wuts up all,

i finally got my c2d build to work

i think i made every mistake in the book lol so i figured i would try to help others and
document my mistakes

if you know what you are doing, you probably don't need to read this but i may have discovered
some things that even you don't know

specs are:

core 2 duo e6600
zalman cnps 9700led
asus p5ne-sli
2x 1gb crucial ddr2 1000
evga 7900gs ko
seagate 7200.10 320gb
hiper 730w type m

enjoy

Hardware troubles

My first mistake was touching the cpu pins on the 775.... i was used to 939 where the pins are on the chip itself so i was nonchalant about installing the cooler

Rule #1 Do not take the black cap off of the socket until you are ready to drop the cpu in!

i had originally ordered a lian li hpc-600, there were no reviews on the psu and i don't think there are any formal reviews even now. the psu ended up being dead and someone on xtreme systems.com revealed to me that it was made by some lame ass company called sirtec

Rule #2 trust lian li cases... nothing else/sirtec makes piece of **** power supplies no matter who puts their name on it

i finally got all my components to work but i was in a rush and wanted to test the new power supply but didnt wantto install the cpu cooler yet because i would most likely just have to waste more as5 and install it again. core 2 duos have low heat right? WRONG- fried a cpu.. install your cooler always!

Rule #3 Don't rush it/ Always install cpu cooling

Software troubles

Ok so i finally replace almost everything lol and i get it to boot. I go out and buy windows vista upgrade thinking i can install it over my XP... once again i was WRONG- i had the first disc of XP- no service packs... it only recognized 130gb of hdd and this transferred over to vista. i thought my key and hard drive was ****ed

i was saved by the fact that you can clean install from an upgrade here are the steps
1. boot from vista cd
2. DO NOT enter product key... just hit next
3. select your version and install vista
4. once you get into vista run vista setup again
5. upgrade your copy of vista to vista
6. enter product key this time
7. activate and enjoy

Rule #4 Clean install your OS! / Do not trust MS... they say you can upgrade but its all bull****!

BIOS trouble

so i am in vista its cool as **** but i want to update all my drivers... hmm asus has a new bios out i think i will install BAM! your rig is unstable as ****

first of all if you have a p5n-e sli do not get bios 0401, if you already did and you are unstable, keep reading

here is the **** i had to do to get 0401 stable
1. Put the memory in the wrong slots- voltages are ****ed on p5ne-sli, especially for memory- ALWAYS install your memory in the BLACK SLOTS (B1 & B2) you would
think to put them in the A1 & A2 yellow slots but taiwan people think backwards!
2. Set ram to 2T- faster ram usually boots at 1T but it is totally unstable, i guess you can get higher clocks though
3. increase memory volts- p5n-e runs memory at about 1.95 volts, its better than 965 running at 1.8 stock but still not enough for good memory... my ram is at 2.175
4. Clear cmos- if a new bios changes your options the old ones are still saved and it ****s with your new bios... even if you have the perfect oc saved- just clear it!

Rule #5 ASUS makes garbage bioses! you have to tweak the hell out of them to get them to run stock! Buy a gigabyte lol jk all bioses suck somewhat

ok thats it for now- i will have some oc results up soon!

right now its at 3.15ghz stable at stock volts!

temps are 30-31 idle and 35 load

passed 3dmark05 cpu test and sandra burn in test with those settings
does anyone know a better test for stability

im thinking i might have gotten a pretty good chip!!! what do you guys think i can hit with my specs??

Quote: Originally Posted by thachamp05 passed 3dmark05 cpu test and sandra burn in test with those settings does anyone know a better test for stability

OCCT and Prime95 are some of the best stability tests out there. The sandra burn in wizard is not too reliable. There are links to these programs and more in the overclocking sub forum. BTW I think you could have fit all of this into one post

edit - http://forums.pcapex.com/other_oc_hardware_software/76392-necros_utlimate_links_collection.html

Sorry, are you saying you turned on your fully built PC without anything on the CPU?

Quote: Originally Posted by thachamp05 BIOS trouble so i am in vista its cool as **** but i want to update all my drivers... hmm asus has a new bios out i think i will install BAM! your rig is unstable as **** first of all if you have a p5n-e sli do not get bios 0401, if you already did and you are unstable, keep reading here is the **** i had to do to get 0401 stable 1. Put the memory in the wrong slots- voltages are ****ed on p5ne-sli, especially for memory- ALWAYS install your memory in the BLACK SLOTS (B1 & B2) you would think to put them in the A1 & A2 yellow slots but taiwan people think backwards! 2. Set ram to 2T- faster ram usually boots at 1T but it is totally unstable, i guess you can get higher clocks though 3. increase memory volts- p5n-e runs memory at about 1.95 volts, its better than 965 running at 1.8 stock but still not enough for good memory... my ram is at 2.175 4. Clear cmos- if a new bios changes your options the old ones are still saved and it ****s with your new bios... even if you have the perfect oc saved- just clear it! Rule #5 ASUS makes garbage bioses! you have to tweak the hell out of them to get them to run stock! Buy a gigabyte lol jk all bioses suck somewhat

Yup, sounds about right from what I've experienced with this board. I'm 100% stable now though, it just took a while.

