Prime95 failing...

[vrbaba]

system seems stable otherwise. I had an occasional bsod when running 3dmark03, but it was fine after i changed some ram settings in the bios. been stable since for couple days, but prime95 always gives me some rounding error about 40-50 mins in.

what could be the cause of this. what can I do now to eliminate this? more vcore? seems dangeorus. my mobo maxes vram out at 2.8 (thats wht im running at), could that be it?

spec:
3.0c (30 cap) running at 3.51ghz with 1.55vcore (234fsb), and 2.8 vram. geil ultra ddr500 at 1:1 ratio.
any ideas?

i know this cpu is great of OCing...most ppl get up to 3.6-3.8 stable. temps are fine. 40/55 C idle/load with a zalman cooler.

 

[Navid]

You do not say anything about your PSU. Is your PSU a limiting factor?

Have you run memtest? You should run memtest first to make sure that RAM is stable.

If you have done those and the PSU and the RAM are stable, and you still fail prime, you know that it is the CPU. Then, there are steps you can take to ensure you are getting the max you can from your CPU. But, first make sure about the PSU and the RAM.

 

[MobiusPizza]

Run at stock CPU and memory speed and voltage
Then run the tests again

If the tests did well, probably you o/c too much
(Even if others can o/c well. Many factors affect o/c. You might be unlucky with a defected CPU. Or PSU, MB, could be anything)

IF your computer can't take it, DON'T push it

Otherwise run Memtest to check memory integrity

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: Navid
You do not say anything about your PSU. Is your PSU a limiting factor?

Have you run memtest? You should run memtest first to make sure that RAM is stable.

If you have done those and the PSU and the RAM are stable, and you still fail prime, you know that it is the CPU. Then, there are steps you can take to ensure you are getting the max you can from your CPU. But, first make sure about the PSU and the RAM.

Forgot to mention: 350W Antec truPower... running arctic cooler on a radeon 9600 pro.
2 HDs, 2 CD/dvd drives, floppy. Seems enough for what I have in my computer, or not??

Another, i ran memtest. However, one weird thing...it runs fine without errors for 3-4 passes, even more (didnt run it long enough). But when I stop it, my computer just gets so sluggish, i have no option but hard reset it. dunno whats up with that. while its running, its fine. as soon as i stop it, it says its stopped, and then my computer just refuses to do anything.

I have ran Prime95 stable for about 10 hrs on 220fsb (20 morethan stock), but was using corsair value ddr400 ram then.

how cna i find out that my psu is the limiting factor?
What more info you guys need regarding ram tests? i can try run it longer...

 

[Navid]

The PSU should be fine for now. But if you upgrade your graphics card some day, you may need to think of a stronger PSU.

When you run memtest, do you get any errors? Even one error is too much for memtest.
Run memtest overnight.

 

[Navid]

What is the voltage required by that RAM? You can find it in the data sheet.

You may need to improve your case and/or CPU cooling.

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: Navid
The PSU should be fine for now. But if you upgrade your graphics card some day, you may need to think of a stronger PSU.

When you run memtest, do you get any errors? Even one error is too much for memtest.
Run memtest overnight.

no, not a single error. jjust that when i stop it, computer becoms unusable like there is no ram left to it to run, so i have to hard reset it.

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: Navid
What is the voltage required by that RAM? You can find it in the data sheet.

You may need to improve your case and/or CPU cooling.

2.6v - 3.1v are the specs. defualt timings are 2.5-4-4-7. I am running it at 2.5-4-4-8.

my mobo can provide only up to 2.8v.

 

[Navid]

OK.
Run memtest overnight and before interrupting it tomorrow make sure that there are no errors. If there are you need to relax the memory timing or reduce its overclock.

 

[Navid]

Actually, if you get memtest errors right now, it does not necessarily mean that it is your RAM!
I'm sorry about that!

The best thing to do first is to set up a memory divider in the Bios. Then, you know that your memory is not even close to being overclocked. Then, run prime preferably overnight. If it fails, you know that your CPU is the bottle neck.

After you know what the overclock ceiling for your CPU is, it may be easier to find out the ceiling for your RAM.

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: Navid
Actually, if you get memtest errors right now, it does not necessarily mean that it is your RAM!
I'm sorry about that!

The best thing to do first is to set up a memory divider in the Bios. Then, you know that your memory is not even close to being overclocked. Then, run prime preferably overnight. If it fails, you know that your CPU is the bottle neck.

After you know what the overclock ceiling for your CPU is, it may be easier to find out the ceiling for your RAM.

well..its DDR500 ram, its technically underclocked. I have tried the divider too, it still bottlenecks when the ram fsb is at 180 or lower.
CPU seems like from a bad batch :-/ which sucks, cus my upgrade from 2.4 (running at 2.9) to 3.0 (running at 3.3 stable) would be close to worthless.
I am gonna reset the cmos, and run memtest and prime at stock to see if i get any errors. Then just gradually increase stuff till I get stable.

Note: CPU-z shows my Ram timings to be 2.5-5-5-7 for 200fsb and 3-5-5-9 for 240 fsb. This is weird, cus the loosest i can go it 3-4-4-8 on my mobo. Does that mean it really is my mobo thats limiting? or cpu-z cannot be right?

