Advice on OCing AMD Athlon XP Tbred 2100+ with 8RDA+

[Magelord]

Hello all..

For a year I have been using an AMD Athlon XP Tbred 2100+ (I do not recall if it is the "B" version or not)

I was planning to build a new system and use a 2500+ Barton, but realized my funds are low so building a new system is not an option anymore...

I am curious to find out what steps I should take to OC my 2100+ to get it over 2000 mhz. I do not want to push it too high, just a comfy avarage OC will do.

Current sys specs.
CPU - AMD Athlon XP (Palamino) 2100+

MB - EPOX 8RDA+ (not sure of version but think its 2.x)

RAM - OCZ EL DDR PC3500 256mb with Copper Heat Spreaders (I have 2 of these in the Dual Channel slots)

HSF -Thermal Take Valcono 7 ( No not the + version, its the version with the quater sized copper slug below the cheap HS.. Before installing, i sanded and smoothed out the copper face then rubed in Artic Silver to ensure an even coat that seeped into the pours. The applied a thin coat of Arctic Silver on the Amd Core. A year later..Temps in HS are at 97F(Is that good?), MBM5 reports CPU temp of 38-40C, i recall readin MBM adds+5C by deafult, so maybe it is closer to 35C?)

VIDEO - Currently MSI Titanium GF4 Ti4200 128 Oced 275/580 -3DMARK - 1580 <<-- I think this sux
(Upgrading to BFG FX5900 in less than 7 hours.. It just arrived at my house today)

Hard Drive - Sux .. WD 30g w 2mb cache.. (shopping for new one.. looking at the WD Special Ed, 7200rpm 80gb 8mb cache for like 73 bucs)

I am also considering the Purchase of a new HSF, but do not have enough cash for a real good one. I am considering the AeroCool"Glacier"CPU Cooler..
I have read where some have OCed their Bartons with it and had no Haet issues, I imagine it would do well with an OCed Tbred 2100+. It has a solid Copper HS, and I will most likely sand/polish/Arctic Rub the base of it

Given these specs, is a moderate OC possable with the 2100+

I have tried to research and get info on this, but most OCers post there extreme OC's with their Beer Keg encased Water cooler systems and all that...
:beer:

 

[MichaelD]

Hello and welcome to the forums.

Overclocking is always a crapshoot. You may or may not get great or just mediocre, or close to no overclocking, depending on many factors.

Are you currently running at the stock speed? You've definitely got some headroom with that memory.

I'm not sure if the multiplier on the Non-B TBreds are unlocked on NF2 boards or not.

Your HS is not great, but should be enough for a mild overclock. You're using AS which is a good thing.

Go into the BIOS and enable manual setting of the FSB/timings. Being that you've wisely chosen an NF2 board, your PCI and AGP timings are locked...but just set the AGP setting to 66MHz just to be sure. That's what I do.

Anyway, raise the FSB by 10MHz and leave the CPU voltage at stock. Reboot. Run some benchies and see if it's stable. Keep raising the FSB until you need to add more voltage to keep it stable.

With your HS, I wouldn't go higher than 1.725 volts or so. Things will get hot in a hurry once you start OCing.

Things get more complicated (RAM timings in particular) once you start getting up around 200MHz. But leave those at default for now...or wherever you've got them.

Good luck.

 

[Magelord]

Thanks for the info MichaelD



I can tell you that all the settingings in the Bios are at defaults and I recall the memory being detected or running at a lower speed than it can handle.

BTW what Benchmarking programs are a good for this?

I purchased these parts last year with the intention to overclock them.. I belive I have the Tbred B version, but then again I am not %100 sure.. Seems I would rememebr if i did not get one..

I am debating over taking off the HSF and replacing it. (And record the part info on the AMD)

Anyone have any experiences with the Galcier I mentioned? I like it for its Copper HS and its Blue led fan.. oh and its 23 bucs with free shipping at new egg.

Well, when I get home tonight I plan to play in the Bios and get some settings recorded and then play with the FSB as MichaelD suggested...

