Q6600 Overclock - Currently @ 3.2GHz

Chalex4 · 31 Dec 2007 at 23:52

Hey guys,

First of all, Happy New Year to you all!

Today I installed my new Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme CPU Cooler with a Scythe S-FLEX 1600RPM Ultra Quiet 120mm Fan onto my Q6600 (G0 stepping). Everything went perfectly, and since I was getting very good idle and load temperatures I changed a few settings in the BIOS to try and reach a stable 3.2GHz, after following some advice in another thread:

FSB: 400
CPU Multiplier: 8
Vcore: 1.35

My load temperatures after using Prime95 at 3.2GHz for 15mins are:

Core #0: 52°C
Core #1: 51°C
Core #2: 50°C
Core #3: 50°C
*All the temperatures were measured using Core Temp*

I am very new to overclocking but am eager to learn, so I have read this and would really appreciate some advice on what I should be changing next to get the best overclock I can. I am also interested to know why CPU-Z is showing my Core Voltage as 1.264 on load, not 1.35, is this normal?

Chalex4 · 1 Jan 2008 at 19:06

Cheers, I will. I am using an X38 Asus Maximus Formula and I was wondering what a safe temperature for the NB is? Mine is currently at 45°C.

Chalex4 · 1 Jan 2008 at 21:21

Also, what is the difference between using say, a CPU multiplier of 8 or 9 when overclocking? Cheers.

Chalex4 · 2 Jan 2008 at 16:35

It really would be great if someone could reply

.

Chalex4 · 2 Jan 2008 at 18:08

r3k0 said:
400x8 = 3.200
400x9 = 3.600

Yeah, it's just that I was wondering what the benefit of using a multiplier of 9 instead of 8 was, is there a benefit of keeping the FSB lower?

Chalex4 · 2 Jan 2008 at 22:03

Cheers Caustic and Monstermunch for your assistance, it was really helpful. I just tried to get to 3.4GHz, here are the results:

FSB: 378
CPU Multiplier: 9
Vcore: 1.38125 (BIOS), 1.32 (CPU-Z)
(VID = 1.2000V)

Idle:
Core #0: 39°C
Core #1: 37°C
Core #2: 37°C
Core #3: 38°C

Load (Prime95@Small FFTs - 20mins):
Core #0: 61°C
Core #1: 61°C
Core #2: 60°C
Core #3: 60°C
*My ambient room temperature at the moment is 23°C*

Would you say that the Vcore is about right? I would like to lower it, but what happens if it is too low for the PC to start or something?

Also, I would like to end up with a clock that can be run 24/7 with no risks, would you say that this is the best I can get or should I try for 3.6GHz?

Chalex4 · 3 Jan 2008 at 10:52

Hey sepulchre, cheers for posting - I had a look at your thread. This morning I had a go at getting to 3.6GHz, here are some results:

FSB: 450
CPU Multiplier: 8
Vcore: 1.4 (BIOS), 1.344 (CPU-Z)
(VID = 1.2000V)

I lowered the multiplier from 9 to 8 since it is not giving me any problems as yet.

Idle:
Core #0: 39°C
Core #1: 36°C
Core #2: 37°C
Core #3: 38°C

Load (Prime95@Small FFTs - 35mins):
Core #0: 65°C
Core #1: 65°C
Core #2: 62°C
Core #3: 62°C
*My ambient room temperature at the moment is 22°C*

I on purpose made my room nice and toasty since I want the CPU to be able to cope at all temperatures once I have found the perfect clock. When running the tests at around 19/20°C, the idle is about 36°C and the load is an average of about 60°C.

So far, 3.6GHz seems to be stable, although I am going to be running Prime95 for about 8 hours today to be sure. If this turns out to be 100% stable, would you guys say that those temperatures are OK for 24/7 use?

Chalex4 · 3 Jan 2008 at 11:19

I use this RAM at the moment, and have had no problems with it as yet. For the tests above, I was using these settings:

FSB: 450
CPU Multiplier: 8
Vcore: 1.4 (BIOS), 1.344 (CPU-Z)
(VID = 1.2000V)

However, after looking at some voltages in my motherboard's utilities, I was warned that some were too high. As a result, I am now running these settings:

FSB: 400
CPU Multiplier: 9
Vcore: 1.4 (BIOS), 1.344 (CPU-Z)
(VID = 1.2000V)

Now my motherboard is complaining much less and my temperatures are exactly the same. I am interested to know though, what the voltages for the BSBT and NB should be at this clock. I am getting the following (at full load):

FSBT: 1.46V
NB: 1.63V

I have no idea if these are good or not, and what the maximum voltages they should ever be are, so it would be useful to know

.

