955 x4 overclocking results in voltage to 1.5v?

[Jays2016]

Newb to overclocking here, so I've been using AMD CPU OverDrive as it seems straightforward. I ran the CPU stability test they provided and it lasted til 4.1-4.2 Ghz before my system rebooted itself. First thing I noticed was that it was running the test at 1.5v all the way from 3.3 Ghz. If I try overclocking from 3.2 all the way to 3.3-4.0, always the voltage changes from 1.4 to 1.5. After researching/googling this overclocking for days, I've come to learn this is quite high and apparently near the cards max. Is this safe? Is there a way around this and if so, what do you recommend given my PC's specs or what's best for my situation?
Thanks!!


PC Specs -
Motherboard: ASUS M4N75TD AM3 NVIDIA nForce 750a SLI ATX AMD Motherboard
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE Deneb Quad-Core 3.20 GHz Socket AM3 125W (RB-C3 Revision)
GPU: SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP
PSU: EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2
Cooling: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Cooler

 

[Mandrake4565]

Jays welcome to the forum. Overdrive is a great tool for overclocking and trying to find a stable Oc but it is always recommended for one to become familiar with overclocking through the BIOS. I assume you're leaving the Cpu Voltage on auto, the is likely the reason the voltage is going up to 1.5. Best bet is to read the guide here and ask questions if you have any.

 

[Mr.Scott]

1.5v is not out of the realm for 4.1-4.2, as a matter of fact, you'll be lucky if that's all it needs.



There is no such thing as 'safe' overclocking. Too many variables. You want safe, leave it stock. You want overclock, you take a risk, just like everybody else.

 

[Jays2016]

1.5v is not out of the realm for 4.1-4.2, as a matter of fact, you'll be lucky if that's all it needs.

View attachment 170326

There is no such thing as 'safe' overclocking. Too many variables. You want safe, leave it stock. You want overclock, you take a risk, just like everybody else.

Realistically I'll cap out at 3.6-3.8, wouldn't 1.5v THEN be too much? Google says yes but it did it automatically so I'm very confused.

 

[Mr.Scott]

Yes probably. Any voltage left on 'auto' generally overvolts.
FWIW, the rule of thumb on PII is up to 1.5v is considered 'safe' with proper cooling. By proper I mean under 55c @ full load for an hour.

 

[Mandrake4565]

Google says yes but it did it automatically so I'm very confused.

Stay away from google we can help you a lot more!

 

[Jays2016]

Stay away from google we can help you a lot more!

Thanks!
I'm reading that guide now, but I noticed it's not for my 955 BE x4 in particular, would that make any of a difference? (says its for DDR2 not DDR3)

 

[Bluefalcon13]

Thanks!
I'm reading that guide now, but I noticed it's not for my 955 BE x4 in particular, would that make any of a difference?

As long as you are reading the Phenom II guide you should be fine.

 

[Mandrake4565]

Thanks!
I'm reading that guide now, but I noticed it's not for my 955 BE x4 in particular, would that make any of a difference? (says its for DDR2 not DDR3)

No and the really simple way of overclocking the 955be is just turn off all the power saving features, download Hwmonitor "non pro", set the Cpu voltage manually to say 1.45v. Run prime blend 20 minutes with Hwmonitor open, keep the Cpu temp and package temp below 62c. If it stays below start raising the multiplier .5 at a time testing 20 minutes each time. If it fails Prime, ie Freeze, dropped worker or BSOD, raise the Cpu voltage one notch if it passes raise the multiplier. When you get to about 55c in temps you may want to try passing 2 hours of blend, some PII chips will get a bit wonky around that temp.