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Need overclocking help

T

twoodcc

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 25, 2009
Messages
265
So I have my i7 930 overclocked to just 3.0 ghz, but am having big problems. The motherboard is a EVGA 141-BL-E757.

When I set it to 143x21, with no speedstep, it boots up. I check cpuz and it shows the speed changing, but the multiplier is around 18-20.

As soon as I start folding, the multiplier drops down to 10-13x.

Any ideas on what is going on? I just took the whole thing apart, put it all back together, and still the same issue. For some reason I have the idea that if I take it out of the case, it won't have this problem.

Anyways, any help would be greatly appreciated
 
How are your cpu temps? Some of us like to fold with Core Temp running as it is so simple and easy to look at without cluttering up your desktop or task bar with too many icons/numbers.

I've never heard of a motherboard dropping your multiplier down like that as soon as you load it up as it normally drops down when idling............
 
twoodcc said:
So I have my i7 930 overclocked to just 3.0 ghz, but am having big problems. The motherboard is a EVGA 141-BL-E757.

When I set it to 143x21, with no speedstep, it boots up. I check cpuz and it shows the speed changing, but the multiplier is around 18-20.

As soon as I start folding, the multiplier drops down to 10-13x.

Any ideas on what is going on? I just took the whole thing apart, put it all back together, and still the same issue. For some reason I have the idea that if I take it out of the case, it won't have this problem.

Anyways, any help would be greatly appreciated
Click to expand...

check your temps.. make sure its not overheating.. i recommend using real temp.. if its hitting 100C then its throttling which would explain the multiplier drop.. but even at your overclock it shouldn't touch 100C even on the stock cooler unless you have the voltage set to high or set on auto which then the board might be setting the cpu voltage to high..
 
Well the temps are the problem. Running at everything stock, temps are hitting 100 C on 1 core.
 
I have an aftermarket CPU cooler, and I just checked it. Some of the screws holding it on had come loose, would that be the problem?
 
twoodcc said:
Well the temps are the problem. Running at everything stock, temps are hitting 100 C on 1 core.
Click to expand...

You need to check to make sure your cooler is mounted properly and that your case fans arent dead lol.. That is definitely far to hot for the 930 at 3ghz..
 
twoodcc said:
I have an aftermarket CPU cooler, and I just checked it. Some of the screws holding it on had come loose, would that be the problem?
Click to expand...

Yes, definitely, shut it down and remount it.. it needs to be a tight grip against the CPU so there are no gaps of air between the heatsink and the chip.. Air does not conduct heat well :p
 
twoodcc said:
Well the temps are the problem. Running at everything stock, temps are hitting 100 C on 1 core.
Click to expand...

Time to make sure your heat sink is all the way on! 100C ouch!

Yes those screws being loose is the problem.
 
Well I got it running better.

At 2.918 ghz folding, the temps are around 65 C.

Based on that, what should I try to push it to?
 
twoodcc said:
Well I got it running better.

At 2.918 ghz folding, the temps are around 65 C.

Based on that, what should I try to push it to?
Click to expand...

hmm.. do you have a good application of thermal paste on there too?

I'd say no more than 3.2-3.3... But I don't like my temp running above like 70-75C.. But that's me.. The stock cooler runs it into 80C on full load..
 
so if it's 65-68C on full load @ 2.9 ghz, 3.3 would work?

now i didn't change any voltage settings with 2.9 ghz
 
twoodcc said:
so if it's 65-68C on full load @ 2.9 ghz, 3.3 would work?

now i didn't change any voltage settings with 2.9 ghz
Click to expand...

Depends if you're willing to bump voltage.. you might have to bump it some for 3.3.. also.. do you want to do -bigadv? If so the recommended is 3.8-4.0ghz from what I've read around here...

If not... I would leave it sit at 3.2-3.4 or wherever you can get it stable without bumping volts
 
musky said:
Follow this guide:

http://www.overclockers.com/3-step-guide-overclock-core-i3-i5-i7/
Click to expand...

Great guide but he misses (or suggests) several things -

1) Raising IOH to 1.3 for 1 gpu card and 1.35 for 2+ gpu cards is not necessary and is overvolting. At most, use 1.12 or 1.14 but you can probably stick with the default of 1.10 IOH. IE I'm running 2x 260s and I'm only using 1.12 FWIW. :eek:

2) Change the QPI frequency to 18 or 36 depending on the bios setting

3) Most important of all things he does not say - change uncore frequency (UCLK) to 16x, it will help IMMENSELY with stability and keeping voltages in check.

