New Guy, FX-4100 Core Boost Safety

[Okie135]

Hey guys,

So first time posting, but I've been visiting the site and reading on and off for the last few years. Great content by the way. Anywho, last year I got myself a shiny new rig. Sorry for the wall of text.

Specs:
AMD FX-4100
Gigabyte 970A-UD3
Radeon HD 6870
G.Skill Ripjaws X Series (2x4GB) 240-pin DDR3-1866 (PC3 14900)
Corsair TX 750
I have a Corsair H-70 with 2 fans in a push-me-pull-you setup.

I always planned to OC it, but this is the only rig I can afford right now. Since I can run most of my games at near max settings, I never got around to doing it. Besides, since this is what I can afford, I don't want my chip to burn out any quicker. So you can imagine my surprise this morning when I try out the AMD OverDrive program to double check my CPU-temps (I've been using CoreTemp up till now.) I start the program and lo and behold here's what it says my stats are:

Frequency: 3725 MHz //This number is red
Multiplier: 18.50 X
VID: 1.4125
Temperature: 21.8 C //This is with the program and a bunch of Google Chrome tabs open.


So I took a look at the BIOS and came up with this:

CPU Clock Ratio [Auto] 3600MHz
CPU North Bridge Frequency [Auto] 2000Mhz
Core Performance Boost [Enabled] //Aha! Maybe this is it...
CPB Ratio [Auto] 3800Mhz
CPU Host Clock Control [Auto]
x CPU Frequency (MHz) 200
HT Link Width [Auto]
HT LInk Width Frequency [Auto] 2400Mhz
Set Memory Clock [Auto]
x Memory Clock x8.00 1600Mhz //huh...
System Control Voltage [Auto]
Normal CPU Vcore 1.4125V //that looks familiar

So I disabled the Core Performance Boost setting and checked AMD OverDrive again.

Freq: 3624 MHz //in the black
Multiplier 18.00 X
VID 1.3625
Temp: 15.5-15.9 //idle except for notepad and OverDrive


For a YEAR now I have been running with a higher voltage than I think is normal for an FX-4100. (This could be a misconception.) My understanding is that Voltage not Clock speed is what kills processors early. My understanding is also that going from 1.3625 to 1.4125 shouldn't have really done any damage. Plus this CPB is set on by default. AMD desgined the chip to run with that.

So here's my question:
Would this have caused any problems or shortened my chip's lifespan? Is there anything I should keep an eye on specifically when I start to OC because of the CPB running at a higher voltage for so long? If I'm not OC'ing for a while is it a good idea to leave CPB on?

Also, I just noticed that my Memory Clock is 1600Mhz. Is that the right spot to start looking to boost my memory to 1866 or am I looking in the wrong spot? Would you recommend leaving the memory speeds alone or going for it?

Thanks for your time.

 

[trents]

Hey guys,

So first time posting, but I've been visiting the site and reading on and off for the last few years. Great content by the way. Anywho, last year I got myself a shiny new rig. Sorry for the wall of text.

Specs:
AMD FX-4100
Gigabyte 970A-UD3
Radeon HD 6870
G.Skill Ripjaws X Series (2x4GB) 240-pin DDR3-1866 (PC3 14900)
Corsair TX 750
I have a Corsair H-70 with 2 fans in a push-me-pull-you setup.

I always planned to OC it, but this is the only rig I can afford right now. Since I can run most of my games at near max settings, I never got around to doing it. Besides, since this is what I can afford, I don't want my chip to burn out any quicker. So you can imagine my surprise this morning when I try out the AMD OverDrive program to double check my CPU-temps (I've been using CoreTemp up till now.) I start the program and lo and behold here's what it says my stats are:

Frequency: 3725 MHz //This number is red
Multiplier: 18.50 X
VID: 1.4125
Temperature: 21.8 C //This is with the program and a bunch of Google Chrome tabs open.


So I took a look at the BIOS and came up with this:

CPU Clock Ratio [Auto] 3600MHz
CPU North Bridge Frequency [Auto] 2000Mhz
Core Performance Boost [Enabled] //Aha! Maybe this is it...
CPB Ratio [Auto] 3800Mhz
CPU Host Clock Control [Auto]
x CPU Frequency (MHz) 200
HT Link Width [Auto]
HT LInk Width Frequency [Auto] 2400Mhz
Set Memory Clock [Auto]
x Memory Clock x8.00 1600Mhz //huh...
System Control Voltage [Auto]
Normal CPU Vcore 1.4125V //that looks familiar

So I disabled the Core Performance Boost setting and checked AMD OverDrive again.

Freq: 3624 MHz //in the black
Multiplier 18.00 X
VID 1.3625
Temp: 15.5-15.9 //idle except for notepad and OverDrive


For a YEAR now I have been running with a higher voltage than I think is normal for an FX-4100. (This could be a misconception.) My understanding is that Voltage not Clock speed is what kills processors early. My understanding is also that going from 1.3625 to 1.4125 shouldn't have really done any damage. Plus this CPB is set on by default. AMD desgined the chip to run with that.

So here's my question:
Would this have caused any problems or shortened my chip's lifespan? No Is there anything I should keep an eye on specifically when I start to OC because of the CPB running at a higher voltage for so long? Your voltage hasn't bee particularly high. There is not one standard OEM voltage for any AMD CPU model but rather a range. If I'm not OC'ing for a while is it a good idea to leave CPB on? Yes but this is a minor matter.

Also, I just noticed that my Memory Clock is 1600Mhz. Is that the right spot to start looking to boost my memory to 1866 or am I looking in the wrong spot? Would you recommend leaving the memory speeds alone or going for it? You should be running the ram at 1866 if it's rated for that because the FX IMC (Integrated Memory Controller) is pretty stout and quite capable of handling that frequency. Why handicap your performance by running the ram at 1600?

Thanks for your time.

The basic fallacy in your reasoning here is that you are focusing too much on voltages. Temps are the more important issue and your temps are fantastic. It is safe to run AMD CPUs 24/7 with voltages of over 1.5. 1.6 is getting too high IMO and would shorten the life of the CUP noticeably. Unless you plan on staying with this rig for many years I would say your worries are unfounded.

 

[Okie135]

Thanks for your timely response.

I'm off to go looking for a memory clock guide. Unless of course I could just change the memory clock to the right speed without changing the other memory settings?

Edit:
UPDATE: This thread here: http://gskill.us/forum/showthread.php?t=9233 answered my memory questions. Figured I'd leave the refernece in case anyone else wanted to know. Once again thanks guys.

 

[trents]

If you leave your memory timings on Auto and if you have an XMP-1866 setting in bios for the memory divider then there's a good chance Uncle "Auto" may time it correctly for you. Check the SPD tab in CPU-z for the manufacturer's recommended timings and voltages at various standard frequencies. Compare that to your current running frequency and timings in the CPU-z Memory tab. Unfortunately, CPU-z will not tell you what your current running memory voltage is. You have to go into bios to check that.

There are three standard overclocking utilities you should download and install that we use constantly around here, all freeware:

CPU-z

HWMonitor

Prime95