DFI LanParty UT NF4 Ultra-D Overclocking help needed

[z0mbi3]

Hi there, nice forums you got here. It's my first post so I hope not to sound too retarded.

 

Basically I'm having some trouble overclocking my new setup. Everything is as in my signature below.

 

I used to use an Abit AV8 and my Opteron would clock up to 2.8 ghz with minimal voltage bump. I've tried going for a similar clock on this new board but I can never get into Windows. On one occasion I managed to get in very briefly at 2.4 ghz but it wasn't stable enough to use and gave errors almost instantly.

 

I'm running the memory on all sorts of dividers (right down to DDR266 speeds) and still getting no joy. The memory was fine in my other setup so I don't see it being the problem here.

 

I've also tried upping the voltage on the cpu all the way up to 1.525v, arguably I got the furthest at this voltage but it wasn't into windows for more than a few seconds before it crapped out.

 

I know this proc is capable on less volts than that so I'm thinking it must be something else.

 

The only thing I haven't tried yet is a bump to the chipset voltage. This will be the first thing I try when I get in tonight, but it just seemed a little odd that I'd have to apply a voltage bump to the chipset at such a low clock?

 

This is all being done on the stock bios btw. I didn't want to go flashing straight away.

 

Any advice would be brilliant, and thanks in advance.

[KimTjik]

Welcome!

 

A necessary read is the following: http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20823

 

When you talk about dividers, might that indicate that you haven't really changed any other settings? I ask, because the motherboard you have is specialized for oc, which means you ought to get all settings right in the DRAM configuration.

 

Next question is about memory: since you have four modules have you disabled CPC in BIOS? The system won't boot with it enabled if you're using more than two modules of RAM.

 

Take your time working with the memory and remember that value RAM is more difficult to run on these boards. GeiL makes good RAM so hopefully you'll be able to find out the correct settings. Auto might not do the trick for you.

[z0mbi3]

Thanks for the reply. I've read the stickied guides. Not really anything I didn't already know but its nice to see some board specific stuff.

 

The memory is running at 2t at the moment. It won't hurt to try it a little higher.

 

Thing to remember is that the pc boots fine at stock.

 

Is what I proposed about the chipset voltage unheard of?

[ebdoradz]

4stick of ram is a little special to get it to work on those board, i personaly prefer using 2*1Gb then 4 *512, maybe that what its holding you in that overclock

[smolt]

z0mbi3 first thing comes to my mind is. Is all 4 sticks of memory SPD read the same? Also can you put your PSU in your sig and list your memory timings you have set in the bios

[z0mbi3]

I'm not on the comp in question atm. As soon as I'm on it I'll post back further details.

 

The PSU is an Antec 280 Watt job. I forget the amp rating, but its no cheap tat.

 

All the sticks are the same and read the same by SPD if I recall correctly.

[KimTjik]

I'm not on the comp in question atm. As soon as I'm on it I'll post back further details.

 

The PSU is an Antec 280 Watt job. I forget the amp rating, but its no cheap tat.

 

All the sticks are the same and read the same by SPD if I recall correctly.

 

Do you really mean 280W or it's a typo?

[z0mbi3]

Do you really mean 280W or it's a typo?

 

 

lol major typo. I meant 480, but its actually 450 watt with 21 amps on the +12v (just looked it up from my order history). Not massive I know but it doesn't seem like the limiting factor to me.

[ganders75]

As asked above, please provide full Genie settings for your RAM. I'm thinking that you probably have most of them on Auto, which is where your problem is...

 

That 280W must be a typo, surely? Would it even boot with that little juice? I doubt it...

 

EDIT: First thing everyone is going to tell you is you need to have 28A minimum on the +12V line. Your PSU will definately be limiting your OC.

[Praz]

Thanks for the reply. I've read the stickied guides. Not really anything I didn't already know but its nice to see some board specific stuff.

 

The memory is running at 2t at the moment. It won't hurt to try it a little higher.

You really need a known good psu. But for the moment we'll assume it's not part of the problem.

 

1T and 2T is all there is. I didn't see anything mentioned as to what the memory timings are set at. Auto probably isn't going to work nor are the settings you used with the other board. Overclocking with 4 sticks of ram can be problematic and at times just plain won't work.

 

This is the procedure I use. Set CPC to 1T. Using 2 sticks of ram, manually input your memory timings to find stability at stock speeds. Use MemTest and the programs listed in the OCDB to insure stability. Following the overclocking guide and still using 2 sticks of ram, find max processor speed, max memory speed and then the max overclock for the two combined. Once again verify these results by running the tests above. Record all settings and drop back to stock speeds. With all 4 sticks installed, set the DIMM voltage to the maximum value specified for the ram and set CPC to 2T. Start overclocking again as you did previously changing the timings as needed. Because of the additional load on the memory controller it's not uncommon not to be able to reach as high of an overclock as you did with just 2 sticks of ram.

[z0mbi3]

I thought antec were a known name?

 

Because of the additional load on the memory controller it's not uncommon not to be able to reach as high of an overclock as you did with just 2 sticks of ram.

 

I've always used 4 sticks.

 

So basically we're saying start overclocking from scratch? I don't have a problem with that. I tend to run my memory underclocked and keep the timings at stock and I've never really had problems.

 

I guess its back to the drawing board then , I'll start low and work my way up :sad:

 

EDIT: First thing everyone is going to tell you is you need to have 28A minimum on the +12V line. Your PSU will definately be limiting your OC.

 

I appreciate the benefits of having a high rated PSU and I will upgrade it in the future, but it never limited my OC before where the majority of my equipment was the same. Even my old graphics card used to run at uber volts.

 

I will provide ram details when I'm at the machine , but I can't atm.

[Praz]

I've always used 4 sticks.

But it was on a different motherboard. DFI boards are not only built with maximum overclocking in mind but also maximum performance. There are a lot of timings and values in the bios that you don't see and thus can't be changed. Some of these values are tighter on a DFI board then some other one for added performance. But at the same time this can also limit things you attempt such as running 4 sticks of ram.

 

So basically we're saying start overclocking from scratch? I don't have a problem with that. I tend to run my memory underclocked and keep the timings at stock and I've never really had problems.

 

I guess its back to the drawing board thne , I'll start low nad work my way up :sad:

Starting over is the best choice. Nobody ever wants to do this though. It seems to take too long. But more often then not it's the fastest way to obtain the end result.