Timings

[Big.Wayne]

the OCZ passed stress test at 2.3v with 2:1 ratio (1066)

Nice work Scotty!

Can they go any lower on the vDimm or?

 

[nubonamission]

Hey, I don't want to hijack this thread, but it seems, Big.Wayne you know what you're talking about and want to help people. I have dabbled a little in overclocking but it seems you are talking about finding the limits of the RAM first, making the whole process a lot simpler. I wonder if I could chat to you and you could explain a little about this to me? I love O/Cing and would love to learn a lot more.

 

[scotty365]

Can they go any lower on the vDimm or?

I cant lower the voltage at all - but interestingly I can run 5-4-4-12 @ 1066 2:1
So far mem test is fine for 20 mins or so....needs a little longer!!

****EDIT****
Nope, getting errors so lowered them back to 5-5-5-15 (Which was fine at 266 2:1)

Tried FSB at 333 and 8:5 ratio but errors again even at 5-5-5-15

~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

I cant lower the voltage at all

So far mem test is fine for 20 mins or so....needs a little longer!!

Ok well it's good that you tried, I guess we need to accept the OCZ sticks are very thirsty for voltage, I've not ever had DDR2 memory that needs so much voltage but I guess all sticks/batches are very different.

So lets get some solid testing at DDR2-1066 5-5-5-18, either memtest will do but the windows version at least allows to to browse and stuff while the testing is in progress, the bootable DOS based memtest is a nice app but best left running overnight as you can't use the PC for anything else.

The more hours you can leave the sticks testing the higher our confidence will be that they are performing rock solid and therefore can move onto other areas before boredom or impatience strikes!

Tried FSB at 333 and 8:5 ratio but errors again even at 5-5-5-15

Ok no problem, were not quite done testing the memory at DDR2-1066 using the [2:1] multipler with a 266MHz-FSB but I can tell you that if the sticks pass fine with the 266MHz-FSB and [2:1] memory divider @ DDR2-1066 but they fail when using the 333MHz-FSB [8:5] @ DDR2-1066 then the problem is not the memory . . . . it's the Northbridge, but we will get to that soon enough!

 

[Big.Wayne]

Off Topic:

I love O/Cing and would love to learn a lot more.

Hello nubonamission,

that sounds good and I don't mind helping out if I can but bare with me for the moment because I am helping a few people while at the same time overclock two machines at my home heh . . . . if ts really simple stuff I can dig it no problem but if its complicated then It takes a certain amount of brainpower to work out what is going on and also an equal amount of brainpower to explain it in a way that can be understood, heh my brain is feeling weak today!

Feel free to keep a tab of scotty365's thread here as you may pick up a few useful titbits of info. When we have made some more progress here then you can make your own thread and myself and others will come to help you out!

 

[nubonamission]

Sure man, that sounds great. Appreciate it

 

[scotty365]

Ok well it's good that you tried, I guess we need to accept the OCZ sticks are very thirsty for voltage, I've not ever had DDR2 memory that needs so much voltage but I guess all sticks/batches are very different.

I feel uncomfortable and want to leave this for now, only until I resolve the voltage issue - I feel that the OCZ mem isnt performing anywhere like it should (2.1v 5-5-5-15 @ 1066) and as its only 3-4 weeks old I want to send it back.
I appreciate everything you've done Wayne - you are a credit to the forum, you've took time and had the patience to help me sort this out. Unfortunately we discovered a major problem with it, and I dont want to risk overvolting just to reach it supposed rating. It truly is bad memory judging by everyone elses experiences.

I'm researching buying new mem (the prices are high I know) I'm gonna see what can be done.

~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

Off Topic:

Sure man, that sounds great. Appreciate it

Hey nubonamission,

I just read my previous reply to you and it didn't come across as I intended!

I think what I meant to say is I will be glad to help you out if you are having some technical difficulties however there are plenty of very clever computer users on this forum so don't be shy to make a general thread and see who pops along!

 

[Big.Wayne]

I feel that the OCZ mem isnt performing anywhere like it should (2.1v 5-5-5-15 @ 1066) and as its only 3-4 weeks old I want to send it back.

Heh no problem scotty!

The frequency, timings and voltage you listed above are perfectly acceptable if the sticks are kept cool (i.e not scorching hot) so I hope I didn't make you think they were faulty in anyway!

I'm just one of the people that pay attention to voltages and if possible I always try to pick hardware that runs at lower voltage than normal, it means a slight reduction in running costs ££ and helps keep the hardware cool . . .

