HELP! I have a decent setup but it will not overclock!

W

waqqas31

n00b
Joined
Jul 28, 2004
Messages
2
Hi Everyone,

I recently upgraded my rig to the following:

Primary components:
Q6600 G0
Gigabyte GA-X38-DQ6 Mobo Rev. 1.0 BIOS F8 (newest non-beta)
2x1GB Crucial Rendition PC5300 RAM
Zalman CNPS9500 AT CPU Cooler
EVGA 8800GT SC 512MB
Corsair VX550W PSU
Antec Solo case
WD Raptor 150GB

Other (possibly insigificant) components:
LG GSA-H22N burner
BenQ DW-1655 burner
WD5000AAKS HDD
Seagate 500GB SATA in NexStar3 via eSATA
Mitsumi Floppy + Card Reader
D-link DWL-G510 WLAN card
USB+Firewire no-name PCI card

Before I describe the symptoms, I think it might be important to mention this. On this motherboard, to install a custom non-stock HSF, you need to dismantle part of GigaByte's "CrazyCool" system. On top of the board, a single piece of heatsinks and pipes is screwed through the mounting holes to two separate metal plates on the underside of the board. There is one plate directly beneath the CPU area, and this is the one I removed prior to installing the CNPS9500 AT. However, this same plate was fastening the heatsink on the northbridge. The board (according to the manual) was supposed to come with nuts and bolts to secure the northbridge heatsink after removing the CrazyCool plate. However, it didn't. So, as it stands, my system northbridge heatsink might or might not be making adequate contact with the northbridge chip. I've already submitted a parts request to Gigabyte's online tech support.

That said, this is what has happened so far:

ONCE, I was able to up the CPU FSB to 299 MHz (without touching anything else) and the system booted up fine, loaded Windows, etc.

Next, I tried 333 MHz, and the system would not only not post, it automatically power cycled 3-4 times before automatically reverting to stock speeds.

Last night, I tried going back to 299 MHz just to see what kind of temps I was getting, but even that refused to work, and the power-cycle symptoms just described re-occurred. This time it was a bit more scary, because even after defaulting to stock speeds, the system could not start booting the OS. At one point, it even stopped detecting my Raptor. Luckily, a sequence of clearing the CMOS (using the jumper) and shutting down followed by a cold boot restored everything to working order.

So, my query is this: Can the northbridge HS issue be behind all this unpredictable behavior? If not, what am I doing wrong with-respect-to my overclock settings? My previous experience overclocking with E6600/Q6600 on an EVGA 680i (A1) board yielded fantastic results even with only tweaking the CPU FSB, and from what I had read, my X38-DQ6 is an "overclocking champ," so I'm a little confused.

Any thoughts you guys can share will be very appreciated.

Thanks in advance!
 
Open up the case and put a 20" box fan next to it. That should rule out temperature as the problem.
 
Never doubt the box fan. Like Uber said you need to rule out temps first before you start messing around inside the box. On the other hand though, you might have gotten a chip that wont overclock...
 
well we need a lil more info to help you out,

that crucuial ram are they micron chips? i would imagine so.
when u go into bios what are your temps reading.

to rule out heat. leave everything at stock settings and run orthos for a few hours, if your not gettin proper contact orthos should fail regardless of settings,

then lets us kno
 
Disconnect the eSata and try again.

This is giving me fits as well. I realize this thread is a bit old, but here is what I've found:

Some issues matter whether or not I use Intel ICH9R or JMicron, but the OC issue where system won't post happens with the eSata drive connected to any eSata port.

1) When eSata bracket has an ext. drive connected to it but the drive is not on, XP will constantly cycle the DVD-RW as if it's being checked every two seconds, and causes a sound drop out or system pause/stutter every 5 or 10 seconds. Doesn't happen in Vista 64. This is solely an issue when connected to ICH9R Intel SATA port (doesn't matter which one), and the Sata is in AHCI mode.

2) When above eSata external drive is connected and on, the board will pause at the POST when showing me memory test, and turn off, and come back at defaults

The second I disconnect the ext. eSata drive I can go into the BIOS, reboot with my settings (400fsb, e3860 @ 9 multipler and 1.40v) and it's perfect. System stability is great, and the board can run OCCT stress test for 8 hours no issues with my optional side 120mm fan OFF (to let NB FRY) or Prime95 x 2 at full mem utilization for 14 hours, no problem.

