Need help on my setup Please

[SubZer0]

hello

[NickN]

OCCT is in beta fo i7 support and is currently not supporting the platform 100%

RealTemp 2.9 is also beta however it is the only readout right now that is trustworthy for i7.. but it is STILL beta as well

63 is nothing to i7. They run hotter than Q's of the past however you do need to make sure you installed that heatsink correctly and it is mounted well. They can be a bit tricky due to their size and at one time there was some issues around the top bracket and a small washer that sits between the center of the bracket and the top of the base plate missing. I thought they corrected that some time ago though.

At this point lets assume it is mounted correctly

Of course you may have to make manual memory multipler and timing changes to ensure the memory is running at the correct speed and timing as you increase BCLOCK however since you purchased the 920 you may not hit 1600 exactly as it will depend on the BIOS math

This is overclocking and its not 'plug-n-go'


TJMax is 100c on i7 and you want to be 20 under that at least

I would say you are OK in RealTemp under max load up to 80c but no more.

If you find you are seeing high 70's with CPU speed stable at 3.4-3.6, something is not right assuming you are not pushing Vcore too high

QPI/DRAM voltage and DRAM Voltage are 2 different things.. do not mix those up. DRAM will be max of 1.66 and QPI/DRAM will most likely sit at 1.35 or a bit above

[SubZer0]

thanks for the reply Nick



I hit 4.0ghz easily with BCLK up to 200 and multiplier at 20.. I forgot what the voltage was but it was quite low. the hottest core while idle hit 47c

under an OCCT test they hit 85+ in just under 30sec... I just don't think I'm mounting that HSF the right way... I'm thinking of taking it to a shop and letting them do it because I just don't think it's working how it should be with 85+ @ 4ghz


I'm going to try for 3.2-3.4ghz now and

[SubZer0]

never mind on the memory timings.. I just tested it and confirmed it with CPUz. the frequency is indeed 1600 and the timings are as should be.



the only thing I have to worry about now are the temperatures and getting a stable overclock... I'm on my way to test the CPU @3.4ghz for temps



thanks again

[NickN]

you need to remember 2 things Andy..

you are on a 920 which starts at a very low speed so pushing it to the max is going to hurt. My writeups have been quite specific in why those who spend a bit more have an easier time in obtaining their clocking goals.

If you are unsure about mounting that heatsink, in which the fan should be pointing at the rear tower fan, and, it can rotate a tad even when properly mounted but should not be 'really' loose... then having someone install it may not be a bad idea.

You may have to accept a bit lower speed especially if you are in Florida and you dont keep the AC at 79F and under in the room. The ambient in Florida is going to fight your cooling efforts. In that you may be installed correctly.. I dont know, just letting you know the i7 runs hotter than hades and every degree above 79 ambient in the room is going to hit that CPU temp hard.

I assume this temp was seen with the side of the tower on or off?

If you drop 5c by opening the tower side then I would suspect you may have airflow issues too.

Memory Timing is listed in CPUz if you dont know the cross from what CPUz listed to your BIOS, here it is:

CPUz  - BIOS - Value

CAS# Latency (CL) - DRAM CAS# LATENCY = 7
RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD) - DRAM RAS# to CAS# Delay = 7
RAS# Precharge (tRP) - DRAM RAS# PRE TIME = 7
Cycle Time (tRAS) - DRAM RAS# ACT TIME=24

Dont ever assume the first 4 numbers ar in order as I have seen many BIOS's that do not list them in order.

[NickN]

Make SURE you disable TURBO MODE and also HYPERTHREADING in the BIOS along with the CPU TM Function. FSX will not take any advantages with HYPERTHREAD and that can drop your temps as well

Hyperthread is needed for applications like Video Encoding and other engineering software that is hyperthread aware. If you do not use such software disable hyperthread in the BIOS and you may get the drop in temps you need

[SubZer0]

I'll try that on the next restart Nick thanks for that info



I ran an OCCT test at 3.4ghz and it failed after the temps reached only 73 in about 30 seconds... so I thought that was strange.. I tried Prime95 and the temps wouldn't go over 75 at 3.4ghz.. I tried taking the side panel out and that didn't have any effect on the temps whatsoever so that leads me to believe that my airflow doesn't have a problem..

here are a couple of pics of what my setup looks like and how the fan is mounted onto the HS... linked for higher quality


http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b370/ ... HSF001.jpg


http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b370/ ... HSF002.jpg

[NickN]

Andy I take it that fan is the one that came with the unit... funny because mine is a 4pin, 4wire PWM fan and not a 3 wire

The 3wire fan.. if I am seeing that image right, can not be controlled from a 4 pin PWM plug and it must be running 100% at all times unless the BIOS is set to control it through the hardware monitor.