I thought I was hitting oc limits at 3.6 at voltage limits around the 1.35 Vtt mark because my GB's were set with both on auto and auto UCLK was putting it at 20x which was WAY too high. Since setting it to 16x I have been able to push my bclk higher at more than .1v lower juice. Uncore frequency should be double the ram speed which in most cases will be 16x (if your ram divider is 2:8 which is what most people use). At most you can try to run ram+1 or 17x uncore.

4) Changing uncore to 16x you should be able to hit higher bclks on lower volts. I can do 212bclk with 2 notches above stock Vtt (stock being 1.175, I use 1.215). Most guides act like you need 1.3+ Vtt for 200+bclk and that is NOT the case.

Something else you may want to follow for some good baseline settings -
low volt bios settings for this guy's (cherry) i7 920.
http://www.overclock.net/intel-motherboards/662236-asus-p6x58d-premium-e-thread.html#post8378283
He may have a different board than you, and he's hitting speeds on lower volts than most people will do (again - he's clearly got a cherry of a cpu there), but that will give you a good baseline/starting point...I used his settings myself for 4ghz...21x191). I had to run higher Vcc (Vcore) than him (@ 1.3), but my Vtt is in line with his (1.215).
 
twoodcc said:
so if it's 65-68C on full load @ 2.9 ghz, 3.3 would work?

now i didn't change any voltage settings with 2.9 ghz
Click to expand...


yeah temps are fine now.. i would try to push it the bclk as it can go on the stock voltage before raising the cpu voltage..
 
zero2dash said:
Great guide but he misses (or suggests) several things -

1) Raising IOH to 1.3 for 1 gpu card and 1.35 for 2+ gpu cards is not necessary and is overvolting. At most, use 1.12 or 1.14 but you can probably stick with the default of 1.10 IOH. IE I'm running 2x 260s and I'm only using 1.12 FWIW. :eek:

2) Change the QPI frequency to 18 or 36 depending on the bios setting

3) Most important of all things he does not say - change uncore frequency (UCLK) to 16x, it will help IMMENSELY with stability and keeping voltages in check.

I thought I was hitting oc limits at 3.6 at voltage limits around the 1.35 Vtt mark because my GB's were set with both on auto and auto UCLK was putting it at 20x which was WAY too high. Since setting it to 16x I have been able to push my bclk higher at more than .1v lower juice. Uncore frequency should be double the ram speed which in most cases will be 16x (if your ram divider is 2:8 which is what most people use). At most you can try to run ram+1 or 17x uncore.

4) Changing uncore to 16x you should be able to hit higher bclks on lower volts. I can do 212bclk with 2 notches above stock Vtt (stock being 1.175, I use 1.215). Most guides act like you need 1.3+ Vtt for 200+bclk and that is NOT the case.

Something else you may want to follow for some good baseline settings -
low volt bios settings for this guy's (cherry) i7 920.
http://www.overclock.net/intel-motherboards/662236-asus-p6x58d-premium-e-thread.html#post8378283
He may have a different board than you, and he's hitting speeds on lower volts than most people will do (again - he's clearly got a cherry of a cpu there), but that will give you a good baseline/starting point...I used his settings myself for 4ghz...21x191). I had to run higher Vcc (Vcore) than him (@ 1.3), but my Vtt is in line with his (1.215).
Click to expand...

Well I'm trying similar settings to his for 3.6 ghz, but i can't boot past the video test, so I can't even get to the bios with those settings. What would stop the video test?
 
twoodcc said:
Well I'm trying similar settings to his for 3.6 ghz, but i can't boot past the video test, so I can't even get to the bios with those settings. What would stop the video test?
Click to expand...

If you overclock is unstable enough, your system won't even POST thus requiring you to reset the bios to get back in.

Folding is also one of the most cpu intensive programs you will ever have a chance to run. Many of us have seen Prime95 stable overclocks fail as soon as you start folding. There are rock solid overclocks, marginally stable overclocks(these are gaming stable but not stable for folding), and unstable overclocks like what you have now that won't even let you get to the bios.
 
