Having hell OC'ing my P6T, i7

[MrValentine]

Specs:
P6T mobo
i7 920 C0
12GB OCZ newegg link here
ZEROtherm ZEN FZ120
4850 for vid card
Corsair TX650

I cant seem to get past 3.1Ghz (with HT) and keep it stable. (running a FAH VM 24/7 )
Using RealTemp 3, I get 35-40c at idle, and 55-57c with all 8 cores loaded. Highest i've seen is 62c at 100% load before i get a BSOD. I relize my cooler is a cheapo, but dont want to spend $$ on a new one until i'm at least seeing higher temps.

I have read SO many how to's and guides that i'm now second guessing everything. I'm ready to start over, i'm going to reset the bios to default. After that where should I start? I'm wondering if I have a lemon 920 or P6T at this point.

I would like to see 3.6Ghz and 100% stable, but ultimatly want to run BigAdv units on FAH, which means 3.8Ghz minimum.

 

[DudeThe]

Try putting 2x3 sticks and see if it helps. Read somewhere that the 6 sticks do limit the OCing.
I am using 2000MHz sticks 1x3GB and never have a problem going 3.8 @ 1.3 Volts, its the older stepping CPU. RAMs are around 1850 or so.
My P6T CANNOT handle anything over 195 BCLK.
Someone more techy might have more tips

 

[Makaveli@BETA]

Try putting 2x3 sticks and see if it helps. Read somewhere that the 6 sticks do limit the OCing.
I am using 2000MHz sticks 1x3GB and never have a problem going 3.8 @ 1.3 Volts, its the older stepping CPU. RAMs are around 1850 or so.
My P6T CANNOT handle anything over 195 BCLK.
Someone more techy might have more tips

You might be on to something about the amount of ram in the system.

Few questions for the OP are you using the new bios on that board?

What is the highest BLK you can set before loosing stability?

Do as suggested and try with only 6GB of memory installed!

 

[FaRKle0079]

What's your vcore? Did you try increasing that?

 

[sn0man]

1. Get the latest BIOS (0904), then load up all the default settings. After that, make sure to apply the correct changes which will get you back into Windows (drive configuration, etc). Leave everything else on auto.

2. Check TurboV and make note of the voltages it applies on auto, especially for QPI with 12GB of RAM. A lot of times it's haphazard, but it'll give you a ballpark. Also check your idle/load temps at these stock settings, and check for stability (LinX & RealTemp).

3. All good there, move on. 3.8GHz will most likely be the max for that chip/cooler (possibly lower) with HT on, and the wall before you start needing bigger jumps in voltage for gain. Load temps may also be an issue. If you want a quick and dirty path to 3.8 on the P6T with a C0 chip, give these settings a try:

200 Bclk
19x CPU multi
3x DDR multi (1200 speed 8-8-8-24 1T)
14x uncore multi (2800)
18x QPI multi (7200)

~1.26875 vCore (LLC enabled)
1.56 vDimm
1.375 QPI
1.2 IOH / ICH


The above drops the memory speed down to 1200, but will be less stress on the memory controller and less QPI voltage than 1600 speed would require. It'll also isolate any BSODs to vCore or slight changes in QPI voltage. Just remember that too much QPI can be just as unstable as having not enough.

You should easily be able to make it into Windows with those settings, and adjusting for final stability will be simple enough if you know what you're doing. Temperature will likely be an issue before voltage will, so like I said, watch your temps.

Edit: Be sure to turn OFF Turbo, SpeedStep/EIST, C1E, etc. (all the power-saving stuff).

 

[Exeodus]

Are you overclocking in the bios or using TurboV? If you are using TurboV, it does not let you adjust your memory speed when you increase the BCLK. It is possible that it was running your memory too high.

 

[x509]

Specs:
P6T mobo
i7 920 C0
12GB OCZ newegg link here

I cant seem to get past 3.1Ghz (with HT) and keep it stable. ...

... I'm wondering if I have a lemon 920 or P6T at this point.

I checked that NewEgg link and it was for a 3 x 2 GB kit, so you must have 2 of those kits installed. Now, if you go over to the Corsair forums, they keep repeating it like a mantra that if you install 2 6 GB kits, you won't necessarily be able to reach the rated speed of that memory. That is, if you want to run at say 1600, you need to buy a 12 GB kit, 6 x 2GB.

Just a caution.

 

[Tabasco69]

What's your vcore? Did you try increasing that?

Lol, he said he can't even get stable at 3.1ghz.....vcore isn't even a factor at that setting nore should it even have to be adjusted to stabilize at that clock, personal experience I did not have to touch until hitting 4ghz.....OP try 'Memtest" or some ap along those lines(I 'am unaware if there is a version that will work with a 64bit os and when I used it it could either be configured as a bootable floppy or cdrom....test each dimm. Then if they all check out check each dimm socket...a place to start.

Might try running the ram a T2, or underclocking it, the way I do my intial oc is to set the memmory to it 's lowest setting and step the cpu up til it fails, then increase the vcore (WITHIN TOLERANCES) to stabilize til I felt it was sensible not to go any higher....first finding the cpu's sweet spot then begin to step the ram....you are trying to step both at the same time and this makes the process of elimination much harder....but first and formost I would stress test ram/cpu etc....individually via apps at stock setting before even starting....got to be patient and make sure you elminate possible weak links in the chain of components before you start out...at least this is what I would do.

