Thoughts on first overclock - Athlon 64

[jamesrb]

OK, here are my components:

Athlon 64 2800 (how do you find out the stepping)
Gigabyt GA-K8NS (nforce 3 250)
512MB Corsair Value Select PC3200 Cas2.5
Stock AMD heatsink, stock thermal goo (aluminum heatsink, some seem to ship with copper though)

I went 10mhz at a time and ended up at 244mhz x 9 (at stock voltage of 1.5).
I bumped the memory down to the 9/11 divider so it is running within a few mhz of 400.
So at 2.2ghz, i started runing Prime95 and after a few hours it is still hovering between 49-50oC; the same temps I was getting at stock speed of 1.8ghz.

It seems too easy as It isnt getting hotter than normal and required no extra voltage, etc. Am I missing something or is this normal behavior? I thought about going for higher, but I figure I would just end up messing it all up. I figure at relatively low temps and voltage, this shouldnt really decrease the lifespan by much.

Also, I do not quite get the HTT thing. On my chipset it is stock of 800mhz. Now I have the choice of running with a 3x multi or a 4x multi which yields 732mhz and 976mhz respectively. Which should I choose? How does the HTT speed affect performance, stability, lifespan...

 

[jellyhead]

ASFIK the NF3-250 (Pro versions) chipsets are capable of 1000Mhz HT, so you should go for the lower. From what I can see though, HT does not really have THAT much of an impact on performance. Running the HT too high will result in major instability.

No need to worry about CPU lifespan - you will most likely be running something else WAY before your chip dies (very unlikely at stock volts anyway).

I'd keep pushing that chip till you get problems in Prime, then back off a little! Or maybe just give it a little more voltage & try again

 

[Wolf-R1]

You got 244mhz out of Value Select RAM??

Edit: Bah...maybe if I could read more I'd have a better idea of what's going on. LOL

 

[jamesrb]

If the vcore readings on my board are very accurate (using cpu-z), the board is actually putting out 1.55 at default, and increases to 1.63v under load....

is there a "ceiling" temperature that I should try to stay below? I left Prime95 running all night and it maxed at 53oC.

If I push it further I could likely hit 2.4ghz, but I would have to be running the memory at 183mhz. I *might* be able to tighten the timings a little at that speed, but its already at 2.5-3-3-7 at stock so I doubt I would be able to make up for the mhz deficit...


OH yeah, my chip is a DH7-CG core if that means anything.
Also I have heard of the chipset overheating before, what setting is it that causes the chipset to overheat? Mine just has passive cooling, although its an OK gigabyte heatsink.

 

[Impaqt]

I have the same Combo in my Wifes computer except my 2800+ is a Crippled Clawhammer CO stepping(Ick)... I'm able to run 240x9 on that system so the CG should be good for a bit more.

DOnt sacrifice Ram speed for CPU Speed though! Drop your Multi down to 8 (Or in this case, you could probobly do 8.5 since your using a Divider for you rmemroy anyway) and raise the FSB some more to get back over 2.2Ghz. THis will allow you to use a higher divider on your ram and still keep it up to speed. 1.65-1.7 are safe voltages with good cooling.... I woudl try to stay at 1.6 or below with a stock 2800+ cooler though.

 

[jellyhead]

If the vcore readings on my board are very accurate (using cpu-z), the board is actually putting out 1.55 at default, and increases to 1.63v under load....

is there a "ceiling" temperature that I should try to stay below? I left Prime95 running all night and it maxed at 53oC.

If I push it further I could likely hit 2.4ghz, but I would have to be running the memory at 183mhz. I *might* be able to tighten the timings a little at that speed, but its already at 2.5-3-3-7 at stock so I doubt I would be able to make up for the mhz deficit...


OH yeah, my chip is a DH7-CG core if that means anything.
Also I have heard of the chipset overheating before, what setting is it that causes the chipset to overheat? Mine just has passive cooling, although its an OK gigabyte heatsink.

I'd try to stay at about 55 - you may find that using a 3rd party heatsink would help some - perhaps a Zalman CNPS7700-CU, or the Gigabyte 3D Cooler Ultra GT

I know that the 64 chips like tight timings on the RAM, where possible, due to the on-chip mem controller. Scarifice timings and you can lose some of the advantage of that setup.

Chipsets get hotter as you increase FSB & voltage to said components - though I'd be surprised if you had any bother. Generally only the insanely high overclockers that need worry (I'm passively cooled at 243FSB).

At the end of the day - it's a balancing act. Ideal situation is to get mem that can run on a 1:1 divider, but that does cost. I'm in the UK, not sure where you're at, but people have been getting good results with Patriot RAM. Seems to perform well & cost less.

Good luck!