questions about: DDR; FSB vs MULT.; mem cooling

[MatthewF01]

OK. Here's what I've been up to.

I spent some time on the OCWorkbench boards, where someone edited the latest BIOS for the ECS K7S5A mobo, and unlocked some more FSB settings. After a day of hassle and headaches, I FINALLY flashed my BIOS, and found the new settings. I have a 1.2 Ghz Tbird, and i WAS running 133/133, but now i bumped it up to 138/138. Now, OBVIOUSLY, I would go higher, but somewhere on that board I read that I shouldnt go any higher unless I was using a copper-base heatsink and ASIII. Is this true? Im running like a Thermaltake Volcano 5, and Antec silicone cooling compound. Right now my processor is running at 1250 Mhz...
So now I have the following questions:

-Is that true about not going higher than 138/138 until I get something like a TT Volcano 7?

-Is it ok to go up to like 150/150 or 166/166 in the FSB settings, or am i better off using multiplier? Thing is, I cant adjust the multiplier settings in my BIOS...

-My board has separate slots for PC133 SDRAM, and PC266 DDR. I have two sticks of 256 MB Samsung DDR. My question is, could I run PC333 DDR, and would it run at that, if I put it in these slots? (K7S5A board)?

-Finally, what is the cheapest most efficient way to cool memory, if I am overclocking?


Im just excited to finally be overclocking (even if in small amounts...)! Thanks for your help!

 

[minendo]

You can go as high as your ram and temps permit you to go. You should slowly bump up your FSB and load windows. Use MBM5 to keep track of your temps and when the temps get too high or your system is unstable you have gone to high. Upping the FSB and lowering the multiplier is actually more beneficial because your RAM is working faster.

 

[MatthewF01]

Ah! So where can I get this MBM5? Although, I can monitor my CPU temp in Sandra 2002, is this sufficient? Does anyone know what would be considered TOO HOT for a 1.2 Athlon?

 

[Richardito]

-Is that true about not going higher than 138/138 until I get something like a TT Volcano 7?

No, it is simply not true. Take a look at your CPU temperature from a program like MBM or from the PC Health screen. My personal CPU temp. limit is 55ºC.

-Is it ok to go up to like 150/150 or 166/166 in the FSB settings, or am i better off using multiplier? Thing is, I cant adjust the multiplier settings in my BIOS...

This depends on the motherboard and the memory quality and timings. You have an AMD CPU, so go ahead and unlock it with a pencil and enjoy testing its limits. High FSB speeds can give you problems with HD data corruption... no fun.

-My board has separate slots for PC133 SDRAM, and PC266 DDR. I have two sticks of 256 MB Samsung DDR. My question is, could I run PC333 DDR, and would it run at that, if I put it in these slots? (K7S5A board)?

The frequency of the memory is tied to the FSB speeds. At higher FSB speeds the memory will run at higher frequencies.

-Finally, what is the cheapest most efficient way to cool memory, if I am overclocking?

You can use those "heat spreaders" and punch a hole on top of the memory DIMM area in your case and install a case fan to blow cool air to the sticks. My experience has been that good memory cooling can work wonders in getting those few extra MHz's.