I have had numerous motherboards act like total bitches with all their dimm slots filled....
Turning off turbo and speed step....some people like to leave turbo on because it gives you an extra multiplier....personally I disable it, I think it has caused a couple system locks....it jack the clocks not according to refference of stock clock but the actuall setting in the bios....so say you have it tuned to 4ghz....turbo kicks in and bam just a shot in the dark but for the sake of arguement say the cpu is clocked up to 4.3ghz by turbo...not good, speed step, I have had no problems with it, it had declocked the cpu according to the load factor....no issue with me concerning it ...so far 4 months.

 

[DogsofJune]

1. Get the latest BIOS (0904), then load up all the default settings. After that, make sure to apply the correct changes which will get you back into Windows (drive configuration, etc). Leave everything else on auto.

2. Check TurboV and make note of the voltages it applies on auto, especially for QPI with 12GB of RAM. A lot of times it's haphazard, but it'll give you a ballpark. Also check your idle/load temps at these stock settings, and check for stability (LinX & RealTemp).

3. All good there, move on. 3.8GHz will most likely be the max for that chip/cooler (possibly lower) with HT on, and the wall before you start needing bigger jumps in voltage for gain. Load temps may also be an issue. If you want a quick and dirty path to 3.8 on the P6T with a C0 chip, give these settings a try:

200 Bclk
19x CPU multi
3x DDR multi (1200 speed 8-8-8-24 1T)
14x uncore multi (2800)
18x QPI multi (7200)

~1.26875 vCore (LLC enabled)
1.56 vDimm
1.375 QPI
1.2 IOH / ICH


The above drops the memory speed down to 1200, but will be less stress on the memory controller and less QPI voltage than 1600 speed would require. It'll also isolate any BSODs to vCore or slight changes in QPI voltage. Just remember that too much QPI can be just as unstable as having not enough.

You should easily be able to make it into Windows with those settings, and adjusting for final stability will be simple enough if you know what you're doing. Temperature will likely be an issue before voltage will, so like I said, watch your temps.

Edit: Be sure to turn OFF Turbo, SpeedStep/EIST, C1E, etc. (all the power-saving stuff).

Sweet, that actually helped me hit 4GHz. I have almost the same setup as the OP. Hope it helps the OP as well.

 

[Makaveli@BETA]

1. Get the latest BIOS (0904), then load up all the default settings. After that, make sure to apply the correct changes which will get you back into Windows (drive configuration, etc). Leave everything else on auto.

2. Check TurboV and make note of the voltages it applies on auto, especially for QPI with 12GB of RAM. A lot of times it's haphazard, but it'll give you a ballpark. Also check your idle/load temps at these stock settings, and check for stability (LinX & RealTemp).

3. All good there, move on. 3.8GHz will most likely be the max for that chip/cooler (possibly lower) with HT on, and the wall before you start needing bigger jumps in voltage for gain. Load temps may also be an issue. If you want a quick and dirty path to 3.8 on the P6T with a C0 chip, give these settings a try:

200 Bclk
19x CPU multi
3x DDR multi (1200 speed 8-8-8-24 1T)
14x uncore multi (2800)
18x QPI multi (7200)

~1.26875 vCore (LLC enabled)
1.56 vDimm
1.375 QPI
1.2 IOH / ICH


The above drops the memory speed down to 1200, but will be less stress on the memory controller and less QPI voltage than 1600 speed would require. It'll also isolate any BSODs to vCore or slight changes in QPI voltage. Just remember that too much QPI can be just as unstable as having not enough.

You should easily be able to make it into Windows with those settings, and adjusting for final stability will be simple enough if you know what you're doing. Temperature will likely be an issue before voltage will, so like I said, watch your temps.

Edit: Be sure to turn OFF Turbo, SpeedStep/EIST, C1E, etc. (all the power-saving stuff).

Why turn off speedstep? the cpu will be idling at 3.8 or 4ghz whichever he is going for.

I turned off turbo but all my power saving stuff is on.

 

[MrValentine]

Ok I updated from 801 to 904 bios. reset bios. TurboV dosent have the auto adjustment for win7 64bit :-(

I pulled 3 sticks of memory as suggested. I used all the settings that sn0wman suggested and the highest block I can get to wihout a crash is 170 (so far) 180 and it crashes about 10 seconds after the processor loads to 100%

the BSOD error is
A clock interrupt was not recived on a secondary processor within the allocated time interval.

I'll play around with the sticks of ram. maybe i have a bad one. I'll also bump the ram voltage some as well.

Thanks for all the replys. I'll report back tommrow.

 

[sn0man]

TurboV works fine in Windows 7 x64. Make sure to be doing all your tweaking from the BIOS, not TurboV - I only mentioned the program for checking what values the BIOS sets when "Auto" is the selected setting.

If you're just testing for max BCLK right now, make sure to set all your CPU / uncore / DDR multipliers as low as possible so you can isolate any issues to your QPI voltage. Once you've got that straightened out, you can get to working on the CPU multi and then uncore / DDR multis.

When it crashes that fast, it could be any number of things. Although, the clock interrupt BSOD (code 101) is almost certainly vCore.

Before you start tomorrow, run memtest with all the default BIOS settings to make sure you don't have any bad sticks. If that's fine, then drop all your multipliers like I said and start working on BCLK / QPI voltage. There aren't any magic or universal numbers, so if you're really having trouble the best thing to do is just push things a few notches at a time then test. Write down what works and what doesn't on a sheet of paper or chart it out in Excel, so you can see how everything is scaling.