Another noob needing advice: E6300 + P5B

[mega56]

Hey guys,

I've recently bought a system (haven't received it yet) and I wanted to know what I should able to achieve in terms of OC. Very new at this.

Asus P5B (not deluxe)
Intel E6300
OCZ Gold XTC PC2-6400 2X1GB DDR2-800 CL5-5-5-12
EVGA E-GEFORCE 7950 GT PCI-E 550MHZ 256MB 1.4GHZ
450W PS

From what I've read from here, I've found out some things:

1. Should have bought the P5B deluxe or gigabyte S3 (or DS3)
2. OCZ may not work with this mobo right from the start if the BIOS is old
3. vdimm on this mobo is limited at 2.1v
4. Stock cooling would only get me about 2.6Ghz
5. Better cooling can get me 3.0+Ghz
6. Turn off all speed step and anything that would auto regulate voltages
7. Start off at stock settings, loose timings and work from there slowly (although some say start at 400FSB right away?)

With stock cooling and this setup, can I get 2.6Ghz? I know what you're thinking...2.6? that's weak sauce...but I'm never the type to push limits but after reading more about this stuff, seems like there's a lot of room to go. If this setup can push anywhere from 1.8 to 3.4, I want to be around 3.0 but be happy with 2.8.

Questions:
1. With my target at around 3.0Ghz, do I really need different cooling? How about this one
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro LGA775 2500RPM 45CFM (at $22 CAD i can bare with that)

2. With the vdimm limited at 2.1v, is that really a problem in my case? My ram is rated at 2.0v (warranty for 2.1v +- 5%)

3. Is there a guide somewhere here that explains what each of the parameters do (vcore, vdimm, memory timings, FSB speed, multiplier, 1:1 ratio...etc)? And also the preference for each setting (eg: the lower the better). Cause right now it'll feel like I'm moving numbers to achieve better numbers, not really understanding anything.

4. If anyone has this setup and can show me their settings, that'll be great.

Climbing that learning curve...

thanks a lot guys

 

[Regalk]

I hope it is not the P5B vanilla (non "-E") version otherwise you should pretty much send it back.
If you can't then you should not expect much especially with that (Brand?) Power Supply
The biggest issue with overclocking the E6300 is understanding your RAM timings, and voltages for CPU, NB, SB, FSB and DDR.
You should still review th eP5B Deluxe thread (a really long thread) for tips and tricks or do a search for P5B deluxe Bios settings on the MB forums.
Good luck

 

[mega56]

Thanks Regalk

I was trying to put a budget system together with some OCing head room. This is what I had to work with:

(all CAD prices)
Asus P5B (not deluxe) - $139
Intel E6300 - $215
OCZ Gold XTC PC2-6400 2X1GB DDR2-800 CL5-5-5-12 - $248
EVGA E-GEFORCE 7950 GT PCI-E 550MHZ 256MB 1.4GHZ - $199
Antec Sonata II - $49

Total: $850
Someone posted in another thread "why overclock?". I think this is my case, budget system trying to squeeze more value out of it.

The P5B deluxe was $120 extra with features I'll never use. Would a Gigabyte DS3 be better?

Before coming to this forum, I was hoping to get 2.6Ghz. Is that still achievable? I should of came here first!

 

[n7]

Stock cooler won't be an issue.

It seems some people have great luck with the P5B vanilla, others not.

You should be able to reach 2.8 GHz, & if your mobo can handle the higher FSB, as well as your RAM, then 3 GHz.

The main thing to know is that you'll likely have issues around the 370-400 area, so just skip to 401.

 

[mega56]

Can someone list the problems with the P5B vanilla? Maybe I can live with it.

I was thinking of exchanging it for the Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 as it is almost the same price and near identical to the GA-965P-DS3.

Thanks