Seeking Validation: Overclocking 860 on Gigabyte UD3R

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
GamingDaemon

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
7
76
Hello Everyone,

I just replaced my MSI P55-GD80 motherboard with the Gigabyte GA-P55-UD3R and I couldn’t be happier! It is far more stable and robust, and the features are almost the same. A quick summary oif the parts:
  • Antec 900 two
  • Gigabyte GA-P55-UD3R
  • Core i7 860
  • G.Skill 2x2GB DDR3-2000
  • XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler
  • OCZ Vertex Series 60GB SSD (for the OS)
  • 640GB WD AAKS
  • Plextor DVD
  • LG Blu-Ray
  • Windows 7 (RTM Build)
So now, I overclocked it and wanted to make sure that my voltages and temps are in alignment with the norms. Here are the voltages I am using:
  • Load Line Calibration: [Enabled]
  • CPU VCore: 1.26525V [Normal]
  • Dynamic VCore (DVID): [+0.00625V]
  • QPI/Vtt Voltage: [Auto]
  • PCH Core: [Auto]
  • CPU PLL: [Auto]
  • DRAM Voltage: [1.600V]
I have overclocked it like so:
  • BCLK: 165
  • Multiplier: 22x (Turbo Boost is set to [Auto] so I get the extra multiplier)
  • QPI: [Auto] 36x, 5.94GHz
  • System Memory Multipler: [12x] 1980MHz
  • Memory – 9, 9, 9, 24, 4, 21, 74, 1 (tCL, tRCD, tRP, tRAS, tRRD, tWTP, tRFC, tCMD)
  • C1E: [Disabled]
  • C3/C6/C7: [Auto]
  • Thermal Monitor: [Auto]
  • EIST: [Auto]
  • CPU Clock Drive: [700mV] (default value)
  • PCI Express Clock Drive: [700mV] (default value)
  • CPU Clock Skew: [0ps] (default value)
After running Prime95 for a little over 8 hours, my temps were consistently in the high 60s, just under 70C. Idle temps are 33C.

So are these voltages and temps acceptable? Should I make any changes? Should I enable C1E?

Thanks in advance!
 
A

Ayah

Platinum Member
Jan 1, 2006
2,512
1
81
I think you're more than fine. <70C is pretty damn cool for these chips. My chip will hit 80C on long LinX/IBT runs.
 
A

Ayah

Platinum Member
Jan 1, 2006
2,512
1
81
LinX and IBT push your CPU well beyond "normal 100&#37; load" which you could attain doing something like video encoding for example. Overclockers like these programs because you can quickly find out if your settings are stable or not and move to the next setting you wish to test. 3-5 passes of LinX is generally pretty safe. 20 passes is rock solid stability.

Under normal circumstances, your processor will never get the load IBT/LinX will put on it.

I think your voltages are much more than safe, to the point where they're not really worth worrying about. If you want to push your processor some more, I'd suggest dropping your QPI setting and then increase bclck.

LinX:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=201670&highlight=intel+burn

IBT:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=197835&highlight=intel+burn
 
cubeless

cubeless

Diamond Member
Sep 17, 2001
4,295
1
81
you need to download prime 95 so you can just run one or 2 threads to see what happens when turbo kicks in... there's also a win 7 gadget that shows the turbo running, it's on intel's site...
 
GamingDaemon

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
7
76
Ayah said:
LinX and IBT push your CPU well beyond "normal 100% load" which you could attain doing something like video encoding for example. Overclockers like these programs because you can quickly find out if your settings are stable or not and move to the next setting you wish to test. 3-5 passes of LinX is generally pretty safe. 20 passes is rock solid stability.

Under normal circumstances, your processor will never get the load IBT/LinX will put on it.

I think your voltages are much more than safe, to the point where they're not really worth worrying about. If you want to push your processor some more, I'd suggest dropping your QPI setting and then increase bclck.

LinX:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=201670&highlight=intel+burn

IBT:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=197835&highlight=intel+burn
Click to expand...

Cool. Thank you Ayah for the answers. Do I even need to add the Dynamic Vcore? Should I set it to 0.00?

I think I am happy at 3.6GHz. I'd like to push it a little more but I don't like the temps being so high. I may try to see how high I can go, but I really like how solid it is right now.

________
Cubeless: I ran Prime95 for 8 hours and it was solid on all 8 threads. I have TurboBoost set to [Auto] which essentially means it is disabled except for one up-tick to get the 22x multiplier. I'm not sure it will go higher than one just one or two threads because it is kind of disabled by the BIOS. Make sense?
 
A

Ayah

Platinum Member
Jan 1, 2006
2,512
1
81
You're welcome.

I have no idea was dynamic vcore is. I think it's a Gigabyte thing. Sorry.
 