No worries either way but I hope you have learned a little more, I would consider what you really need from your PC before spending any money, you could just keep the 4GB you have and run it at reduced speeds etc, it's not gonna be as good for benchmarks and stuff but still really fast! . . . . if you are really interested in the overclocking thing, numbers etc then either stick with your OCZ 2GB kit to see you through or *if* you really need 4GB and wanna overclock to the max then sniff out yourself a bargain 4GB DDR2-1066 kit!

Also just in case it appeared I was dissing Corsair in anyway I wasn't, I was mearly trying to state that the kit you have was not what I normally expected from such an excellent memory manufacturer such as Corsair!

I have two sets of favourite DDR2 memory, one purchase new and one purchased used . . . . Corsair made one of them Crucial the other!

CORSAIR DOMINATOR DDR2-1066

CRUCIAL ANNIVERSARY DDR2-666

Lol if you can pick up anything from this mega-waffle that is . . . . having the right memory can make life a lot easier for an overclocker, if you pursue the hobby further I can say that doing a little homework before you make the purchase can be very worth while! . .

Live long and prosper . . peace!

 

[scotty365]

Thanks Wayne - I have learned quite a lot and have an understanding of some of the fundementals. At least I know what Im looking for when buying my 2x2GB kits. I'm glad I held onto the Corsair, at least I have something to run while I send the Reapers back. I agree totally with the idea of running low volts, heat breaks down computer components, Im worried about overvolting memory just to get the rated 1066 - To me thats just asking for trouble and it means its not really overclockable without significant risk. I bought it due to reviews saying it was, leaving me the flexiblity to go above the rated speed in an overclock. I would have expected to get 1100Mhz on 2.1v judging by other reviews.

I will give you a shout once I've resolved the issue and we can resume testing!

Cheers

~Scotty

 

[scotty365]

I just manually configured the timings in the bios - havent got a clue how I did it as it was mostly guess work but im running 5-5-5-15 [email protected] 2:1 I think we are overlooking something here.

Something just kept bugging me about leaving it on auto config. I went on line and found some values (not for my memory) plugged them in - and bingo!
I think if I had the proper timings we could be cooking at the proper ratings.

~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

Cool, well it sounds like you are back in the driving seat, whipping out that second mismatched kit will make life easier for you and your motherboard, also you have now got your memory running at 533MHz (DDR2-1066) and have begun to tinker with timings . . . . looks good to me!

Just a couple of points regarding the memory testing which are:

• Don't skimp on the testing time
• Monitor the sticks temperature

If you wanna be really sure that a given frequency/timings/voltage combo set is functioning correctly give either version of memtest enough time to root around for errors (overnight is best), also its totally possible that you will encounter errors caused by the memory getting too hot, this mainly happens after you have given the diagnostic software enough time to work the memory and heat it up. If you do encounter the overheating scenario it's quite easy to fix by adding a small 80mm fan over the sticks.

Memory . . like most computer hardware can potentially run faster when its kept cool!

CRUCIAL ANNIVERSARY DDR2-666

This Crucial memory above was sold to run at a rated speed of 333MHz (DDR2-666) with 3-3-3-x timings @ approx 2.1 volts, but with a little reading up and tinkering in the BIOS I managed to overclock it to 600MHz (DDR2-1200) with 5-5-5-15 timings @ approx 2.06 volts, it was left testing in DOS based Memtest for over 20 hours and passed with zero issues. I am not suggesting you leave yours testing for so long but I prefere to be really really sure a given frequency/timings/voltage is rock solid stable, as soon as the Memtesting is complete I go straight in Real-World usage (gaming, crunching etc)

Here is the stability screen:

and here is an Everest benchmark:

The figure I personally pay attention to in everest is Memory >>>> Latency [52.4ns] because I find getting the Latency tweaked lower and lower results in a really *snappy* system for daily use, Windows pop open quick as you like and everything feels fast, see if you can work on getting your Everest Latency down as low as possible while maintaining a stable system . . . . Increase frequency helps as well as low timings! . . . good luck!

 

[scotty365]

I'm doing some testing at 2.096v and everthing is good upto the 2 hour mark!

Your memory benchmark looks awesome that is very good tweaking, you've found the sweet spot in your overclock!

I'll keep dropping the volts till its good then try to increase the FSB - sofar I get no joy booting at FSB333 - what settings (FSB volts? chipset volts? NB/SB volts? PLL volts? etc)do I need to be I looking at to overcome this problem?

~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

I get no joy booting at FSB333

I assume you have taken the memory of the [1:2] divider before trying for 333MHz-FSB right? . . . otherwise the RAM is being asked to run at 666MHz (DDR2-1333)

If you chip is happy to run with 333MHz-FSB then just slam all the volts (except Memory) on [Auto] and see what happens?

I have no idea what clock, settings etc you are running at the moment? . . . also this thread was mainly to get your memory frequency/timings sorted so lets stick to that for the moment . . .

