GA-EP45T-DS3R DDR3-1600 So far so good

[creamsoda]

make sure you guys have it stable first, otherwise OCCT "Large Data set" will error out due to unstable RAM.

I managed to get the 2.66D strap stable using 6-6-6-18, tRFC 44, tRD 8, DRAM voltage 1.76V

but now I'm gonna try to go further on this 2.66D strap and see what I can get out of it.

I'm going to try out 500x8.5 again.

[ghost707]

Let me know how it works out creamsoda.

Happy 4th of July!

Here is what I have discovered:

Memtest: If you buy it a drink and say nice things to it, it will pass just about any memory configuration you throw at it (if the configs are not completely out of whack). I think if Memetest passes - then the system will boot into Windows - but may not do much after that.

IBT: Was passing just about everything that Memtest was passing.

OCCT (AKA: ACME Blowtorches inc.): Unforgiving, torturing mofo of a program. Two thumbs up. If it passes OCCT, your system could probably run AutoCad and a database simultaneously with no problems.

Long story short, since I am trying to keep the FSB in the low 400's (and OCCT did NOT like the tREAD of 7) - I did some testing to see which would give me a better throughput.
So my testing took me to upping the RAM frequency and timings.

Tested the following specs first @430 FSB - Passed a 20 minute OCCT Large Data Set, then failed 3 minutes into the second test.

Dropped the FSB down to 425 and it passed three separate 20 minute tests.

Going to do a little more experimenting to see what I can see, but these settings are pretty stable:

MB Intelligent Tweaker(M.I.T.)
Robust Graphics Booster .............: [ Auto ]
CPU Clock Ratio .....................: 8 X  
Fine CPU Clock Ratio.................: +0.5  
CPU Frequency .......................: 3.61GHZ (425x8.5)

Clock Chip Control
Standard Clock Control
CPU Host Clock Control...............: [ Enabled ]
CPU Host Frequency (Mhz) ............: 425  
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz) .........: 100 
C.I.A.2 .............................: [ Disabled ]

Advanced Clock Control [Press Enter]
CPU Clock Drive......................: [ 800 mV ]
PCI Express Clock Drive..............: [ 900mV ]
CPU Clock Skew (ps)..................: [ 0ps ]
MCH Clock Skew (ps)..................: [ 0ps ]

DRAM Performance Control
Performance Enhance..................: [ STANDARD ]
(G)MCH Frequency Latch...............: [ AUTO ]
System Memory Multiplier ............: 3.20B  
Memory Frequency (Mhz) ..............: 1360
DRAM Timing Selectable ..............: [ Manual ]

Standard Timing Control
CAS Latency Time.....................: 7 
tRCD ................................: 7 
tRP'.................................: 7 
tRAS.................................: 20 

Advanced Timing Control
tRRD.................................: 5 
tWTR.................................: 5 
tWR..................................: 9 
tRFC.................................: 65 
tRTP.................................: 5 
Command Rate (CMD) ..................: 2


Channel A
Static tRead Value...................: 8
tRD Phase0 Adjustment................: 0 [ AUTO ]
tRD Phase1 Adjustment................: 0 [ AUTO ]
tRD Phase2 Adjustment ...............: 0 [ AUTO ]
tRD Phase3 Adjustment................: 0 [ AUTO ]
Trd2rd(Different Rank)...............: 9 [ AUTO ]
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...............: 7 [ AUTO ]
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...............: 8 [ AUTO ]
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)...............: 8 [ AUTO ]

Channel B
Static tRead Value...................: 8
tRD Phase0 Adjustment................: 0 [ AUTO ]
tRD Phase1 Adjustment................: 0 [ AUTO ]
tRD Phase2 Adjustment ...............: 0 [ AUTO ]
tRD Phase3 Adjustment................: 0 [ AUTO ]
Trd2rd(Different Rank)...............: 9 [ AUTO ]
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...............: 7 [ AUTO ]
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...............: 8 [ AUTO ]
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)...............: 8 [ AUTO ]


Motherboard Voltage Control
Voltage Type...............
CPU
CPU Vcore............................: 1.31250V
CPU Termination….....................: 1.260V
CPU PLL..............................: 1.570V
CPU Referen..........................: 0.760V [ AUTO ]


MCH/ICH
MCH Core.............................: 1.240V 
MCH Reference........................: 0.760V [ AUTO ]
MCH/DRAM Ref.........................: 0.750V [ AUTO ]
ICH I/O......................….......: 1.570V 