RussianSensation

RussianSensation

Elite Member
Sep 5, 2003
19,458
765
126
Hey guys, Dynamic Vcore is there to allow the CPU to be able to use lower voltages when running at reduced speeds in idle. In other words, you add "additional" voltage in the Dynamic Vcore section to ensure full stability at 3.6ghz. This way the motherboard is able to lower voltages when say you are operating at only 1.6ghz in idle.

You should Enable C1E states. If you intend to overclock beyond 3.6ghz, you'll likely need more Dynamic VCore bump. Also set QPI ratio to 32x from 36x (auto).
 
E

ekoostik

Senior member
Sep 10, 2009
202
0
0
Dynamic Vcore (DVID) is how Gigabyte allows for voltage differences between overclocked and idle states - it allows for a reduction in voltages at idle state. To use, in BIOS the CPU VCore must be set to normal. The DVID setting is then set to the voltage to be applied (in addition to the 'normal' CPU VCore) when the CPU ramps up. It sounds like that is how GamingDaemon has it setup.

GamingDaemon, it sounds like what you may be asking is if you set it to 0 will it still run. Is that right? The setting isn't that high, so it seems like you should be able to get away with setting it to 0. Of course there's only one way to find out...

Thanks for posting the details on your OC. I finally got an aftermarket HSF and will be attempting my own in the coming week. My first goal is fairly straightforward: find the most stable overclock that will allow me to keep turbo. I'm curious why you think more than +1 Turbo is disabled by the BIOS? Have you tested Prime95 on 1 thread to see what the CPU multiplier increases up to?

P.S. - don't forget to update your sig!
 
GamingDaemon

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
7
76
ekoostik said:
Dynamic Vcore (DVID) is how Gigabyte allows for voltage differences between overclocked and idle states - it allows for a reduction in voltages at idle state. To use, in BIOS the CPU VCore must be set to normal. The DVID setting is then set to the voltage to be applied (in addition to the 'normal' CPU VCore) when the CPU ramps up. It sounds like that is how GamingDaemon has it setup.

GamingDaemon, it sounds like what you may be asking is if you set it to 0 will it still run. Is that right? The setting isn't that high, so it seems like you should be able to get away with setting it to 0. Of course there's only one way to find out...

Thanks for posting the details on your OC. I finally got an aftermarket HSF and will be attempting my own in the coming week. My first goal is fairly straightforward: find the most stable overclock that will allow me to keep turbo. I'm curious why you think more than +1 Turbo is disabled by the BIOS? Have you tested Prime95 on 1 thread to see what the CPU multiplier increases up to?

P.S. - don't forget to update your sig!
Click to expand...

Yes, correct Ekoostik. I want to see if I really need it or not at my overclocked settings. I set Dynamic Vcore to [Normal] now which I assume is 0.00V, set QPI/VTT to 1.100V manually (0.5V less than DRAM), enabled C1E, and set the QPI ratio 32x. Then I ran LinX for 5 runs and it seemed fine. In fact, I got more GFlops. It went from 41 to 44.

I never see my multiplier change in CPU-Z. It always remains at 22x, even with C1E now enabled. I ran Prime95 with one thread, and it was still 22x. Is that right?

Also, at idle, my Vcore is fluctuating between 0.976V and 1.024V. Is that OK?
 
C

Cattykit

Senior member
Nov 3, 2009
521
0
0
Don't trust what CPU-Z says regarding i7's speed.

On my 860, I have turned on all the energy saving features beside EIST. I know for sure my CPU isn't running at its full speed all the time but CPU-Z reports it running at 3.7ghz at all times.

You can use programs like "i7 Turbo" to really see the changes in multiplier and CPU speed.
 
GamingDaemon

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
7
76
Cattykit said:
Don't trust what CPU-Z says regarding i7's speed.

On my 860, I have turned on all the energy saving features beside EIST. I know for sure my CPU isn't running at its full speed all the time but CPU-Z reports it running at 3.7ghz at all times.

You can use programs like "i7 Turbo" to really see the changes in multiplier and CPU speed.
Click to expand...

Ok cool. Thank you. I do see that the multipler is now fluctuating. It still tops out at 22x no matter what. I beleive this is part of Gigabyte's BIOS.

Is a vCore of 0.976V ~ 1.024V for idle ok? Is that enough voltage?
 
E

ekoostik

Senior member
Sep 10, 2009
202
0
0
GamingDaemon said:
Ok cool. Thank you. I do see that the multipler is now fluctuating. It still tops out at 22x no matter what. I beleive this is part of Gigabyte's BIOS.
Click to expand...
Have you done any more testing? How are things going?

If you want Turbo, change the setting from Auto to Enabled. This should give you the possibility to get up to 26x. Of course you'll want to test again for stability.

I'm curious what V the following are running at:
QPI/Vtt Voltage
PCH Core
CPU PLL

I'm wondering if thoes should be set manually instead of left at Auto. Maybe someone else can help out here. Should specific values be set for the voltages? Is there an advantage to doing this?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom