Okay, Presler 920 finally crashed!

[batboy]

I don't know, your 12v and 3.3v rails look pretty good. I'm not convinced your PSU is the bottleneck. Remember guys, he's still using low vcore, so the system shouldn't be demanding that much juice yet. Definitely would need something better if he was trying to push the limits like some of us here.

Mr. M, I still think you need to bump up voltages across the board like we discussed. Just minor increases. Watch temps and test for stability. Probably don't need anymore than 2.0v on the RAM if you are still at SPD timings.

 

[M Powered]

I don't know, your 12v and 3.3v rails look pretty good. I'm not convinced your PSU is the bottleneck. Remember guys, he's still using low vcore, so the system shouldn't be demanding that much juice yet. Definitely would need something better if he was trying to push the limits like some of us here.

Mr. M, I still think you need to bump up voltages across the board like we discussed. Just minor increases. Watch temps and test for stability. Probably don't need anymore than 2.0v on the RAM if you are still at SPD timings.

Okay, FSB Determination voltage is at 1.3 and MCH voltage is at 1.6 - is that good?

I also bumped the ram speed down to 2.0 as suggested.

I also find it difficult to believe my PSU is the bottleneck, after all, I barely have any devices attached to it.

1 SATA harddrive
1 CDR-DVD

Thats it! No floppy, no zip, just TWO devices

 

[M Powered]

I just ran 3dmark 05 again, and got 7607

Which is over 100 points higher than last night. The only thing I did was up the voltage - this is getting weirder.

 

[batboy]

Not really that weird, you might be more stable and running better with the little bump in voltages.

 

[M Powered]

Not really that weird, you might be more stable and running better with the little bump in voltages.

So do you think I should return my PSU? Today is the last day I can return it.

 

[Know Nuttin]

I don't think that is that hard to believe. 15A on the +12v is all your CPU is getting. I maxed out my Fortron with 14A with my 630.

 

[batboy]

Know Nuttin has a good point. Chances are you'll become more and more addicted to overclocking. While that PSU is "probably" ok at the moment, it don't have any room to grow with your system or future overclocking goals. If you can exchange it for something better, then by all means do so.

 

[M Powered]

Know Nuttin has a good point. Chances are you'll become more and more addicted to overclocking. While that PSU is "probably" ok at the moment, it don't have any room to grow with your system or future overclocking goals. If you can exchange it for something better, then by all means do so.

Okay, Going to the store now.

 

[M Diddy]

Pick up the OCZ... You won't regret it!

 

[Ross]

OMG, I didn't even look, I thought it was single rail. 15A to the CPU? I don't think that will bode well on a 2 core with OC. I am waiting for a new single rail PSU myself because my OCZ 600W (dual rail) was only giving 20A on the CPU rail and holding me up...granted, mine is OCed higher.

Then I saw the sig and noticed you are running a 7800 to boot. It's a good thing you are at the store getting a new PSU...hopefully the OCZ 520W. The other PSUs mentioned here are good as well, but I will also add the Silverstone Zeus ST56ZF (single 12V rail). Huge amps on the 12, 24-pin/8-pin/PCIe, adjustment pots, smaller than the OCZs and built by Etasis. I am waiting on mine (be here Tues.), but it should be awesome.

Good luck..

 

[Know Nuttin]

You'll need to adjust those pots, Ross, on the ST56ZF. They appear to be set low on the +12v by default.

 

[Ross]

Yeah, that's what I hear about them, but since the "fix" for that is already installed, that's fine with me I've had to mod every single Enermax I've ever owned to adjust the rails, so having the pots already there will be a nice treat

 

[M Powered]

Okay, I'm back with an Antec "Smart Power 2.0" 500W PSU installed.

In speedfan I noticed my 12V is slightly higher than what it was before. Before with the Enermax it was 12.3V and under load it showed 12.25- 12.3V

With the Antec it says 12.41V and 12.36 underload throughout PCmark04

So what do you guys think about Antec Smart Power 2.0 PSU 500? Good choice? or do I need something beefier?

http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=26500

 

[Ross]

I don't want to be the voice of reason, but that PSU is only going to be slightly better than the Enermax If you're not planning on OCing the Presler really high, it will be better than the Enermax, but it will still limit you at some point.

Voltage on the 12V rails is not the key factor you should be looking at, it's the Amps on the 12V rail(s)...and the Antec is not much higher than the Enermax. OCed Intels, especially dual cores, can draw a lot of current. If they start drawing near the current limit on the 12V rail, that MAY show up as sagging 12V readings, but certainly not always.

You should really look for a single 12V rail PSU like the ones mentioned in this thread. The OCZ 520W is probably at the top of the popularity list for price/performance if the size of it is not a factor for your case (7" long). If it's any indication that I am selling my OCZ 600W dual 12V rail (18A/20A) in lieu of a strong single 12V rail (38A) PSU, take that for what it's worth...

 

[M Powered]

Almost everything I can find is dual rail or some even have quad rails.

Fry's is on the list of vendors that sell their products, however I cannot find the PSU at the store.

Is online my only option?

I don't plan on going nutts, I'll be happy with 3.8 or even 4Ghz - will this PSU cut it?

 

[Ross]

Yeah, the Fry's stores don't have the OCZ 520s anymore. A couple of months ago they were giving them away for $99 after rebate. Check with the common online shops (Newegg, Zipzoomfly, etc.) and you'll find the OCZ 520s probably in the $120-125 range. Single rail PSUs are kind of hard to find as the majority are now anything from 2-5 12V rails, which is ridiculous.

You'll pay shipping, but probaby save sales tax by ordering online, so other than waiting a couple of days to get one, it will probably be a wash compared to looking for one in a local store.

Just FYI, Newegg has the Silverstone Zeus that I ordered for $135, but I got mine from performance-pcs.com for $115

I think you'll be fine on that Antec for 3.8-4GHz if that's all you're looking for...

 

[Know Nuttin]

The Antec should hold you to 3.8 - 4GHz. It made all the difference for me. 19A should be enough for how far you want to push it. Any farther than 4GHz though, and it's questionable.

 

[M Powered]

Okay, I just installed a Silverstone adjustable 120mm fan.

@ 2500 rpm, its pretty loud - but it dropped my peak temp by about 6 C. Instead of maxing at 58c under load it maxes at about 51C.

I'm going to run it like this for a few days see if It is reliable.

 

[Ross]

I promise it's a lot more quiet than what it would take in high speed 80mm or 92mm fans to achieve the same flow 6C peak temp drop is NICE...good luck with it...

 

[M Powered]

Okay, there goes another crash. System this time just hard-reboots. No Blue screen of death or anything.

I brought the FSB down 5 to 245 and brought the cpu voltage up 1 knotch and Memory speed also up one knotch to 2.1V

I don't get it, I don't get any error messages, or program just abnormally closes, just weird system malfunctions.

At 3.4Ghz do you guys think it is still a power issue?