Zero is pretty much dead on from what I have found with I7s. Two points of clarification though:

2) Change the QPI frequency to 18 or 36 depending on the bios setting
- This must be a Gigabyte thing. QPI frequency is usually 4.8/5.6/6.4 GT/s. You want the lowest option here, whatever your units are. 18x would be the QPI multiplier, and would probably be the lowest one you have available if that is your setting units. Regards, pick the lowest option to start with.

3) Most important of all things he does not say - change uncore frequency (UCLK) to 16x, it will help IMMENSELY with stability and keeping voltages in check.
- Again, must be a Gigabyte thing. Usually (3 out of 4 of my boards), this is a frequency. It should be 2x your memory speed (I have heard 2x +1 your memory speed, but I have always used 2x.) So if your memory is running at 1600MHz, this should be 3200MHz. 16x is the multiplier, and would be correct if your memory is 8x your bclk. 20x would be very high if those are your units.

More info

Zero's main point, which I agree with completely, is that you should not assume the default settings are going to be the best. Usually (3 out of 4 boards for me, my Gigabyte being the exception), the Auto setting is fine. I still check them to make sure they are appropriate though, especially if I run into problems at higher clock speeds.

Also, since you are still not following the guide or you wouldn't have ended up at 2.9GHz, I encourage you to do so. Three steps:
1. Take your CPU and memory out of the equation and find you max bclk
2. Keep your CPU out of the equation and find your max memory speed
3. Now that you know how far bclk and memory can go, start working on your actual CPU overclock

Take zero's tips on gotcha's into account, but the guide gives you the basics.
 
well i tried putting the block at 172 x 21, turned off speedstep, and left the voltages alone, and it's folding right now around 68-70C.

tomorrow after work i want to get it to at least 3.8 ghz so i can run -bigadv. please let me know the minimun things to change or focus on, b/c whatever i did tonight wasn't working. i'll try and post the settings tomorrow so you have a better idea of what i'm working with
 
What is your max bclk? Your max memory speed?
 
twoodcc said:
well i tried putting the block at 172 x 21, turned off speedstep, and left the voltages alone, and it's folding right now around 68-70C.

tomorrow after work i want to get it to at least 3.8 ghz so i can run -bigadv. please let me know the minimun things to change or focus on, b/c whatever i did tonight wasn't working. i'll try and post the settings tomorrow so you have a better idea of what i'm working with
Click to expand...


are you leaving your memory at 1600 or are you downclocking it when you raise the bclk.. since raising the bclk effects your memory speed as well which could explain why the system wont post..
 
musky said:
What is your max bclk? Your max memory speed?
Click to expand...

well i tried 190 x 12, and it booted. but then i ran into problems when i raised the multipler, so i gave up on that last night. but i think i fixed the issue, so maybe i can try again tonight

sirmonkey1985 said:
are you leaving your memory at 1600 or are you downclocking it when you raise the bclk.. since raising the bclk effects your memory speed as well which could explain why the system wont post..
Click to expand...

i did switch the memory ratio to 2:6, so i think it's at 800 mhz
 
So I set the CPU voltage to 1.300, but cpuz says it's at 1.247 v.

I then set it to 181 x 21, so 3.79 ghz now, and folding at around 80C. Now this is after 9 min of folding, so temps may reach 85C after a day or so. Will this make bigadv deadline?
 
Yes, it will make it pretty easily. It would actually be a little faster at 20x190 or 19x200 assuming you don't change your memory multiplier. Is that at 2:8 or 2:6, or in other words, what is your current memory speed?
 
memory is at 2:6.

if i'm getting close to 85C at 3.8 ghz, should i still try 20x190?
 
It is the same speed, and should run at the same voltage and the same or lower temps. You may need to adjust Vtt to get more bclk. That is why you isolated it and see how high you can get it as the first step. If you know the system will run at 205 blck for example, you would know that you can most likely get 190x20 or even 200x19.

Are you running PC1600 memory? It should do better than 1086, which is what you are running it at now.
 
I think the memory is PC1333, but can't remember.

So according to the calculator, I'm getting around 25k ppd. If I decide to push for 4.0 ghz, how much higher should I put the voltage? (1.3 v right now at 3.8 ghz)

My temps have stayed around 80C, so if I can push 4.0 ghz then that'd be great
 
twoodcc said:
I think the memory is PC1333, but can't remember.

