[BB15]

I've had experience with overclocking changing a few variables here & there but nothing extreme.
I want to know if theres a formula to follow or how should I go about to squeeze the most that I can with what I have, please make your help as thorough as possible, thanks. Aaron.

Intel Pentium E2220 & Asus P5N-D

[madmatt2006]

this will the the best way for you to play with overclocking

Asus includes a fairly expansive selection of software in its motherboard bundles. Perhaps the most notable application in its AI suite is the AI Booster application. This program lets you overclock from Windows, just like a great number of the other overclocking programs. One point worth noting is that you don’t need to look for the PLL type here, since the application only works with Asus motherboards. In addition to setting the FSB frequency, it can also change the CPU voltage (Vcore), and memory frequency. So, though more limited in scope, it’s actually quite a bit more functional than our generic choice.

You can download the version for your board here http://support.asus....SLanguage=en-us under utilities

[madmatt2006]

The Absolute Basics on how to Overclock your CPU

I have been seeing many questions about people wanting to overclock their CPU's lately, so I decided that I would type up a general guide on how to do it.

First, neither I nor anyone here will accept responsibility for damage to your computer, loss of data, loss of revenue or income, personal injury, injury to your pet, or any event resulting from following this guide. You follow this guide and overclock at your own risk.

Since you are still reading, I assume you accept the risks.

Getting into your BIOS
1) You need to get inside your motherboard's BIOS. This is usually done by hitting the "delete" key when your computer is POSTing, which is what your computer first does when you hit the power button. If you are not sure, just keep hitting the button when you first turn on your computer. Some motherboards or computers do not use the "delete" key to get into their BIOS. To find out your key, just look at your motherboard manual or look it up online.

Important Stuff in the BIOS
2) Now that you are inside your BIOS, there are some things that you need to hunt for:

- CPU Clock ratio/Multiplier: This is going to be a number from around 10 up through 20 or so. You can find what your multiplier is by looking up your processor online. For instance, an Athlon XP Barton 2500+ runs at 1.83 GHz on a 333FSB. Since that FSB is twice the actual value, you take 333/2 = 166. Take your operating speed, in this case, 1830MHz, and divide that by 166MHz, which results in 11. Therefore, the multiplier for an Athlon XP Barton 2500+ is 11, its total operating speed is 11x166MHz = 1.83GHz. Pentium 4's use a FSB that is 4x the actual value. So a P4 2.53 on a 533 FSB is (533MHz/4)*19 = 2.53GHz. You can see from this calculation that the multiplier for this processor is 19.

- FSB Frequency/External Clock: Again, this could be under a different name, but this will be the default setting you’re your CPU's FSB. Depending on your processor, this will be either 100, 133, 166, or 200 MHz. This setting is the bread and butter of overclocking. Increasing this number is what results in your largest performance gain.

- CPU FSB/DRAM Ratio/Memory Frequency: Again, this could be under a different name. This setting allows you to chance the ratio between your FSB and the frequency of your RAM. Since you are reading this, I assume you are new to overclocking, and I would recommend you set this to a setting that is 1/1 equivalent. So yes, that could be 2/2 or 3/3 or 6/6. Anything that reduces to 1 is fine.

- CPU Voltage/CPU Core Voltage: This number is going to have to go up if you do any real overclocking. When you increase the operating speed of your processor, you need more voltage to keep it running stable. If you do not increase this appropriately, your computer will crash, and you could potentially lose or corrupt data.

- DDR SDRAM Voltage/DIMM Voltage Regulator: Again, could be under a different name. Like your processor, increasing the speed of your RAM will sometimes make it unstable. Increasing the voltage, just like with your CPU, will sometimes make this run more stable.

These are the basic settings that you need to change get started in your overclocking endeavor. However, you still need some programs that will ensure that your computer is running stable, and you won't corrupt or lose data. For this you will need a program that can test the stability of your computer. I recommend Prime95 (to check your CPU) and memtest86 (to check your RAM). Both of these programs are free to download online. Read their instructions for information on how to use them, but basically you want to go under "options" and run the "torture test" for Prime95, and just let memtest do its own thing. Both of these programs will alert you to an error. If you do get an error, that means you need to back off your overclock, or increase voltage to whatever component is faulting.

Word of Caution about Voltage
Now as a word of caution, since you are new, I would recommend that you not increase voltages by more than 5% of their stock values, especially if you are running on standard cooling, or the heatsink and fan that came with your processor. If you are running a high performance heatsink, then you can be a little more liberal (about 10%), but keep an eye on your temperatures. Your temperatures can usually be read using motherboard monitoring software that came with your motherboard, or you can download some software online. Just make sure that it works with your particular motherboard.

Starting to Overclock
Now, to begin overclocking. Go into your BIOS and increase your FSB Frequency by about 5 - 10 MHz or so. Boot into Windows and run Prime 95 for maybe half an hour. Keep an eye on your system's temperatures. Generally, you should keep your CPU load temperature (the temperature when running Prime 95) under 55 or 60 C. If it successfully completes a half hour, and your temperature is low enough, then go back into your BIOS and up it by another 5 or so. Repeat until Prime 95 returns and error, or your computer is running too hot.

