Help OC'ing Athlon II x3 460

[Skoll_21]

Hi!

I'm trying to OC my CPU but I've only managed to raise the FSB to 210MHz without messing with voltages (don't really want to do it). I've had it like this for about 6 months without ever having a BSOD; when I first did it I ran Prime95 for almost an hour (I think) and CPU got to 45ºC and I usually play TF2 and some other games and never had any issues.

When I raise the FSB to 212MHz and run Prime 95 I get a BSOD in 5 minutes.

My specs are:
Athlon II x3 460 3.4GHz
2x 2GB Corsair Vengeance 1600MHz DDR3 RAM
Asus M4A88T-M (w/ latest BIOS)
OCZ ZS 550W
ATI Radeon HD 6770

More details on my OC currently (with 210MHz FSB):
CPU is running at 3.57 GHz.
I have decreased the HTT multiplier so it doesn't go over 2000 MHz and it's at 1890 MHz.
I haven't changed the CPU-NB muliplier and it's at 2100 MHz.
I haven't changed any RAM settings (as it's 1600MHz RAM) and it's at 2x700=1400MHz.
BIOS setting: Cool 'n' Quiet disabled, C1E support enabled (no idea what this does but I've seen it mentioned somewhere with OC related stuff)


Here's some BIOS and CPU-Z shots in case I failed to mention something:





Do I get BSOD with FSB at 212MHz because I have to raise the voltages? From what I've read, usually you can OC a bit higher than what I have without having to mess with voltages. Maybe I'm doing something else wrong? Any help is appreciated

 

[Anonaru]

Hi!

I'm trying to OC my CPU but I've only managed to raise the FSB to 210MHz without messing with voltages (don't really want to do it). I've had it like this for about 6 months without ever having a BSOD; when I first did it I ran Prime95 for almost an hour (I think) and CPU got to 45ºC and I usually play TF2 and some other games and never had any issues.

When I raise the FSB to 212MHz and run Prime 95 I get a BSOD in 5 minutes.

My specs are:
Athlon II x3 460 3.4GHz
2x 2GB Corsair Vengeance 1600MHz DDR3 RAM
Asus M4A88T-M (w/ latest BIOS)
OCZ ZS 550W
ATI Radeon HD 6770

More details on my OC currently (with 210MHz FSB):
CPU is running at 3.57 GHz.
I have decreased the HTT multiplier so it doesn't go over 2000 MHz and it's at 1890 MHz.
I haven't changed the CPU-NB muliplier and it's at 2100 MHz.
I haven't changed any RAM settings (as it's 1600MHz RAM) and it's at 2x700=1400MHz.
BIOS setting: Cool 'n' Quiet disabled, C1E support enabled (no idea what this does but I've seen it mentioned somewhere with OC related stuff)


Here's some BIOS and CPU-Z shots in case I failed to mention something:





Do I get BSOD with FSB at 212MHz because I have to raise the voltages? From what I've read, usually you can OC a bit higher than what I have without having to mess with voltages. Maybe I'm doing something else wrong? Any help is appreciated

C1E set to "Disabled" and LLC set to "high" if you can. Give your vCore a single "Bump" (Smallest voltage increase your computer will allow) then re-run. If still BSOD, give your CPU-NB a single "Bump" as well. Report back with your results

 

[Skoll_21]

Thanks, I'll try that and report back!

 

[Skoll_21]

(Sorry for double posting but I edited the previous post and wasn't getting any answer)

C1E set to "Disabled" and LLC set to "high" if you can. Give your vCore a single "Bump" (Smallest voltage increase your computer will allow) then re-run. If still BSOD, give your CPU-NB a single "Bump" as well. Report back with your results

In the BIOS I can only set the LLC (LoadLine Calibration, right?) to various percentages: 0%, 3.225%, 6.450%, 9.675% and so on... What do I set it to?
About the vCore (I think it's called CPU Over Voltage in the BIOS): Is this value an addition do the default 1.36V or is it the value I want to set the vCore at? I could set it to 1.075V (minimum value I can set) or 1.3625V depending on which case it is.

 

[Anonaru]

(Sorry for double posting but I edited the previous post and wasn't getting any answer)




In the BIOS I can only set the LLC (LoadLine Calibration, right?) to various percentages: 0%, 3.225%, 6.450%, 9.675% and so on... What do I set it to?
About the vCore (I think it's called CPU Over Voltage in the BIOS): Is this value an addition do the default 1.36V or is it the value I want to set the vCore at? I could set it to 1.075V (minimum value I can set) or 1.3625V depending on which case it is.

If vCore is default 1.365, then try 1.380 or 1.385, whatever it will let you set it at.

