E6600 + Fortron 500w Blue Storm = enough?

[ninja6o4]

Hi Guys,
I'm fiddling with some overclocking now and I just popped in a Noctua NH-U12 HSF. Getting low temps (45c on Core Temp) with Orthos running at 320x9, but I get errors within a couple minutes. The voltage I have set only at 1.375, and I'm running 1201 BIOS. If I try to clock any higher the computer randomly powers OFF (not resets or BSOD) for about 3 seconds, and then powers on again by itself, going through POST etc. Is my PSU strong enough to handle a decent overclock? I'm aiming for around 3.2 ghz.

I think I will update the BIOS tonight, and then go from there. I'm also going to go over Dragonrider's P5WDH guide in fine detail to get some tips, but here is my rig setup, if anyone has some suggestions on what to hit next after BIOS. I don't think I will mess with the multiplier.

Asus P5WDH-Deluxe w/ 1201 bios (edit: flashed now to 1602, having better luck, see below)
E6600 + Noctua NH-U12 cooler
OCZ Gold XTC PC6400 2gb
Fortron Blue Storm 500W
Antec P180
eVGA 7950GT

 

[hUMANbEATbOX]

are you saying that if you clock higher, it does the double boot thing when you first power it up? if so, that is normal, AFAIK. my p5b-dlx does this when i go over 400fsb. if it is rebooting while you are in windows, on the desktop, then there is something wrong.

 

[ninja6o4]

Actually, I did notice the double boot on first power on, I thought I was imagining things.

But yes.. if i clock higher (i must not have something locked down now that I think about it), it'll be trying to boot windows (one time I was able to start orthos before it shut off) and power right off, 3 secs, then boot up again to POST. It seems to POST successfully every time. Does this sound like a voltage issue or PSU issue?

 

[hUMANbEATbOX]

i would try for some more voltage. it seems strange that it won't do 2.8ghz with 1.375v set in bios, but not all chips OC the same. see if setting 1.4v gets you over the hump.

basically, every rig is an entirely different beast. it takes time and testing to gain an intimate knowledge of the hardware at hand. no 2 systems will oc the same, even with identical hardware.

if using 1.4v doesn't do the trick, i would question the psu (actually, i'm questioning it right now). i looked up its specs, and it has 2 seperate +12v rails that run at a MAX of 15a each. this is pretty pitiful. by contrast, i have a 4 year old antec 420w psu with a single +12v rail at 24a. even that would be more suitable.

 

[ninja6o4]

I originally got this PSU to accommodate additional load on 12v from the video card.. I do have an Antec NeoHE 550w (specs here: http://www.antec.com/specs/NeoHE550_spe.html), 3 12v rails at 18A max each.. not much better.

I used the Blue Storm to overclock my previous rig, a Prescott 3.0 + P4C800E to 3.6 GHz stable..

 

[hUMANbEATbOX]

so you had a psu that was 3x18a, and you went to a psu that is 2x15a?

i don't understand the downgrade...

 

[ninja6o4]

The 550w is actually in my file server.. I figure it needs more power (running 10x HDDs)..

 

[ninja6o4]

OK I updated the BIOS and that was a huge help, as was Dragonrider's guide. I am now running Orthos at 333x9=3000 mhz @ 1.45v, 52c in Core Temp after 6 mins, my ram at 333 - 1:1 ratio. Is this high of a voltage normal for this type of oc? I see some people post crazy oc's on pretty mild overvolts.

Also, does it make much difference if I try performance wise to force the RAM to 4:5 ratio?

 

[hUMANbEATbOX]

i would stick with the 1:1 ratio. running anything higher won't get you much if any performance. it can actually hurt performance at times.

is the 1.45v you speak of the BIOS setting? i'm not sure what my cpu needs for 3ghz, but for 3.5ghz, i set 1.5v in bios, it gives my 1.45v in asus probe, dips down to 1.42v under load.

 

[ninja6o4]

Yeah I had 1.45v in BIOS. I tried to boot 350x9 all the way up to 1.6v and it won't boot windows (POST OK).. I can't believe my ceiling is 335x9. Any ideas on what to check?

 

[hUMANbEATbOX]

i would try the other psu.

(i know this would be a pain, its just that dual 15a +12v makes me cringe)

 

[Super Nade]

Any BIOS prior to the last 15x will use the PS_ON signal for a hard re-boot. This is quite stressfull to the components involved and ASUS realiesed this. Thankfull this issue has been fixed.

