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I am new to all this overclocking business yet I can not find anyone who can help me or an article that actually makes sense for me to read and understand. Its current clock has been set back to 1.9GHZ yet one article stated they clocked it to 2.6GHZ. I don't want to go silly with it but I am wanting something like 2.2 GHZ but have only adjusted the FSB to 166 to make it up to 1.98 GHZ. What else can I alter to clock it up to 2.2GHZ? I have read about using multipliers but am unsure of what needs multiplying.
Any help would be appreciated.
Cheers.
Any help would be appreciated.
Cheers.
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If you find the system wont boot just clear the CMOS, you should have a jumper on the motherboard that will do this.
ÂLŠ†ÂÎR wrote:
> Some of the new games (and I fear Half Life 2 will be one of them) will
> require a CPU of 2GHZ + for max settings.
But yours is over 2Ghz. Remember a XP2600 is equvialant to a P4 2.6Ghz. This is what they base it on, as the new AMD processors do just over 2Ghz.
> Some of the new games (and I fear Half Life 2 will be one of them) will
> require a CPU of 2GHZ + for max settings.
But yours is over 2Ghz. Remember a XP2600 is equvialant to a P4 2.6Ghz. This is what they base it on, as the new AMD processors do just over 2Ghz.
Ok man, cheers for the help, it gives me something to think about, although I probably won't bother as I can run pretty much everything on top settings without any problems, its just the stutter (which suggests to me something loading in the background) that I would like to sort out.
Like you mentioned, it could be the RAM. When using dual modules, it's always best if they're of the same type, manufacturer, speed etc.
If you think about it, it isn't the graphics card that is struggling.
As it is the most powerful there is, no developer is going to make a game that goes beyond it, as no-one would be able to play it then. And they wouldn't have cards powerful enough to test it either.
I don't run Windows 2000 and I've never tried to play games on it. XP would maybe be better. So I really don't have a clue regarding what could be causing the errors problems.
Although it isn't exactly true, generally you could say that a 2000XP is roughly equivalent to a 2 GHz P4. It works as what the AMD chip does in comparison to the 1 GHz Athlon did. In your case, the chip is 2.6 times more powerful than the 1 GHz Athlon. You won't need actual 2 GHz. Obviously though the more the better.
Overclocking is complex, no denying it. But it only gets really complex if you make it that way. I gave you a whole load of information that you wouldn't need to know to get some extra performance out of it.
Samsung memory is normally decent. The other stuff may well be the source of your problems.
As it is the most powerful there is, no developer is going to make a game that goes beyond it, as no-one would be able to play it then. And they wouldn't have cards powerful enough to test it either.
I don't run Windows 2000 and I've never tried to play games on it. XP would maybe be better. So I really don't have a clue regarding what could be causing the errors problems.
Although it isn't exactly true, generally you could say that a 2000XP is roughly equivalent to a 2 GHz P4. It works as what the AMD chip does in comparison to the 1 GHz Athlon did. In your case, the chip is 2.6 times more powerful than the 1 GHz Athlon. You won't need actual 2 GHz. Obviously though the more the better.
Overclocking is complex, no denying it. But it only gets really complex if you make it that way. I gave you a whole load of information that you wouldn't need to know to get some extra performance out of it.
Samsung memory is normally decent. The other stuff may well be the source of your problems.
The different sticks of RAM are made from different companies.
One stick is a Samsung and the other 2 are both labelled MX64U so I'm not sure what make they are. To be honest after reading what you have put I don't think its worth the risk. I don't know enough about unlocking the BIOS and sorting serious problems out just yet. Some of the new games (and I fear Half Life 2 will be one of them) will require a CPU of 2GHZ + for max settings.