Thanks again

 

[BlueWeasel]

Mage, considering you've got a Palomino 2100+, I really don't think you're going to get much over the stock speed.

I had a 2000+ Palomino, and never even tried to OC it because of all the bad results that other's had with it. The 2000+ and 2100+ are towards the max of the Palomino core, and there's just not much OC'ing headroom in those chips.

By all means, try doing what MichaelD said, but I wouldn't spend a dime on additional HSF/cooling until I saw what the chip could do. Your current HSF will be fine for now.

Post back with your results, and good luck...

 

[SuperStrokey]

easiest way to find out if you have a pally is to check the stock core voltage. 1.75 and its a pally other than that you have a thorughbred A or a B. 1.5 could be either and 1.6 is a B. TO see what people have got with a 2100 pally go to overclockers.com and check their data base. Also the you can check the revision of the mobo by looking at the bottom left corver, it will say there.

 

[Magelord]

Ohhhhhhh

Ok, sorry

I do have the Tbred... I think

I just assumed that was the name of the Chip line, not the core.

During my "Searches" for 2100+ info I read alot of "Palimino" refrences and assumed....

Well I know I have the Tbred...

This weekend I intend to remove my HSF, clean it up (its been on there a year), and get exact info on it...

I checked Bios last eve and everything is set to "Default" so I did not see an actual Voltage.. but then again i did not look to long. I was up late getting my FX 5900 setup, Oced and benched. I got like a 5228 on 3DMark03 without tweaking anything except the clock( 441/932 )

I found my last years Invoice from Newegg...

19-103-370 CPU AMD|2100+ 1.73 ATHLONXP TBRED% 1 $95.00 $95.00
For Retail AMD processor, please call 408 749-3060 for service after first 30 days. For OEM AMD processor, newegg.com will service for 30 days only. Please verify Processor matches your order Prior To installation. IMPORTANT: Always pack you CPU well for return. Newegg.com will refuse your RMA if we received it as DAMAGED!

35-100-003 CPU THERM PASTE|ARCTIC SILVER 3 3G% 1 $6.00 $6.00
35-106-011 CPU FAN AMD/INTEL | VOLCANO 7 RTL 1 $15.00 $15.00
35-999-116 CPU ACCE|COPPER SHIM MP/XP 1594 TH% 1 $5.00 $5.00

Subtotal $121.00
Tax $0.00
Shipping and Handling charge $15.25
Amount Paid $136.25


So its a Tbred...

Question, is the Hammer and the Barton the same chip?

Again thanks for the info all... I will update what I come up with

 

[valky]

I have a Tbred 2100 on an Abit NF7-2 and I can tell you the 2100 will overclock well beyond its default. Yes its a 266 chip and I run it over 400 Dual Channel very easy (10.5 x 238 is my best) with a few changes. Like it was mentioned before that a chip does get hot at the upper edge and a very good HSF like this one: Text is needed. The next thing to do is raise the volts and change the Ram timing so the higher OC can be reached. TicTac has a Beta Bios (its called NF7D-10b4) that he has hacked into and made the needed changes by raising the volts and a few other tweaks for just this purpose of extremes. A further note here is to make sure both your CPU and Ram is burned in before actually pushing it that far......... :beer:

 

[Magelord]

Thanks for the info all.

Just wanted to update...

I took off the heatsink and cleaned up the dust. recorded the Chip info... i think I got a good one...

AXDA2100DUT3C
AIUHB0302UP8W

Brown Chip with an N on bottom right corner...

I have documeneted my system info in complete detail, though it is not finished on my useless Forums...

My System Specs

That way I wont be taking it apart agin to get part info. I can look it up.

So this is "B" then? That "N" in the corner is making me wonder..

 

[Crucial]

I have the same setup as you and I am running 200x11. Runs stable 24/7. I had problems with stability above 185 before doing a volt mod and replacing the stock cooler on the northbridge and adding one on the south. Once you get to OC'ing you should be pretty happy with your results.