help with O/C

[gorczynski]

Hi Pros!

I just assembled my first AMD system.
1.2 /266 T-Bird (AXIA)
Epox 8k7a+ mobo
256 Micron DDR 2100
Volocano 5 HS/F
300 Watt PSU
40 gig Maxtor ata/100 7200 rpm HD
Geforce2 MX400
Toshiba 16x DVD
Ricoh 4x 4x 20x

Now.... What do I do to get started in o/c this system? how far can/should I go. My MAX temp under 100% load for 3 hours (encoding movie) was around 53.2C Can someone help me out and tell me what I can do to O/C with my system? I've figured out the FSB o/c but what are all the voltages and multipliers you guys are talking about. Voltages for RAM and CPU. Also is my CPU Unlocked? Thanks for your help in advance!

 

[gorczynski]

anyone? please :-(

 

[p0tempkin]

Check here to see if your CPU is locked or unlocked, and for instructions on how to unlock it.

Step 1: Find a rough idea of the highest stable clock speed of your CPU. To do this, keep your bus speed at 133Mhz, and increase your multiplier and CPU voltage until you find the highest stable speed your CPU will run at. Remember, when you increase your CPU voltage and clock speed, your temperatures will rise. The Volcano 5 is a decent heatsink at best, so I would monitor your temperatures closely. If they go above 60C, you've gone too far, and it's probably time to get a better heatsink if you want to overclock it any more. Programs you can use to test stability are Prime95, 3DMark2001, RC5, SETI@Home, etc.

Step 2: Find your highest stable bus speed. To do this, you lower your multiplier down to around 7, and increase your bus speed until your find the maximum your computer will function at. You can increase your DDR RAM voltage (and even your AGP voltage, if your motherboard allows it) to gain stability at higher bus speeds. You should set your RAM timings to 8-8-8-2-6-2-2 (the best combination of speed and stability) while performing these tests. Test stability with the same programs mentioned above.

Step 3: Take the results from Step 1, and divide it by the results from Step 2. For example, if the highest speed you hit was 1533MHz from Step 1, and the highest bus speed you hit was 155MHz from Step 2, then 1533/155=9.89. Round to the nearest multiplier (which would be 10), and set your bus speed as closely to your result from Step 2, with any minor adjustments necessary for stability (start with 10x155MHz=1550MHz, and if that's too high, work your way down).

 

[gorczynski]

thanks your for your reply, you have provided lots of valuable information to me
cheers!