A few overclocking questions.?

Question

Hey guys, recently I've learned a lot about overclocking and im getting a CPU cooler to allow me to overclock my E6600 to 3.6GHZ,
of course i'll be taking little steps with the FSB, but when do you know that you need to up the voltage?

When the computer won't boot? when windows won't boot?
and how much voltage do I need to up? By 0.1v? by 0.01V? (I know every CPU is different, but which voltage jumps do I use?)

what is typical voltage for an e6600 on 3.6GHZ?

Thanks

Read it correctly please, my cpu isn't 3.6GHZ <.< its 2.4 and i'm going to buy a good cpu cooler for it so I can overclock!

My system is way more than ok, I have 2GB ocz 800mhz cl4 ram, and a Evga Geforce 8800GTS,
I want to increase my FPS in games by overclocking my CPU, so I can run games at highest settings + 8-16XAA and not just 4x.

cpu overclocking is safe as long as there is sufficient cooling!
I'm just asking about the technical stuff, not whether I should do it or not <.<...

Answer 1

Well first off, I have overclocked that and I hope you have a very good cooler to get to that speed, and also a good cooler on your northbridge, since you are increasing FSB, the northbridge will be heating up as well.

As for when to increase voltage, don't wait until you have boot failure, thats a little too far. At each step, boot Windows and run a stability test, there are plenty out there, Prime 95, Orthose, etc, but I find this new one to be the best, in that it will detect errors when sometimes the others won't:http://www.ocbase.com/perestroika_en/
run it in conjunction with Speed Fan, and it will even give you some very hand graphs to help monitoring your temps.

As for how much to increase, the minimum your board will allow, you want to get as much speed at as low a voltage as you can, while still being stable. I would start out at 1.35V or whatever is closest to that, and a 333 Mhz FSB (I know that is a big initial jump, but it can quite easily handle it with proper cooling, so no need to waste time inching your way up to that), then going to 340, and then 345, 350, etc. Your target for 3.6Ghz is 400 FSB, which like I said is possilbe with adequate cooling on both the CPU and NB, and of course a quality motherboard. Your voltage will vary, I would not recommend personally going above 1.45, and definately not above 1.5. As for temps, again personally I wouldn't go above 60, maybe 65 if you are bold, but nothing higher than that on a regular basis.

Answer 2

From X-bit labs' Overclocking Guide:
"How high can you increase the voltages? There are three factors that can stop you: the mainboard’s capabilities, a too high temperature, and a lack of purpose. If your system reacts eagerly to a voltage increase and the temperatures remain within normal ranges, why not continue? But if you need to increase your CPU voltage by 0.3V to overclock by 100MHz, I don’t think it makes much sense. The effect from such a small frequency increase won’t be conspicuous for a modern CPU but your system will be put under a stress and the temperature will grow up, too. The CPU temperature increases along with its frequency, but it does so at a much faster rate when you increase the core voltage."

Voltage adjustment is only necessary when you encounter stability issues even if Windows would open. No POST means too much overclocking. Windows won't load means very unstable overclock. I usually use Super Pi 2M for quick stability testing and Orthos for long duration testing.

BUT always remember, COOLING is the key to great overclocks. Check out my idols:
http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc?id=217129
http://valid.x86-secret.com/show_oc?id=166676

Answer 3

After moving the fsb or the core clock, you need to run stability tests. This will take forever! It is good in the end though. You will know if you have to up the voltage when the pc is on and you are running a stability test and it crashes. Upping the voltage will increase stability by giving the parts the power they need. Always use the smallest increments when changing voltage. Some motherboards only give you a few options. Have fun, you would really have to try and blow up that cpu. They usually shut off before anything "bad" happens.

Answer 4

I would recommend keep out of overclocking if don't have enough time. Because overcloaking little by little shows little diff. which will take time to see, while overclocking must faster may even burn parts.
If u see windows became unstable then u can sure overclocking is much. but will take time if u do step by step.

Since u already have 3.6 GHz processor u won't find any big diff. in speed if u overclock. Instead go for more RAM or better graphics card. Because these two will show instant difference. Also remove unneccesary pgms from windows starup. Run->msconfig->STARTUP.
Overclocking mostly done when they have mhz cpu & still done when they want to squeeze the last bit for GAMING, even with High end graphics card. overclocking will void ur pc.

Answer 5

Personally, overclocking your PC is not worth it, especially if you already have a 2GHz plus CPU.

Its not a job for the novice.

First its dangerous. You can permanently damage your processor and board.

Second its unstable. It might lead to system freeze or crashes.

I suggest investing in more RAM and a good Graphics card. They could significantly improve system performance without endangering your system.

Answer 6

try http://www.extremeoverclocking.com