

Click to expand...

Will the http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master...1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1330340812&sr=1-1
be enough to cool if i overclock with 4 cores?

Kimser said:

Will the http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master...1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1330340812&sr=1-1
be enough to cool if i overclock with 4 cores?

Click to expand...

Oh, yes, I think so. Though it might not allow you to overclock as far as the top drawer big tower coolers like the Noctua D14.

IF the side cover of case has no fans sticking out in the way of the tall Cpu cooler and the case is "really" 7.75 inches wide, then the 212+ will fit. That is considering normal depth of mobo tray to other case dimensions.

trents said:

Oh, yes, I think so. Though it might not allow you to overclock as far as the top drawer big tower coolers like the Noctua D14.

Click to expand...

alright thanks for the help. Im gonna look into a fan for my front and im see if i can upgrade my cooler after that il slowly increase my buss speed bit by bit in my bios hope it will work.