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EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

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  • EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

    Hi,

    managed to get my new system up and running but want to overclock.
    I'd like to overclock to 3ghz but am a total newbie.
    my memory is 2 sticks of 2gb ocz10004gk platinum, I have 1 500gb seagate 3500320as installed but intend to add another. My q6600 is a G0 revisionmodel. And i'm running a QuadroFX 3500.

    I need it to be as stable as possible as I intend to use it for video editing.

    Any ideas anyone?
    coolermaster cm690 case

    CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

    Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

    Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
    (pc2-8000) 4gig

    Cpu: q6600
    , SLACR G0

    Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

    GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

    dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
    floppy drive: sony: model unknown

  • #2
    Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

    3GHz should be pretty easy on most Q6600 chips, especially the G0. Mine runs 3GHz at stock voltages. Your motherboard isn't going to hold you back, I have the same one.

    Here's some general advice before you start. Stability testing is critical. A lot of folks use Prime95 but I prefer a test based on the Intel Linpack benchmark, because it works the CPU harder than Prime95.

    Save your settings frequently! The BIOS will let you save up to 8 settings by hitting F11. Name your settings so you can figure out what you've done. When (not if) you hit an unstable setting, you can quickly recover your last stable one by hitting F12.

    Be sure you have adequate cooling for your CPU! A quad core throws off a lot of heat when you overclock it.

    I would start by setting everything in the BIOS manually at your current working settings. On the M.I.T. page, set PCI Express Frequency to 100, disable C.I.A. 2, and set memory Performance Enhance to Standard. Take ALL voltages off the Auto setting and set them to what is shown in the Normal column. Leave all memory timings on Auto. Verify that your system works correctly and save this setting in the BIOS with F11 under a name like "SAFE".

    Now test to see if 333MHz FSB is stable.

    Go to the Advanced BIOS Features page and disable CPU EIST Function and CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E) for testing. Go to M.I.T. and set the (G)MCH Latch to 333, and the System Memory Multiplier to 2.4. This will cause your memory to run at 800MHz for stability while you find the limits of your CPU.

    Go to the M.I.T page, set the CPU Clock Ratio to 7X and the CPU Host Frequency to 333. Hit F10 to save and restart. Chances are good that things will work just fine. If they don't, try again with a lower CPU host frequency until you get it stable, then bring up the CPU Vcore voltage one tick at a time until it will run at 333MHz x 7. There should be no need to adjust any other voltages, the P45 MCH is designed to run at 333MHz at stock voltages. Save your stable setting with F11.

    Next increase the CPU Clock Ratio to 8X and try again. When you find a stable CPU core voltage, save it with F11 again.

    Now bump the CPU Clock Ratio to 9X. When you find a stable CPU Vcore voltage, save the settings with F11. You are now running at 3GHz!

    Now you can optimize your settings. Go to the Advanced BIOS Features page again and enable EIST and C1E. This will keep the CPU cooler when it's not fully loaded. Save the setting with F11.

    If you are lucky, your CPU will still be at the standard CPU VCore voltage. If it is, you can try turning it down one tick at a time until you find the minimum stable core voltage at your desired speed. The lower the voltage you can run at, the cooler your CPU will be, and the lower your power bill! For extra credit, see how low you can adjust the MCH Core and CPU Termination voltages and still run stable. Save the setting with F11 once you are satisfied.

    If you feel like cranking up the memory speed or tuning timings, you can do it now. This is beyond my limited experience with this board. I have not yet gotten over 800MHz. Someone else can probably help with memory tuning.

    Good luck, and tell us how it works out!
    Intel Q9550 @ 3.842GHz * Gigabyte EP45-UD3P v1.1 * 8GB of OCZ Reaper HPC * nVidia GeForce GTX 660 * Mac OS X 10.9.2

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

      WOW Thanks! This will definately get me on my way, I'll let you know how I get on asap ( some time next week, busy,busy,busy..)
      Very clear as well, previous guides I've found weren't half as easy to understand, cheers!
      coolermaster cm690 case

      CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

      Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

      Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
      (pc2-8000) 4gig

      Cpu: q6600
      , SLACR G0

      Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

      GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

      dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
      floppy drive: sony: model unknown

