BleepingComputer.com: Overclocking

First of all, my specs that you'll probably need, let me know if you need more.

Motherboard - ASRock 4CoreDual SATA2

Processor - Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 2.2GHz

According to the manual that came with the motherboard, there should be an overclock option in my BIOS, but i can't seem to find one. Does anyone know if there's a 3rd party tool I can do it with or how I can do it with just the motherboard? This is my first time overclocking, and i asked the technician at tiger direct (canadian computer store) about it, he just told me to do it little by little, and if it starts to get unstable, it's too far, and that i need to pull the cmos pin and the battery to reset. Is this accurate?

Thanks,
n0data

Read a lot about overclocking before you start - that way you won't be buying new hardware every day or two!

Here's a good overclocking site: http://www.overclockers.com

I read alot of the topics on there, couldn't find any guides but how can i access overclock option on my motherboard? It seems it isn't on there, I'm not sure. I could be missing it. I'm going to try to update the BIOS see if that gets it. Also, is there some sort of 3rd party tool i can use to overclock?

Thanks,
n0data

Quote

always read the manual till you know it by heart and then procede slowly

Thank You! I'm going to try that out now. Also, I'm idleing about 82F right now for the processor (the reader is taped to the heatsink) is this a normal heat?

Thanks,
n0data

http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/

this what you need for newer cpu's

40C die temp at idle is great

50C under heavy load is fine also

Alright well i got her to a max overclock from 2.2GHz to 3.06GHz but theres a problem. I did this and then tried to boot into my Windows Vista Ultimate, and i got a disk read error. I set the clock back to auto and it kept giving me disk read error. So i tryed to reinstall vista overclocked, that failed at full overclock, kept getting BSOD's (IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL) and something else that had the word PAN in it. So i put it down to 3.03GHz and this time it got to the installation then told me the sources were unaccessible and to retry. Did it again, same error. So this morning i figured i'd try linux fully overclocked, it was a success. Right now I'm trying windows xp x64 and it failed the first time on full overclock, so i put it down to 3.0GHz and its formatting right now....was formatting. I just checked and it told me my disk is damaged. If the disk IS damaged why would it boot linux? and why do i keep getting the blue screens, is there something else i have to change after overclocking?

Thanks,
n0data

Quote

go back to john's link and read

you have missed the whole concept, this isn't a wham bam thank you mam kind of thing

that's the way you burn up components, even highly overclockable ones

this kind of thing takes days and days and patience

I always load windows at stock and then overclock

OK So i reloaded windows and read the guides. What i got out of it...well what i understood, is that i need to keep the value i change in the same ratio as the RAM? I had the choices on my motherboard of DDR2 533MHz(266MHz, when overclocked, tops out at 266, i can run it and the operating system at 265MHz, so i get about 2.86GHz or around that.) I tryed to change it to the DDR2 667MHz(which lets me max at 333MHz) and i can run the operating system at about 230MHz, which is what i'm running right now and seems fine, and i get a speed of about 2.53GHz. I'm going up in intervals of 10Mhz and I'll let you know when it fails.

UPDATE: failed anything after 230MHz on the 667, so i'm back on the 533 and running the 2.86

Thanks,
n0data

Use cpu-z to monitor what the memory is actually running at with each overclock

as a warning it usually takes a premium motherboard, memory and power supply with a premium cooling solution for the maximum overclock, and then there's the luck of the draw, some cpu's are better than others

memory usually doesn't overclock well, the entry level single core amd64's and lower end coreduo's overclock the best

looks like you are well on your way

I just downloadd CPU-Z actually before i read the post =P. Its Clock Speed is 2860.0MHz right now. I just don't understand how I can boot the computer with 277MHz but it wont load Windows. And the hardware i'm using is pretty good. I've already giving my hardware spec's and im running a 500W Ultra X Connect UV Power Supply, and have some pretty decent cooling (fans). I also have OCZ Dual Channel DDR2 667MHz but only one of the 2 sticks in, the guy who sold me gave me it in an unsealed case and one sticks faulty, which i'm taking back tommorow. If i add this next stick in tommorow, with the new cooler i plan on getting, do you think i'll be able to reach 3.0GHz? That's my goal right now.

Thanks,
n0data

you have to check what your memory is running at when you bump the fsb up, I could push mine up to 297 if I set my memory low enough but it hurt performance running memory that low

I found a happy balance of running at 250 and using memory that's made to run that fast at lower cas levels

My temps are low and it's been stable as a rock for 2 years

I did fatally crash windows after 2 weeks of running the HyperTransport bus at 1400Mghz(stock was 1000) and having my wd raptor on the via sata where the lock was broken, I reloaded on my promise sata controller and lowered HT to 1000

I've searched my entire BIOS. Can't find a thing that changes the memory. All the options (that make any sort of sense) are dual channel to single channel, and DDR2 533 to DDR2 667. I called my uncle, he told me if i put that other stick in when it's replaced, i should be able to get a little more clock out of it. I just bumped my clock up awhile ago to about 2.92GHz so im bordering 3.

Thanks,
n0data

by lowering the memory setting you are offsetting the increase from raising the fsb

that where you have to look at cpu-z memory tab and see what's going on, or do the math

raise the fsb you are raising the mem bus also, by adjusting the memory down you can keep it from crashing as you raise the fsb

There must be Balance in the Force

I synced the processors FSB with agp/pci and pcie options on the motherboard. I managed to clock it up to 2.98 ghz, and when I hit 2.99 vista's boot manager crashed out, though i think it was more of my own problem then it was the overclocking. I have to repair vista now. After I fix the boot manager I'm going to try and hit 2.99 and then 3.00 GHz. Plus the new RAM I'm getting tommorow should do something. You were 100% right about the patience thing. After i hit 265MHz i just went up by intervals of one instead of 5 and it was a complete success.

Thanks,
n0data.