DRAM
DRAM Voltage ........................: 1.800V
DRAM Termination ....................: 0.750V [ AUTO ]

Ch-A DATA VRef.......................: 0.750V [ AUTO ]
Ch-B DATA VRef.......................: 0.750V [ AUTO ]
Ch-A Address VRef....................: 0.750V [ AUTO ]
Ch-B Address VRef....................: 0.750V [ AUTO ]

Advanced Settings
Limit CPUID Max. to 3...............: [ DISABLED ]
No-Execute Memory Protect...........: [ ENABLED ]
Load-Line Calibration...............: [ DISABLED ]
CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E).............: [ DISABLED ] 
CPU Thermal Monitor 2(TM2) .........: [ ENABLED ]
CPU EIST Function...................: [ DISABLED ] 
Virtualization Technology...........: [ ENABLED ] 

USB Legacy Support..................: [ DISABLED ]

[creamsoda]

I just finished stress testing my new OC. Here are a couple screenshots.

4.25GHz (500x8.5) on GA-EP45T-DS3R


and here are some memory benchmarks for those who care lol

[ghost707]

Excellent creamsoda.
Hey Gampamu, how are you getting along on testing?

I have been perusing the web to see what kind of testing other sites were getting, came across an article at Extremetech where they could not get RAM past 1200 with a QX9770, although the other CPU's worked fine - don't know if it was a one time glitch or what.
But I have come across other articles where they could not get the RAM stable past 1400.

Looking at some benchmarks on other systems, I figured I have the throughput comparable to system running atDDR3 1600 @ 9 9 9 24 - which ain't screaming fast - but still decent, and I am meeting the specs at 1.8V stable as opposed to 1.9V.

4GB DDR3-1600 in LGA775 Systems: New Look (page 6) - X-bit labs

New Core i7 CPUs: Intel's Tiny Step Up - Test Systems and Benchmarks - CPUs, Boards & Components by ExtremeTech

[gampamu]

I have been concentrating on FSB overclocks for the last few days. 480 stable so far and working towards 490. These QX chips are not known for very high FSB so it's likely I am nearing the limit. Well, only one way to find out

I am glad you were able to find a stable setting. But if you are able to run stable at 425FSB but not at 430, chances are good that you will benefit from a MCH reference tweak. While running a stress test (Prime95 or OCCT) increase the MCH reference one notch at a time with the ET6 until errors are reported, and then decrease the setting until the same thing happens. The setting that is closest to the midpoint between the two settings is where you want the MCH reference to be. To set the value correctly in BIOS, first lower the VTT (CPU Termination) to 1.2V, set the MCH reference next, and then raise the VTT back up to the original. With the optimized MCH reference you should also be able to get by with lower VTT and MCH core settings.

LSD's explanation on ET6 vs BIOS reference voltages: ** How to setup CPU/MCH GTL Ref Voltages Vs. EasyTune **

[ghost707]

Yeah,
I have skimmed the article by Lsdmeasap and had it in the back of my mind while trying the overclock - but ended up fixated on the advanced timings - since through testing it seemed the system was fairly happy with the primary timings.
I am going to try some voltage manipulation based on Lsdmeasap's great thread.

I will let you know. Thanks for reminding me.

[ghost707]

OK,
I am confuzzled here, since Vtt is tied directly to MCH ref, whenever you reset Vtt back to original - MCH ref follows.
The prevailing wisdom is to keep Vtt .04 ~ .06 below VCore.

What am I missing here?

Disregard ^^^^^^^

I had one of those "DOH!" moments.

Now for some testing......

[gampamu]

The MCH/CPU reference settings are not really voltage settings at all. They are settings relative to the VTT and best expressed as a percentage of the VTT rather than as voltage figures. Kinda wish Gigabyte used percent of VTT for MCH/CPU reference settings instead of voltages.

I am not sure when and where the assertion that one must keep the VTT 04 ~ .06 below the Vcore originated but it does not apply to the modern CPU's and chipsets.

[ghost707]

Info about Vtt with regards to CPU V.I.D. (CPU Vcore) came from ProfJim in this thread here:

GA-EP45T-DS3R DDR3-1600 So far so good

Looks like in my original 425 setup I incorrectly stated the RAM at 1.8V - the correct voltage was 1.84.

Still testing......

[ghost707]

Looks like - so far - it will be stable @430 with RAM@ 1.86V. And here I thought it was a timing issue - live and learn I guess.
Stable @425 with RAM@ 1.84V

Now I am going to see if I can drop VCore down a hair using Lsdmeasap's formula.....