Chalex4 · 3 Jan 2008 at 21:21

After a day of decreasing the Vcore and running Prime95, I have decreased it from 1.4 to 1.375 in the BIOS (1.32 in CPU-Z), and everything is fully stable. I have not ventured any further as yet, but I plan to shortly. My load temperatures at 3.6GHz are now:

Load (Prime95@Small FFTs - 1 hour 45 mins):
Core #0: 61°C
Core #1: 61°C
Core #2: 59°C
Core #3: 59°C

I am pleased with the decrease in temperature, especially when the room temperature was rather high at 22°C.

Chalex4 · 3 Jan 2008 at 22:01

It would be great if someone could look at the following voltages and tell me if they are on track or too low/high for my current clock (3.6GHz) :cool:

.

Chalex4 said:
FSBT: 1.46V
NB: 1.63V

Chalex4 · 4 Jan 2008 at 13:29

I am using this RAM and it is currently using 2 slots on my Asus Maximus Formula. At the moment, I only setting the FSB, multiplier and Vcore manually, the rest of it is on automatic.

Following your advice, I will lower the NB voltage and FSBT voltage a little. Are there any other voltages/settings that I should be setting manually? Cheers Pneumonic for your help.

EDIT: I lowered the NB voltage to 1.55 and it seems to be stable. I will run some more tests later and may try to get it a bit lower as well. In regards to the FSBT voltage, what does it stand for, since I can't find it in the BIOS? Does it mean FSB Strap to NB?

I am also interested to know what my CPU PLL should be, since my mobo is known for overvolting that.

Chalex4 · 4 Jan 2008 at 13:42

Ah ok, do you have any advice for what my CPU PLL should be at?

Chalex4 · 4 Jan 2008 at 17:33

Pneumonic said:
would set it @ 1.6v MAX but try and get away with lower

Yeah, my CPU PLL is at 1.616v at the moment according to the BIOS, but I will leave it on auto as well as the FSBT since I am not particularly keen on breaking anything just yet

. I might however just set the CPU PLL to 1.6v in the BIOS, since I doubt it needs the extra 0.016v.

I have just lowered my NB voltage again to 1.53v and am running a Prime95 blend test as I type, although nothing seems to be wrong at the moment. Cheers for all your help, it is always appreciated.

Chalex4 · 4 Jan 2008 at 23:00

Wow, I have been lowering my NB voltage and I have so far managed to decrease it from 1.63v to 1.33v in the BIOS where it is fully stable running a Prime95 blend test.

I will continue lowering it tomorrow, as well as my Vcore which still hasn't given me any problems at 1.36875v in the BIOS and 1.312v in CPU-Z (Q6600 @ 3.6GHz).

I tried setting my CPU PLL to 1.6v in the BIOS, but when I checked back later it was measuring it way higher at around 1.69v/1.7v, so I put it back to auto for the time being so it is now displaying as 1.616v again. Do you have any ideas why it did this?

Chalex4 · 5 Jan 2008 at 21:53

Today I managed to lower the NB voltage to the lowest value the motherboard allows me to set it to, at 1.25v. Running a Prime95 blend test at that voltage for a few hours was fine, and no errors occurred.

I also took apart my PC again to improve the airflow by taping cables to the back of the case, and my temps have improved a nice amount. I will be lowering my Vcore over the next few days as well

.

Chalex4 · 6 Jan 2008 at 18:26

My Vcore is now as low as it will go at 1.36875v in the BIOS and 1.312 in CPU-Z. I tried lowering it more, but my PC restarted and my BIOS complained. So, at 3.6GHz here are my temperatures:

Idle:
Core #0: 36°C
Core #1: 34°C
Core #2: 35°C
Core #3: 36°C

Load (Prime95@Small FFTs - 22mins):
Core #0: 59°C
Core #1: 59°C
Core #2: 57°C
Core #3: 57°C

All of the readings are when my ambient room temperature is 23°C, so I am very pleased with the results. What do you guys think of them, should I try and get the clock higher?