E8400 OC Question, Could It Work? [Dell Optiplex 755]

[kitt]

hey all, im new to overclocking and the forum

ok so what i have is an E8400 (E0) cpu, as below:





at the moment in my PC this cpu idles at 34c and raises to 44c under heavy load.
i have been reading about performing the LGA775 pad modding to increase the FSB frequency from 333mhz to 400mhz, which would result in the E8400 increasing from 3ghz to 3.6ghz.
now the problem, im using a dreaded dell optiplex 755 (latest bios), which allows for changing nothing in the bios with regards to cpu/ram parameters etc, as seen below:







the stock dell mainboard in my optiplex 755 uses the intel Q35 (express?) chipset, here:
http://ark.intel.com/products/31918

here is some additional data regarding the mainboard/memory:







so now to my question (sorry if it's dumb, im totally new to overclocking), is there no point in wasting time and effort attempting the 333mhz to 400mhz LGA775 cpu pad mod (due to my dell mainboard and lack of bios options regarding changing cpu/memory parameters?)
or is it a case of 'it might work', in which case i would give it a try.

thanks for any help or advice

 

[Johan45]

As long as your board will give it enough voltage it'll work, since you have no control you have to cross your fingers. If it doesn't then just erase your mod and go back to stock

 

[Witchdoctor]

use at own risk


http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/setfsb.html

 

[kitt]

hey thanks very much for your reply
ok i think i will look into getting some copper/conductive paint next, will have a look on ebay

 

[kitt]

use at own risk http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/setfsb.html

would that be a good way to test before going ahead with the actual pad mod? the reason i say to 'test only' is i heard that, software based overclocking is not 'as good' so to speak (although of course being new i dont know if there is any truth to that)

 

[Witchdoctor]

forget the mod

Apply cooling and let it rip

With a Dell PS and board doubt it will survive the ordeal anyway

 

[wagex]

theres a voltage pin mod as well if you can find it, theres actually a few.

 

[Witchdoctor]

It has been brought to my attention, you may have to pay for SetFSB

Think if you look hard, there my be a free version laying in some dark corner of the internet.

 

[funsoul]

They charge for it now? Just use the freeware version: http://www13.plala.or.jp/setfsb/ Setfsb is THE EPIC tool for 775 (and 771) overclocking (imho, of course)

kitt- Once you get things figured out a bit and have pushed the chip as far as your motherboard will take you, you might want to pick up a decent 775 overclocking board. You should be able to find a decent board for less than $50. You might also want to consider upgrading your cooler if you're really going to push.

 

[kitt]

thanks for the advice everyone, regarding upgrading the mainboard to be honest i think im only wanting the 3ghz to 3.6ghz increase, im not worried about going any further than that.
below are some more pics, the psu and the mainboard...
regarding the voltage, i read elsewhere that for going from 3ghz to 3.6ghz via 333mhz to 400mhz did not require a voltage increase. but that said, because of my limited bios options, how does it work, will the system see the 'altered cpu' and just ramp up the voltage itself anyway, to whatever amount it decides?
i will report here how the overclocking goes (it might take until next week for me to get some copper/conductive paint though. i wish it was possible to buy just a pea-sized amount )
by the way in my bios it lets me turn off speedstepping, but not c-states (so for disabling c-states i have to use software for that (im using XP)). anyway i dont know if these features are affected/need to be taken into account with regards to overclocking?

 

[Johan45]

Don't worry about the Cstates and speed step. Use them for your OC as well all you're going to do is change the bus speed and hope it works.

 

[Witchdoctor]

At least put a heat sink on the NB ....

 

[kitt]

At least put a heat sink on the NB ....

ok i had a read around as i wasnt sure what you meant, so i will try to get some thermal sticky pads as there are no holes present for me to use mounting clips/pushpins. thanks for the idea

 

[Tech Tweaker]

At least put a heat sink on the NB ....

There is a heatsink on his NB, it's next to the CPU heatsink.

That thing that's without a heatsink is the SB, if I'm not mistaken.

 

[kitt]

There is a heatsink on his NB, it's next to the CPU heatsink. That thing that's without a heatsink is the SB, if I'm not mistaken.

the thing without the heatsink looks like the pic below, im assuming it's ok to just leave that alone then
ps. i ordered some silver conductive paint, but will take 2-3 weeks to arrive as it's coming from hong kong

 

[(G{in}[AK)TION]]

for me, i was able to overclock to 4ghz. i have a biostar tp-45 hp. i set my ram from 800mhz to 667 and then raised the FSB to 890. only voltage changes i needed to make was for the ram only (had to push it up to 2.0v). everything else was left at their default voltages (if i left them on auto, the board would push their voltages even higher)

MORAL OF THE POST

if you are going to go for 3.6ghz, try overclocking the ram first and then apply bits of power to it. i suggest you get ddr2 800 and then set it to 667 in the bios.

 

[Tech Tweaker]

As far as overclocking to 3.6GHz with stock voltage/no voltage adjustment in the BIOS, yes it's possible with the right hardware.

If your CPU is anything like the two E8400 E0's I have owned, you should have little or no trouble.

Mine:
E8400 E0 #1, 3.6GHz: 1.16V (1.18125V)

E8400 E0 #2, 3.6GHz: 1.152-1.168v (1.1875v)

That said though, I agree with (G{in}[AK)TION] in that your current RAM may be a limiting factor in whether or not you can achieve this (DDR2-667 is a pretty low limit). I'd also recommend upgrading to at least some 800Mhz-rated DDR2.

Dell's low wattage power supply may also be a limiting factor, depending upon whether or not it can supply enough wattage to keep the system stable (and whether the rails (12v, 5v, 3.3v) can supply stable voltages).

 

[kitt]

below is a pic of my current memory stick, is that not 800mhz memory then?
if not, i will look to replace that memory stick, thanks

 

[Mr.Scott]

My E8400.

 

[Tech Tweaker]

below is a pic of my current memory stick, is that not 800mhz memory then?
if not, i will look to replace that memory stick, thanks
View attachment 160436

My mistake, that is 800MHz memory.

I thought you had 667MHz for some reason.

@Mr. Scott, that on water cooling?

Mine only goes to 4.4GHz on air, with much lower voltage.