 

[Navid]

Originally posted by: vrbaba
well..its DDR500 ram, its technically underclocked. I have tried the divider too, it still bottlenecks when the ram fsb is at 180 or lower.
CPU seems like from a bad batch :-/ which sucks, cus my upgrade from 2.4 (running at 2.9) to 3.0 (running at 3.3 stable) would be close to worthless.
I am gonna reset the cmos, and run memtest and prime at stock to see if i get any errors. Then just gradually increase stuff till I get stable.

Note: CPU-z shows my Ram timings to be 2.5-5-5-7 for 200fsb and 3-5-5-9 for 240 fsb. This is weird, cus the loosest i can go it 3-4-4-8 on my mobo. Does that mean it really is my mobo thats limiting? or cpu-z cannot be right?

I don't get it. DDR500 should go to FSB=250 with no trouble. You currently have FSB set to 234. Why do you say it bottlenecks at 180?
The idea is to remove the memory from the picture. To do that you use the divider. Then, you can be sure that the memory is not the bottleneck.

If your memory timings change as you change FSB, that means that you have set the timings on auto. If you want to control the timings yourself, you need to set it to manual.

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: Navid

Originally posted by: vrbaba
well..its DDR500 ram, its technically underclocked. I have tried the divider too, it still bottlenecks when the ram fsb is at 180 or lower.
CPU seems like from a bad batch :-/ which sucks, cus my upgrade from 2.4 (running at 2.9) to 3.0 (running at 3.3 stable) would be close to worthless.
I am gonna reset the cmos, and run memtest and prime at stock to see if i get any errors. Then just gradually increase stuff till I get stable.

Note: CPU-z shows my Ram timings to be 2.5-5-5-7 for 200fsb and 3-5-5-9 for 240 fsb. This is weird, cus the loosest i can go it 3-4-4-8 on my mobo. Does that mean it really is my mobo thats limiting? or cpu-z cannot be right?

I don't get it. DDR500 should go to FSB=250 with no trouble. You currently have FSB set to 234. Why do you say it bottlenecks at 180?
The idea is to remove the memory from the picture. To do that you use the divider. Then, you can be sure that the memory is not the bottleneck.

If your memory timings change as you change FSB, that means that you have set the timings on auto. If you want to control the timings yourself, you need to set it to manual.

lol...sorry if didnt make that clear earlier.
THAT is my core of the problem. I cannot go beyond 230 fsb with a stable system. It will barely boot (or shut down after a while) if I do 240fsb.
So...there you have it....you think i have bad memory? got these last week from Newegg. With DDR400 (corsair value) before, I was able to do 220 with 1:1 ratio. I figure if I buy better memory i can overclock it better, but doesnt seem the case. Should I RMA/return the memory? Just need to be sure it IS my memory though...could have a limiting CPU, but cpu benchmarks have been great.

 

[SlitheryDee]

Reduce the CPU clock multiplier to its lowest setting to take it out of the equation. Then see if the memory will hit 250. If you're leaving the multi at it's default setting then you may actually be running into the cpu's limit before you reach the memorys rated speed.

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: SlitheryDee
Reduce the CPU clock multiplier to its lowest setting to take it out of the equation. Then see if the memory will hit 250. If you're leaving the multi at it's default setting then you may actually be running into the cpu's limit before you reach the memorys rated speed.

Its a Pentium 4 3.0c....cannot change multiplier

 

[Navid]

Originally posted by: vrbaba
lol...sorry if didnt make that clear earlier.
THAT is my core of the problem. I cannot go beyond 230 fsb with a stable system. It will barely boot (or shut down after a while) if I do 240fsb.
So...there you have it....you think i have bad memory? got these last week from Newegg. With DDR400 (corsair value) before, I was able to do 220 with 1:1 ratio. I figure if I buy better memory i can overclock it better, but doesnt seem the case. Should I RMA/return the memory? Just need to be sure it IS my memory though...could have a limiting CPU, but cpu benchmarks have been great.

Set the memory divider so that the RAM is out of the picture. Then, you can even use your old RAM for this test. Run prime95 overnight. If you still fail, that means that the bottleneck is your CPU. If you can go higher in FSB and pass prime, it means that it is your RAM.

 

[vrbaba]

Originally posted by: Navid

Originally posted by: vrbaba
lol...sorry if didnt make that clear earlier.
THAT is my core of the problem. I cannot go beyond 230 fsb with a stable system. It will barely boot (or shut down after a while) if I do 240fsb.
So...there you have it....you think i have bad memory? got these last week from Newegg. With DDR400 (corsair value) before, I was able to do 220 with 1:1 ratio. I figure if I buy better memory i can overclock it better, but doesnt seem the case. Should I RMA/return the memory? Just need to be sure it IS my memory though...could have a limiting CPU, but cpu benchmarks have been great.

Set the memory divider so that the RAM is out of the picture. Then, you can even use your old RAM for this test. Run prime95 overnight. If you still fail, that means that the bottleneck is your CPU. If you can go higher in FSB and pass prime, it means that it is your RAM.

ah... i already sold my old ram, so cant test it anymore. But i did test the old one with a divider, and i was having a hard time going over 230. so seems like it is my cpu. does that mean it is not as high OC cpu as expected, or is there really something wrong with it?
I think the ram is out of the question. memtest is running without errors currently for 4 hrs and going.
:-/ sucks, had way too many expectations for this cpu. what are other ways I can increase the output for the cpu besides increasing vcore and fsb?

 

[Navid]

Originally posted by: vrbaba
what are other ways I can increase the output for the cpu besides increasing vcore and fsb?

Reduce its temperature to be able to increase FSB.