If you are stuck at low FSB, you need to turn off Hyperpath and DRAM Throtlling.
My max stable FSB is 430 (E6400 though!) with max VMCH, ICH and FSB voltages.

 

[ninja6o4]

I checked Hyperpath and DRAM Throttling, both disabled. Is it safe to run max voltage on those 3 things? I tried maxing all 3 out but it made no difference.

at 335x9, RAM at 670, POST and Orthos solid for 4 hours.
at 340x9, RAM at 680, POST but does not boot Windows.
at 340x9, RAM at 510, POST and DOES boot Windows. Did not run Orthos.
at 350x9, RAM at 525, does not POST.

All running vcore at 1.45v. I did try 350x9 all the way up to 1.6v but had no success going into Windows. I have the BIOS setup exactly as Dragonrider's P5WDH guide. (http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=488070)

Hoping for further suggestions in the morning. If nothing works I may try swapping PSU's on the weekend, man that's a pain

 

[hUMANbEATbOX]

If nothing works I may try swapping PSU's on the weekend, man that's a pain

just a suggestion on this, you can run the new setup caseless beside the server. that way you don't have to entirely remove the psu from the server, just the plugs needed (and maybe unplug the 10xHDDs). last time i did this, i created a pile of old shoe boxes to put my caseless computer on, that way you can get it close enough to the server case so you don't have to remove the psu.

 

[Dragonprince]

Your power supply does not meet the minimum requirements for your video card, the spec's say 18a minimum per rail, 28a for SLi . Definetly a power supply issue that's coming up as you try to boost voltage to other components. No way you should need more than 1.37v core to run at a low 2.8Ghz, I'd be suprised if you needed to go above stock voltage....In fact I would say you dont need to boost voltage on anything at all at that low speed except maybe your Ram, depending on divider. As long as you have the PCI bus locked at 33 and the PCI-E locked at 100 or less I'd bet it's your power supply....

 

[rainless]

Your power supply does not meet the minimum requirements for your video card, the spec's say 18a minimum per rail, 28a for SLi . Definetly a power supply issue that's coming up as you try to boost voltage to other components. No way you should need more than 1.37v core to run at a low 2.8Ghz, I'd be suprised if you needed to go above stock voltage....In fact I would say you dont need to boost voltage on anything at all at that low speed except maybe your Ram, depending on divider. As long as you have the PCI bus locked at 33 and the PCI-E locked at 100 or less I'd bet it's your power supply....

Actually I know plenty of people who are running the 7950 just fine on a Blue Storm. And he seems to be doing okay up to 1.45 volts. I've got a Bluestorm myself... but then again I only have a 7600GS right now... (Won't upgrade until Crysis and a G80 GS model are released.)

 

[ninja6o4]

Would the lack of amps on the 12v rail cause it to fail at POST? Or only crap out when I try to load up a video game? And rainless does have a point, the requirements on his 7600GS are the same as my 7950GT.. Why that is, I don't know..

If I have 2 rails, doesn't 1 rail go to mobo and 1 go to video? In which case, does the oc really need more than 15A by itself on this rig? Video shouldn't come into play yet, I'm only doing CPU tests..

 

[Dragonprince]

Video always comes in to play, the 7950 draws a lot even at idle. eVGA's web site says 20a minimum recommended. Do as you please but until your power supply meets minimum requirements I think your wasting your time looking for something else causing stability issues....

 

[rainless]

Video always comes in to play, the 7950 draws a lot even at idle. eVGA's web site says 20a minimum recommended. Do as you please but until your power supply meets minimum requirements I think your wasting your time looking for something else causing stability issues....

I'm still in strong disagreement. A video card... ANY video card is drawing the bare minimum of power at post. That's why most people whose systems crash out on them due to lack of power usually complain of experiencing that either when windows loads the video drivers (the hardware acceleration is not active until that point) or during a graphics intensive process. You could probably post a 7950 on a 300 watt power supply and run linux on it just fine.

So I take exactly the opposite stance: I say you're chasing a red herring by replacing the power supply. ESPECIALLY if it runs at stock AND it doesn't crap out until 1.45v.

 

[greenmaji]

Lack of enough power can just cause stability issues not just no post.

Have you run test 5 in memtest on your ram frequency & timings?