Q6600

[Zanjo]

Hi all,

I'm looking at upgrading my PC and I want to make sure the parts I get can overclock well together. What I'm thinking of at the moment is:

-Q6600 2.4Ghz Intel G0 SLACR CPU
-2x2GB DDR2 800Mhz RAM (Generic)
-Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3 Motherboard - GIGABYTE - Product - Motherboard - Specification - GA-P35-DS3 (rev. 1.0)

I have the other parts already but I don't think they are entirely relevant so I won't bother posting them. I'm quite new at overclocking, but I roughly understand it. The Q6600 has (at stock) a multiplier of 9x and an FSB of 266Mhz. So from what I understand, with the said parts I should be able to get the FSB up to 400Mhz bringing the total speed to 3.6Ghz (theoretically, and not higher as the generic RAM won't overclock very much at all, 800mhz / 2 = 400.) Are there any problems with this configuration? Will the total FSB become 1600Mhz if the FSB is at 400Mhz and is quad pumped? (I don't really understand this bit.) Any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

 

[b1gapl]

Another part you may be missing, if you haven't chose one already, is an aftermarket heatsink. And for this, I would definitely suggest the Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme (no fan included). Then just get a 120mm fan. And don't forget to buy aftermarket thermal paste. Arctic Cooling MX-2.

As far as the other parts, it's possible to reach your goal.

And yes, the effective frequency of the FSB will be 1.6GHz, since the FSB is quad pumped.

 

[Zanjo]

Hi b1gapl,

Thanks for your reply. I will certainly look at aftermarket cooling when I'm overclocking! The motherboard I'm looking at supports a maximum FSB of 1333mhz, does this mean it will not be able to handle the CPU when it's effective FSB is 1600mhz or does 1333mhz refer to the non quad pumped frequency?

Thanks for your help!

 

[b1gapl]

When the motherboard mentions the supported FSB speed, it meant at default speeds. So it's able to support a CPU with a default FSB speed of 1333MHz. There are many many quad owners here, such as myself, that run the FSB well over the supported 1333FSB. So you don't have to worry about that.

 

[Zanjo]

Ah OK, thanks for all your help!

 

[Twizted_3kgt]

Good advice already given, i'll just reitterate this: Get the mentioned 120mm cooler for it if you want to overclock to 3.6ghz. You may not get lucky with the chip you get, and it could have a 1.3v VID (the voltage required for the stock speed).

For example my VID is 1.31v, Veedub's VID is 1.2v. He can get a stable 3.6ghz overclock on 1.36v, whereas I would need over 1.5v to make mine stable at 3.6ghz (past the limit). Now if you need to run higher voltage, you need better cooling. And I can tell you right now, the 92mm cooler I have is barely adequate for 3.3ghz and 1.45v. It doesn't stand a chance at higher voltage.

 

[Zanjo]

I'm hoping I'll get a highly overclockable chip (I'm making sure I get G0 stepping and the 'SLACR' sStep number, it seems you have that too), I don't initially plan to overclock a lot but I suppose I should get the cooler asap so I don't have to clean off the thermal pad left by the stock cooler when I do decide to. When OCing should I go to the highest voltage the cooling can manage or should I not go past a certain point?

Thanks!

 

[b1gapl]

Only increase the voltage if the overclock is not stable during a stress test.

But a border not to past, is around 1.55v for daily use.

 

[Zanjo]

OK. What would be your next best choice in coolers? I've been looking at reviews of the TRUE and it looks excellent, but I'm not entirely sure it would fit in my case (I read it was about 16cm tall, my case is only 18cm from the motherboard to the side of the case so it's a very close fit.)

 

[b1gapl]

I would say the Tuniq, which is also huge....around 15cm. From what I heard, harder to install, than the TRUE. I have a mid-tower, and I'm very lucky that my TRUE fits. Around 2cm from the HS to the side panel.

Another one, is the Big Typhoon. It's around 10-12 cm in height.