Does overclocking cause instability in games?

[3MDR]

Might be a newbie question, but I am new to overclocking.

I have an e8400 overclocked to 3.87 gHz

I did not overclock it manually, I used Gigabyte's EasyTune application that came with my EP45-DS3L

Looking at what the application did, it had to overclock my 4 gig 800 mHz ram.

Yesterday I was playing Warcraft 3, and twice I got fatal errors that crashed me to desktop. Is this a problem with the overclocking? I don't know whether the crashes are due to the overclocking or due to the game.

 

[cubeless]

easy way to test, set to defaults and try again...

but yes, oc'ing can cause crashes... i have had boxes that only crash in one app and are fine if i back off a bit...

 

[3MDR]

Could it be due to overclocking my ram? If so, I may have to go down to 3.6 ghz.

Also, my CPU get as hot as 38 degrees Celsius when under load at 3.8 gHz, is this normal? Normally it is 25 at idle.

One more thing: if it is my overclocked ram that's causing the crashes, should I go for 1066 mHz ram or is that too much for the e8400?

 

[katank]

Do it through BIOS. Don't use the software. Read the C2D OC sticky at top. If you stress tested thoroughly, you should be OK in most cases. I can't think of any games that produce as much system stress as Linpack and Furmark running simultaneously.

 

[3MDR]

Would I get better stability by manually setting the overclock? Is Gigabyte's EasyTune application the problem?

 

[Cogman]

Your temperature is fine, I've seen systems run stable at 60C. If overclocking is causing instability (as it very well may be) try reducing the overclock or upping the voltage.

 

[dwell]

Overclocking is not something you can take lightly. You really need to test your system for stability after attempting an overclock. This involves doing at least one pass of memtest86 and 24 hours of Prime95. Failing to do both will most likely result in an unstable system.

 

[Phunk0ne]

I would stress test your system using both the Intel burn test and Prime95 (at least do prime 95 for 24 hours24 hours) just like Chris has mentioned (intel burn test really stresses your ram and cpu to the max, prime95 does not even come close and it will tell you if your system is stable or not).
If your CPU hits 70C during the Intel Burn test, I would get worried. You can go for 1066 RAM, it gives you plenty of room for overclocking. Easytune is a nifty program to overclock fast, but in some cases, it does not adjust the settings right for a stable overclock, or it overvolts your cpu than it should need.
for the best results and more stable overclock I would manually set the BIOS.

GL!

 

[3MDR]

I tried Intel Burn Test but it said I failed in .125 seconds and this is after I set my BIOS to default (no overclocking). Is there something wrong with Intel Burn Test, because it doesn't even seem to run my CPU to the max.

 

[dwell]

Intel Burn Test should not fail on a non-overclocked system. Are you sure you were at default?

 

[conlan]

If you're running 4 DIMMS RAM, this might be the cause of your instability. Try running IBT w/ 2 DIMMS RAM.

Reset BIOS to "optimized settings" and/or reset CMOS, then rerun IBT.
Post back your results.

If all is good again, READ THIS before OCing again.

EDIT...also post your system specs.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: 3MDR
I tried Intel Burn Test but it said I failed in .125 seconds and this is after I set my BIOS to default (no overclocking). Is there something wrong with Intel Burn Test, because it doesn't even seem to run my CPU to the max.

If you have more than 2GB of ram, and selected "max mem" (or even the default, I think), it will error out immediately, because it tries to allocate more RAM than is possible within a single Win32 process.

A better solution is "LinX", google for it. It has better defaults than IBT. It is also a frontend to Intel's Linpack, similar to IBT.

 

[3MDR]

Well I am running Prime95 right now with my CPU OCed to 3.87 gHz, and it's been running with no errors for 3 hours. How long should I run this?

The problem I have with Intel Burn Test is that it doesn't even seem to start running my CPU at all, it just stops after 0.125 seconds and says "failed".

Thank you all for the advice, I will read that article.

My specs:

EP45-DS3L
e8400 @ 3.87 gHz
Corsair XMS 4 gig ram 800 mHz
Corsair TX750
Arctic Pro 7 CPU heatsink fan
BFG GTX280 OC2


This is a fairly new system, and my first time ever attempting an overclock. That's why I used EasyTune from Gigabyte, just to see if my CPU could handle it.

