noob needs help o/cing a 2.4c

[kef7]

I'm finally getting around to o/cing my system but have run into stability issues and need guidance.

system specs:
2.4c (SL6WF) cooled by SLK947U w/ panaflo
DFI lanparty pro875B (revA mobo)
corsair xms 3200c2pro
pc power&cooling turbo 350

So I set ram ratio to 5:4 and didn't change/override cas settings as determined by SPD (although cpuz say 2-3-3-7 but ram should be able to to 2-3-3-6; need suggestions on this, should I manually override?)
Locked agp/pci/sata at 66/33/100
Disabled auto detect PCI clock (saw other DFI ocers doing this?)
changed fsb to 250 to get 3.0

System will boot up, temps seems fine at idle (under 35C) but system randomly reboots.

One thing that I thought was strange (but perhaps isn't) is that when running cpuz the voltage varied from 1.536 to 1.552 (only for a few seconds before going back to 1.536). This voltage variance seemed to be happening more often at 3g but is also happening at 2.6.

From what I've read it seems like most 2.4c can hit 3 with stock voltage so I haven't increased voltage to CPU or memory yet.

So, any suggestions? Start increasing voltage? See if system can do a stable 2.8?

thanks

 

[myocardia]

Just because one guy's (or 10 other people's) 2.4C will do 3.0ghz at defaul voltage, that doesn't mean that your 2.4C will do it. Try upping your vcore by at least .025v or .05v, and see what happens.

 

[kef7]

thanks--I tried upping it to 1.5375 and then 1.55 and system was still locking up while running 3dmark2003.
(yeah, I know should be running prime95 or memtest--figure I'll run those once 3dmark runs stable)

so, should I try anything else?

 

[kef7]

I backed down to 2.9 with stock voltage and ran through 2 loops of memtest and 3dmark2003 as well as playing some FarCry and Morrowind.

FarCry locked up once but after rebooting I playing for around 15 minutes with no more problems.

 

[myocardia]

You need a more powerful power supply, then. Even though you've got a PCP&C psu, it's only a 350 watt version. What is your +12v rail running, under 100% cpu load?

 

[jhurst]

15 minutes is not very good. I would not be too happy with that. Raise your Vcore to a max of 1.65 (unless your board over-volts, monitor with MBM5 or equivalent), and try 3.0ghz again. If that doesn't work, settle for 2.8 or whatever you can get. You got a bad 2.4 chip . The 12V rail is really important for OC'ed P4's, what is that staying under load? You might need to switch to a good P4 PSU: Enermax.

P.S. manually change your RAM to 2-3-3-6. SPD detected my old PC3200 @ 2-3-3-7, I changed it manually with no problems.

 

[kef7]

Thanks for the suggestions; couple more noobish questions for you.

I'm assuming you use memtest and/or prime95 to test for stability. How many passes/hrs do you let it run for before you are comfortable that it is stable?

For example; overnight my system ran memtest for nearly 13 hrs (88 loops) at 2.9 (stock voltage)--would you consider it stable?

2nd question: what program do you use to monitor your psu? (mbm?). +12v rail looks like it is 11.8/.9 as reported in BIOS and mbm.

What should I use to get the cpu load up to 100% and then test the rails?

I do have a 430watt Enermax (older psu) I could thrown in if the pc power&cooling is shown to be too weak.

 

[yourdeardaniel]

i use Abit EQ to monitor voltage. mine are:

Vcore: 1.5
DDRVcc: 2.93
+3.3V: 3.25
+5V: 5.05
+12V: 12.05
DDRVtt: 1.26
AGPV: 1.54
5VSB: 4.99

I think you use Prime95 torture test to get CPU load to 100%.
Try the Enermax, mine has stable rails but it's a 550w EG651P-VE(FMA) model.

 

[charloscarlies]

Your chip should do 2.8-2.9 on default voltage without a hitch. Definitely sounds like a PSU issue to me as well.

 

[kef7]

I pulled out the 350watt pc power&cooling and replaced it with a 430 watt enermax.

Before doing this I replaced both fans in the enermax with two quieter fans (80mm panaflo & 92mm adda) and that has helped quiet the system down significantly albeit at the cost of slightly higher temps (only 2-3 degrees or so, cpu is at 32C).

Before I swapped the 350 watt psu I upped the voltage even more (to 1.5875) and the +12v rail got even worse; down to 11.7.

The enermax +12v rail is 11.98. (-5 rail is low, should I be concerned?)

Well, back to trying to hit 3.0; thanks again for the suggestions.