I currently have:
Windows 2000
Athlon 2600+ XP (Clocked at just under 2 GHZ)
1GB RAM PC2700
40GB 7200 RPM HD
Radeon 9800 XT
I can run the Farcry demo with AA and AF on and everything on very high but there is a slight lag with the mouse and although the frame rate looks pretty good and things seem to move decent enough there is something not quite right, could be a driver or problem with the demo but it doesn't run as smooth as I hoped. Also with Call of Duty I can run at a kick ass frame rate but every now and again (around trees) with everything on top whack I get slow down and stutters in the gameplay. Due to the protection errors with Windows 2000 (and lack of knowledge of the KILL command) I can't end the unnecessery processes which could be causing this interfearance. I thought maybe a slightly faster CPU would sort it out, or possibly using the ATI OverDrive feature might help. Any ideas what the cut in could be? I disable Norton AV and have minimal things installed (I also run Defrag on a regular basis) but still get it happening. I am a stubborn sod when it comes to perfection, hence the reason why I want max out with the graphics card, I get the feeling though that my system is good enough and this problem is going to be simple enough to sort out.
Any ideas what could be causing it?
Cheers!
One stick is a Samsung and the other 2 are both labelled MX64U so I'm not sure what make they are. To be honest after reading what you have put I don't think its worth the risk. I don't know enough about unlocking the BIOS and sorting serious problems out just yet. Some of the new games (and I fear Half Life 2 will be one of them) will require a CPU of 2GHZ + for max settings.
I currently have:
Windows 2000
Athlon 2600+ XP (Clocked at just under 2 GHZ)
1GB RAM PC2700
40GB 7200 RPM HD
Radeon 9800 XT
I can run the Farcry demo with AA and AF on and everything on very high but there is a slight lag with the mouse and although the frame rate looks pretty good and things seem to move decent enough there is something not quite right, could be a driver or problem with the demo but it doesn't run as smooth as I hoped. Also with Call of Duty I can run at a kick ass frame rate but every now and again (around trees) with everything on top whack I get slow down and stutters in the gameplay. Due to the protection errors with Windows 2000 (and lack of knowledge of the KILL command) I can't end the unnecessery processes which could be causing this interfearance. I thought maybe a slightly faster CPU would sort it out, or possibly using the ATI OverDrive feature might help. Any ideas what the cut in could be? I disable Norton AV and have minimal things installed (I also run Defrag on a regular basis) but still get it happening. I am a stubborn sod when it comes to perfection, hence the reason why I want max out with the graphics card, I get the feeling though that my system is good enough and this problem is going to be simple enough to sort out.
Any ideas what could be causing it?
Cheers!
No. It won't make a difference. I only gave those numbers as an indication of small steps at a time.
If you freeze, you freeze. I don't have any first hand experience with the KT Ultra to know what it will do. I've had major issues in the past with boards that froze in the BIOS, but with the more recent ones I would just power off and then turn it on again. I don't know.
I also don't know what would happen if you set it at 180. The bottom line is that the rated speed of the RAM is 166 MHz. Anything higher than that is overclocking and is not guaranteed. Even the same brands can give different performance, as every piece is unique. You might boot then get errors, or you might freeze, or it might work. What brand is it though? TwinMOS stuff overclocks well.
The difference between SDRAM and DDR SDRAM is that DDR (Double Data Rate) does two operations per clock cycle, hence the Double Data Rate. That is why DDR 400 is only a 200 MHz FSB.
If I remember rightly the other difference is 16 extra pins :-P meaning that they have different slots.
If you freeze, you freeze. I don't have any first hand experience with the KT Ultra to know what it will do. I've had major issues in the past with boards that froze in the BIOS, but with the more recent ones I would just power off and then turn it on again. I don't know.
I also don't know what would happen if you set it at 180. The bottom line is that the rated speed of the RAM is 166 MHz. Anything higher than that is overclocking and is not guaranteed. Even the same brands can give different performance, as every piece is unique. You might boot then get errors, or you might freeze, or it might work. What brand is it though? TwinMOS stuff overclocks well.
The difference between SDRAM and DDR SDRAM is that DDR (Double Data Rate) does two operations per clock cycle, hence the Double Data Rate. That is why DDR 400 is only a 200 MHz FSB.
If I remember rightly the other difference is 16 extra pins :-P meaning that they have different slots.
Cheers for that man, its helped clear things up a bit.
