Would You Trust a Pre-overclock?

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NExUS1g

Gawd
Joined
Aug 15, 2004
Messages
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Specifically, I'm interested in this eBay seller. This individual overclocks the processors before selling them and advises the settings to use. He guarantees 4.4GHz at 1.457v (I think 1.45v is the highest recommended by Intel, right?) This is also temps up to 97°c (I don't know how hot an i7 should really be run at, but I know 97°c is high for any processor that I know of). In addition to this, you'll see that he puts the chips up for bid and the reserve (if there was one) is met at at least $229.40 (Newegg sells them at $279.99). I checked his history and it is all positive feedback (though it's hard to determine if the product was tested thoroughly before feedback was given). It seems that these chips sell for quite a bit when the bidding is actually over.

With the information you have at your disposal, I ask you the following questions:
Is this a good deal to ensure my purchase of an i7 920 can be overclocked to 4GHz+ on air cooling?

Is this possible with ANY 920 processor given the RAM and motherboard support is sufficient?

Is 97°c too high a temperature?

Is 1.457v too high?

Would you make this purchase yourself knowing that the chip you buy is able to be overclocked this high? (Even if the purchase is made from a respectable retailer like Newegg -- is it worth the premium price?)

Thanks a ton in advance. :)
 
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97°c is way too high. low 80's under full load is the highest i would be comfy with.

1.457 seems high too,but i'm not positive the max they can go up to.
 
The load temp and voltage that guy is using is way too high. Intel's recommended voltage is .80 - 1.375 and the max temp before your system will shut down is 100 degrees.

No overclock is guaranteed and the rest of your setup will determine what results you get. I personally would rather buy a retail boxed CPU and take my chances that I can reach 4.0 GHz or higher than buy a chip with no warranty that the seller guarantees will reach a certain overclock. Assuming the cost is comparative.
 
Personally, I wouldn't touch them. "Guaranteed" chip temp is dangerous IMO. The rated Tjunction on the i7's is ~85c... meaning you really shouldn't be crossing about 70c. Additionally bumping the voltage on these chips outside of spec becomes more dangerous with every die shrink. Sounds like this guy is selling something that will run great for 6 months until the chip is fried.
 
1.457v isn't too high but I don't recommend it either. 97c is way too high given that the CPU will shut down at 100c. If your system runs slightly warmer than his test system your system won't run with those settings.

My advice: Buy your own Core i7 920 D0. If you aren't happy with what it can do, sell it and buy another.
 
ocbaud said:
97°c is way too high. low 80's under full load is the highest i would be comfy with.

1.457 seems high too,but i'm not positive the max they can go up to.
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agreed. When your spewing out as much thermal energy as that setup is, your asking for damage. the PCB will buckle, the silicon might seperate from its package PCB, the mounting package might start to warp, theres a million things that could go wrong if you get it running,

and thats assuming you do end up getting it running, as dan said if your ambient is ~3C higher than his ambient, thats it, that processor will call it quits. Just because some guy in Anchorage can get 4.4GHz doesn't mean a guy in arizona can with the same processor.
 
I wouldn't touch that thing. Your components are more than likely going to be different, so your overclock will be different as well. Basically all this guy did was push it to the max to make sure it still runs and then sells it as something better. He's pushed the thermal limits and the voltage limits on them well past where they are supposed to be so it still has degraded the processor to an extent. I would just buy it retail and do it myself. It is not that uncommon for people to get the 920s past the 4 GHz level all on their own without totally roasting it first like this guy did.

Otter said:
I wouldn't. If you want something done right, do it yourself.
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ditto
 
Just curious - what's a typical idle temperature for an i920 that's been OC'd? For doing full load benchmarks, what program are most people using? I've really only messed around with the Sisoft Sandra Burn-In thus far.
 
Domingo said:
Just curious - what's a typical idle temperature for an i920 that's been OC'd? For doing full load benchmarks, what program are most people using? I've really only messed around with the Sisoft Sandra Burn-In thus far.
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The typical idle temp of an overclocked CPU would depend on the cooler, the voltage, and the overclock. With decent air cooling and voltage of 1.3 or lower typical idle temps are probably in the 35-45 degree range.

Programs to test CPU stability are Prime95, Intel Burn Test, OCCT, Linx, and probably a few others I'm missing.
 
Thanks for the info on your responses. It is as I originally thought and it was too good to be true.

So, I would like to get my own 920 D0 stepping, and I'm sorry if this is a question that's been asked before, but where can I order this chip knowing what stepping I'll be getting? From what I've read on some (certainly not all) reviews on Newegg is that the stepping shipped happens to be whatever they had in stock. I've yet to check Tiger Direct which I'll be checking in a moment, but I don't know of many other sites or stores that can guarantee me I will get a D0 stepping. Any help or advice on this would be awesome. :)
 
NExUS1g said:
Thanks for the info on your responses. It is as I originally thought and it was too good to be true.

So, I would like to get my own 920 D0 stepping, and I'm sorry if this is a question that's been asked before, but where can I order this chip knowing what stepping I'll be getting? From what I've read on some (certainly not all) reviews on Newegg is that the stepping shipped happens to be whatever they had in stock. I've yet to check Tiger Direct which I'll be checking in a moment, but I don't know of many other sites or stores that can guarantee me I will get a D0 stepping. Any help or advice on this would be awesome. :)
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If you live near a Microcenter you can see the CPU before you buy it and verify the stepping. Tankguys and a few other boutique stores will guarantee a D0 stepping, but you will pay a premium for it. With the inventory turnover that a large store like Newegg has and the time that has passed since C0 chips were manufactured, the odds are in your favor that if you order a 920 from a store like Newegg that you will get a D0 chip. Not a 100% guarantee, but I would say at least 95% guaranteed.
 