Am I correct in that assumption?


I cant tell from the image exactly.. it looks like a Rd-Wht-Blk wiring and is missing the blue wire PWM fans require


As I said earlier.. OCCT is being updated for i7 and right now I can not place confidence in it as test solution. If it PRIMED clean then I would assume OCCT may be having some problems however OCCT is also checking memory, not just processor cores


Have you run MEMTEST?

http://www.memtest.org/#downiso

I think I would make that my first test to run

5 passes (9 tests per pass) probably take about 1-2 hours or so.

If you fail that, its either memory settings, memory voltage, vcore, or defective memory product

You should always start from the ground and work your way up ... in that we dont slam it to the wall .. you need to verify your components one at a time to make sure you are not dealing with defective product or settings off-base

So if you pass MEMTEST with the system running default CPU and memory speed and timing on the right settings, then you move up and test it again, and then again

You need to find out if you are unstable in DOS directly to the memory subsystem be it a setting or defect. Typically a defect will show up without clocking... and since eveything in the area of memory remains a constant as you increase the CPU speed the only value you may need to work around that is QPI/DRAM and Vcore


If you find problems with memory stability with little or no clock then shoot over to the Mushkin forum and let them know what you find. Your best bet in locking that down is directly with them.

[NickN]

Yo!

Andy!

What'samatta'you... you messin with an old mans head?

That memory is not 7-7-7-24

is 7-8-7-20

http://www.mushkin.com/doc/products/mem ... asp?id=730


set it up right and maybe it get stable?!


LOL

by the way, going from 20 to 24 on tRAS is no big deal for perf and could make it more stable but going from 7 to 8 on RAS# definitely will!

Confirm with Muskin what value they are stating for that '8' and change it in your BIOS!

Usually they follow the CPUz order but never assume!


by the way.. I dont use the stuff so I dont know.. I got DDR3 1988 test sticks in mine

[SubZer0]

LOL

[NickN]

ahhhhhh sooooooo

http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/m ... le_channel

yep.. im there too

[SubZer0]

Nick,


finally some good news... although it seems that this 920 won't be able to reach 4ghz, I just tested for a very stable cpu OC to 3.7ghz. again, OCCT failed it quite quickly with temps going over 73, but I ran PRIME for well over 1 hour and check out the results:











what do you think?

all I have to do now is test the memory which seems to be working fine but you never know..

I'll get back after the memtest is done.


thanks again man!

[SubZer0]

memtest PASSED at DDR3 1480 7-7-7-24... so I guess that's my final OC result. the next option in the BIOS is above 1800mhz which I don't know if I should take or not...

Nick, thank you so much for the help with this. as always I can't thank you enough!

[NickN]

Andy

your QPI DRAM is only 1.275. Typically that takes 1.35 to get to 4GHz but that also depends on the memory too

is hitting 4GHz a pure temp issue or stability?

The OCZ sticks may do 1800 but you will most likely need to raise the timing to 8-8-8-24. Thats problematical and something one must work out. You can not raise the DRAM Voltage but you could raise QPI/DRAM if 8-8-8 1800 was not stable

I doubt you would get them over 1800

[SubZer0]

Hey Nick!

sadly, anything over 3.7 is just a pure temp issue.. 3.8 gives me about the same temps as 4.0.. that vcore just goes WAY too high at that speeds.. 3.7 is perfectly fine with temps as I just posted

I might try the 1800 with the memory later today and see what results that yields, but I also doubt that those sticks would be able to do that much without having to raise voltages. I'm running them at 1.64 as of now


by the way.. will this overclock take too much life out of my system or should I back down a little if I want to keep it for over 3 years?

thanks, Andy