Do I have to up the FSB in 2's? (I know I sound like a complete ass buts its all kinda new to me) Its just I remember when I first got it and accidently set it to 155 (odd number) and froze my bios instantly and it wouldn't even boot past the graphics card read screen. If this happens is there anyway I can get out of it whilst only losing the saved bios information? I don't want to go silly getting stupid speeds, I would be happy with 2.1/2.2GHZ. The most important thing I need to know is that will it allow me to go up in multiples of 2 and will it be a problem if I go up in 1's?
Say I went for 174 or maybe 180, would it boot to Windows and then bring up the errors or would it fail to read the RAM upon the boot up? When I built this PC I was unaware of all the different variables and settings which I hadn't previously even bothered with, thats why I chose PC 2700 RAM instead of PC 3200 RAM. Also does it make a difference that it is DDR SDRAM? I know its quicker than ordinary RAM but I don't want to start damaging RAM just for the sake of it.
Cheers!
Do I have to up the FSB in 2's? (I know I sound like a complete ass buts its all kinda new to me) Its just I remember when I first got it and accidently set it to 155 (odd number) and froze my bios instantly and it wouldn't even boot past the graphics card read screen. If this happens is there anyway I can get out of it whilst only losing the saved bios information? I don't want to go silly getting stupid speeds, I would be happy with 2.1/2.2GHZ. The most important thing I need to know is that will it allow me to go up in multiples of 2 and will it be a problem if I go up in 1's?
Say I went for 174 or maybe 180, would it boot to Windows and then bring up the errors or would it fail to read the RAM upon the boot up? When I built this PC I was unaware of all the different variables and settings which I hadn't previously even bothered with, thats why I chose PC 2700 RAM instead of PC 3200 RAM. Also does it make a difference that it is DDR SDRAM? I know its quicker than ordinary RAM but I don't want to start damaging RAM just for the sake of it.
Cheers!
The limiting factor in your system will be your RAM. Having read the BIOS manual for the KT4 Ultra, you have options for the FSB of between 100 and 280. You're obviously not going to get 280 though. You'll be lucky to get 200.
What sort of numbers do you get for CPU ratio? That is your multiplier.
The main procedures for overclocking a system, specifically an AMD system in this case, go like this:
Turn multiplier (CPU ratio) down to something like 7 or 8.
Up the FSB until you find the limit it will POST (turn on basically) at.
If it boots to Windows run some stuff to test stability.
With the highest stable FSB, start upping the multiplier.
Try seeing if a lower FSB will allow booting with an even higher multiplier. 10 x 200 is slower than 12 x 180 say.
Worry about heat about now.
Find the balance, higher FSB makes better use of memory, faster CPU speed... is a faster CPU speed.
More details.
Dropping the multiplier down to 7 or 8 means that you can try higher FSB speeds without worrying that it is way beyond the processor. Less chance of freezes when booting etc.
Up the FSB a bit at a time. Don't go from 166 to 220 to see if it will work. Try 170, 172, 174 etc until you find a speed which you can't get the system to work at. After that go back to the highest speed you could manage at.
Start upping the multiplier again to start getting back toward the normal clock speed. Just a half at a time. Do this until you find the highest that the system will boot at. As I said already, knock the FSB down a touch to see if that lets you boot with a higher multiplier. Sometimes it is worth it. But if the overall difference is just a few MHz faster, go with the higher FSB as it will make memory use better.
Now you have to worry about heat. The faster the system is running at the more heat there is going to be and the last thing you want is to melt your processor and motherboard. You might manage a really high overclock, but if the temperature is like 60 degrees then it's not worth it.
Stability testing is the next biggy. High speed is no use if it only lasts 10 minutes before crashing. A lot of overclockers swear by Prime 95. If you can last several hours in Prime 95 then great, because it is a huge stress on the system. You don't have to use it, it manages to crash most system by the way. I use Find-A-Drug as it also puts the system under full load and has a good cause as well.
http://ukchatforums.reserve. co.uk/display_messages.php? threadid=83829&forumid=4006
Good deeds and it helps you. Brilliant.
Try some games as well. Anything that pushes your system.
You might find that you have to slow the system down a bit and tweak it here and there to get it more stable. The cooler the better for stability as well.
