q6600 asus p5q se plus first oc

[blackrig]

Ok, this is my first thread/post on this forum however I am not new to forums. I did a ton of research, searching and reading stickies on this site and others before posting this question. So here goes.....

I built my rig 1.5 yrs ago and now would like to try and oc it just for kicks and see what I can get out of it.

Current specs are:

q6600
Asus p5q se plus
8 gb ocz reaper
Antec 650w
Asus cpu fan (can't remember specific model but it's pretty big and should handle at least a mild oc)
nVidia 9600 gt (msi board)

I've tried some basic overclock (fsb) with absolutely no luck. I can't seem to find the multiplier in the bios (maybe they call it something else) and i can't find it specifically in the manual either.

according to cpu-z my system idly runs at a 6x multiplier and when put under load (prime 95) jumps to 9x. I assume it's because I defaulted back to the 'auto' settings?

current temps according to speed fan are between 26-30c idle, around 53c on load

So if you are a master oc'er or have this board or one of the p5q series and can help me out, please let me know.

Thanks guys

 

[Hefemeister]

Not an expert with the p5q but with the multi jumping that tells me you have speedstep enabled which adjusts the speed of the cpu based upon load. Hence jumping to default multi of 9X when under load with a default fsb of 266 giving you your 2.4Ghz.

For starters in the AI menu you need to set AI overclocking utility to manual from the default of auto.

The q6600 has a locked multi so you will keep it a 9x and make adjustments with the fsb. If you want to find max fsb drop the multi down.

Bump your fsb up to 280 then start testing stability. If it is stable (prime95) go back and bump it 5mhz at a time until it is no longer stable. Then start adjusting vcore while keeping a close eye on temps.

 

[blackrig]

Ok, so is there a setting under AI specifically for the speed stepping? Or is it generally under a certain heading under most bios?

Update: I uninstalled the epu-4 engine and I think that was causing the instability issues before.(conflicting) I bumped my fsb to 300 and left everything else pretty much the same which gave me 2.7 ghz. I didn't have a whole lot of time (2 kids under 2) but I ran prime for a while and the hottest it seemed to get was about 63c. I know that is pretty warm but is that close to critical?

I plan on getting a new cpu cooler very soon. looking at a Scythe MUGEN w/ 120mm fan. (price and performance seem to be right) according to other posts, people seem to be getting over 3 ghz with that fan.

Next question is my RAM. I have not touched any RAM settings yet. according to cpuz, since i upped my fsb my ram mhz has dropped from 533 to around 375. I know that is because of the multiplier relationship somehow but how do I now get that up to it's rated 800 or 1066 mhz?

Thanks

 

[blackrig]

bump.. anyone?

I looked in the manual and in the bios and I didnt' see a stepping option to override. After more research my bios doesn't seem to have the same options or terminology that the various bios that I see people use and refer to. I can't seem to find how to change the cpu/ram ratio or change either of the multipliers.

So anyone with the p5q se plus Asus MB please advise!!!

Thanks

 

[Fat.Clown]

go to Ai tweaker tab

go inside ai overclock tuner

change from Auto to Manual

then you can play with your CPU speed

below that, where you see DRAM frequency?
you can change the speed of your RAM
I only run mine at 878

for the multiplier thing

go to advanced tab

go inside CPU configuration

see C1E support?

that's the speedstep

turn that off and your cpu ratio won't drop to 6x


as you can see I don't have mine overclocked very high
I am trying to get the most stable clocks while staying at stock volts
3.17 GHz @ 1.3v on cpu
and 4 Sticks of RAM @ 878 @ 1.82v
I know I can still squeeze more performance out of it
but I got bored

but I ran prime for a while and the hottest it seemed to get was about 63c. I know that is pretty warm but is that close to critical?

the general consensus seems to be; try to stay below 70 C

 

[Ste]

Seems like you don't have a good enough heatsink, or you need more case cooling.

64C at 2.7 Ghz is kinda high.

Consider buying a new heatsink, better thermal paste, higher CFM fans and lapping.

 

[blackrig]

Thanks for the replies guys. I almost gave up on this forum.

I agree, from reading other posts, that 64c is high. I'm going to clean out my case (air) to make sure everything isn't insulated with a layer of dust. I also plan on getting a better heatsink soon but I read of a lot of people getting better than 2.7 on stock coolers. I would think that the cooler i have now is better than stock. so...... we'll see.

Fat, what cooler are you running? and what is your RAM rated at? Also, are you running the same MB and CPU as me?

I have 4x2gb (8gb total) of ocz 1066 reaper. Any suggestions for what they should be run at?

Thanks

 

[Fat.Clown]

Fat, what cooler are you running? and what is your RAM rated at? Also, are you running the same MB and CPU as me?

I have 4x2gb (8gb total) of ocz 1066 reaper. Any suggestions for what they should be run at?

Thanks

I am using the Sunbeam Core Contact freezer as CPU cooler

RAM is rated at DDR2-800

MB is Asus P5Q Pro
CPU - Q6600

if it's rated at 1066, then try to run at 1066 Mhz

 

[blackrig]

Ok, cleaned out the case and now at 2.7 ghz my temp is idle 29-30c and full load about 58c

But here's the catch. my first two cores are running at 58c at load and the 2nd two are running at 53c at load. is this 5c difference normal? Or is there some other setting I'm missing. It seems as though maybe the first two cores are working harder than the others? Or could this be poor application of thermal paste or some other physical issue?

Fat, what temps are you running at?

Also, as far as case cooling for me, I have an Antec 300 with 3 case fans (1 in, 2 out) and they are large, high cfm fans. This should be sufficient shouldn't it?

Thanks

 

[Fat.Clown]

my cores also have 5C difference, I am guessing it's because the cores have different TJMax value

remember, these q6600s are just a cpu with 2 dual core sandwiched together

or maybe the heatsink (on the cpu) surface is un-even, I don't know... haven't got around to lapping it down

can't remember my temps, and don't want to waste time to perform a prime run sorry