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

        Well, I had a chance to try out some of your ideas today ( it was my birthday and I had the day off ) And was partially succesfull. I did test with prime95 after all though, just because it was easier to find and, well if other people are using it, who am I to step of the beaten track.
        Anyway, I say partially because so far I haven't been able to get 9x333 to work, or at least prime95 seems to think something is wrong. At the moment I'm testing with 9x320 and everything seems to be going ok...but of course I'm just shy of my 3ghz goal and for a G0 revision model it seems kind of low.
        Does this mean I need to up the vcore from normal?
        thanx so far, if you have any other tips I'd be gratefull.
        coolermaster cm690 case

        CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

        Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

        Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
        (pc2-8000) 4gig

        Cpu: q6600
        , SLACR G0

        Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

        GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

        dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
        floppy drive: sony: model unknown

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

          Happy Birthday!!

          Try boosting CPU Vcore one or two steps. You should be pretty close. The P45 based boards are designed to run at 333MHz FSB and 800MHz DDR2, so you shouldn't have to boost any other voltages.

          What CPU core temperatures are you seeing under Prime95?

          Once you get Prime95 running at 3.0, you can download LinX here. LinX is a GUI wrapped around the Intel Linpack executable. It is going to be the ultimate torture test of stability and cooling.
          Intel Q9550 @ 3.842GHz * Gigabyte EP45-UD3P v1.1 * 8GB of OCZ Reaper HPC * nVidia GeForce GTX 660 * Mac OS X 10.9.2

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

            Thanks, and thanks for the quick reply.

            I've boosted the vcore 2 steps now but i still get an error in Prime after a few minutes.
            I'm thinking it might have something to do with my ram choice though...If it's rated at 1000mhz @ 2.1v maybe I should just set it to that and see what happens.

            The reason I chose this ram is because I saw a poster on another forums specs and he had them running @900mhz with 4-4-4-12 timings also with this board.

            But I'll do the tempchecks first and get back to you.
            coolermaster cm690 case

            CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

            Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

            Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
            (pc2-8000) 4gig

            Cpu: q6600
            , SLACR G0

            Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

            GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

            dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
            floppy drive: sony: model unknown

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

              What speed is the RAM running now? My experience so far with OCZ RAM is that their timing specs are optimistic. But maybe I just don't know how to dial them in yet.

              If you want to explore memory settings, first go to Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool and download a copy of Memtest86+. It's available as an ISO so you can burn it onto a CD-R and boot from the CD. That way you're not putting your installed software at risk while you probe for stability. It will also help you isolate RAM issues from CPU settings, since it is not as stressful on the CPU as Prime95 or Linpack.
              Intel Q9550 @ 3.842GHz * Gigabyte EP45-UD3P v1.1 * 8GB of OCZ Reaper HPC * nVidia GeForce GTX 660 * Mac OS X 10.9.2

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                Well, wasn't expecting this! BSOD!! while testing with prime and running core temp. It did a memorydump before restarting.
                Temps before the crash were around 65c. Is that a lot? I have 5 fans in my system:
                1 front, 1 top, 1 back and two on the sidepannel. 2 are antecs left over from another build and i have their speed setting on medium.

                I do have some plain 800mhz kingston valueram that I could swap for testing but if you have any other ideas...
                coolermaster cm690 case

                CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

                Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

                Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
                (pc2-8000) 4gig

                Cpu: q6600
                , SLACR G0

                Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

                GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

                dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
                floppy drive: sony: model unknown

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                  Ok, I'll do that first. My ram is running 2800mhz still on the stock timings ( and at a lower than rated voltage of 1.8v )
                  coolermaster cm690 case

                  CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

                  Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

                  Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
                  (pc2-8000) 4gig

                  Cpu: q6600
                  , SLACR G0

                  Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

                  GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

                  dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
                  floppy drive: sony: model unknown

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                    It's not running @ 2800mhz of course, that would be quite a feat!
                    coolermaster cm690 case

                    CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

                    Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

                    Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
                    (pc2-8000) 4gig

                    Cpu: q6600
                    , SLACR G0

                    Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

                    GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

                    dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
                    floppy drive: sony: model unknown

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                      65C is a bit high but not unusual during stress testing. Linpack will push it up another 6-10C IME. When core temps get into the 70s, I get nervous, but anything below that in stress testing is OK. What are you using for a CPU cooler? The Kentsfield quads throw off a lot of heat.

