Q8200 + GA-EP31-DS3L: 1st time overclocking

[Noxide]

hey guys/girls

need some advice, ive tried a search for help but couldnt find what i was looking for.

i need advice on overclocking a intel core 2 quad Q8200 2.33GHz with motherboard GA-EP31-DS3L
point me in the right direction please :)

ps. this is my first time overclocking cpu :)

i have overclocked the gpu also
Defaults are : Core Clock - 633MHz
Shader Clock - 1404MHz
Memory Clock - 1134MHz

Overclocked : Core Clock - 729MHz
Shader Clock - 1672MHz
Memory Clock - 1317MHz

with great success for my first overclock :)

thanks in advanced
Damien

Edit: forgot to add ram etc
Ram : 4GB
GPU: GTX 275
PSU: Cooler Master 650w

[profJim]

post moved from overclocking sticky

[Noxide]

*bump* :D

[Noxide]

bump :D

[profJim]

Your current hardware list is lacking some important details.

We can best help you after you create a detailed hardware list in the PC Specs portion of your
forum profile http://forums.tweaktown.com/profile.php?do=editprofile at the bottom of the
profile page or in your forum signature http://forums.tweaktown.com/profile....=editsignature.
Be sure to include brand names and model numbers.

Also include the make and model of your cpu heatsink and fan.

Copy the bios template from Gigabyte BIOS Templates (To Give Us Your Settings), post #4 into a plain text editior (e.g. NotePad) and fill in your current bios settings. When you go into the bios, press CTRL+F1 at the main bios screen so that hidden bios settings will be displayed. You will then copy your bios settings and post them.

Follow steps 2 - 4 in EP43-UD3L with Q9400 wont post, keeps rebooting in the middle of post #5. Note, EasyTune6 will not run with your motherboard.

Read and understand the high level concepts in Gigabyte X38/P35/P965 (DS* DQ* S3) Overclocking and General BIOS tweaking Guide and don't worry about understanding all of the details.

[Noxide]

hey thaks for the response, ill get all the info
when i get some free time :D
hopefully tomorrow :)

[profJim]

You're welcome.
Details are important!!
We aren't mind readers

[Noxide]

hey this is all the info i can find:

starting with

Motherboard - Gigabyte EP31-DS3L
Motherboard Bios Version - FDc (no idea if thats right but thats what i got from CPU-Z) Date 22/05/2009
Chipset - Intel P31/P35
Processor - Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 @ 2333GHz
Memory - 4096MB (2x 2048 DDR2-SDRAM) Brand : Kingston 2x 2GB - (this is what i read off the ram sticks) KVR800D2N6K2/4G, Kit of 2 1.8v, BKMK1650962
Video Card - Nvidia Geforce GTX 275 896MB
Hard Drive 1 - Seagate 2000GB
Hard Drive 2 - Seagate 1000GB
Case - Thermaltake 3 fans (sorry but i cant find the model name/number)
Cooler Intel E3037-001, 1A0127K00-UFB, DC12V 0.14A, FoxConn (this is whats in the heatsink/fan)
Keyboard - Logictech G510
Mouse - Logitech G500
PowerSupply - Coolmaster 650w Product Number RS-650-PCAR-E3, Powersupply link ClickHere
Sound Card - Gigabyte Tech 82801G HD AC
Monitor - ViewSonic VX2233wm-3 22inch
Operating System - Win Vista 32bit Home Edition

Now The settings in bios after crtl F1

Robust Graphics Booster___________ [Auto]
CPU Clock Ratio ____________ [7x]
Fine Clock Ratio ____________[unsure] (couldnt find where this was)
CPU Host Clock Control_ [Enabled]
CPU Host Frequency (MHz)__________ [333]
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz)_______ [Auto]
C.I.A. 2__________________________ [Disabled]
System Memory Multiplier (SPD)____ [Auto]
DRAM Timing Selectable_______ (SPD) __ [Auto]

Performance Enhance = [Standard]

CAS Latency Time________________ [6 - Auto]
Dram RAS# to CAS# Delay_________ [6 - Auto]
Dram RAS# Precharge Delay_______ [6 - Auto]
Precharge Delay (tRAS)__________ [18 - Auto]

ACT to ACT Delay (tRRD)_________ [3 - Auto]
Rank Write to READ Delay________ [3 -Auto ]
Write to Precharge Delay________ [6 - Auto]
Refresh to ACT Delay____________ [52 - Auto]
Read to Precharge Delay_________ [3 - Auto]
Static tRead Value______________ [8 - Auto]
Static tRead Phase Adjust_______ [29 - Auto]

CPU/PCIEX Clock Driving Control [800mV]
CPU Clock Skew Control [normal]
GMCH Clock Skew Control [Normal]

System Voltage Control____ [Auto]
DDR2 OverVoltage Control__ [Normal]
PCI-E OverVoltage Control_ [Auto]
FSB OverVoltage Control___ [Auto]
(G)MCH OverVoltage Control [Normal]
CPU GTLREF Voltage Ratio [0.636]
CPU Voltage Control_______ [Normal]
Normal CPU Vcore _______ [1.25000v]