If I boot up Windows XP, then connect and turn on my eSata drive, there are no initial issues, but system stability will falter, and eventually I have to reboot. I've had stuttering, keyboard issues, mouse problems, and a couple of times > BSODs. If I boot and operate at stock speeds/voltages, etc.. no issues.

It doesn't matter if the eSata bracket is on the Intel or JMicron ports, eventually I will not be able to overclock.

It's not my memory, CPU, or power supply. All have been swapped in and out. It's not the video board which was also swapped in and out. I don't have heat issues as I have good cooling.

No amount of voltage has been able to help this regard. I have basically come to the realization that there may be some sort of signal issue on the SATA ports. I have tried two different brackets (one shorter cable) and no dice. I have tried them on every available Intel or JMicron SATA port, still no workie.

I've basically ascribed to the fact that to overclock, I can't use eSata. I am going to try another eSata drive on the eSata bracket port, but I'm pretty sure it will make "dick all" difference, as I've seen this before with other eSata cases/drives on this board.

I have also done (as you have) removed the parts of Crazy Cool and secured the remaining heatsink/heatpipe combination with the extra screws, and am also using an older CNPS9500 (voltage mode for fan adjustment)

Joy. I just wanted to share and see if that helps you at all.

Good luck,
10e



waqqas31 said:
Hi Everyone,

I recently upgraded my rig to the following:

Primary components:
Q6600 G0
Gigabyte GA-X38-DQ6 Mobo Rev. 1.0 BIOS F8 (newest non-beta)
2x1GB Crucial Rendition PC5300 RAM
Zalman CNPS9500 AT CPU Cooler
EVGA 8800GT SC 512MB
Corsair VX550W PSU
Antec Solo case
WD Raptor 150GB

Other (possibly insigificant) components:
LG GSA-H22N burner
BenQ DW-1655 burner
WD5000AAKS HDD
Seagate 500GB SATA in NexStar3 via eSATA
Mitsumi Floppy + Card Reader
D-link DWL-G510 WLAN card
USB+Firewire no-name PCI card

Before I describe the symptoms, I think it might be important to mention this. On this motherboard, to install a custom non-stock HSF, you need to dismantle part of GigaByte's "CrazyCool" system. On top of the board, a single piece of heatsinks and pipes is screwed through the mounting holes to two separate metal plates on the underside of the board. There is one plate directly beneath the CPU area, and this is the one I removed prior to installing the CNPS9500 AT. However, this same plate was fastening the heatsink on the northbridge. The board (according to the manual) was supposed to come with nuts and bolts to secure the northbridge heatsink after removing the CrazyCool plate. However, it didn't. So, as it stands, my system northbridge heatsink might or might not be making adequate contact with the northbridge chip. I've already submitted a parts request to Gigabyte's online tech support.

That said, this is what has happened so far:

ONCE, I was able to up the CPU FSB to 299 MHz (without touching anything else) and the system booted up fine, loaded Windows, etc.

Next, I tried 333 MHz, and the system would not only not post, it automatically power cycled 3-4 times before automatically reverting to stock speeds.

Last night, I tried going back to 299 MHz just to see what kind of temps I was getting, but even that refused to work, and the power-cycle symptoms just described re-occurred. This time it was a bit more scary, because even after defaulting to stock speeds, the system could not start booting the OS. At one point, it even stopped detecting my Raptor. Luckily, a sequence of clearing the CMOS (using the jumper) and shutting down followed by a cold boot restored everything to working order.

So, my query is this: Can the northbridge HS issue be behind all this unpredictable behavior? If not, what am I doing wrong with-respect-to my overclock settings? My previous experience overclocking with E6600/Q6600 on an EVGA 680i (A1) board yielded fantastic results even with only tweaking the CPU FSB, and from what I had read, my X38-DQ6 is an "overclocking champ," so I'm a little confused.

Any thoughts you guys can share will be very appreciated.

Thanks in advance!
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