How i finally hit 13k in 3DMark06 with a dual-core and a single HD 3870...

[thescavenger]

How I finally hit 13k in 3DMark06 with a dual-core and a HD 3870...


I have been struggling for a while to break the 13k barrier in 3DMark06 with my current setup. I think I am one of the few on the boards who has accomplished this using a dual-core and a single HD 3870. If you have also done this then please post up your specs and experiences.

I only have about 3 weeks of overclocking experience so please comment with any advice.

-GPU-

I have a Diamond Viper HD 3870 video card. It is cooled by an Arctic Cooling Accelero S1 Rev. 2 cooler with a 120mm fan. The GPU idles at 39 degrees and 45 degrees under full load. I am running BIOS version 10.073 and the most current ATI driver.

My clocks are at 877MHz on the core and 1323MHz on the memory. I have found it impossible for the core and memory on this card to clock any higher than that. No matter in how small of increments I tried to increase the clocks beyond this it just wouldn't run.Please chime in with your secrets, HousERat and toddm27!

-CPU and MB Settings-

I have a E8400 on a Asus Maximus Formula (BIOS 0907) that is cooled by a Zerotherm Nirvana NV120. I have this CPU clocked at 4.275GHz with a 9 multiplier and a 475 FSB. The FSB strap is set to 400 in the BIOS. The VCore is set at 1.51 in the BIOS but it actually runs at 1.46V at idle.

The CPU idles at 48 degrees and 62 degrees under load. I measured temperatures using CoreTemp. I know these numbers seem on the high side, but I think most of us are aware of temperature oddities of the E8400.

-RAM and More MB Settings-

I have 2 x 1GBs of Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800 RAM. The voltage is set to 2.1V and the memory is clocked at 950MHz.

-A Side Note on Stability-

My system at these settings was pretty unstable. I had to remove the RAM sticks from from the A2 and B2 slots in order to get the FSB over 460. (Has anyone herebeen able to get there FSB over 460 while using 4 sticks of RAM?) Making the jump from 4.00GHz to 4.275GHz required increasing the VCore significantly. I was able to run at 4.00GHz (9x450) with the VCore set at 1.328V while running at 4.275GHz required the VCore to be set at 1.46. Thats a really huge jump in voltage just to increase the clock by .275GHz.

-Also-

From a beginners perspective, overclocking using the Maximus Formula has been really simple. Just a few BIOS settings had to be adjusted to get the E8400 to run stably at 4.00GHz.


http://service.futuremark.com/results/showSingleResult.action?resultId=5462889&resultType=14

Maybe we should start a dual-core, HD 3870 rankings chart using 3DMark06 as our benchmark!

 

[chevro1et]

nice work!

 

[vixro]

Seems like you had to do a lot for that score, did you run it on performance settings? Because I can get ~12,200 with 875/1220 --- 800mhz on the memory and 3.6ghz dual..... My score goes up exponentially with each memory clock but my wall is much sooner (around 1224) and you have over 600 more mhz on the CPU!

 

[LilBuddy]

My 9600GT with an E8400 @ 3.7 hits the same score. It's nice to see 2 GPU's priced the same hit the same score.

 

[vixro]

My 9600GT with an E8400 @ 3.7 hits the same score. It's nice to see 2 GPU's priced the same hit the same score.

Yes, finally ATI hit their mark on the 3x series after failing completely on the 2x. Competition is FINALLY BACK!!!!!

 

[Coreyhm1]

Nice!

I'm trying to break 13k, but im on stock bios. So far at 4.3ghz, i have only gotten to 12.5k

 

[thescavenger]

Vixro-

Do you mean is it set on performance settings in 3dmark or were you wondering if my settings were on quality or performance in CCC?

 

[vixro]

I meant on CCC, a lot of people forget about that and accidentally turn off Catalyst AI, or forget that they left on AA for something or have IQ at high quality. That can easily be 300-1000 points depending on what was changed if its not all at highest performance. 3dmark you gotta run stock so we have a fair assessment.