Limit CPUID Max. to 3.....................: [Disabled]
No-Execute Memory Protect............: [Enabled]
CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E)................: [Enabled]
C2/C2E State Support....................: [Disabled]
x C4/C4E State Support..................: [Disabled]
CPU Thermal Monitor 2(TM2) ...........: [Enabled]
CPU EIST Function.........................: [Enabled]
Virtualization Technology................: [Disabled]

Integrated Peripherals
Legacy USB Storage Detect___________________[Enabled]


Thanks in advanced, Please ask for more info as im such a noobie to overclocking :) i need all the help i can get :)
Thanks again
Damien/Noxide

Edit: Some things i couldnt find like the (i have them as disabled)
C2/C2E State Support....................: [Disabled]
x C4/C4E State Support..................: [Disabled]

[profJim]

Are you using the stock Intel cpu heatsink?
If not, what is the brand and model number of your aftermarket cpu heatsink and fan?
The cooling ability of your cpu heatsink might limit how high you can overclock your system.

Please add your complete hardware list to the PC Specs list in your forum profile.
This will let us quickly view your setup from any of your forum posts so that we don't have to search through your thread. Overclocking
threads can often go on for several pages.

Save your current bios settings and give it a meaningful name such as default_stable.
Your motherboard user manual has instructions for saving and loading multiple saved bios settings.
When you make bios changes for an overclock, save your new bios settings as an additional bios profile and give it a meaningful name such as XXX_test_01 where XXX is the Cpu Host Frequency that you are using. You can replace an existing saved profile with new settings and rename the profile name by overtyping the previous name. You should have a copy of the bios settings for each test where you can add notes that describe test results and details about any problems that occurred. This will speed things up and help with reporting details.

The windows boot partition might get corrupted while stress testing with overclocked settings. It's best to have a system image backup of the boot partition before your start overclocking, where the backked up image is saved to a different partition, preferably on an external hard drive. Macrium Reflect is freeware that is easy to use.
Macrium Reflect FREE Edition - Information and download

Download and install the following programs before you start overclocking:

• Prime95 stress testing program Free Software - GIMPS, 32-bit version for your o/s
• Cpu-z CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting
• CPUID Hardware Monitor CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting
• RealTemp Real Temp - CPU temperature monitoring
• Memset Tweakers.fr

Download and create a bootable CD, floppy or usb drive using Memtest86+ v4.2 before you start overclocking.

Lets start with an easy 10% overclock:
At the bios main screen, press CTRL+F1 and then load Optimized Defaults.

CPU Host Clock Control_ [Enabled]
CPU Host Frequency (MHz)__________ [366]
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz)_______ [100]
C.I.A. 2__________________________ [Disabled]
System Memory Multiplier  (SPD) -- [2.0] <-- this will temporarily lower your memory speed
DRAM Timing Selectable -- (SPD) -- [Manual]

Performance Enhance = [Standard]

CAS Latency Time________________ [6] <-- manually set these 4 settings
Dram RAS# to CAS# Delay_________ [6]
Dram RAS# Precharge Delay_______ [6]
Precharge Delay (tRAS)__________ [18

System Voltage Control -------- [Manual]
DDR2 OverVoltage Control ------ [Normal] <-- this will be increased later to +0.10
PCI-E OverVoltage Control ----- [Auto]
FSB OverVoltage Control ------- [Auto] <-- this will possibly be increased later
(G)MCH OverVoltage Control ---- [+0.10]
CPU GTLREF Voltage Ratio ------ [0.636]
CPU Voltage Control ----------- [1.25000] <-- this will be increased soon

CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E) ------- : [Disabled]
C2/C2E State Support ---------- : [Disabled]
x C4/C4E State Support -------- : [Disabled]
CPU Thermal Monitor 2(TM2) ---- : [Enabled] <-- always leave this enabled
CPU EIST Function ------------- : [Disabled]

Integrated Peripherals
Legacy USB Storage Detect ------ [Disabled] <-- this often helps while overclocking and stress testing

Advanced Bios Features
Full Screen LOGO Show ---------- [Disabled] <-- posting will now show cpu and memory speeds

Save these settings as a bios profile and then press F10 to save settings and exit.
When your system reboots, immediately go back into the bios and verify that your new settings are still in effect.
If your system gets into a boot loop, let it "recycle" at least three times and then immediately go into the bios to see if your
overclocked settings have been replaced with default settings.

If everything is OK, boot to the Memtest86+ bootable drive and let it run for 10 full test loops.
If there is an error, note the loop #, test # and failing memory address.
Stop the test if any error occurs, as this means that the bios settings are not good.
If there are no errors, boot into windows and run the Prime95 Blend test for 4 - 6 hours or longer.
If there is an error, post a cropped copy ot the Prime95 window that shows the error details.
If there is a BSOD, post the error code which will be similar to 0x124.

It will be very helpful to include the following in a screen-shot:

• CoreTemp
• MemSet using the SPD and ">>" tabs
• cpu-Z showing the CPU, Memory and Mainboard windows (you can run multiple cpu-Z windows at the same time)

There is a link to the Prime95 tutorial in my signature.
Any questions?

[Noxide]

hey guys sorry i havent replied in a little while, I've been a bit busy with an insurance company.
My car got written off 2 weeks ago and still currently dealing with insurance company. Could take a couple of weeks to get sorted. So i wont be around for a couple of weeks until i get it sorted and go buy another car.

Cheers Noxide