Some other miscellany:
The highest overclocks are achieved by upping the Vcore and DDR voltages. This isn't for beginners though, only do it if you are prepared to suffer destroying hardware.
The manual says to disable Spread Spectrum when overclocking.
Higher FSB is possible when memory timings are relaxed. That means higher CAS RAS settings. What this actually means is the number of clock cycles before the RAM does what the CPU told it to. CAS of 3 means that it takes the RAM 3 clock cycles to do what the CPU told it to. Logically, the lower the better. But if you make it wait a bit longer sometimes you can get the FSB higher.
Of course, if you can lower the timings and stay stable then the memory runs faster.
The manual says that the BIOS has a high performance default which "probably will cause a stability issue".
The motherboard doesn't have a PCI Lock by the looks of it. This is a bit of a shame as it means that you might start having graphics card issues before you reach the actual limit of your motherboard. Nforce 2 boards however have a PCI lock.
Worst comes to worst just clear the CMOS and start all over again.
What sort of numbers do you get for CPU ratio? That is your multiplier.
The main procedures for overclocking a system, specifically an AMD system in this case, go like this:
Turn multiplier (CPU ratio) down to something like 7 or 8.
Up the FSB until you find the limit it will POST (turn on basically) at.
If it boots to Windows run some stuff to test stability.
With the highest stable FSB, start upping the multiplier.
Try seeing if a lower FSB will allow booting with an even higher multiplier. 10 x 200 is slower than 12 x 180 say.
Worry about heat about now.
Find the balance, higher FSB makes better use of memory, faster CPU speed... is a faster CPU speed.
More details.
Dropping the multiplier down to 7 or 8 means that you can try higher FSB speeds without worrying that it is way beyond the processor. Less chance of freezes when booting etc.
Up the FSB a bit at a time. Don't go from 166 to 220 to see if it will work. Try 170, 172, 174 etc until you find a speed which you can't get the system to work at. After that go back to the highest speed you could manage at.
Start upping the multiplier again to start getting back toward the normal clock speed. Just a half at a time. Do this until you find the highest that the system will boot at. As I said already, knock the FSB down a touch to see if that lets you boot with a higher multiplier. Sometimes it is worth it. But if the overall difference is just a few MHz faster, go with the higher FSB as it will make memory use better.
Now you have to worry about heat. The faster the system is running at the more heat there is going to be and the last thing you want is to melt your processor and motherboard. You might manage a really high overclock, but if the temperature is like 60 degrees then it's not worth it.
Stability testing is the next biggy. High speed is no use if it only lasts 10 minutes before crashing. A lot of overclockers swear by Prime 95. If you can last several hours in Prime 95 then great, because it is a huge stress on the system. You don't have to use it, it manages to crash most system by the way. I use Find-A-Drug as it also puts the system under full load and has a good cause as well.
http://ukchatforums.reserve. co.uk/display_messages.php? threadid=83829&forumid=4006
Good deeds and it helps you. Brilliant.
Try some games as well. Anything that pushes your system.
You might find that you have to slow the system down a bit and tweak it here and there to get it more stable. The cooler the better for stability as well.
Some other miscellany:
The highest overclocks are achieved by upping the Vcore and DDR voltages. This isn't for beginners though, only do it if you are prepared to suffer destroying hardware.
The manual says to disable Spread Spectrum when overclocking.
Higher FSB is possible when memory timings are relaxed. That means higher CAS RAS settings. What this actually means is the number of clock cycles before the RAM does what the CPU told it to. CAS of 3 means that it takes the RAM 3 clock cycles to do what the CPU told it to. Logically, the lower the better. But if you make it wait a bit longer sometimes you can get the FSB higher.
Of course, if you can lower the timings and stay stable then the memory runs faster.
The manual says that the BIOS has a high performance default which "probably will cause a stability issue".
The motherboard doesn't have a PCI Lock by the looks of it. This is a bit of a shame as it means that you might start having graphics card issues before you reach the actual limit of your motherboard. Nforce 2 boards however have a PCI lock.
Worst comes to worst just clear the CMOS and start all over again.
...possible, that is. Don't just crank up your settings on my say-so :-)
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