Voltages

Jay Bee · 7 Mar 2009 at 15:08

Have posted this before with no replys so hope that it gets some response this time.
You hear so much about northbridge,ram etc. voltages on auto settings in the bios, but as the settings are on auto how do you know what is actually being used when the machine is running?
The reason for asking is I am stable as sig but will not go higher as it thows a wobbler if I try, it would seem that a bit on the northbridge may help but where to start?
Also have tried the ram at 2.1v but bsod if set up that way so if I knew the voltages being used may get a bit further with the clock.
Cheers

JonJ678 · 7 Mar 2009 at 18:22

Boards tend to overvolt when set to auto. I'm astonished you haven't read that anywhere.
There's a couple of pieces of software that will tell you, but since I'm yet to try for 3.8 trusting voltages to auto I don't know what they are. I'm also not sure I would trust software.

For one thing, I'd guess you have a really horrific voltage going through the northbridge, and hope for your boards sake the chipset is watercooled as well. The other voltages stand a good chance of being well over what is conventionally considered wise, but if lifespan of components doesn't bother you then no worries.

p5q tend to treat the lowest manual voltage the same as auto, definitely with earlier bios. The recommended with these boards is to set voltages to one above the minimum (except sata, which really does need to be 1.5). Then overclock slowly and carefully, keeping within sensible limits on voltages. Failing that, you could always leave all but one on auto until you find where is stable, then move to the next. If you manage to find out what is going through your northbridge I'd really like to know, as I'm overclocking almost the same setup at present

Good luck

cje · 7 Mar 2009 at 19:19

get into your BIOS, hardware monitor, voltage monitor. I think that's how you view it in BIOS. Look for something similar to that.

Jay Bee · 7 Mar 2009 at 19:44

Trouble with your method cje is the system is not up and loaded so the auto could be diff than when loaded.
JonJ678 on the delux board they supply a noethbridge fan to fit when watercooling, which I fitted and strapped the temp. senser on the northbridge itself so I can see the temp. of it running, never seen it over 40C even during encoding video, so as far as I can see high volt =high temps which if right the northbridge can't be getting to much, what do you think?
Have run Prime on it and creeps up to 59 60c after several hours so if high volts = high temps I would think i'm not to bad.
Cheers

cje · 7 Mar 2009 at 19:48

You'll find that it doesn't vary between what you BIOS reports it to be and a software app in windows will report it. Unless it is totally different to my Striker II extreme.

Try using trial version of EVEREST then. That'll give you voltages. They don't vary between BIOS reported and what everest reports in my system.

OR, try HWMonitor.

Jay Bee · 8 Mar 2009 at 16:59

JonJ678 You asked if I found out about the northbridge voltage I think it is 1.1volts as reported in Everest, but the trouble is if you set it in the bios it bsod on boot, even if increase a bit to 1.2 volts still bad so there must be something else that needs a tweak, have read in various places 1.3 to 1.4v needed have tried but no go. put it on auto and away we go so I have tried but it won't have it.
As the temp is 40c or under on nothbridge I think it will have to stay as is.
Have wound it up to 4.20 (8x525) gets into windows seems to work ok till you run prime on it and that is what they call a ------ up, so back to as sig that is stable so that is where it is going to stay I think, 36% clock can't complain at that.