If you have a Microcenter near you it will cost you $199.99 and you can pick the one you want. I saw a couple of them in the glass case last time I bought one. One of them was a C0/C1 and the other was a D0. I chose the latter.
 
NExUS1g said:
Specifically, I'm interested in this eBay seller. This individual overclocks the processors before selling them and advises the settings to use. He guarantees 4.4GHz at 1.457v (I think 1.45v is the highest recommended by Intel, right?) This is also temps up to 97°c (I don't know how hot an i7 should really be run at, but I know 97°c is high for any processor that I know of). In addition to this, you'll see that he puts the chips up for bid and the reserve (if there was one) is met at at least $229.40 (Newegg sells them at $279.99). I checked his history and it is all positive feedback (though it's hard to determine if the product was tested thoroughly before feedback was given). It seems that these chips sell for quite a bit when the bidding is actually over.

With the information you have at your disposal, I ask you the following questions:
Is this a good deal to ensure my purchase of an i7 920 can be overclocked to 4GHz+ on air cooling?

Is this possible with ANY 920 processor given the RAM and motherboard support is sufficient?

Is 97°c too high a temperature?

Is 1.457v too high?

Would you make this purchase yourself knowing that the chip you buy is able to be overclocked this high? (Even if the purchase is made from a respectable retailer like Newegg -- is it worth the premium price?)

Thanks a ton in advance. :)
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the max voltage is 1.5v which is recommended by intel.. max temp is 100C before it starts throttling and shuts down between 105-110C..

for the 4.4ghz 1.457v 97C is not actually that high.. but it really depends on what cooling the person was using.. 97C under IBT or prime95 is not the full load temp you will if you ran any other program at full load.. generally IBT runs 20C higher then any normal program and prime 95 runs 15C higher then any normal program at full load..

but i agree with Dan.. if you have a microcenter near you just go there and buy one.. id say 9 out 10 920's are able to hit 4ghz.. the 4ghz marks usually limited by hardware and cooling and not the actual processor..
 
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I wouldn't go for this unless there's some kind of guarantee or warranty. Since it's an individual ebay seller, there's probably neither.
 
sirmonkey1985 said:
the max voltage is 1.5v which is recommended by intel.. max temp is 100C before it starts throttling and shuts down between 105-110C..

for the 4.4ghz 1.457v 97C is not actually that high.. but it really depends on what cooling the person was using.. 97C under IBT or prime95 is not the full load temp you will if you ran any other program at full load.. generally IBT runs 20C higher then any normal program and prime 95 runs 15C higher then any normal program at full load..

but i agree with Dan.. if you have a microcenter near you just go there and buy one.. id say 9 out 10 920's are able to hit 4ghz.. the 4ghz marks usually limited by hardware and cooling and not the actual processor..
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So if it peaks at under 100°C under simulated "100%-usage" conditions, I should be alright? To others; do you agree with this? While I think I'm going to skip buying from that eBayer, I'd be interested to know for my own information.

Also, I, unfortunately, don't have a Micro Center here in Oregon. We don't have much for PC places locally (outside of large chains like Fry's). Is Fry's a good place? From my experience, they get the processors from the "cage" and I don't get to hand-pick my own, but will they allow me to request a certain stepping? I will definitely check if no one is sure, but I won't be out that way for a bit. :) There is one locally owned shop not far from here that I'm going to check with. I went to microcenter.com (if that's not the proper site, let me know) and didn't find any i7 920's for sale there.
 
NExUS1g said:
So if it peaks at under 100°C under simulated "100%-usage" conditions, I should be alright? To others; do you agree with this?
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Er...I mean, sure on paper it's not going to shut down on you or throttle...but realistically I wouldn't even want to be CLOSE to 80c on a CPU let alone 95+.

I'd highly reconsider this!
 
NExUS1g said:
So if it peaks at under 100°C under simulated "100%-usage" conditions, I should be alright? To others; do you agree with this? While I think I'm going to skip buying from that eBayer, I'd be interested to know for my own information.

Also, I, unfortunately, don't have a Micro Center here in Oregon. We don't have much for PC places locally (outside of large chains like Fry's). Is Fry's a good place? From my experience, they get the processors from the "cage" and I don't get to hand-pick my own, but will they allow me to request a certain stepping? I will definitely check if no one is sure, but I won't be out that way for a bit. :) There is one locally owned shop not far from here that I'm going to check with. I went to microcenter.com (if that's not the proper site, let me know) and didn't find any i7 920's for sale there.
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fry's and microcenter are basicly the same thing.. but they dont always have the same sales.. but check your news paper ads for fry's and go in the store and look because they dont have the same sales as you see online and no 2 stores usually have the same sales as well.. as far as the hand picking you really wouldnt be able to do that anywhere.. its mostly luck of the draw..

sustained load between 90-100C is fine.. though like everyone else i agree that you want to stay around between 80-90C max.. which is easily do-able on air cooling and water cooling even at 4.4ghz..
 
Sounds like a scam.

Just get a decent MB and spend some time learning hot to tune in the BIOS then do it yourself. Much funner as well IMO.
 
Thats taking all the fun out of it. I hate people trying to make a buck off ignorance. Thats tainting the sacred rite that is overclocking.
 
I do know how to overclock, done it before, but I don't know everything. But I do know that each chip is different, and that's why I was curious if it was worth it to purchase a chip that had an overclock guarantee (i.e. you can overclock to X or your money back or at least a guaranteed bclock).

But, also, just to clarify, this is only the processor I'm buying so I'd need to set everything all over again once I actually get it installed. I just thought it might be nice to get a guarantee on the achievable speed.
 
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