Xeon L5639 Overclocking on X58

[Burpo]

L5639 works so well on Asus boards, I just bought a Sabertooth X58 (found NEW on ebay) and am giving my son the P6X58D Premium I've been using.. He bought an L5520 for $25 and I'm giving him my Intel Fan and a GTX 460.. Should run most games once overclocked.. I can't wait to see how the Sabertooth runs with this chip..

 

[stinger608]

I have seen a ton of boards on Ebay but the prices for these are crazy priced. I am in need of another x58 board to run a Xeon W3520 but I don't want to have to pay over a $100 for one.

 

[Burpo]

I got an Asus Sabertooth X58 for $159, but it was NEW (from Asus) & I WANTED it Should be benching by tomorrow evening

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

I got an Asus Sabertooth X58 for $159, but it was NEW (from Asus) & I WANTED it Should be benching by tomorrow evening

AWE-SOME! :thumbsup:

 

[K_Maru]

The chip is running wonderful on my Asus Sabertooth X58. Had no issues. The drivers automatically installed....restart.....and that's it. Then the overclocking. I have it running at 4.4Ghz, but I'm running it at [x18] 3.9Ghz constantly.

Scored a "10.12"Cinebench @ 3.9Ghz

 

[Burpo]

That's good to hear, but I think my chip is limited. I hit a wall at 214bclk.. But have run it at 4.276 ghz

 

[Thewiruz]

Noone with a Gigabyte board who can post their settings? Damn this sux! Do i have to buy a new mobo

 

[stinger608]

Noone with a Gigabyte board who can post their settings? Damn this sux! Do i have to buy a new mobo

Yea from your other thread it sounds like it is an issue with that motherboard. Even the fella over at [H] had the same issue with the same board.

 

[K_Maru]

That's good to hear, but I think my chip is limited. I hit a wall at 214bclk.. But have run it at 4.276 ghz

Damn. Sorry to hear about that wall. Some of those Sabertooths cap out at around 200-215. Could just be the X58 platform in general. It's even worse after you hit the 4Ghz+ with the [x18] multiplier.

I'm guessing you are running 4.2Ghz with the x20 multiplier right. It's going to drop to x18 nearly every time.

 

[stinger608]

Man, that Sabertooth is an awesome looking board!!!

Also, @ BTRY B 529th FA BN: I just answered your PM man!

 

[Burpo]

Well first impression? I can run 166 bclk on stock voltages, and 200 is faster than my old board at 207 when benching, but I need to upgrade the bios I guess . After 210 the board gets VERY slow, even posting takes forever. I'm kinda afraid to tho. There's no going back to original if I don't like the newer bios.. More testing needed I think first.. Anyone have any luck going back to older bios on Asus boards once flashed?

 

[K_Maru]

I never actually went backwards. I've only flashed my Sabertooth to the latest BIOS. I believe the latest BIOS did improve somethings including stability and more RAM brands+speeds.

I think it may actually be possible to load the old BIOS. This motherboard is very sophisticated. If you looks in the manual - Check Chapter 3 - Page 3-1. The easiest and safest will probably be the ASUS EZ Flash Utility [3.2.2]. Make sure you have the overclock settings reverted to the default settings to avoid a catastrophe! I used a USB stick. Or you can use the Asus Crass free BIOS. I'm old fashioned when it comes to updating the BIOS

So lets say you want to revert back to the original BIOS which is your main question. If I recall the original BIOS should be on the Sabertooth disc. [SABERTOOTH-X58-ASUS-something.ROM]. You should be able to copy this over to a USB or run it directly from the disc while using the program.

However, beware. You will lose your saved settings. Including your saved overclocks. So be sure to backup your settings in the OC Profile otherwise you'll find yourself doing every single damn thing over again. When I updated the BIOS it frustrated the hell out of me because I lost all of my Overclock profiles and test setups. Not only that, my PC had been running for over a year and I forgot most of my stability settings.

 

[Burpo]

It's my chip, have had it on 3 boards & will not clock higher than 210 with any stability.. Board is nice tho.. Just not sure I want to flash it (can't go back)..




Edit: Flashed with latest bios, no improvement, anything above 210 = no boot.. Could be memory I guess..

 

[Thewiruz]

It's my chip, have had it on 3 boards & will not clock higher than 210 with any stability.. Board is nice tho.. Just not sure I want to flash it (can't go back)..




Edit: Flashed with latest bios, no improvement, anything above 210 = no boot.. Could be memory I guess..

