Are all P4s overclockable?

[MTAX]

I've heard so much about the 1.6a, but are the 2 or higher cpus overclockable?

 

[RGN]

My 2.0A is running ~2.5 😀

My 1.5 is running at 1545 🙁

 

[MTAX]

what does the 'a' at the end mean. Are these the 533 cpus?

 

[bwass24]

"A" means .13 micron technology and 512 on-chip L2 Cache

 

[SuperSix]

I have a 2.2GHZ I need to push.. 😀

 

[WangButter]

The faster P4 processors are not as overclockable as the 1.6A, as they have a higher CPU multiplier. With a 2.4 processor, you might get a 400 to 500 mhz overclock, whereas with a 1.6A, you're likely to get a 600 to 800 mhz o/c (maybe even up to a 1.0 to 1.1 ghz o/c with good cooling and a good mobo).

Not to mention the fact that you'll get better performance from a 1.6A overclocked to 2.4ghz than from a standard unoverclocked 2.4ghz processor because the o/c'ed 1.6A is running at a higher FSB and thus has higher bandwidth.

 

[THUGSROOK]

yep the "baby" chips are the best overclockers.
1.6 for the "A" series.
2.26 for the "B" series.

the "B" series is still too expensive to concider a "cheap" overclocker tho.
the 1.6A and 1.8A are the prime candidates for cheap fast fun 😀

and yes for the most part - all P4 Northwoods are overclockable, some alot better than others 😉

 

[BadThad]

I've got a 1.8a and a 2.0a. The 2.0a is not a good overclocker, the best it will do is 115 fsb and I've tried it on 2 totally different systems. Stick with the 1.6a or the 1.8a.

 

[MTAX]

Are oc'd cpus as stable and fast as a cpu at native speeds? btw, what mb is best for stability and oc. Should I go with Rambus or DDR? Should I wait for serial ata?

Lots of questions so lots of thanks in advance.