Q6600 Overclock

[WingZero30]

Hi guys

I need your opinion and advice on this please.

I have been planning to overclock my Q6600 G0 to 3.4GHz. For now I overclocked it to 3.0GHz on stock voltage, ran Prime95 small FFTs test for 8 hours and it is solid. My cpu vid spec is as follows:

Q6600 G0 1.2625v VID (stock voltage)

My mobo is Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3LR and the current cpu cooler is 'Thermaltake Big Typhoon' (which I am planning to replace soon). The thermal paste I am using atm is 'Zalman ZM-STG2' which will also be soon replaced by MX-3.

-So basically I upped the cpu speed to 334MHz x 9 = 3006MHz= 3.0GHz
-Changed the Vcore in bios from auto to 1.2625v (stock voltage)
-PCI-E is set 100MHz
-Disabled EIST and C1E
-System Memory Multiplier (SPD) is set to 2.4B for 800MHz DDR2 giving me slight overclock of 802MHz DDR2

Here are the results

[email protected] Idle

[email protected] Load

As you can see Bios Vcore is 1.2625v, idle voltage is 1.216v and load voltage is 1.184v. The load voltage actually periodically fluctuated from 1.168v to 1.184v and vice versa. So I seem to experience a vdrop/vdroop of about 0.0785v-0.0945v which seems quite large and yet it is still stable.

-For now my question is if I were to get Thermalright IFX-14 with 2x Akasa Viper 120mm fans and MX-3, will I be able to get much lower temps for the same speed? Also with these will I be able to reach 3.4GHz comfortably?

-Also which is the actual voltage cpu uses? Is it the bios voltage which is 1.2625v or the cpu-z voltage which was 1.168-1.184v during load? When some people say not to use more than 1.45v, do they mean the bios voltage or the cpu-z voltage?

My current cpu cooler is pretty old and I was reading in a review that it is suitable for dual core cpus but not for quads overclocking yet it seems to give good temps at 3.0Ghz lol.

Many thanks for your time guys

 

[Hairybudda]

A better cooler would be good, more juice will mean more heat soon. CPU uses whatever its being fed, ie under no load 1.2625v, when theres load and you droop to 1.184v thats what it uses. You dont realistically want to exceed 1.55v loaded, or about 70c. Personally I'd throw 425x8 or 378*9 at it @ 1.35v straight away and work down for now, it's a nice vid on that chip, you'll probably get 3.4 comfortably, I'd aim for 3.8 with good cooling just to know your boundaries.

 

[Marine-RX179]

You should definitely get lower temp with the Thermalright IFX-14...it is the predecessor to the Cogage Arrow and my Thermalright Silver Arrow, and has a very good result according to xbitlab's review:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/thermalright-ifx14_4.html#sect0
However, if you case is not tall enough, the Thermalright HR-10 that comes with the Thermalright IFX-14 you might have not be able to install it and leave it sitting around collecting dust:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/thermalright-ifx14_8.html#sect0

The low and high temp (prime) shown in your core temp is pretty much the same as mine...but my Q6600 is on vcore 1.48v amnd 3.6GHz
Also do bare in mind the the airflow for the case would impact upon the effectiveness of the CPU cooler.

But one thing you have to be careful is that it might not fit in your case. The Thermalright IFX-14 is 161mm in height (around the same as my Silver Arrow), and my Silver Arrow only got less than 5mm clearance from my CoolerMaster 690II Advanced's windowed side-panel and it only just barely managed to close without the cooler touching it (people had tried to fit the Silver Arrow into a Antec 902, but the side-panel won't close because of the fan mount of the side-window is getting in the way). If you are unsure about your case, it would probably be a better bet to get a Thermaltake Frio, Akasa AK-CCX-4002HP Venom, or Titan Fenrir Evo instead.

 

[WingZero30]

Thanks guys for the info. My case is coolermaster HAF 922 which is very large for a mid tower with excellent airflow and it seems to be even slightly bigger than cooler master 690 ii advanced.
So the cpuz core voltage is the actual voltage that a cpu uses during idle and load.In that case shouldn't it be 1.216v during idle instead of 1.2625v as hairybudda is suggesting?

Marine what vcore you needed in bios for 3.4GHz & 3.6GHz and what were the idle and load voltages in cpuz for these speeds? Is the 1.48v bios vcore for 3.6GHz ? Also what is your Q6600 VID? Your temps are very impressive for 3.6GHz.