If your memory is super-solid at 533MHz (DDR2-1066) at 5-5-5-15 on the [2:1] multi then it should be fine also running at the same speed using the 333MHz-FSB with tha [8:5] multi . . . . if the PC won't POST or you get errors then the problem is the Northrbridge needing more volts and nothing to do with the mem . . .

 

[scotty365]

Yes the divider was set ok (1066 still)

It will run at 333 ok, dont know why but when I tried again it worked fine (even passed an hour of testing with the heating in the house ramped up!) - having said that we will stick at 2:1 as you said with FSB266 for now. I threw the 333 into the equation but I should have waited - we can forget that for now.

My clock is FSB266 2:1 with 5-5-5-15 (1066) @ 2.096v I will test over night but it looks good so-far.

It's a methodical and time consuming approach but I'm fine with that Wayne. If everything goes ok what should I be looking at next?

P.S It would be good if we could tidy up this thread, is it possible to remove posts and slim the important ones down?
also, what is the manufactures product code for the crucial mem?


~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

Ok, so atm you should be at:

• 2.4GHz Processor - 9x266 = 2394MHz
• 533MHz (DDR2-1066) 5-5-5-1x [2.1]

Once you are comfortable that the memory is 100% error free using the above config then move on to:

• 3.0GHz Processor - 9x333 = 2997MHz
• 533MHz (DDR2-1066) 5-5-5-1x [8:5]

At 3.0GHz your pushing the processor quite a bit so you make sure its getting enough juice etc, I see in your sig its listed as E2160 @3.5 so you obviously have that side of things covered. With the FSB running at 333MHz *and* the Memory running at DDR2-1066 the Northbridge will have a heap of work to do so if you run into a no boot situation or you get memory errors in Memtest then either turn the NB voltage back onto [Auto] or manually raise it!

The system at 3GHz chip, 1333MHz System Bus and DDR2-1066MHz should really fly!

Let us know how you get on and don't lets things like the tidyness of this thread distract you from your work, get the coffee brewing and good luck heh!

 

[scotty365]

Everything went well, I tried to drop the volts but it became unstable. 12 hours of testing at 266 without error. Ive tested in gaming this morning and its good sofar, I dont usually have virtual mem turned on but, only having 2gb of ram, I had to allow a bit to run games. W7 runs noticabley slower with virtual mem on.

~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

I dont usually have virtual mem turned on

I've not ever experimented with adjusting Windows virtual memory but are you sure that it isn't best to leave that alone for the moment? i.e let Windows handle it?

Almost time to push on to the next stage . . . .333MHz-FSB etc!

 

[scotty365]

I tested like a man posessed at 333FSB and got an error at about 5 hours in last night!!!

I have brought the Performance level up to 6T from 7T to get much better latency but I may have to drop it again.

Gonna tweak the NB up a tad and try again. Failing that I might up the Vdimm up to 2.15v. I can see this is gonna take a while

I can get hold of some Crucial Ballistix 2x1GB PC2-5300 DDR2(BL12864AA663) on the cheap, is that the similar to what you used? I might give em a quick test and see if they are worth while .

~Scotty

 

[Big.Wayne]

I tested like a man posessed at 333FSB and got an error at about 5 hours in last night!!!

Sounds like either the memory or the Northbridge overheated . . .

I have brought the Performance level [down] to 6T from 7T to get much better latency but I may have to [raise] it again.

You have wandered into an advanced area again heh . . . Performance Level (aka tRD) is part of the Northbridge, as you found out lower is better (reduces latency), the motherboard will set tRD itself according to memory frequency and Cas timing i.e lower the CAS and raise the DDR2-Frequency and the tRD will set itself lower. It's definitely something thats worth looking into and tweaking but it's a separate testing session from the memory really! . . . . tRD is fed by vNB (NB volts) . . more voltage helps the northbridge cope with low tRD however the extra voltage also brings extra heat which can also cause errors . . .

Gonna tweak the NB [voltage] up a tad and try again. Failing that I might up the Vdimm up to 2.15v. I can see this is gonna take a while

Performance Level (tRD) is unaffected by vDimm (Memory Voltage)

I can get hold of some Crucial Ballistix 2x1GB PC2-5300 DDR2(BL12864AA663) on the cheap, is that the similar to what you used?

It is although the sticks I have are supposedly hand picked by Crucial for a limited edition they released in 2006. The sticks you are looking at may well perform the same but no guarantees.

If you know what your doing then they could be a good choice, the only real disadvantage is they have DDR2-666 [SPD] timings only so means you have to Hand Tweak a lot more settings . . . compared to out-the-box DDR2-1066