 

[thescavenger]

Vixro-

I looked into some of my other 3Mark06 scores. With my CPU at 3.6 GHz and my video card at 851/1300 I scored 12,400. That seems right in line with what you're getting at those specs. But.... Yeah, I did have to work hard for those extra 600 points

 

[gibletzor]

Pretty good score there! Since your CPU clock is higher, and I would say our cards are roughly even speedwise (my core is ~20mhz faster, while your memory is ~25mhz faster) I've got to assume that the OS is the cause of our score discrepancy here. Although I haven't gotten a chance to run Vista on my desktop yet. (Not a Vista hater, I have it on my laptop! ). So I can't speak from personal experience there.

I'm still working on OC'ing my CPU, but after more testing tonight, I'm pretty sure the screenshot I posted in the 3870/50 thread contains the max my card is capable of without some kind of volt modding. 891/1296 is the best I've been able to complete multiple runs of 3dm06 at so far.

 

[Coreyhm1]

very nice! what are your SM scores?

 

[gibletzor]

very nice! what are your SM scores?

I forgot to get a screenshot of that part of the scores before I closed it all out. I'll do another run this evening when I get home from work with those clocks and let you know.

edit: Here you go Coreyhm1. My SM scores at the same clocks as my last screenshot.

Also, thescavenger, which 120mm fan do you have on your Accelero S1?

 

[thescavenger]

I am using a cheapy Logisys 120mm fan. I had it laying around so I figured I'd check to see if it would be an improvement over the AC turbo module. The 120mm might of helped by 1-2 degrees under load. However, I don't think the 120mm fan is being feed enough air since it is located close to the very bottom of my case. I might try 2 90mm fans in the future.

Also, I was messing around with some BIOS settings today to see if I could get my CPU to be more stable at 4.0GHz. I don't know how it happened but now I can't make it through 3DMark06 at 877/1323 anymore. What settings in the BIOS can directly affect the stability of the GPU?

Josh

 

[Sarsbaby]

I'm not sure on that one. Sometimes I find my "improvements" don't actualy do anything, or my score gets worse. Your using Vista right? I'm getting close to your score on even lesser settings. I'll post some results for you.

 

[Coreyhm1]

@gibletzor, very nice SM clocks. For comparison, here are mine at 860/1150. Running the ram at 1200 should boost it a little, but forgot to set it for the run. I just need to get up the nerve to flash the bios on this card

http://service.futuremark.com/compare?3dm06=5366794

I'm ordering another 3870 tomarrow, just debating on which one. Looks like its going to be the diamond, and i guess the heatsinks on the two cards aren't going to match

 

[erasmus372]

Nice, I think I was around 7,500 with my single 3870 on system in sig. Shows what a diff the cpu/ram have in these artificial benchmarks.

 

[gibletzor]

That seems a little low, erasmus. I scored around 9100 with my Opteron 170 at 2.6 GHz, without the 3870 overclocked at all.

 

[prime81]

CPU score kills ya!

My Q6600 @ 3.2ghz runs 5056 CPU score...that's about 2000 points differential and your running yours at 4.2ghz.

From an overclocking standpoint, that's an awesome clock you got there, but if your looking for the absolute highest 3dmarks, quad core does it.

Although I run a 3870x2, I was able to hit 18k without overclocking the videocard. Overclocking the CPU and videocard I can push 20k.

To put the 3870 into perspective, I used to run a 2900pro 1gig... on my E6850 I was hitting just under 11k @ 3ghz. So with that being said, 13k on your processor and videocard is about right.

 

[thescavenger]

Thanks for the feedback! Yep, your CPU score definitely beats my butt. But its 2 cores versus 4 cores so what can anyone expect. I was so close to buying a Q6600 but I was steered clear by the fact that not all applications support 4 cores yet. Just my 2 cents.