No luck, Athlon XP2400 with MSI K7N2

[Quentin]

Well, that's a revolting development! Since there were Palomino, TBred and Barton Athlon XPs it's tempting to go with Thoroughbred since that's the most specific. (That definitely wasn't Thunderbird was it - just being sure.) TBred and Barton should be the same, I can see the Palomino being different since it's a completely different package. What's it say for Barton?

I've never had to do a wire mod so don't want to make a guess. Hopefully someone else here can pitch in to help.

Going to 200MHz didn't give you low multis?

 

[Quentin]

OK, I found my old notes in an Excel worksheet. From quite a while ago so my memory was fuzzy. Anyway, a FSB of 166 or 200MHz gave me low multipliers of 5.0 to 12.5 automatically - no wire trick. The charts below are copied&pasted from the worksheet.

If somehow you get stuck in a no-POST situation trying to set the FSB to 200 and the x to 11 (in case it actually is 200x13 which won't POST) - the below suggests maybe you could set the FSB to 166x13 first, save, reboot and go back in to set it to 166x11, save&reboot and go back in and set it to 200x11 (or even 200x10 at first to get a successful boot). Good luck!


A7N8X 2.0 Deluxe w/ XP2400+ (default 133x15=2.0GHz)

FSB Mult Speed Ran Windows?

133 13.5 1796 MHz (successful)
133 14.0 1862 MHz (successful)
133 14.5 1928 MHz (successful)
133 15.0 1995 MHz (successful)
133 15.5 2062 MHz (successful)
133 16.0 2128 MHz (successful)
133 16.5 2194 MHz (successful)
133 17.0 2261 MHz (wouldn't start Windows)
133 17.5 2328 MHz (wouldn't start Windows)

166 11.0 1826 MHz (successful)
166 11.5 1909 MHz (successful)
166 12.0 1992 MHz (successful)
166 12.5 2075 MHz (successful)
166 13.0 833 MHz (successful) (but actually running at a 5.0x multiplier)

200 10.5 2100 MHz (successful)
200 11.0 2200 MHz (successful)
200 11.5 2300 MHz (successful)

 

[CuriousMike]

Quentin - thanks for all the details. I'm now at work, so I can't futz with it.
I have a suspicion that your mobo must be "smart" and unlock the multipliers for you. (I've read the Asus or Abit (??) has the auto-unlock thing.)
I don't know the year of production on my chip -- but I have it saved in a spreadsheet, so i'll look it up.

I really am shooting for that 11.5*200 since that's close to what I'm running ( 15 *152 ).

Also, I found this thing called the "Speed Strip SE" that clips onto the bottom of the chip that essentially connects the pins for you.
I like it, but I'm revolted(!) by the fact they want $7 to ship something smaller than a stamp.
:/

 

[CuriousMike]

Also --- My BIOS only shows multipliers from 8.5 to 13 .

 

[Quentin]

Well no nForce2 motherboard can unlock multipliers on a superlocked CPU. But I suspect yours isn't locked and that's where nForce2 really shines. My ASUS can provide multipliers from 5.0 to 12.5 or 13 to about 20.5 (but not all at the same time - it displays them all in the BIOS but can't provide all at the same time). These are called low and high multipliers. Some other nForce2 motherboards can handle all multipliers but it sounds like your MSI can't. The 8-13 probably only works on CPUs with a default multiplier of 13 or under. Your 2400+ defaults to 15 so your board of course does provide that (and probably is locked into a "high multiplier only" mode with that CPU).

If your BIOS displays only 8-13 you may have to add 8 to each setting to get the high multipliers. 8 might actually give you 16 with the 2400+ installed (I don't know). On my boards, 5-12.5 works great but 13 is actually 13-8 or 5, 16 actually is 8).

I'd say put that FSB to 166 and start manually setting to all multipliers you see. Then use CPU-Z to see what the multiplier actually is. Somewhere in there will be 166x11 and then that's the time to jump to 200x11! (Or 200x10 to be safe at first.)

 

[CuriousMike]

OK, simply setting the FSB to 200 didn't do anything magical other than make the machine not POST.

I'm going for the wire trick tonight. If you don't see me online for the next few days, you'll know I've blown something up.
I'll flip a coin re: using the Athlon XP or the Thoroughbred settings.

Touch wood... I'm going in.

 

[Quentin]

Good luck, friend!

 

[CuriousMike]

I gotta give myself a solid A for effort... but no pay-off.

Using the Thoroughbred option from www.ocinside.de, I found the setting (unlock all multipliers) that actually made sense. It lined up exactly with the two pins I was attemping to connect last night.

I must have made a half dozen wire splints to cross the holes, and none of them did the job. I even used two-pieces of floppy wire ... for extra-stuffing action. No Va.

Pic of socket (note wire installed):

Pic of my CPU (how do I determine date.. 0404 =4th week of 04? I bought in April of 04.)

Pic of my case

 

[Quentin]

I think you need to do the wire mod for lower multis - not all - because your motherboard (like mine) can't provide all at the same time - only high or low.

