Need help making sense out of CPU-Z, Speedfan, etc.

[Andvari]

I'm planning to OC my new Q6600 to 3ghz, following the stickied thread here. But before I get into OC'ing, I need to make sure my system is functioning properly to begin with lol.

http://www.auburn.edu/~goldema/cpu.jpg

Why does it say I'm running at 6x (1.6ghz)? The BIOS says I'm at at the full 9x, 2.4ghz. Is this speedstep or something similar? I haven't fully explored my BIOS yet.


http://www.auburn.edu/~goldema/temp.jpg

What are temps 1 2 and 3? Surely nothing in my computer is negative 2C.... heh. And why is the temperature so different from Core 1 to 4. Most importantly, is it still mistakenly 15C too low in Speedfan 4.33?


Coretemp won't load for me at all in Vista 64. It says the driver can't load and some info might not be displayed, but I click ok and get presented with the same message.

 

[konceptz]

It's speedstep. Keep CPU-Z open and run a processor intensive program and the multiplier will switch to 9. You could disable this in bios if you wanted to.

Different core temperatures could be the result of a poor heatsink fixture.

Question: Do you have an aftermarket cooler, and/or have you reapplied a proper amount of transfer material (thermal paste)?

Don't know anything about coretemp and vista64.

Surely nothing in my computer is negative 2C....

Correct

 

[zero2dash]

Yep, speedstep. Lowers multi from 9x -> 6x to conserve power/energy/temps. You can disable speedstep in the bios; info is in the oc guide. You want to disable both EIST and C1E which will handle both the lowering of the multiplier and the vcore.

Your link for temps isn't working.

Use CoreTemp to find out what your temps are...try the newest version (if you haven't already).

 

[Tempered81]

http://www.auburn.edu/~goldema/temp.jpg

 

[Andvari]

Fixed the link.

As for the heatsink... I'm using the Freezer 7 Pro.

I fixed it well, or so I thought. When installing everything, I put the processor and heatsink (with a horizontal strip of Arctic Silver 5 as shown on the website) on the mobo before putting it in the case. Then I couldn't reach the screws easily, so I removed the heatsink and processor. Surprisingly, the AS5 spread out fully over the heatsink. I didn't think it would. =)

So I wiped that all off and rubbed it clean with alcohol on both the heat spreader and heatsink. Re-applied a strip of AS5 just like the first time, and snapped the heatsink down on top of it. I even gave it a little 1-2° nudge side to side, as suggested on the AS website to help seat it without air bubbles. It seemed secured to the mobo very sturdily, and if the first time was any indication, the thermal grease should have spread out nicely.


And Zero2dash, I tried Coretemp, it wouldn't run. Vista 64 requires signed drivers (apparently) and I didn't have the driver from Coretemp. *shrug* EDIT: Coretemp's website explained what I have to do to get it running.

 

[konceptz]

Originally posted by: Andvari
Fixed the link.

As for the heatsink... I'm using the Freezer 7 Pro.

I fixed it well, or so I thought. When installing everything, I put the processor and heatsink (with a horizontal strip of Arctic Silver 5 as shown on the website) on the mobo before putting it in the case. Then I couldn't reach the screws easily, so I removed the heatsink and processor. Surprisingly, the AS5 spread out fully over the heatsink. I didn't think it would. =)

So I wiped that all off and rubbed it clean with alcohol on both the heat spreader and heatsink. Re-applied a strip of AS5 just like the first time, and snapped the heatsink down on top of it. I even gave it a little 1-2° nudge side to side, as suggested on the AS website to help seat it without air bubbles. It seemed secured to the mobo very sturdily, and if the first time was any indication, the thermal grease should have spread out nicely.


And Zero2dash, I tried Coretemp, it wouldn't run. Vista 64 requires signed drivers (apparently) and I didn't have the driver from Coretemp. *shrug*

In which case you may have to wait for a while for AS5 to go through it's "sit down" paces. I forgot exactly how long it takes, maybe 100+ hours?

Signed drivers? Coretemp isn't a driver is it? Did you try running it in Administrator mode? Or just disable that damned UAC (User Addicted to Crack) M$ stuff.

 

[Andvari]

^Not sure what/why Coretemp needs signed drivers, but for whatever reason, it does. Here is the explanation, and how to get around it in Vista 64. http://www.alcpu.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=211

And you may be right, I forgot about the break in period. AS's website says about 200 hours, with shut downs from time to time allowing it to cool to room temp. Still, I'm not sure why that would cause a variation in temps across the cores. I just thought that would mean each of them would be a little hotter. Is it perhaps because of speedstep again? Maybe 2 of my cores aren't really doing anything as I sit here doing nothing but typing on Anandtech. =p

 

[konceptz]

Thanks Andvari! great info, I had no idea.

This thread could explain why.

High Delta Between Cores

You've probably read it already though

 

[Andvari]

Ah, no I hadn't read that, thanks. So it could be any number of issues then at the moment. I guess it doesn't matter as longa s the hottest one isn't too hot. I'll have to Prime or something and see what happens then to know if it's simply load related.

http://www.auburn.edu/~goldema/all.jpg

There is a pic with an updated speedfan (+15), and Coretemp running with driver enforcement disabled in Vista. If the temperature issue is settled, I guess that just leaves me with this. Why does Coretemp show it at full 2.4ghz, when CPU-Z says 1.6ghz? Does Coretemp just show what the chip is, and not what it's actually performing at?

 

[zero2dash]

CoreTemp displays what it should be at (technically) but doesn't display the current fsb/multiplier.

CPU-Z displays the current fsb/multiplier and refreshes/updates itself every second (or less, probably).

When Speedstep affects the multiplier, CPU-Z will show that difference but CoreTemp won't.

If you start doing something processor intensive (or run Prime95 or Orthos) and then look at CPU-Z it will show 266x9 fsb/multiplier and 2.4ghz for your clock speed.

 

[Andvari]

In speedfan, what is Temp1? It's always higher than the rest, and after some Crysis just now, it's got a flame beside it and it's at 51C.

 

[Andvari]

No ideas on what temp1 is? Video card maybe?

I got Prime95 running now... My cores are sitting at 57, 56, 50, 50, and my fan is at 1850rpm. How could I make it go to 2500 like it's rated? Or should I not set the fan on max? Turning the P182's case fans up to medium, drops them all by 1 degree celsius lol. Case fans on high are struggling to drop them another degree heh. Strange. Either way this is unacceptably loud. I could live with Medium though.

The fact that I haven't OC'ed anything, and this is a G0 loading in the upper 50s... does this mean I won't be able to OC to 3ghz?

 

[Andvari]

Anybody? =)

 

[konceptz]

Don't worry about loudness from fans when you're going to chip max. You can always clock back and reduce fans, but getting to your systems max is important information.

Check airflow in your case maybe?

Re: Temp1, it's one of the sensors in your case, don't let it get too hot. Sorry if that isn't super helpful, but it makes sense right?