                      I had to back off memory timings on my rig because they were right on the edge of instability. I would run Memtest86+ overnight and get anywhere from 1 to a couple dozen errors. I prefer to see 0, thank you! Check to see if this is happening with your setup.
                      Intel Q9550 @ 3.842GHz * Gigabyte EP45-UD3P v1.1 * 8GB of OCZ Reaper HPC * nVidia GeForce GTX 660 * Mac OS X 10.9.2

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                        Chucko,

                        I used Linpack to stress my CPU. My temps were as high as 74 degrees Celsius. I was very nervous, but just think what was going through my mind when I began to smell something like that new mobo smell. I do believe that my CPU was about to burn up. I was getting very nervous. When I tried to use OCCT, it stopped the test. The CPU was getting too hot for it to continue.
                        Last edited by ill; 02-05-2009, 12:18 PM.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                          I'm using the stock cooler for now as I didn't expect such a mild overclock to throw up any problems but if you think that could be causing my problems i'll investigate into getting a better one.
                          I just read so many posts (not specifically with gigabyte boards) saying they were capable of a 3ghz overclock on the stock cooler that I just reasoned I would be fine.
                          But maybe they didn't do any testing...?
                          Memtest86+ has been running since yesterday afternoon (walltime: 20h 40m) with 0 errors and 30 passes. is it safe to assume my memory is ok? (still using stock timings @ 2.1v)
                          I will be away for the weekend, so I might not reply straight away if you post anymore tips.
                          Thanks for now!
                          coolermaster cm690 case

                          CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

                          Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

                          Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
                          (pc2-8000) 4gig

                          Cpu: q6600
                          , SLACR G0

                          Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

                          GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

                          dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
                          floppy drive: sony: model unknown

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                            20+ hours of Memtest without errors sounds stable to me!

                            It's your call whether you need a bigger cooler for your uses. My philosophy is, the more cooling capacity the system has, the longer it will live, and the fewer problems it will give. I also prefer to stress the system harder during the initial overclocking phase than I will actually use the system in practice. That way I don't get any surprises down the road.

                            My house is not air conditioned so we occasionally get indoor ambient temperatures as high as 40C in summer. That's another good reason to have some extra cooling margin!
                            Intel Q9550 @ 3.842GHz * Gigabyte EP45-UD3P v1.1 * 8GB of OCZ Reaper HPC * nVidia GeForce GTX 660 * Mac OS X 10.9.2

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: EP45 DS3R q6600 overclock guidlines

                              Originally posted by Chucko View Post
                              20+ hours of Memtest without errors sounds stable to me!

                              It's your call whether you need a bigger cooler for your uses. My philosophy is, the more cooling capacity the system has, the longer it will live, and the fewer problems it will give. I also prefer to stress the system harder during the initial overclocking phase than I will actually use the system in practice. That way I don't get any surprises down the road.

                              My house is not air conditioned so we occasionally get indoor ambient temperatures as high as 40C in summer. That's another good reason to have some extra cooling margin!
                              Hi There,

                              just an update (with bad news, i'm afraid):

                              I think I may have ****ed something up, my pc won't boot anymore after installing a new cpucooler!
                              I've checked all my connections and videocard but I'm not getting into the bootscreen. I was pretty carefull about not flexing the board to much and wore an antistatic wristband throughout the procedure but didn't do a complete rebuild so it was a bit of a pallaver getting the board back into the case...
                              I've learn't my lesson (i hope) and next week i'll go through some troubleshooting again
                              cheers so far
                              coolermaster cm690 case

                              CPUcooler : Coolermaster Z600 with 1200rpm fan

                              Psu: Bequiet 650w darkpower pro (not cheap) w. modular connectors.

                              Memory: OCZ Platinum Dual Channel OCZ2P10004GK
                              (pc2-8000) 4gig

                              Cpu: q6600
                              , SLACR G0

                              Harddrive(s) : seagate ST3500320as (non affected firmware sd25) 1 installed so far.

                              GFX: Nvidia Quadrofx 3500 (essential for intended use so this had better not be a problem).

                              dvdrw: nec-optiarc: model unknown
                              floppy drive: sony: model unknown

                              Comment

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