- Joined
- Jan 1, 2006
I have an Epox EP-5EGMI motherboard with a Celeron D 331 CPU (2.66 GHz, EMT64, XD, SSE3, etc) and 1 GB of DDR400 memory. Nothing too exciting, I selected the system due to some certain unusual hardware requirements, but I had not considered overclocking heavily in the selection process. Nonetheless, Epox didn't seem to be a bad choice for some casual overclocking, and even with the Celeron D (locked multiplier), it appeared I should be able to move the FSB from 133 MHz to 200 MHz, bringing my 2.66 GHz CPU up to 4 GHz - more than I'm likely to ever be able to get the CPU to without more extreme measures than I would take.
So I picked up the whole system and put it together. It works marveously. However, after setting it up, I learned the core voltage could not be manipulated. Oh well, at least I can still adjust the FSB from 133 MHz up to 200 MHz... oops... it seems that I can't move the bus all that high.
At 145 MHz, the system is 100% reliable and the CPU runs around 2.9 GHz. I can also run the ram slightly above (435) or below the specs - there are just two options. The CPU does not even have any significant increase in heat at this setting, and seems to be under 100° F at nearly all times, at either 2.66 (stock) or 2.9 GHz. It's the setup I'm currenly using, it is perfectly smooth, and seems to indicate I should be able to take the system somewhat further, likely without problems.
However, at 150 MHz FSB, the system does not even boot. I can inch up 1 MHz at a time, and it seems completely reliable until I hit 150 MHz. Then it fails to even activate the display. And every other frequency I've tried higher than 150 also completely fails to boot the system. I am forced to reset the BIOS, or if the safety reset feature is active, it resets itself when it fails.
Oddly, it seems if certain features are selected in the same BIOS settings section (such as spread spectrum) I can choose any FSB frequency I wish, and the BIOS reports it as being applied, but when booted, the OS does not detect anything above stock frequency and benchmarks indicate no changes. I've experimented around with virtually every other option on the same BIOS frequency adjusment/clocking screen, yet I have nothing that actually lets me his 150 MHz on the FSB and actually have it work.
I would expect to be able to push the FSB higher than 149 MHz. Is my experience atypical? Is there anything I could do? I really would like to push my CPU a bit harder, because I can really tell you that I'm barely scratching the surface of its potential considering how cool it runs when overclocked from 2.66 -> 2.9 GHz. I'd at least like to find a range where the CPU causes the system to be unstable because it's running too quickly.
Can anybody contribute some general or specific informtion to me in this department? I am reasonably knowledgeable about this stuff and understand the key concepts, but I may just be missing something obvious.
The Epox site for the EP-5EGMI:
http://www.epox.com.tw/eng/products_content.php?ps=357
The Intel site for the EP-5EGMI:
http://indigo.intel.com/mbsg/details.aspx?compID=2530
So I picked up the whole system and put it together. It works marveously. However, after setting it up, I learned the core voltage could not be manipulated. Oh well, at least I can still adjust the FSB from 133 MHz up to 200 MHz... oops... it seems that I can't move the bus all that high.
At 145 MHz, the system is 100% reliable and the CPU runs around 2.9 GHz. I can also run the ram slightly above (435) or below the specs - there are just two options. The CPU does not even have any significant increase in heat at this setting, and seems to be under 100° F at nearly all times, at either 2.66 (stock) or 2.9 GHz. It's the setup I'm currenly using, it is perfectly smooth, and seems to indicate I should be able to take the system somewhat further, likely without problems.
However, at 150 MHz FSB, the system does not even boot. I can inch up 1 MHz at a time, and it seems completely reliable until I hit 150 MHz. Then it fails to even activate the display. And every other frequency I've tried higher than 150 also completely fails to boot the system. I am forced to reset the BIOS, or if the safety reset feature is active, it resets itself when it fails.
Oddly, it seems if certain features are selected in the same BIOS settings section (such as spread spectrum) I can choose any FSB frequency I wish, and the BIOS reports it as being applied, but when booted, the OS does not detect anything above stock frequency and benchmarks indicate no changes. I've experimented around with virtually every other option on the same BIOS frequency adjusment/clocking screen, yet I have nothing that actually lets me his 150 MHz on the FSB and actually have it work.
I would expect to be able to push the FSB higher than 149 MHz. Is my experience atypical? Is there anything I could do? I really would like to push my CPU a bit harder, because I can really tell you that I'm barely scratching the surface of its potential considering how cool it runs when overclocked from 2.66 -> 2.9 GHz. I'd at least like to find a range where the CPU causes the system to be unstable because it's running too quickly.
Can anybody contribute some general or specific informtion to me in this department? I am reasonably knowledgeable about this stuff and understand the key concepts, but I may just be missing something obvious.
The Epox site for the EP-5EGMI:
http://www.epox.com.tw/eng/products_content.php?ps=357
The Intel site for the EP-5EGMI:
http://indigo.intel.com/mbsg/details.aspx?compID=2530
