xp2800

[JK949]

I want do dabble litely in overclocking. i have a msi kt7n2 board with 512 of dual channal ddr400.
My heatsink is a comp usa polished copper with a large fan. it keeps the web surfing and day to day
stuff at 39 to 40c and no more than 50 to 52 playing ut2003 and 3d2003 and 2001se.
Whats the safest way to overclock and what do i set the multipliyer at.
I have a coolmaster tac-101 case with 3 80mm intakes, 2 in front and 1 on the top. one 80mm in the rear and
the enermax 350 watt dual fan psu.

 

[myocardia]

Assuming you don't have a locked processor, try lowering the multiplier down to either 11x or 11.5x, and see how close you can get to 200fsb. You'll more than likely need to raise your vcore to get there, but that's not definite.

 

[JK949]

The cpu is retail and i dont know if it locked or not. i can change th multiplier in the bios.
11.5 was suggested in CPU mag and upping the FBS small increments. it also said to go to 200 would
make the system unstable. would this burn the chip by making it run too hot. as for voltage
what would you recomend to start with.

 

[myocardia]

As long as you have good case ventilation and a decent heatsink, you aren't going to damage your chip with heat. Voltage is what kills processors. But, as long as you keep the voltage at 1.75v or less (it's called vcore in the bios), you definitely won't do any damage to it. Mine is running at 1.80v right now, which is only ~1.760-1.775 actual voltage. I personally start out giving a chip a little extra voltage, since I know I'm going to be overclocking it, and my "max" overclock will be higher that way. I'd say you'd be smart, if you're wanting to see how fast the chip will run, to start with 1.75v and an 11x or 11.5x multi, and see where that gets you. As far as 200mhz being unstable, mine is running at 12x209 right now, and is large-fft Prime95 stable for more than 12 hours at that speed. Maybe they were talking about your particular motherboard, maybe?

 

[JK949]

Yes, they were using my motherboard. i have a coolmaster wave master tac 101 case and dont have room
for a large heatsink/fan. the setup is to close to the power supply to fit anything very big.
Are there any out there that are compact enough to do the job if the one i have dosen't keep it cool
enough.

 

[myocardia]

If you have an all-copper heatsink, that's likely going to be enough. If you have the room for it, this heatsink here is pretty awesome, though not cheap: Thermaltake Volcano 12.

 

[JK949]

That maybe a little big for my case. $39.95 dosent sound expensive to me.
My problem is diamitor not hight.

 

[myocardia]

Well, it's only $35, not $39.95. And if you want to know whether it will fit into your case, just hold an 80mm fan over the heatsink you have installed now. If it doesn't hit the psu, then that heatsink will fit fine.