Problems w/OCing AMD X4

[xconroe]

Here are my specs:
AMD Phenom X4 9950
Gigabyte MA780G-UD3H
4GB G.SKiLL DDR2 1066
Zalman CNPS9500A
COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power Plus 500W

Stock is 2.6ghz. I have a hard time staying at 3.0ghz stable. I have good and sufficient cooling. I am thinking it's the power supply or motherboard. Any ideas? Thanks in advanced.

 

[shadow_419]

1. Original phenoms aren't great overclockers

2. Zalman 9500 is a good cooler but you can do much better for the price.

3. Could possibly be the motherboard, but I doubt the psu is holding you back.

 

[xconroe]

Ok, thanks for the fast reply. I think I am going to swap out the mobo and i'll see where it goes from there. Thanks again

 

[ordovician]

Most Phenom I's top out at 3ghz, so I'm really not surprised. You might have more luck with a mobo that has an SB750 southbridge to enable ACC, but I wouldnt bother spending money on a new mobo when you could just get a Phenom II instead. Keep it at 2.9Ghz and wait for Phenom II's to come down in price.

 

[sirmonkey1985]

what voltage are you using to hit 3ghz and are you FSB overclocking or multiplier overclocking? the phenom I's require an insane amount of voltage to hit any decent numbers..