As far as LLC in percentages, you've got me I'm assuming this is a "How much can I over-volt to compensate" percentage, so I wouldn't mess with that too much for now

 

[Skoll_21]

If vCore is default 1.365, then try 1.380 or 1.385, whatever it will let you set it at.

As far as LLC in percentages, you've got me I'm assuming this is a "How much can I over-volt to compensate" percentage, so I wouldn't mess with that too much for now

No, default vCore is 1.36V according to CPU-Z and in BIOS it is set to AUTO by default and the next value I can choose after 1.36 is 1.3625V, so I'll use that. I won't mess with LLC then. Thanks again!

 

[Anonaru]

No, default vCore is 1.36V according to CPU-Z and in BIOS it is set to AUTO by default and the next value I can choose after 1.36 is 1.3625V, so I'll use that. I won't mess with LLC then. Thanks again!

If that bump isn't large enough to change stability, give it one more and re-run. I doubt you'll need a large increase until your frequencies get higher

 

[trents]

LLC can be a very good thing cause it allows you operate at a lower voltage when doing average computing tasks but then adds a voltage shot under full load to maintain stability in intensive computing tasks. It might be a good idea to disable LLC until you find out what is the maximum vcore you need to be stable during a 2+ hour Prime95 blend test, reduce the vcore somewhat and then go back and configure LLC to add a supplemental voltage to bring the vcore up to that amount needed for stability under full load.

 

[Anonaru]

LLC can be a very good thing cause it allows you operate at a lower voltage when doing average computing tasks but then adds a voltage shot under full load to maintain stability in intensive computing tasks. It might be a good idea to disable LLC until you find out what is the maximum vcore you need to be stable during a 2+ hour Prime95 blend test, reduce the vcore somewhat and then go back and configure LLC to add a supplemental voltage to bring the vcore up to that amount needed for stability under full load.

Thanks for swinging by- I know what LLC does in general and wanted to hold off on this advice until we got the OC higher / stable, but I'm not familiar with a percentage-based LLC in the least, good show!

 

[trents]

No, I'm not familiar with the percentage-based LLC configuration either. Mine just has "Auto", "Enabled" and "Disabled". I wish I could fine tune mine like OP can. Anonaru, I think we are both giving him the same advice: get a stable configuration first and then mess with LLC.

 

[Anonaru]

No, I'm not familiar with the percentage-based LLC configuration either. Mine just has "Auto", "Enabled" and "Disabled". I wish I could fine tune mine like OP can. Anonaru, I think we are both giving him the same advice: get a stable configuration first and then mess with LLC.

Yuparoni Mine has more options than that, but still not percentage-based. I'd kill for these hyper-fine adjustments on a wider array of AMD boards.. They seem to favor large "bumps" and generalized settings

 

[Skoll_21]

LLC can be a very good thing cause it allows you operate at a lower voltage when doing average computing tasks but then adds a voltage shot under full load to maintain stability in intensive computing tasks. It might be a good idea to disable LLC until you find out what is the maximum vcore you need to be stable during a 2+ hour Prime95 blend test, reduce the vcore somewhat and then go back and configure LLC to add a supplemental voltage to bring the vcore up to that amount needed for stability under full load.

So, should I set the LLC to 0% or leave it on auto?

I still haven't raised the vCore but I don't plan on OC'ing much more cause I'm not comfortable with changing anything else than the FSB and I'm afraid I'll fry my CPU by messing too much with voltages and stuff :/ I think I'll just find the lowest voltage until the system is stable at a 212MHz FSB and leave it that way. But I'll think about the LLC later Thanks.

 

[trents]

It's your machine and you have the right to do with it as you please but I hope you know by now that plenty of us overclock significantly, including raising voltages, without doing harm to our equipment. And we are dedicated here to helping others learn how to do the same. But people always have to be willing to take a step our two outside their comfort zones to learn a new skill.

Concerning your LLC you just need to experiment. Obviously, 0% will not make any difference but it is unknown what Auto will do. To find out, run a 10 minute Prime95 stress test, first with it on 0% and then with it on Auto. Make sure you have HWmonitor open both times and take note of any difference changing the setting has on CPU vcore in HWMonitor. You could do the same with any of the LLC options. Until you get over a total vcore of 1.55 under load do you have to worry about damaging anyghing, as long as your core temps don't exceed 65c and your CPU socket temps don't exceed 70c. Temps are a better indicator of impending danger or damage than are voltages.

 

[Skoll_21]

I'm not doubting your knowledge and I really appreciate you guys trying to help me! It's just that I'm afraid of messing something up. But I think I'll give it a shot when I have more time to experiment with those settings. I'll post something after I try it out. Thanks again!