The Overvolt Test

[Loki726]

Ok, I see alot of opinions about the effects of overvolting a processor. Most people agree that it will reduce the life of the processor but I see no tests anywhere to show how much. I realize that like overclocking, it will be different for every processor, but I would like to know on the average, how much the life of a processor will be reduced by overvolting.

So heres what I'm doing, I've got an athlon 2500+ overvolted to 1.85 volts (The highest my a7n8x will go) and will be posting on this thread once a month until it dies or I replace it (I usually replace my system once every 2 years).

POST YOUR OVERVOLTS, WHAT PROCESSOR IT IS, AND HOW LONG THEY HAVE BEEN RUNNING!

(Make sure your processor is under its maximum rated temp)

2/03/04 working fine

 

[slaves123]

all the community will be really in debt with you, i say you thanks

 

[TerryMathews]

1.85V isn't really overvolting an Athlon; it lies within the technical specifications (although just barely) and is a valid voltage setting on the bridges.

Overvolting would be more along the lines of 1.95-2V. I personally know of a couple Duron and T-birds that have run 1.85V non-stop 24x7 for as long as they've been in service. Two years? Dunno, it was a 750@1GHz (Duron) and 1.4 @ 1.5 (T-bird)

 

[Soulkeeper]

hahaha sounds like fun

 

[Soulkeeper]

ok i've been running my 1.8ghz P4m northwood at 1.7v for a few days now (up from the voltage in my sig)
doubt this will kill it before i get my prescott but i'll let you know if it dies on me

 

[peonyu]

I had a Celeron 366 slot 1 overvolted to 3.4 V from its stock 2v, it was the freakish result of cutting the wrong bridge on the card and got that instead of 2.2v. Somehow though, it lived and boots up at 3.4v, but i can only leave it on for a minute or two before its heat begins reaching upto the 60c levels. to bad i cant find the excact pins that i cut to get that, or else id reverse it.

The only damage ive seen from doing that is that the side of the core has a brownish tint to it.

offtopic.

 

[bjc112]

1.4@2.4

1.79V

8 months..

like others said though.. 2V would be a better example..

Thanks for the experiment..

 

[OverVolt]

Palimino @ 1.9v for 2years

 

[PCBliss]

I truely think that anything under 2.0v or so is fine as long as temps are ok. Maybe it will last 3 years instead of 10, but who cares at the rate most of us upgrade our hardware. I plan on running around 1.9-1.95 on my barton once i finish watercooling.

 

[Loki726]

3/5/04

One month later, no problems.

1.85V isn't really overvolting an Athlon; it lies within the technical specifications (although just barely) and is a valid voltage setting on the bridges.

I'll bet that 1.85 is probably a little more than the norm for how much most people will overvolt, and that is the whole point of this test. To see how much of a difference it will make for the average person. If this system lives for around 2-3 years then I will conclude that overvolting doesn't matter for the average user, and if it dies before that, then it will give people an idea of what they are getting into when they overvolt their processors.

But I need more examples incase my comp is just a fluke.

 

[Flyermax2k3]

I've been running my Barton 2800+ @1.7-1.75V since I built this system in December, so a little over 3 months now. Still runnin like a champ Just wish my mobo had a pci bus lock so I could o/c higher

 

[FrustratedUser]

This will be the longest thread (time) in AT history.
Bump it to 2V instead if you really are doing a destructive test.

 

[aka1nas]

Dual 1700+ tbred Bs @2400+@1.725V. Only a week so far

 

[Noid]

Ok ,,, I got my Mobile 2400 last week...

Been pumping 1.95v or more since I got it.

Now at 2.0v on air. (1.95v on P95 load)
Prime95 stable over 24 hours.

45.5C idle - 62C load

This is the only AMD chip I've owned that wants 2.0v.
All my otehr chips usually need 1.85v and have / are running for 2 years now.

 

[PCBliss]

as long as your temps are fine, dont worry. People get so paranoid its funny. maybe it wont last 10 yrs, it will only last 4. big reakin deal. I run 1.84v on my mobile barton, and ill probably be running 1.95 when i get my NF7s. I ran 1.85 on my AQXEA barton for 5 months and it never faltered

 

[Shimmishim]

currently running my a64 3200+ @ 1.8 volts...

it's fun being on the edge and knowing that your chip may just die one day!

oops, there goes $270 down the drain...

might try more volts after i can figure out how to get my ram to run 1:1 @ 260 mhz

 

[myocardia]

I'm now running my XP2400@1.80v in bios, and I'd ran it at 1.775v since I bought it, about 11 months ago. My board undervolts everything a bit, so at 1.8v, it varies between 1.774 and 1.792 actual under 100% load. My air-cooled temps are 43-44°C under full load, and around 37°C at idle. I expect this chip won't last for more than another 8 or 9 years at those voltages, though.

 

[Mustanggt]

Originally posted by: Noid
Ok ,,, I got my Mobile 2400 last week...

Been pumping 1.95v or more since I got it.

Now at 2.0v on air. (1.95v on P95 load)
Prime95 stable over 24 hours.

45.5C idle - 62C load

This is the only AMD chip I've owned that wants 2.0v.
All my otehr chips usually need 1.85v and have / are running for 2 years now.

that Vcore and those temps should kill it in no time keep us posted

 

[Corporate Thug]

2.8c @ 3.5 W/1.65v

mid 50's underfull load

running for 3 months

 

[Loki726]

4/04/04

Two months down, and still going fine.

 

[MDE]

XP 2500+ @ 2.2 1.75V for about 6 months, 45C full load.

 

[Soulkeeper]

Prescott 2.8e @ 3.2ghz and above
1.5v

temps are about 70c under load
sp-94 with vantec tornado and AS5

 

[Jeff7181]

I never keep a CPU long enough to see when it fails... in the past 5 years, I don't think I've used the same CPU for longer than a year.

 

[Fricardo]

Great idea for a post. I would like to hear from more people who have fried their processors. I know there have to be quite a few out there on these forums.