 

[o1die]

I would try "spd" for the memory, using the 5:4 ratio. Memory timings are less noticable when overclocking. Sometimes memory won't even run right at the recommended timings with certain motherboards. Be sure to monitor your cpu temperature using the bios hardware monitor, or whatever program you have for windows. I wouldn't let the cpu run higher than 60 celcius under load. My old p4 was worn out from overclocking. I spent alot of time on the phone with an Intel rep to get them to send me a new one. It wouldn't post on 2 different boards, but the memory was also a problem. Don't push your cpu too far. It isn't worth it.

 

[kef7]

ARGH! After replacing the psu with the 430watt Enermax I still can't hit 3.0 (250fsb).

At 240fsb (and 5:4 memory divider) with 1.525 (stock voltage) it ran Memtest for 12 hrs and Prime 95 for over 5 hrs.

Taking it to 250fsb with vcore upped to 1.6v it locks up while running 3dmark2003.

I've backed it down to 244fsb (w/ stock voltage) and it seems stable: I'll run Prime95 overnight to verify.

SOOOO, any other ideas?

Since I'm running the (corsair xms 3200c2pro) memory at 5:4 I really shouldn't have to increase VDIMM should I?

 

[Hyperlite]

no, VDIMM should be fine. everything looks good as far as i can tell, all i can say is that some random chips just don't like to OC

 

[imported_mystro]

Originally posted by: kef7

I do have a 430watt Enermax (older psu) I could thrown in if the pc power&cooling is shown to be too weak.

The 350 PSU should have been enough actually.Your just a few tweaks away..have you compared numbers with s-codes that match yours?

 

[imported_mystro]

double post

 

[imported_mystro]

Try this,set the voltage at 1.55 then start bumping the fsb from stock up 10 at a time..your going to be limited using the mem you've got ,that's a given..meanwhile, just tweak it upwards slowly and at eash step running prime95...sometimes your biggest improvements are at the lower settings especially when using the slower mem...don't get too greedy too fast

 

[imported_mystro]

Originally posted by: kef7
After replacing the psu with the 430watt Enermax I still can't hit 3.0 (250fsb).
?

I posted some thoughts that may help you..I hope. Question,I'm building a smaller system then you have and need a PSU,can I make an offer on your 350psu,what would your need approx? Thanks

:moon::music::roll:

 

[Pauli]

Could be that your Northbridge chipset can't handle that high or that it is overheating. That, or your CPU has just reached it's limit. It sounds like you have tried everything in your power -- maybe get a 2.8C and bump that sucker up to 3.4 or 3.5. My new 2.8C does 3.5 stable (250FSB) and I haven't even tried higher yet...

 

[kef7]

I emailed Angrygames (rep for DFI, sometimes visits anandtech) and he gave me a few suggestions:

-disable spread spectrum
-raise AGP voltage
-loosen memory timings

Tried all that but nothing seemed to help (by raising AGP voltage 3dmark03 almost finished but I'm not saying they are necessary correlated)

Tonight I changed ratio and ran memory at 3:2 with 250fsb and 3dmark03 passes.
(with timings set to 2-3-3-6 or 3-4-4-8)

So, does that mean my memory is holding me back from running at 5:4?

 

[yourdeardaniel]

you need better ram. try PC-4000 DDR500 (250 FSB at 1:1).

 

[THUGSROOK]

is your vid card OCed?

if so, revert it back to stock til the system is proven stable.

 

[kef7]

Dang, still having trouble with ram at 3:2. Prime95 locked up and windows just crashed as well.

yourdeardaniel--ram might be the issue but I'm surprised that this corsair xms 3200 won't even run 5:4 let alone 3:2.

THUGSROOK--no o/c on the 9800 aiw.

 

[Dexion]

need to lax those timings. Unless your running exactly 200FSB on those RAM, those timings won't work properly. Your basically underclocking the RAM which basically is out o f spec, and would cause problems nonetheless.

 

[kef7]

Dexion--with ram timings relaxed to 3-4-4-8 with a 5:4 ration 250 fsb it isn't stable; today it won't even get to the desktop before rebooting.

At 240fsb (with 2-3-3-6 timings, 5:4 memory divider) with 1.525 (stock voltage) it ran Memtest for 12 hrs and Prime 95 for over 5 hrs.

250fsb worked with 3:2 divider but I haven't done enough testing with Prime or Memtest to verify stability.

 

[kef7]

Had a little success last night:

--raised VDIMM to 2.8
--raised AGP to 1.6

Passes 3dmark2003 with both 3-4-4-8 and 2.5-3-3-7 timings and will pass with 2-3-3-6 timings after bumping VCORE up to 1.5625.

Still crashes while playing HALO.

Overnight I backed it down to 240 fsb and ran prime95 torture test for 8hrs.

I think I'll have to give up on hitting 250 fsb and just settle for whatever is stable between 240-250.