Maximum PC

The only problem I see with listing the stats we have would be that someone with the same config would probably think "Oh! Thats Mine! I can do that!", and would then start posting asking what blue smoke means.

The only way that I can see this working is if we have several (at least 3) people with each listed config, to show that they aren't the same.

EDIT-Besides, now that I think about it, the OC brag thread already kinda does this.

I do, however, like the link database that you pointed out.

Wouldn't a "blue smoke is bad" warning suffice? isn't blue smoke covered in OCing 101?

Its not even close. A 22pg "Post whatever you got" thread is a lot different then a "Gigabyte P35" and other motherboard specific threads.

It does seem like a nice alternative & sure doesn't hurt any.... getting people to read it is still another story.

I know what you mean, but it wont really make a difference even if they have the same everything, just because every CPU is different. Mine runs at 3.15GHz, and I've seen people with the same setup with anywhere from 2.4 (default speed) and up.

Okay, I have another idea for the next guide for whoever is listening. As you may have noticed, I didn't go very in depth with the videocard overclocking section, because frankly, I'm not that skilled in that department. If someone could do an "Advanced" section in there with info on things like changing the cards bios and what not, that would be great.

Video card overclocking is mostly done through software itself. Playing with BIOS tools like NiBitor is just too nasty to suggest. There's so much in there that is far from typical knowledge that I wouldn't know where to start the education on what they do. In the end, it's still open to

• what does this word mean
• What happens when I change it
• Why would I change it
• What could go very wrong
• Couldn't software do this

What we could cover is volt mods. It's just as risky, if not more, but it's easier to explain. The 3870 just needs the resistance changed on two solder points, and can be done by the age old pencil lead trick.

Yeah...If you mess with your video card's BIOS, then be sure to have an extra PCI slot type video card available to use your system with. That way you can restore the BIOS on your PCIe card. If you hose your video card's BIOS there isn't a reset jumper to restore it. You have to restore it manually.

Woot nice guide you've written!

If we could just figure out a way to make people read it

Change the title to "How to hit 4.0 GHz on air only!!" That should do it!

You know, thats not a bad idea.... I'll think about it. I'd like input from others first, though

that is a great guide raven and i greatly appreciate how you put it in lymans terms for us noobies, but i have a few small questions.
i have a stiker extreme motherboard and it has the overclocking multiplyer on it,is it better to use the multiplyer or to o.c. manually?
also when i make the changes manually, where do i go to see how much i have increased it?
i have been going to control panel and system as of right now.
thanks again for the guide it really helps me to understand things better.

In reply to the first question, it kinda depends on the application, but I think you would get more overall performance by turning up the front side bus. This is because the FSB increases the speed of the mobo and how it communicates with everything, where the multiplier just makes the core clock go faster. The best way to know, though, is to try it yourself. Some programs (like F@H if I remember correctly) prefer a speedy core speed, while others benefit most from a higher bus. Personally, I lower the multiplier and raise the FSB to achieve a faster transfer between the FSB and the core.

I'm not sure what exactly you mean by how much you increased it. If you're just looking for numbers, I'm pretty sure there's a system monitor in the BIOS of that board. If this is the case, save your settings, then check the monitor to see how fast your CPU is running. You can also click Start in the OS (I assume you use Windows) and right click on My Computer, then hit properties. This only works if you haven't touched the multiplier yet.

If you're looking for difference in performance, however, I would suggest running 3Dmark06 before and after the overclock, then compare the scores.

I hope this helps, but if not, just say so.

yes it does help, andim sorry to bother you with such lame questions,but here we go.
what would you put the multiplier on if adjusting by fsb?

Oh, don't worry. We were all asking such questions at one time.

This really depends on preference. Some prefer a higher multiplier and lower FSB, which usually yields more stability, but lowering the multiplier and bumping the chip up to the same core speed will often have more performance, but substantially lower stability, just because now the board itself has to run faster. Of course, there are exceptions to both of these scenarios, but this is generally the case.

Since you don't have to much experience dealing with this at the moment, I would recommend either leaving the multiplier alone or raising it, but I wouldn't suggest lowering it yet. Doing so requires more voltage, which comes with more risks. If you leave the multiplier alone, you will have less variables, making it easier to solve any problems that may occur.

I apologize if I seem vague in not saying "Do this for the best performance", but overclocking just doesn't work that way. As the guide states, there is no way other that trial and error to see how fast any one chip can go, so only you will know what the sweet spot is for your CPU.

I would have to disagree. I'm a total OCing noob, but I have been able to tweak all of my vid cards after reading this article I'm sure I haven't tapped their full potential out of them, as I'm afraid of doing too much too fast, but I'm pushing each of them up one step at a time.

Just like you have been telling everyone, it tells you not to jump too far too fast. It also explains how to play with the software methods and ensure stability with settings used in there before you even think about playing with the vid card's BIOS. Personally, these methods seem a lot less risky than trying to alter the electrical resistance at a couple of solder points.

If nothing else, atleast give the Radeon using people ATI Tray Tools It does so much more than Catalyst, and I found it easier to use.