This system is Watercooled?

 

[69mustang]

I got my Asus Sabertooth X58 and L5639 in over the weekend and spent most of tonight OC'ing it.

3.85GHz (214x18), 1.275v Vcore, 1.33v QPI, and BIOS version 1402
BCLK would not post any higher regardless of voltage or CPU ratio setting

Full load Linx using a Hyper 212+ it hits 69C, a few times I saw 70C on 2 cores. Eventually I would like to get something like an H80i (no room for H100) to keep it cooler.

 

[Burpo]

Yeah, that's typically what we've been seeing, although a few people have gotten past 212 -214. I think it has to do with the chip whether or not you can go any higher. On my original board I was able to run 214, until I flashed the board with the newest bios. After that max was 210, so I tried the chip on a P6X58-E board & it also wouldn't go any higher than 210, and with all 3 channels working for memory, that board would shut down from heat if I worked it hard for more than an hr. So I got rid of that board & found this new Sabertooth, which kinda confirms it's my chip or this batch number/whatever. It's really fine for what I do, and I'll just leave it at 200 as it runs well at that.

No, It's air cooled with a single 120mm fan Coollink Corator.. The temps are low cause I had doors open in my house, enjoying these 60's temps we're having in Florida. Normally temps are higher.

 

[69mustang]

Yeah, that'w typically what we've been seeing, although a few people have gotten past 212 -214. I think it has to do with the chip whether or not you can go any higher. On my original board I was able to run 214, until I flashed the board with the newest bios. After that max was 210, so I tried the chip on a P6X58-E board & it also would go any higher than 210, and with all 3 channels working for memory, that board would shut down from heat if I worked it hard for more than an hr. So I got rid of that board & found this new Sabertooth, which kinda confirms it's my chip or this batch number/whatever. It's really fine for what I do, and I'll prolly just leave it at 200 as it runs well at that.

At first I couldn't get it to post no matter what I tried, luckily I have a chip programmer and the eeprom on the Asus Sabertooth is socketed. I removed the chip and grabbed the latest bios from the Asus site (1402). Once it was programmed, I was greeted with the Asus startup screen and began tweaking immediately. If anyone out there is picking up one of these boards, make sure it has the latest bios.

 

[Burpo]

Mine came right up with bios 1202 right out of the box. Latest bios addresses some issues, but it wasn't really necessary & didn't change the way it runs.

BTW.. I didn't reset bios before flashing & when it booted to the new bios, all my settings were intact. Booted right back up to same O.C. & I didn't have to do anything..

 

[69mustang]

I lowered the QPI Data Link Rate to "Slow Mode" and was able to bump the BCLK to 220. I'm going to wait to get an H80 before I test stability at x18 because there is no way my Hyper 212+ will keep this chip cool at 3.96Ghz.

From what I've read, lowering the QPI Data Link Rate will significantly lower FPS while gaming. Since I don't game, it doesn't matter to me.

 

[benste]

Hello...

I have been reading this tread for quite sometime now.
After looking at the benchmarks posted the price to performance ratio is really amazing.

I had just pull the trigger, purchasing :

1. Rampage III Gene x58
2. Xeon L5639
3. Lian Li Pit Stop t-60

I am still looking for :

1. 12 GB Ram
2. 2 x Graphic card (either 7970 or r9 280x)
3. SSD

Any advice? on this setup? I am a complete newbie to overclocking.

Thank you.

 

[doubleclutch]

Hi guys,

is there anyone of useing the L5639 with an ASUS Rampage II Extreme ?

 

[K_Maru]

I lowered the QPI Data Link Rate to "Slow Mode" and was able to bump the BCLK to 220. I'm going to wait to get an H80 before I test stability at x18 because there is no way my Hyper 212+ will keep this chip cool at 3.96Ghz.

From what I've read, lowering the QPI Data Link Rate will significantly lower FPS while gaming. Since I don't game, it doesn't matter to me.

That's good to hear. Low QPI isn't limited to gaming from my understanding and experience. I've kept my QPI around the 8000-9000 MT area. Haven't tried slow mode yet with the L5639. If I set it too high or too low my PC won't post. Usually "Slow Mode" is awfully slow as hell. Boot times, benchmarks and usage in general. At least it was on my i7-960. Unbearable and didn't feel like a overclock at all.

-----

Hello...

I have been reading this tread for quite sometime now.
After looking at the benchmarks posted the price to performance ratio is really amazing.

