GAX58-Extreme overclock failed after a year

[PeterW_R]

Hi guys,

I've been using these settings for over a year on my Core i7 950 and GAX58-Extrene(F12 BIOS), I did test them extensively when I applied them and everything was running fine until yesterday.

CPU Clock Ratio


Advanced CPU Features:-
CPU Clock Ratio - 23
Intel (R) Turbo Boost Tech. - DISABLED
CPU Cores Enabled - ALL
CPU Multi-Threading - ENABLED
CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E) - DISABLED
C3/C6/C7 State Support - DISABLED
CPU Thermal Monitor - ENABLED
CPU EIST Function - DISABLED
Virtualization Technology - ENABLED
Bi-Directional PROCHOT - ENABLED


QPI Link Speed - 6.84 Ghz


Uncore & QPI Features:-
QPI Link Speed - 6.84Ghz
Uncore Frequency - 3610Mhz
Isochronous Support - ENABLED


Base Clock (BCLK) Control - 190
BCLK Frequency (Mhz) - 4.37Ghz


Advanced Clock Control:-
Base Clock (BCLK) Control - ENABLED
BCLK Frequency (Mhz) - 190
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz) - AUTO
C.I.A.2 - DISABLED
CPU Clock Drive - 800mV
PCI Express Clock Drive - 900mV
CPU Clock Skew - 0ps
IOH Clock Skew - 0ps


Performance Enhance -
Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.) - ENABLED
System Memory Multiplier (SPD) - 8.0
DRAM Timing Schedule (SPD) - QUICK


**The following 5 options need setting for each stick of ram**
CAS Latency Time - 7
tRCD - 7
tRP - 7
tRAS - 24
Command Rate (CMD) - 2


Advanced Voltage Control:-
Load-Line Calibration - ENABLED
CPU Vcore - 1.375V
QPI/Vtt Voltage - 1.335V
CPU PLL - NORMAL
PCIE - NORMAL
QPI PLL - 1.2V
IOH Core - 1.10V
ICH I/O - NORMAL
ICH Core - 1.10V
DRAM Voltage - 1.66V

So what happened is that I first got a 0x000004C BSOD, then I started getting random freezes and restards...
No significant software changes were done and since I run on phase change, I started worrying that this could be a condensation issue, but I've checked the board and all appears to be ok, besides I did take mostly every insulation precaution I could think of.

So I loaded setup optimized results, did some testing and benchmarking and everything was perfectly fine. I now worry this could be the result of degradation of the CPU due to excesive Vcore or QPI VTT voltage, but I've been running this computer 60 hours a week averaging about -2ºC to 5ºC on each core. I don't think the voltages are that high and, in theory, low temps should prevent significant degradation from happening... it is however the only explanation I can think of.

I've now updated to F13S BIOS and I've lowered the frequency to 4.0, so far so good... my questions are, were those issues indeed caused by degradation? and if so, what voltages and frequencies would I have to run to prevent further damage to my CPU?

My rig details can be found here.

It would be great to hear your opinion guys, I'm a bit scared about this as I can't afford a new computer in the near future, as always your advice will be greatly appreciated

[PeterW_R]

Bump