Thanks again

 

[Marine-RX179]

My Q6600 VID is unfortunely 1.3125V, and the reason I need to go as high as 1.48v for my Q6600 is that my 4th core is weaker than the other 3 and it would stop working in prime if I use less than 1.48v. If my 4th core wasn't weaker, I could have probably get away with using less voltage. 1.48v is what I set in bios, while in window, MW Monitor/CPU-Z report it being 1.47~1.48v. For my 690II Advanced, I do have 4 intake fans, 3 extaust fans, and 1 for internal blowing toward the graphic card and one blowing toward the Silver Arrow that has two fans on it, with basically 5 fans in a straight line like this:
rear extaust 120mm fan<-Silver Arrow two 140mm fans<-one 120mm fan<-120mm intake fan (white tacked to sit in the three 5.25" bay below my optical drive). Something you can consider:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=17566743&postcount=8
I only got three free 5.25" bays, so I can only use a 120mm fan as intake, but for your case which I assume to be taller with one exta 5.25" bay, you should be able to put a 140mm fan there like in the link I provide above.

As for your Q6600 with lower VID, I would suggest you start from 1.4V work your way up, or 1.45v up or down.

 

[cloud84]

you are very lucky. i got a q6600 too and i hit a wall at 3ghz. it refuses to go any higher unless i go into very dangerous volts and even then it is unstable. i don't remember the vid but mine is G0 too.
for 3ghz i have 333x9 and i am using 1.3750v. any lower and it is unstable. anything more than 3ghz and i need to hit over 1.4750v to be half stable. the temps are off the roof at that point and i am using a TRUE heatsink.

 

[Marine-RX179]

you are very lucky. i got a q6600 too and i hit a wall at 3ghz. it refuses to go any higher unless i go into very dangerous volts and even then it is unstable. i don't remember the vid but mine is G0 too.
for 3ghz i have 333x9 and i am using 1.3750v. any lower and it is unstable. anything more than 3ghz and i need to hit over 1.4750v to be half stable. the temps are off the roof at that point and i am using a TRUE heatsink.

You sure you are not limited by the motherboard that doesn't have the right chipset for the overclock? Before I recently upgraded my motherboard to a P5Q Deluxe, my previous P6N SLI V2 with a crappy nforce chipset would only do 3.0~3.15GHz stable for my Q6600.

 

[WingZero30]

Something you can consider:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=17566743&postcount=8


As for your Q6600 with lower VID, I would suggest you start from 1.4V work your way up, or 1.45v up or down.

Yeah I have thought of placing a fan inside the front of my case. So I should set vcore in bios to 1.4v for 3.4Ghz and test the overclock stability from there or is it for 3.6GHz?

you are very lucky. i got a q6600 too and i hit a wall at 3ghz. it refuses to go any higher unless i go into very dangerous volts and even then it is unstable. i don't remember the vid but mine is G0 too.
for 3ghz i have 333x9 and i am using 1.3750v. any lower and it is unstable. anything more than 3ghz and i need to hit over 1.4750v to be half stable. the temps are off the roof at that point and i am using a TRUE heatsink.

I was gonna say the same thing. It could be your mobo with poor chipsets that would prevent even moderate overclocking. Also what case are you using?

 

[Marine-RX179]

Yeah I have thought of placing a fan inside the front of my case. So I should set vcore in bios to 1.4v for 3.4Ghz and test the overclock stability from there or is it for 3.6GHz?

Since you have a P45 chipset board, the Q6600 should hit 3.6GHz no problem...so I would suggest to go straight for 3.6GHz (that's what I did). I would suggest you start with 1.45V (and a little bump for the Northbridge as well), and then run prime to check stability to determine if you want to go up or down from the 1.45V.

 

[WingZero30]

Since you have a P45 chipset board, the Q6600 should hit 3.6GHz no problem...so I would suggest to go straight for 3.6GHz (that's what I did). I would suggest you start with 1.45V (and a little bump for the Northbridge as well), and then run prime to check stability to determine if you want to go up or down from the 1.45V.

Wow you are brave. It will be interesting to try to overclock it to 3.6GHz on air even though I originally intended to go up to 3.4GHz. I know at these speeds, my cpu cooler won't be able to handle the temps and I will definetly get BSOD . Now all I need is Thermalright IFX-14 with 2 x Akasa Viper 120mm fans and MX-3 thermal paste .

 

[redshadows]

You have all right parts for an easy 3.6GHz, a cooler is your only real option.

your board by all rights is better than a P5Q deluxe/premium for overclocking the Q6600.

I would seriously consider going water as the rest of your stuff really is as good as it gets.

(well faster RAM and maybe a lucky Q6600 would be better but thats only being said to stop me getting flamed by the pedantic)

 

[WingZero30]

You have all right parts for an easy 3.6GHz, a cooler is your only real option.

your board by all rights is better than a P5Q deluxe/premium for overclocking the Q6600.

I would seriously consider going water as the rest of your stuff really is as good as it gets.