If that also doesn't work they do tell you how to force a single multi like 11x. This is getting to be a lotta work, though! You're an expert at installing CPUs now. Hope you have a large tube of Arctic Silver!

 

[CuriousMike]

I read some more last night about my "super-locked" tbred. Seems like my super-locked chip plus the fact I run an nForce ultra board is really killing my chances at an easy unlock.

HOWEVER: What do you think the chances of using the "force" a multiplier wire-trick would be ? Let's just say I want 11.5x --- if I jump all the pins correctly, might that work? I wish I could read German --- that site seems to have some good discussion about the techniques they show, but I can't read any of it.

 

[thunderroller]

could go a bit higer i have tryed it

 

[Quentin]

I doubt your 2400+ is superlocked, CuriousMike, most weren't but it is possible. If it is, no (known) wire trick is going to unlock it. The cutoff date was about the 39th week of 2003 - after that most AMD CPUs (except mobiles and low-volt Barton desktops) have superlocked multipliers.

You need to find out. Leave your FSB at 133 and see if you can change the multiplier from 15 in the BIOS. Successfully getting to 14.5 or 15.5 (and seeing that multiplier in CPU-Z would prove you changed it). If you can, then one of the wire tricks will work if done properly.

Or you could go to 166 and try multipliers in the BIOS like 13, 13.5 or 14. That would give you 2.16, 2.24 or 2.33 GHz. It would be nice to get to 200x11.5, though. CPU voltage, cooling and how good the 2400+ is itself all come into play determining how far you can go.

 

[CuriousMike]

Quentin, my chip was manufactured 4th week of 2004.
If that's the case, then none of the wire tricks will work ?

----

I have tried using 133 * 13 and 166*13 -- anytime I try any multiplier in my bios that isn't AUTO, the machine won't get to POST.

 

[Quentin]

Originally posted by: CuriousMike
Quentin, my chip was manufactured 4th week of 2004.
If that's the case, then none of the wire tricks will work ?

----

I have tried using 133 * 13 and 166*13 -- anytime I try any multiplier in my bios that isn't AUTO, the machine won't get to POST.

Uh oh. It's almost 100% certain your CPU is Superlocked so you are stuck at a multiplier of 15. There's no known fix in an nForce2 motherboard so that's why the wire tricks didn't work for you. In other boards like VIA and SIS a software mod sometimes works but not in nForce.

Sorry to get your hopes up then dash them, CM! But I'm really surprised you ended up with a locked TBredB. They were being replaced by Bartons by the first of 2004 thus there are lots of superlocked Bartons but not so many TbredBs.

If you plan to stay with this motherboard for a while, you might consider buying an XP mobile and selling your 2400+. That's what I did with four systems and I pretty much broke even. I worked with friends that had systems that would get a boost from my old XPs (even moved their CPUs to other PCs). Lot of work over three months or so but pretty much free upgrades.

I have never regretted going to mobile XPs. Here is a link to what Newegg has today: http://www.newegg.com/app/Viewproduct.a...er=PRICE&description=xp&srchFor=mobile

I have an XP-M2400+ ($76) and it will hit 2.5GHz. I run it all the time at 2.3-2.4. All my mobiles do that well, too.

 

[CuriousMike]

Quetin,

Thanks for all your tips. If anything, I've learned a bit. And... on the very plus side, I went from a KT266 mobo to the nForce Ultra, which helped performance. PLUS, I went from an unstable 140*15 = 2100mhz to a very stable 152*15 = 2280mhz, a net increase of 180mhz and a teeny bit better fsb bump.

I'll keep the mobile in mind; it's conceivable that I'll be able to sell the 2400 and do just that.

Thanks again.

 

[CuriousMike]

If I do get a 2400mobile from Newegg, two questions:
1) Is it possible to get a locked mobile ?
2) Is there a reason to go for a 2400 or a 2600, or a 35w vs a 45w ?

 

[Quentin]

The 45w XP-M2600+ is recognized as the best. I think that's true and bought two of them.

Next is either the 45w XP-M2500+ and 35w XP-M2400+. A lot swear by them. I don't know but expect either are very good.

Next are the 45w XP-M2400+ (it's the cheapest at $76) and the 35w XP-M2200+ is $79 and it's hard to say which is better. I have one of each and both are excellent.

Really with all of the above it comes down to the luck of the draw. All four of my mobiles get to 2.5GHz however I run them normally at 218x11. Just excellent performance for the money. I never pushed them farther but expect the two 2600s would do better than the 2400 or 2200.

In last place: Well, there's two strikes against the XP-M3000+. The price is out of the question and it's not a better overclocker than the others.

You might want to start a new thread and see which mobiles people like best, CM.

Good luck!

Oh, there's no such thing as a locked mobile. Can't be because they must slow down to conserve power in a laptop and that's done by reducing the multiplier!


This thread may be helpful!
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=28&threadid=1548997&forumid=1

 

[Quentin]

Oh, you should see much lower CPU temp with a mobile!

 

[CuriousMike]

I just ordered the XP-M2400+ --- I'll be putting my regular XP2400+ and a XP1700+ up for sale soon.