And seriously dude, you are joking when you said you booted your new PC with no CPU cooler? CPUs haven't been able to survive without coolers since about 300BC...

Quote: Originally Posted by Dex Sorry, are you saying you turned on your fully built PC without anything on the CPU?

I did that once, I was nine and my Dad was setting me up a newer computer from spare bits. I thought it was done so I plugged all the cables in and it worked for 10 seconds and died. When he got back he said he hadn't put the heatsink on. It really sucked.

Quote: Originally Posted by reflux Yup, sounds about right from what I've experienced with this board. I'm 100% stable now though, it just took a while. And seriously dude, you are joking when you said you booted your new PC with no CPU cooler? CPUs haven't been able to survive without coolers since about 300BC...

haha yeah i am an idiot, i was just going to see if it would post before i turned it back off and wasted time finishing everything up... but it didnt and now i know why lol

btw im at 400x8 1.35 volts - memory is at 1066 at 2.2 something volts

temps are like 33 idle 39 load

i may try 400x9 today... what type of voltage would that take?

if i keep going up in clock whats a good voltage to stop with assuming im a noob lol

I think I was the 1st to figure out he didn't use a heatsink when he 1st started building this rig.
Actually I think he did set it on the cpu, he just didn't fasten it down. HeHeHe. I'm glad you finally
got it working, but finished? I've found that no rig is finished until you buy a new one. I bet by
next year something will be different :-)
As for your voltages. I tend to push things hard, so I'll up the cpu volts til my temps just get to
high. But I wouldn't give the memory more than 2.3 volts. Mine are at 2.25 volts

Quote: Originally Posted by Slaymate I think I was the 1st to figure out he didn't use a heatsink when he 1st started building this rig. Actually I think he did set it on the cpu, he just didn't fasten it down. HeHeHe. I'm glad you finally got it working, but finished? I've found that no rig is finished until you buy a new one. I bet by next year something will be different :-) As for your voltages. I tend to push things hard, so I'll up the cpu volts til my temps just get to high. But I wouldn't give the memory more than 2.3 volts. Mine are at 2.25 volts

sweeet... i just got a cooler to put on my southbridge so i think i am ready to go

i got this one Cooler Master Blue Ice Pro Chipset Cooler - Sleeved Products Model: RR-NCW-L4E1-GP [RR-NCW-L4E1-GP] : Performance-PCs.com, ... sleeve it and they will come

i bought it at compusa for 25 bucks so i obviously overpaid- i could have gotten a sleeved one and had it shipped overnight for the same- damn oh well

i am ready to oc now- ill let you know what i hit

im trying to post my new oc- it keeps saying image pending approval

anyways i got 425x8 i left memory synced at 850- i tried going unlinked at 1066 but it didnt like it for some reason- i know the mem will hit 1066 for sure tho

orthos stable hit 38 degrees after about 5 minutes it didnt go up anymore

i was wondering about my voltages though- i have them set at 1.37 but they dip down to like 1.28 when i was running orthos... is this normal????

Quote: Originally Posted by thachamp05 im trying to post my new oc- it keeps saying image pending approval anyways i got 425x8 i left memory synced at 850- i tried going unlinked at 1066 but it didnt like it for some reason- i know the mem will hit 1066 for sure tho orthos stable hit 38 degrees after about 5 minutes it didnt go up anymore i was wondering about my voltages though- i have them set at 1.37 but they dip down to like 1.28 when i was running orthos... is this normal????

Your 6600 is naturally a 9x multi. Got mine at 355x9. With 425x8 you'll be getting 3.4ghz which is a nice clock.

If you're running the RAM unlinked, up it to 1066 and up the voltge to 2.2v. The mobo (as on my evga 680i) might default the RAM to 1.9v, which is it's voltage for runing at 800mhz, make sure it's at 2.2v if you're running 1066mhz, which I would assume is the stock for your RAM. Check that out though to be sure.

Also, if you're pushing your FSB up high, you might want to check your FSB voltage etc. I'm not familiar with your board, but I found on mine without upping my SPP to 1.4v & FSB to 1.3v I couldn't get past 3.0ghz. Again, not sure about your board.

