Overclocking opinions

[ANova]

Maybe some of you overclocking gurus can help me out here.

I've got a P4 3.0C with an Asus P4P800-E Deluxe and some Geil PC4000. I can get it to 3.7 GHz stable at 1:1, 1.6v on the cpu but anything higher and it restarts when loading windows. The memory is rated at 2.6 - 3.1v but my board only goes up to 2.8v for some reason. Since it posts at 3.8 GHz (possibly higher I just haven't checked) do you think the ram isn't getting enough power or is the cpu simply at it's knees. I increased the cpu voltage up to 1.725v which had no effect so I think that eliminates that possibility.

 

[ZoinKs!]

I'd eliminate ram as a problem first. I test ram stability with memtest86. If it'll go through a couple full passes without errors, then the ram is doing fine at that speed. If it picks up any errors, lower the mhz and / or increase CAS timings until ram is stable.

 

[Sworkhard]

After eliminating ram as a possibility, chipset voltage and the power supply could be problems. Of course, it is possible you have simply maxxed out your processer with the current cooling solution you are using. On my Athlon XP (not a P4 but will face similar problems) I can go to 2.31 GHZ with 1.75 volts and, when I have a better cooler, to 2.4 GHZ with the same voltage but increasing the voltage to 1.85 volts doesn't increase the stability or overclock of the processer because heat is the main problem.

 

[ANova]

I'd eliminate ram as a problem first. I test ram stability with memtest86. If it'll go through a couple full passes without errors, then the ram is doing fine at that speed. If it picks up any errors, lower the mhz and / or increase CAS timings until ram is stable.

This ram is rated for 250 MHz @ 2.5,4,4,7. At 3.7 GHz it's only running at 247 MHz @ 2.5,4,4,8. I'll check what memtest says though.

After eliminating ram as a possibility, chipset voltage and the power supply could be problems. Of course, it is possible you have simply maxxed out your processer with the current cooling solution you are using. On my Athlon XP (not a P4 but will face similar problems) I can go to 2.31 GHZ with 1.75 volts and, when I have a better cooler, to 2.4 GHZ with the same voltage but increasing the voltage to 1.85 volts doesn't increase the stability or overclock of the processer because heat is the main problem.

When I clocked it the cpu was idling at 36C and 44C load so I doubt it's a heat issue. My psu is an Antec true430 and I'm only running two hard drives and a 9500 Pro so I doubt that's an issue either. I think it's a lack of voltage for the ram, but I have no way of testing it.