Gigabyte ds3 + e4300

[Kingfisher]

So far with my first ever Intel build I have come up with a meager 2.92 (325x9) for the ocdb.:cool:

I am having alot of fun with this so far.

Core Temp reports mid 40s during orthos.

Staying with the 9 multi, I may try more voltage as I can't boot over 330 currently.

My Ram pretty much likes 2.0v.

Any advice or suggestions?

[momoceio]

Might try dropping the multi down to 7 or 8 and uppping the FSB...

[eburness]

I've had a bit better luck thus far with my e4300. I've paired it with an Asus 650i mobo and 2gb of G.Skill DDR800 and so far it's running rock solid at 9x375 (3.375ghz) at 1.468 vcore. I've got a lapped Big Typhoon and AS-5 on it though, as well as 2 other 120mm case fans, so pretty good air flow in general.

 

Try upping your voltage a bit to the 1.4-14.5 area and see if that give syou the boost you're looking for.

[Kingfisher]

Nice overclock eburness.

I have been steadily learning this new board and have been able to reach 340 x9 so far with 1.425 volts.

I am taking things slow and testing for stability as I go.

I like to be sure I am stable before I proceed upwards. I also am impressed with the OCZ plats, really strong 2 GB kit.

 

CoreTemp reports 51c on each core running Orthos. As I am not familiar with Intel's playbook, I am being over cautious at first.

What would you consider a safe zone as far as temps are concerned?

How much voltage are you willing to give the chipset and cpu?

[ooeric]

51c is still easy for an intel cpu..

 

up vcore to 1.5 to play with

up ram to 2.2v . lax timings very little

up your vnb higher. id stick a fan over it.

[eburness]

I agree that with OOeric. 51c per core for a Conroe is nothing to bat an eye lash at. I think the key is making sure that the Northbridge and Southbridge have enough volts and, perhaps more importantly, good cooling. I'm using the stock aluminum heatsink that came with the 650i, but I lapped the bottom and applied AS-5, and put a Thermalright HR05-SLI w/ AS5 on the Southbridge.

 

I'm currently running now at 3402 (9x378) @ 1.475v on the CPU and 1.75 on the northbridge. I'm running 51-52c per core in Orthos and Asus Probe II is reporting an overall CPU temp of 40c.

 

You should definitely be able to hit 3.2ghz with ease with a DS3 and the latest BIOS. I know the F9 BIOS hits a 500mhz FSB, so that should be in your range as well.

[Kingfisher]

So far I like this board except it is quite annoying to have to sit through constant restarts if I set wrong voltages or RAM timings.

 

I can boot into windows using 350x9 but I have to give 1.525 vcore and +.2v to the mch and fsb. I don't have any fan blowing on my SB but my zalman 7700 is blowing right down on the NB nicely.

 

I am testing with orthos right now.

Core temp still reports both cores in the mid 50s c.

Man, these Intel chips are amazing.:beer

[ooeric]

in all of my experiences southbridge cooling isnt all that important since it mainly (majority) just controls things like raid, ide, usb, crap like that

 

but your nb is what your ram has to go thru cpu it hits the cpu or vice versa.

 

even if you think your zal is blowing there. just stick a 80mm , sit it on your gfx card or something . then try to oc again.

[Kingfisher]

Alright, good idea ooeric.

 

350 x 9 failed orthos after 2 hours.

I am just finishing up an orthos run at 339x9 1.5v.

The thing I am seeing here is my nb "feels" cool to the touch during orthos or gaming.

Perhaps I can try going up again and use that fan cooling my nb.

I most likely will run this @ 3 ghz 24/7 though.

 

This system smokes my old AMD 939 set-up which I sold to cover the costs of this new one. I was unsure really what to expect but I can't keep this smile off my face.

 

Thank you eburness and ooeric for your support here.

Thanks to Angry and Thasp for their posts on the Gigabyte boards and how well these Intel chips overclock. I would never have picked this Gigabyte board otherwise.

[eburness]

Kingfisher,

 

Glad you've found a good level of stability. A few additional thoughts, though.

 

If the NB feels "cool," something probably isn't right with the thermal transfer b/t the NB, itself, and the heatsink. Mine is definitely warm/hot to the touch, but that's also a good sign b/c it means there's a good path of heat transfer b/t the NB, thermal compound, and heatsink.

 

If I were you I'd pop off the NB heatsink, completely remove whatever crap thermal padding came with the motherboard, and apply some of your own thermal compound (again, AS-5 does wonders).

 

The DS-3 is a serious overclocking motherboard, and the e4300 is still a Conroe, so I'd be pretty surprised is 9x350 is the highest it can go. Something in the 3.2 and higher range seems to be more of the norm.

 

Also, relax your memory timings to see if what's holding you back is a RAM issue. Wouldn't be a total shocker if this were the case.

[Kingfisher]

Well, I applied AS-5 on my NB as suggested.

Honestly I really don't think I have any more patience sitting through hours of restarts again, just to gain another 100 mhz with this chip. I guess my board is on crack or something. I like it just fine where it's at. Perhaps down the road I will go at it again. Thanks for your help.

[Kingfisher]

After having this board for several days I have decided to bail and go back to Asus. I tried a P5B-E that was dead on arrival and went for this gigabyte. The cold boot issues that have plagued me so far have soured me on the DS3.

 

I understand the cold boot issues are p965 related and not MB specific, that being said, my strategy will be the same as it was with AMD. Keep trying different flavors until you find one that tastes good.

 

Next up, the Asus P5B deluxe. So long, Gigabyte.

If this one doesn't work I am going to try out a 975x board.:angel: