How to run DDR2@1066MHz AND Quad Core 6600 clocked to 3GHz ?

vwgolfman · 4 Jan 2008 at 21:47

I am desperate for any help here.

Is anybody running an 1066MHz RAM and a Quad Core 6600 clocked to 3GHz or greater?

If so how do you do it?

I am having great trouble in doing both.
My IX38-Quad GT Mobo will let me up my FSB to 333 and with X9 multiplier I achieve 3GHz for my CPU.
I can also get my RAM to run at 1066MHz by using an FSB of 266 and a 1:2 divider.

BUT I cannot seem to configure the Mobo to enable both at once.
Please see my threads...
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17824042
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17819451

pastymuncher · 4 Jan 2008 at 22:20

Running my Q6600 at 3.6ghz (9x400) at the moment with the ram at 1066. Did it with 3.2ghz (8x400) as well. I just selected it to run at that speed in the bios. When you set the fsb on this board it offers you a load of speeds that you can set the ram at, and as my ram is PC2-8500 i set it to run at it's proper speed. With a quad you want higher bandwidth to get the most out of it so try it with 8x400.

***Edit*** Just read your other posts and see that you are a beginner at overclocking. That's ok as we all have to start from somewhere. Have you run the quad at it's stock speed (2.4ghz) with the ram set to 1066? That would be a good starting point if it all runs at stock speeds. To run at 8x400 for 3.2ghz you will probably have to increase the Vcore and the northbridge voltage. This could be your problem all along. Try raising the Vcore to 1.375-1.4v but keep an eye on your load temps. You should be ok though as you have some headroom. Something i noticed in your other thread though, you have two cores running at 59 and two running at 49 degrees. Prime did open 4 threads did'nt it? If it did then this would suggest to me that the heatsink is not seated correctly. Have you run memtest to test your ram? You have got it set to 2.1v Vdimm now and 5-5-5-15 yes? If the timings are wrong or the voltage is not enough then that would cause the ram to fall over all the time.

This is something for you to read up on. The XS forums have a dedicated thread for your motherboard along with overclocking guides. See here. You really need BUFF to come along as he is the OCUK Abit expert. The way you overclock pc's vary from motherboard to motherboard but is almost always better done in the bios. As i have a completely different board my help, and many others will be limited.

vwgolfman · 4 Jan 2008 at 22:51

Hi pastymuncher and thanks for your good advice.

Unfortunately I am getting quite frustrated now and almost to the point of giving up :mad:

I have followed your suggestion..........

FSB 400
Multiplier X8
Divider 1:1 (800MHz)
CPU Core 1.35V
VDIMM 2.15V

It booted into Vista but then I had a BSOD as soon as I ran Prime95.

pastymuncher · 4 Jan 2008 at 22:56

vwgolfman said:
Hi pastymuncher and thanks for your good advice.

Unfortunately I am getting quite frustrated now and almost to the point of giving up

I have followed your suggestion..........

FSB 400
Multiplier X8
Divider 1:1 (800MHz)
CPU Core 1.35V
VDIMM 2.15V

It booted into Vista but then I had a BSOD as soon as I ran Prime95.

Like i said, you need to raise the Vcore. Try 1.4v. These quads do overclock well but some need an increase in Vcore just for 3ghz. Mine needs 1.5v Vcore for 3.8ghz along with an increase in NB, SB voltages. Have a read of that website in the link i posted above. You should get loads of info from that.

vwgolfman · 4 Jan 2008 at 23:24

I have run the Quad at stock speed (2.4GHz) with the RAM at 1066MHz.
I did this using a 266FSB (X9) and a divider of 1:2.
The mobo is happy at stock VCore (1.3V) but I upped it to 1.325V to be sure).
I set my RAM timings to 5-5-5-15 and a VDIMM of 2.15.
These are the settings as recommended by Corsair.
My RAM is 2GB (2x1GB) Corsair TwinX DDR2 XMS2 Dominator, PC2-8500 (1066).
I had no problems with this config.

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I can also run my Quad at 3GHz. I do this with a 333FSB (X9).
I MUST keep my divider at 1:1.2 to keep the RAM to 800MHz.
As soon as I raise the RAM speed by changing the divider the machine crashes.
Even raising it to 1:1.25 (833MHz) again with a VDIMM of 2.15V gives me trouble.

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Is it OK to raise the VCore to 1.5V so long as the temps are OK or is it too high?
At which temp should I begin to worry?

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Prime95 does open 4 threads.
I thought the same as you with regards to the heatsink and the core temps.
For this reason I removed it (last evening) to ensure it had heatsink compound across the full surface. It definitely has a good bond so I don't think that's the issue.

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I have run Memtest on the RAM at 1066MHz with no problems.

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What I cannot understand is how I can either have my CPU at 3GHz or my RAM at 1066MHz but not both.

I shall continue to read up on everything, especially at the link you provided but at some stage I think I might end up in a loony bin :eek:

I am actually considering purchasing different RAM incase this is the cause of my troubles. If I were to do this which would you recommend?