I had just pull the trigger, purchasing :

1. Rampage III Gene x58
2. Xeon L5639
3. Lian Li Pit Stop t-60

I am still looking for :

1. 12 GB Ram
2. 2 x Graphic card (either 7970 or r9 280x)
3. SSD

Any advice? on this setup? I am a complete newbie to overclocking.

Thank you.

If you don't have a adequate PC already..... if I were you I would've just went with a latest platform \ latest Intel architect. There's really no use to be spending money on Micro ATX boards and older EoL tech when you can put that money towards newer things. X58 has been dead for sometime now. I guess if you can get some parts for cheap it's not that bad. The X58 is all I have. I've been using it for some years now and thought about upgrading several times. I'm glad I didn't now. If I didn't have this chipset I would've just went with Haswell or the X79 Sandy Bridge-E or something.

12GB RAM Triple is going to run you at least $80+ if you are lucky. Realistically you'll be spending anywhere from $100-$130 depending on if you are buying new and the websites you visit. There are a ton of SSD's to choose from. It's all about how much you want to spend on it. You'll have to make the best decision on the GPUs. I've been contemplating getting a 7990 for sometime now. I'm currently running two GTX 670 2-way SLI.

 

[Shippy]

...If you don't have a adequate PC already..... if I were you I would've just went with a latest platform \ latest Intel architect. There's really no use to be spending money on Micro ATX boards and older EoL tech when you can put that money towards newer things. X58 has been dead for sometime now. I guess if you can get some parts for cheap it's not that bad. ...

I've also been reading this thread for the past few weeks and had to debate the merits of buying into this vs a new Haswell (or Ivy-bridge) system. The biggest hurdle for me was the price of the X58 motherboards (and their lack of features compared to newer boards). In the end, to purchase a overclockable I7 CPU/mobo combo was at least twice the price (and you lose 2 cores). So I ended up purchasing an OEM Asus Sabertooth X58 & a Xeon L5639. Luckily I have everything else needed.

 

[69mustang]

That's good to hear. Low QPI isn't limited to gaming from my understanding and experience. I've kept my QPI around the 8000-9000 MT area. Haven't tried slow mode yet with the L5639. If I set it too high or too low my PC won't post. Usually "Slow Mode" is awfully slow as hell. Boot times, benchmarks and usage in general. At least it was on my i7-960. Unbearable and didn't feel like a overclock at all.

The only drop of speed I have noticed is negligible while in "Slow Mode" @ 3.85GHz, this is primarily a video encoding machine. My Handbrake benchmark dropped from 270fps to 268fps, Cinebench score dropped from 9.91pts to 9.85pts.

I've been able to up the BCLK to 223 by upping the PCIE Frequency to 101, and the QPI voltage to 1.38v. Once I get a new CPU cooler I'll be able to run @ 4GHz (223x18).

 

[K_Maru]

^ I upped the PCI-E Frequency as well to achieve higher BCLKs. 220-225 is tough if you are trying to go [x18]. x20 is just a pain in the ass. Cooling means a lot though. After my experience with "slow mode" awhile back I never went back or thought of using it. Glad it's working out for you. The drops appear to be minor.
----

I've also been reading this thread for the past few weeks and had to debate the merits of buying into this vs a new Haswell (or Ivy-bridge) system. The biggest hurdle for me was the price of the X58 motherboards (and their lack of features compared to newer boards). In the end, to purchase a overclockable I7 CPU/mobo combo was at least twice the price (and you lose 2 cores). So I ended up purchasing an OEM Asus Sabertooth X58 & a Xeon L5639. Luckily I have everything else needed.

Haswell and Ivy suffer from the same heat issues. Intel definitely knows how to stick it to the consumers in the pricing area. Hopefully AMD will get their act together soon and at least make intel sweat a little. I was originally thinking about going with the X79 - Sandy Bridge-E combo with some high end cards. Now that my PC is putting up high end number at 3.9Ghz....I think I'll stick my X58 a few more years . All I need is my high end cards now. I'm planning to stick with this platform for sometime.

The lack of features aren't really that major. Especially when it comes to gaming. Lessinstructions sets, x16-x16: 32 full PCI-E lanes instead of 40 lanes. Both which are 2.0 PCI-E by the way. There are hot fixes for 3.0 I believe on the X79 chipset. Triple instead of Quad. Could be worse [dual!]. I'm sure you would probably get better benchmarks on the latest and greatest architectures, but I think it's minor gains unless you have a ridiculous setup.