So according to the calculator, I'm getting around 25k ppd. If I decide to push for 4.0 ghz, how much higher should I put the voltage? (1.3 v right now at 3.8 ghz)

My temps have stayed around 80C, so if I can push 4.0 ghz then that'd be great
Click to expand...


probably some where between 1.32-1.35v but might push you into the 90C range..
 
sirmonkey1985 said:
probably some where between 1.32-1.35v but might push you into the 90C range..
Click to expand...

okay thanks. i had to go a little over 1.35v. around 1.37 i think. but it's working so far! i haven't hit 90C yet, but close (i have a high of 89C on one core).

i do have a gtx 260 and gts 250 folding in this rig also
 
well i spoke too soon. it has been hitting 90C, and it's starting to be unstable. it's crashed 3 times now. i added another fan, and the case is open right now and laying down on it's side.

if it crashes again, should i just up the voltage more? change something else? or just go below 4.0 ghz?
 
probably need a little more cpu voltage.. but id just leave it at 3.8ghz for now..
 
well i'm trying 1.375 volts now. after 10 mins, it's avg close to 95C. how safe is this? the highest on any core so far is 96C, but all cores have hit 92C or higher.

i really want to keep 4.0 ghz, but the high voltage is what is making the heat, right?
 
Yes, that is going to cause your excessive heat. 95 is getting close to TJ Max.
 
amdgamer said:
Folding is also one of the most cpu intensive programs you will ever have a chance to run. Many of us have seen Prime95 stable overclocks fail as soon as you start folding.
Click to expand...

Don't use Prime, forget Prime.
Prime is not a good i7 stressor unless you use large FFTs and in that case you're still better off using Linpack because it does the job faster than Prime does. Use either IBT (Intel Burn Tool) or LinX (I use LinX myself). You want to run with practically all of your memory in LinX since the i7s have a built in memory controller otherwise the chip is not really being stressed. IE if you have a 6gb ram system and you're running Win7, you'll probably have around 5gb free at desktop boot. Run LinX with 4gb allocated to problem size. (or 4096mb, whatever it is). Leave a little ram for overhead otherwise you'll get "low memory" and "close Linpack, low memory" warnings the whole time.

Consensus is 20 passes all memory in LinX = stability, I can vouch for that. I have not had an oc'd i7 pass that LinX stability check and fail while folding bigadv. 20 passes is a good final indicator. When you're doing incidental testing (say trying out highest max bclk or whatever), 10 runs is sufficient IMHO. But the final test when I want to make sure my system is 100% stable, I do 20 passes. Also keep in mind you will see temps marginally 5 degrees (if not higher) in LinX than you will during normal f@h loads...ie you may see 80c during LinX but at max you may only see 75c while running bigadv.

I personally wouldn't run more than 1.35, you're going to hit a temp ceiling before a voltage ceiling and you're probably near the temp ceiling already with that kind of voltage. What cooler BTW, I didn't see you mention it in an earlier post? You may want to reseat it and reapply your thermal compound if your temps are that high.
 
well it appears to be somewhat stable, but very hot. is it safe to keep it at these temps even if it is stable?

i hear people running 4.0 ghz all the time on air. are they running this hot too?
 
my cooler is a Mugen 2, which was a pain to put on.

as far as thermal compound, there is such a thing as too much, right? i did not put a lot on there.
 
twoodcc said:
well it appears to be somewhat stable, but very hot. is it safe to keep it at these temps even if it is stable?

i hear people running 4.0 ghz all the time on air. are they running this hot too?
Click to expand...

Obviously it depends on the case, my primary gets a lot more air being in the FT02 + the Arrow is a lot beefier of a cooler but at 21x191=4011, 1.325 Vcc and 1.215 Vtt I don't go above 69c load w/2 Yate Loon D12SH-12's. My boxen, the Lancool K7B with a TRUE Spirit, 21x191, 1.3 Vcc and 1.215 Vtt hits like 75c load w a single Yate high.

twoodcc said:
my cooler is a Mugen 2, which was a pain to put on.

as far as thermal compound, there is such a thing as too much, right? i did not put a lot on there.
Click to expand...

Yeah there's a such thing as too much...what kind and how did you apply it? BB sized drop in the middle? If you say you didn't put a lot, you probably didn't. :)
 
my case isn't that good. it's a cooler master. it was cheap. but i have the case open and on its side right now.

i put a little more than a BB size, and i spread it just a little, but still in the middle. if i were to redo it, how would i get the current off?
 
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