So far with Prime95 running, my CPU gets no hotter than 53 degrees Celsius.

 

[roid450]

run it for 24 if u can. if not, sometimes ive done as little as 13 hrs and the system ran perfectly fine for weeks then I did a 24 hr test to make sure it was cool, and it was all good.

but while doing some OCng, once Core 3 failed the Prime test at like 3 minutes, and an other time at like 2 hrs.

 

[3MDR]

Well I ran it for 5.5 hours before I got bored and decided to test with Intel Burn Test

I selected to use 1/2 stress for 5 cycles and I passed.

Does this mean my system is stable?

 

[poohbear]

leave p95 overnight, so u dont "get bored". if it passed 5 hours though it should be stable enough to run WC3 at least. u hafta be systematic w/ overclocking. First overclock the cpu and make sure the ram is @ default. Then overclock the ram & make sure the cpu is @ default. That way u know which is causing the prob if it fails.

 

[Rotax]

EDIT: the previous poster has some very good suggestions as well. test one component at a time. the 3 components you'll be working with: FSB, CPU, and RAM.
1: Lower your CPU multi, set the lowest RAM speed you can...and up your FSB till you find instability..adding NB voltage as needed.
2: Leave your mem setting alone, and up your multiplier till you find instability..adding voltage as you go if needed.
3: Drop your multiplier back down, and increase RAM speed or timings..adding voltage as needed.
Now you know your maxes.
4: Find something in between that works for all 3 at their fasest settings.


ibt should run with option 1 on that system, weather 32bit os or not.
what are you using for temp readings?
i've never heard of a sub 30c idle on air...
use tjmax of 100 for whatever app your using. i'd suggest real temp, or everest.
95 tjmax is what some also swear by, but will show lower load temps at the same time.

i've seen some 72c (max) readings w/ IBT and 100 tjmax.
to me, thats gettin a bit hot...granted, RARELY are you ever going to see anything near that in normal gaming/usage..
even crysis won't approach that during normal game play for hours...

IBT to me is 1st n foremost a quick and easy stability tester. if it doesn't pass 5/5, i go back to the bios.
once it passes 5/5 ibt runs, i go to orthos for the 12+ hr testing.
or start doing combos. orthos + loop 3dmark.
or, orthos small + memtest (win version)

and so on.

Also, another tip to find peak performance for a given setting...
Run some benchmarks.
I use Everests memory/cache benchmark for each setting.
I also run 3dmark 06.
This gives you a better idea of what FSB or memory speed/timing is better than another..
Hint: 3dmark likes more CPU Mhz than RAM Mhz/timing...

I use a spreadsheet and keep track of ALL of my settings, fill in every collumn each run, max temps, voltages, mhz, ratios, bench results, hours spent stability testing, passes made, blah blah blah...

and yes, this is exactly why a lot of people find over clocking a "waste of time", cuz it literally is a lot of wasted time.

theres a lot more to overclocking now days. it was so much easier in the jumper/dip switches days. LOL
coreV, fsbMHz, multiplerX...gg...
granted, then you were hunting for + ~50MHz instead of tryin to push + ~1GHz. haha

 

[Zap]

My wife's former setup used a Gigabyte GA-P965DS3 or something like that, and in Warcraft III she would get reboots, even at stock speeds. Turned out to be the sound drivers. The ones on the driver CD was causing that problem ONLY with Warcraft III and nothing else (that we could find). Latest downloaded drivers fixed 99% of the problem. Went from rebooting every 10-30min, to maybe once or twice a month. Always in Warcraft III. Odd.

 

[FalseChristian]

Some games are very sensitive to overclocking. Warcraft III, Crysis, Unreal and GLQuake are good barometers of a stable overclock.

 

[TantrumusMaximus]

Originally posted by: 3MDR
Well I ran it for 5.5 hours before I got bored and decided to test with Intel Burn Test

From experience sorry for the hijack I couldn't resist (look at my sig.)

What he really means is after 5.5 hours I couldn't stay away from WoW any longer....

hehe

@Rotax about the old days.... I was so proud of my dual Celeron 300A board running both @ 495MHz with a high speed A/C fan blowin on them it was funny stuff.... but even that wasn't jumpers. Good old Abit introduced very easy o/c ing.