Need advice on overclocking AMD 64 X2 3800+

[Guest joeyll]

Hi everone,

 

This'll be my first post. I really like this site. I want to overclock my Athlon AMD 64 X2 3800+ just a little. I'd like to have a little more speed with it. I have a good enough cpu fan/heatsink to overclock it I know. Can someone point me in the right direction on what to do first or what I should concentrate on doing first. I'll be reading more on this site about it. I have the nVidia chipset on my Asus A8N-SLI Premium MoBo so I have the nTune program and it has a clock control with it. I can adjust my PCI-E Express Bus. Its set at 2500Mhz and I can take it way up. On the other side is says "System Bus Speeds" -Hypertransport Link= 1,010Mhz - Memory Bus=404 DDR Mhz - The Memory bus is set about halfway up. I have a place to change my HT Link Multiplier as well. Its at 5X now. Another setting say my current CPU clock multiplier is set at 10X which is different from the HT Link Multiplier I think.

Something important. When I open NTune it tells me this -

"My PCI clock is currently set to track the HT Bus. If you adjust the clock for the HT Bus, the PCI bus clock will change as well."

 

I'm not real sure about the meaning of that. I mean I know what it says but not sure of the implecations of it.

 

Then I have a Memory Control Timing. Below it I have 3 boxes. One is called the "Row Address Strobe" T(RAS): 7 - The 7 being in the box I can adjust from 1 to 15. Next is "RAS to CAS" T(RCD): 3. The 3 in the box and can adjust from 1 to 7. Last is the "Memory Bank Switch" T(RP): 3. Again can adjust from 1 to 7. After that I have the Core GPU bus speeds which I'm not concerned about. So it looks like my memory controller timing is set to 7-7-3.

 

I'm not as concerned about overclocking my memory as I am my cpu. I know they go hand in hand however.

 

Well, after all that info I'm given maybe some of it means somthing to you pros out there that might be willing to help me out. I not asking for someone to walk me through it step by step( Of course that would be nice:rolleyes: If someone did want to do that I could reimburse you with a nice used HD or a Nice used in mint condition NZXT PP500 500Watt PSU. If I'm wrong about offering things for services on this site I'm sorry and will take them off right away.

 

Just need some help and any would be appreciated: Points in the right direction, advice, tips, whatever...Anything would be very very much appreciated.

 

Joey Lemming

[noneed4me2]

Welcome to the new DIY-street formally DFI-street, heres something to get you started http://www.diy-street.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20823 , one good tip to avoid damaging your stuff, take it slow. Overzealous overclocking is a good way to bork something fast. Nice setup by the way. Also google Orthos and Prime95, two types of programs to test for stability as you overclock. Monitor your heat and take it easy when playing with voltages. Oh and that HT tied to the PCI clock is a nono, you don't want the PCI clock tracking with the HT speed (FSB) lock it or unsync it in your bios. Looking for reviews on your board with google might find what others got on your board with certain bios settings. Also no compensation needed or expected, just follow the guide and post about anything you don't get, we were all new once although some people forget it.

[noneed4me2]

Then I have a Memory Control Timing. Below it I have 3 boxes. One is called the "Row Address Strobe" T(RAS): 7 - The 7 being in the box I can adjust from 1 to 15. Next is "RAS to CAS" T(RCD): 3. The 3 in the box and can adjust from 1 to 7. Last is the "Memory Bank Switch" T(RP): 3. Again can adjust from 1 to 7. After that I have the Core GPU bus speeds which I'm not concerned about. So it looks like my memory controller timing is set to 7-7-3.

 

I'm not as concerned about overclocking my memory as I am my cpu. I know they go hand in hand however.

 

 

Joey Lemming

 

Your mem should auto set to its built in timings and you should learn about other overclocking things first, just run it on a loose divider to start while you play with other stuff to give less to worry about at first. Memry timings is another learning topic outside general Overclocking.

[Guest joeyll]

I found that Overclocking guide yesterday and started reading it last nite. Whoever the guy is that made that knows a thing or two about what hes talking about. Thanks for the suggestions NoNeedForMe2. I"m still not sure of what the FIRST actual thing I need to do is. I thing once I get past that it'll just come naturally while I'm reading suggestions and guides. I hope that makes sense.

More suggestions and tips are wanted and appreciated...THANKS!!!!

 

Joey

[noneed4me2]

First thing I would do is read up on your bios as they are different from board to board, for instance my memory dividers are represented in fractions 1/2, 3/4 and the like while others it is 200, 166, 133 ect. Getting to know what is what in your bios will help you from changing something and not knowing what it was. Also look for databases in these forums and others for people that have similar setups as yours and see what they got, this will help to build a good knowledge place to start from. Don't set unreasonable goals, just cause someone can do 3ghz on his cpu doesn't mean yours will too. I did and still do alot of research on stuff before I do anything helps me avoid problems and to be able to deal with them when they arise.

[wolverineI]

i seem to remember someone saying to emphatically NOT use ntune to overclock.overclock from the bios in small stages.much safer.

[Guest joeyll]

I didn't use Ntune to do anything, thank goodness. I've seen some nightmare posts at other forums from using ntune. Anyways, I went into the BIOS , advanced then to jumperfree config. I set the cpu config to Manual which then let me boost up the cpu FSB Frequency to 210.0. Then i finally found where you set the HTT multiplier. On my Mobo, ASUS A8N-SLI Premium, you go to Advanced>-CPU Config>-Hypertransport Frequency. I selected 4X. I think it can safely be run higher though. Thats what the AMD site said.

So I check out how that ran for a couple of hours. It was very stable with no temperature increases anywhere. So I went back to the BIOS and boosted up the cpu FSB Frequency to 220MHz, rebooted and then ran SuperPI. I got a good reading from that and still not a degree temperature change. I have an Arctic Cooling Alpine 64 cpu heatsink/fan. Its just a notch up from the stock heatsink for my cpu but it seems to be doing the job. If I go up any further I think I'll invest in a better cpu cooler. I can notice a considerable change in speed on my computer. It boots up and shuts down about 4 seconds faster, programs open quicker, my pictures resize faster,etc, etc.

I'm very very pleased. Thanks again guys,

 

Joey Lemming

[wolverineI]

you only really need better cooling if youre overvolting the cpu,with the A64

the point at which you need to raise the cpu voltage dramatically to gain a very small increase in speed is basically where you should back down and be satisfied with your clock.personally i stay away from the 1.5 vcore levels as i

cant afford to be replacing cpus or other components.