Quick ratio question

[jamaicaska]

Asus P5B Motherboard
Intel e6600 c2d (stock 2.4GHz)
Stock cooler
4GB Geil PC6400 DDR2 800MHz
650W Be Quiet! PSU
XFX 260GTX (216 core)
320GB Samsung HDD (OS and programs)
1TB Samsung HDD (media)
DVD-RW Sony
Case: Antec 900 Two

Hi,

Am I better off running my CPU at 3.0GHz and my RAM at 666MHz (1:1 ratio, underclocked RAM, 333MHz FSB), or my CPU at 2.88GHz and my RAM at 800MHz? (4:5 ratio, RAM at default clock although I had to drop the divider one notch in my BIOS, 320MHz FSB)

My PC has been a little unstable at 3.0GHz this summer but I think that's a cooling issue as it was fine all winter. Whenever I run Orthos it hits about 60-65 degrees after a few minutes and complains before eventually hanging and needing a restart. I'm debating replacing my cooler if necessary, but the room my PC is in can get quite warm, being in the roof of the house :/ Also, I haven't been able to push it past 3GHz with any stability. I had the VCore up to 1.5V nearly and it still wouldn't have it, so I think the motherboard isn't up to the stress of a higher FSB.

Thanks in advance

 

[H4x3r]

While there has been much debate as to whether or not the 1:1 ratio is better, it does indeed put less stress on the chipset to handle. I personally push my cpu as far as i can get it, then do the same with ram while keeping a stable machine. For you it would probably provide more benefit to keep your ram at the stock speed over underclocking it.

For stability try increasing the voltage to the NB a little as well as DRAM voltage, keep in mind that the E6600 has a max temp of around 61c. So if you get above that the thermal sensor is going to reboot the system.

 

[jamaicaska]

Aha, if 61c is about the max temp for it then I think I need a new cooler, or at least to re-do my thermal paste or something. It's currently hitting 57c ish at full load @ 2.88GHz.

Thanks a lot