(well faster RAM and maybe a lucky Q6600 would be better but thats only being said to stop me getting flamed by the pedantic)

Haha redshadows the man with [email protected]:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18202102

I was seeking your opinion aswell as you did ask me in your thread what mobo I had and seemed as you have similar VID of your Q6600.

The thing is I don't know anything about watercooling.For now I am sticking with air cooling. Maybe any more hints you can give me with regards to bios settings @3.4-3.6GHz.

Many thanks

 

[Marine-RX179]

Don't worry too much about it. 3.6GHz is not going to cause a meltdown, provided you are not using crazy voltage

Before I got my Silver Arrow, I was only using a Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro, and even that kept my Q6600 on the same settings under 70C in prime.

Above 3.6GHz though, it would require lots of extra voltage, it is simply not worth the extra hassle voltage, heat, power honest for the sake of extra 200MHz that's barely noticable in real world experience.

Like redshadows has said in his thread, 4.0GHz would most likely need 1.6V for keep the Q6600 stable (if at all)...I would definitely not consider going 1.6V unless I was watercooling the CPU (real watercooling, not the Corsair kit which's cooling performance is only as good as the high-end air-cooler).

 

[WingZero30]

Don't worry too much about it. 3.6GHz is not going to cause a meltdown, provided you are not using crazy voltage

Before I got my Silver Arrow, I was only using a Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro, and even that kept my Q6600 on the same settings under 70C in prime.

Above 3.6GHz though, it would require lots of extra voltage, it is simply not worth the extra hassle voltage, heat, power honest for the sake of extra 200MHz that's barely noticable in real world experience.

Like redshadows has said in his thread, 4.0GHz would most likely need 1.6V for keep the Q6600 stable (if at all)...I would definitely not consider going 1.6V unless I was watercooling the CPU (real watercooling, not the Corsair kit which's cooling performance is only as good as the high-end air-cooler).

True.

 

[redshadows]

Don't worry too much about it. 3.6GHz is not going to cause a meltdown, provided you are not using crazy voltage

Before I got my Silver Arrow, I was only using a Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro, and even that kept my Q6600 on the same settings under 70C in prime.

Above 3.6GHz though, it would require lots of extra voltage, it is simply not worth the extra hassle voltage, heat, power honest for the sake of extra 200MHz that's barely noticable in real world experience.

Like redshadows has said in his thread, 4.0GHz would most likely need 1.6V for keep the Q6600 stable (if at all)...I would definitely not consider going 1.6V unless I was watercooling the CPU (real watercooling, not the Corsair kit which's cooling performance is only as good as the high-end air-cooler).

100% on the button.

Your VID is a good indicator of what the chip will "maybe" be capable of.
with a better cooler with push pull fans, depending on ambient temps 1.45v is well within spec, just don't push over 70c (if it peaks @ 72c matters not)

Most Q6600's I have had didn't need anything done apart from voltage and FSB increases for 3.6GHz, only when your really pushing it do you need to concern yourself with PLL/GTL etc voltages.

 

[WingZero30]

Thanks guys for all the help and info. Once I get better cooling I will definitely report back.Meanwhile if any other suggestions, please do keep them coming.

 

[WingZero30]

Just another question.

Do Core i series in general run hotter than Core 2 Duo/Quads? I was reading somewhere that i7 runs hotter than Core2 Quad. Is it true?

Thanks

 

[setter]

My current i7 @4ghz runs 3-4c hotter on average than my q6600 did at 3.8ghz, iirc max temps on the q6600 were 68-68-62-62 under p95 load.

 

[Mike45450]

Where are you planning on buying a new heatsink? I also have a Q6600 and want to upgrade (still running stock cooler!), but from what I can tell all the heatsinks for these previous generation of CPUs have been pulled from the market. Only thing I can find is auctions, and I'm not too happy about using second hand heatsinks, I'd rather my CPU use a nice fresh unused one...

 

[WingZero30]

Where are you planning on buying a new heatsink? I also have a Q6600 and want to upgrade (still running stock cooler!), but from what I can tell all the heatsinks for these previous generation of CPUs have been pulled from the market. Only thing I can find is auctions, and I'm not too happy about using second hand heatsinks, I'd rather my CPU use a nice fresh unused one...

Hi

I am planning on buying either of the coolers (Thermalright IFX-14 or Akasa Venom) most probably from overclockers although I am looking at other sites aswell.

-Thermalright IFX-14 coupled with 2x Akasa Viper 120mm fan and MX-3 thermal paste:

Thermalright IFX-14
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-069-TR

Akasa Viper 120mm fan
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FG-059-AK

MX-3 Thermal Paste
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=TH-002-AR

or

-Akasa Venom Cpu cooler

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-072-AK

I am gearing 95% towards the IFX-14