Alright, first post on the AnandTech boards and I need a little help. I'm assuming here that this is not the technical limit of my P4 2.4C (though it may very well be) and asking questions based on that assumption. (And if it is the limit, let me down gently, eh?)
Current setup:
Motherboard: Abit iS7
Bios: v1.5
CPU: P4 2.4C @ 3120MHz
FSB: 260MHz
vcore: 1.55v
N/B Strap: PSB800
divider: 5:4
RAM: 2x256MB Kingston HyperX PC3500 (@ 208MHz, 2-6-2-2)
vdimm: 2.6v
agp/pci: 66/33 (fixed)
HSF: Stock Intel HSF
Idle Temp: ~46C (as reported by Hardware Doctor)
Load Temp: 61C (as reported by Hardware Doctor during Prime95's torture test, though the temperature was still rising when the test errored)
PSU: Antec TruePower 380w (Came with the case I bought at a local store as there weren't any other cases available, I have a Thermaltake 480w I can replace it with if need be)
Even this is not technically very stable, as it only runs Prime95's torture test for like 3 minutes before erroring. I may increase vcore to 1.575 later (though I really don't like to) and see if that helps my stability.
My problem, however, is that I cannot even POST anywhere above this, even with lowest memory timings (even though the RAM will be at 220MHz, not too hard to handle for PC3500) and vcore 1.575v.
This setup wouldn't POST:
FSB: 275MHz
vcore: 1.575v
Mem Freq: 220MHz, 3-8-4-4
vdimm: 2.65v
N/B Strap: PSB800
Now for the questions:
A. I've heard 1.6v vcore is as high as someone should go when overclocking a Pentium 4. Would any of you recommend 1.6v for better results perhaps? I would like to spare the processor's life as long as possible.
B. What exactly is the purpose of the N/B Strap? When it was set to Auto, I couldn't reach 3GHz on default voltage. When I set it to PSB800, I could.
C. If cooling is restricting my overclocking ability, which HSF would be recommended? I've looked at the AVC Sunflower, the Swiftech MCX4000, and (IIRC) the Zalman 7000cu.