Regarding voltages, here are my results, clocks/multi/voltages, all stable through 8 hours Orthos:

2.4ghz // 267x9 // 1.025v
3.0ghz // 334x9 // 1.25v
3.2ghz // 355x9 // 1.3275v
3.4ghz // 378x9 // 1.4v

Or

3.2ghz // 458x7 // 1.3275 (for higher FSB with lower multi)

I didn't find much of an increase in performance with the higher FSB and lower multi, so I'm sticking with 9x and a lower FSB/SPP voltage @ 3.2ghz. Gets me a Super PI of 16.095. I can push to 3.4ghz easily, but I don't like over-volting, plus the rise in temps. Not worth the extra 1 second PI/200mhz in my book.

Yeah, these chips are super versatile and can range from 1.0v to 1.55v with the right cooling, but I'm not a fan of overvolting. The stock voltage is 1.35v, and undervolted to 1.3275v I got mine to 3.2ghz with a max temp of 55c, idling at about 32c. Personally I don't like to go above stock voltage, as I've heard rumours of them slowing down/wearing after a year or so at anything above 1.4v.

Also, you're stress testing for like 5 mins? Once you reach your chosen clock, you should test for at least 8 hours to find out if it's 100% stable. I thought my 3.2ghz clock was ok at 1.325v but then after 12 mins it would return errors, always at 12 mins. So try and test for a good few 2-3 hours at LEAST for stability. You'll also find that after the half hour mark, temps rise a little more. You might get 52c after 10 minutes, but hit 55c after an hour or so, with quick peaks at 57c possibly etc.

Make sure you buy an after-market cooler for your CPU. I can recommend my Scythe Ninja highly. It's given me temp drops of like 15-20c.

Temps - these things will go up to 85c before they burn out, but the max temp for 24/7 use is 61.5c. If, whilst stressing at 3.2ghz, you can keep to 55c or less after an 8 hour stress test (run it whilst you sleep) then you have a very stable system and should be happy. Don't be scared to hit 60-65c, as this is a stress test, and in general gaming you'll never go above 55c unless you're clocked at like 3.6ghz (I'd recommend water cooling for anything like that).

Lastly, don't worry about your voltages dipping down. Mine are at 1.3275v but show up as 1.3375v in nvidia monitor and show up as 1.25 in CPU-Z. You'll find that temps and voltages often vary slightly in their readings with different programs to that of the BIOS.

i thought about running it for longer but i dont really have time to pay attention to it

it wont fry my stuff or anything if the clock is unstable will it?

right now i have it at 379x9 at 1.4v

temps are at 34c idle and sometimes hit 43 in orthos- i tested it for 15 mins

memory is at 1010- still at 4-4-4-12 but i had to bump the volts up to 2.37

nb is running hot as hell i gotta get a better cooler and im probs gonna put a 250mm fan on the side of my pc-7b

right now its sitting on its side open faced with the ceiling fan on it lol

Quote: Originally Posted by thachamp05 i thought about running it for longer but i dont really have time to pay attention to it it wont fry my stuff or anything if the clock is unstable will it? right now i have it at 379x9 at 1.4v temps are at 34c idle and sometimes hit 43 in orthos- i tested it for 15 mins memory is at 1010- still at 4-4-4-12 but i had to bump the volts up to 2.37 nb is running hot as hell i gotta get a better cooler and im probs gonna put a 250mm fan on the side of my pc-7b right now its sitting on its side open faced with the ceiling fan on it lol

No, it won't fry your CPU but games may freeze applications may slow down etc. You may lose or corrupt data.

1.4v? You can get away with 1.3v (maybe 1.35v) as far up as 3.3ghz and you'll get far better temps and more life out of your CPU. The less voltage the better, so long as it's within the range of stability. 1.35v is the stock.

heh I once fried an old athlon when I forgot thermal paste and didn't screw the cooler down hard enough, went up in a small puff of fouwl smelling smoke.

haha nice one kipman- i actually had no idea what was wrong with the rig- the processor didnt burn per se but something obviously ****ed it up- i couldnt figure out what was wrong for forever... i replaced everything except the proc and the ram so i finally figured it was probably the proc

anyways as for the whole volts thing i am not trying to find a daily driver o/c- just trying to get a good one for benchmarks- temps on the proc are 34/43 which i dont think is too bad for this proc

i donno why it is eating so much juice tho- during orthos voltages drop reeeally low like 1.21v so i think it could live with more- but i think i can go up a bit more before raising it

as for a daily driver i will probly stick with 400x 9 with the memory at 1066 5-5-5-15 and 2.2v because it was plenty fast..

i dont really care about timings too much as i havent seen any real benefits since ive dropped it to 4-4-4-12 at 2.37v

ill leave the divider at 3:2.... this board is pretty much trash when i have the proc and mem unlinked

btw- what benchmarks should i run while i am doing this- i know super pi probably and some 3dmarks... any others???