A WORD OF CAUTION ABOUT TEMPERATURES
*******Important*******
If you computer ever runs too hot, stop overclocking, back off a bit on your FSB and voltage, and leave it there (make sure that it is stable using prime 95 and memtest) Make sure you do not run 65+C, or you run the risk of damaging something. Keeping it under 60C at full load is always good practice. In addition, I recommend that you get a good heatsink and fan before you even start to overclock. Keeping your CPU at acceptable temperatures is very important.

Your First Error
Once you get that dreaded error (and yes, your heart may sink, that's ok), you need to increase voltage. Go by the smallest increment possible and run Prime 95 again. If you are able to pass this time, continue upping the FSB and voltage until you reach a 5% or so increase in voltage. If you cannot pass, then increase the voltage a little more (one more increment) and try again. Like I stated before, only increase your voltage by about 5%. Once you hit that voltage, stop. When you think you have found your best overclock, run Prime 95 for several hours (preferably overnight or for a day) to make sure that your computer is stable. If it returns an error, then you should back off your FSB by about 5MHz or so and try again. This process is very time consuming, but you want to ensure you are running a stable computer.

Are You Done?
Now what? Have you hit your maximum overclock? The answer is most likely, no. There are several little tweaks you can use to increase your overall clock speed. First, find out what is limiting your overclock. This can often be the CPU, motherboard, or RAM. To find out if it is your RAM, run memtest. If that returns no errors, then it is likely the CPU. If memtest does return errors, then it is likely either the motherboard or RAM. Try to increase the RAM voltage and see if you can get memtest to return no errors. If this does not help, then it could still be the RAM or motherboard. Sometimes, if your power supply is weak, that can actually limit your overclock. Your voltages should be within 5% of their nominal value. If you are overclocking, I would recommend a 400+ watt power supply from Antec, Enermax, or OCZ, but there are many brands out there and many threads here at guru on this topic, so search for one of those threads and see if you can't find a power supply well suited or you. Generally, I would look for 25A+ on the 12V line (that's 25 or more amps on the 12 volt line).

Are You Done Yet?
Still aren't running stable? Try reducing your multiplier. Increasing your FSB is the most important factor in gaining real world performance. So, reducing the multiplier and increasing the FSB is a great way to get more performance. However, your motherboard or RAM will limit you here. For instance, you can run 10x220 to get 2.2GHz or 11x200 to get that. The 10x220 will run faster than 11x200 even though the processors run at the same frequency. Keep in mind here that your RAM or motherboard will be the limiting factor here, as long as you know that your CPU can run at whatever frequency you are running. Take for instance the 11x200. I know my computer can run that, but if it can't run 10x220, I know either my RAM or my motherboard is holding me back. Try increasing your RAM voltage by few notches to see if you can achieve a stable overclock.

So, you've increased your RAM voltage and still can't get it running stable. Now is it game over? No, not quite. You can try and loosen up your memory timings. You will see these values as something like 2-2-2-5 or 2-3-3-6 or 2.5-3-3-7 or 3-4-4-8, or something similar to that in your BIOS. Generally, I would leave these alone because increasing your timings can actually result in worse performance, even though you may be able to increase your FSB. As an example with my computer, running 200 MHz at 2-3-3-7 gave me 1423MB/s of throughput. Running 2.5-3-3-7 at 213 gave me 1486MB/s. As you can see, for 13 more MHz, I gained almost nothing (and you certainly won't notice a performance gain from that). Running 2-3-3-11 at 200MHz gave me 1373MB/s. Finally, running 2.5-3-3-7 at 200MHz gives me 1398MB/s of throughput. So keep in mind that relaxing memory timings is not always the best idea. This option is more geared towards advanced and seasoned overclockers, so just leave this alone for now until you get more experience. The only reason I am sharing this is just to let you know it exists.

Ways to Spend Money to Get More Clocks
Now that you have overclocked, you are wondering if you can push it farther, yes? Well, the answer is, of course! However, that may require some money. Purchasing components that are known to overclock well is always helpful. So buying new RAM, a motherboard, or processor that is known to be able to achieve high speeds will likely allow you to overclock farther. Also, if you were limited by temperature (reaching 55 - 60C or so), you can invest in a new high performance heatsink or water cooling. This will cool your processor down more so you can increase your voltage. Also, something that is equally as important as your heatsink and fan is your case cooling. If you can, get more case fans to lower the temperature inside your case. This will result in your processor running cooler. This is very important. Like I said, the things mentioned in this paragraph will require you to spend money. If you are not that serious, then I would recommend you don't really buy anything. However, if you enjoy this, and you want to get into it more, then by all means, help boost the global economy and buy more stuff.

Conclusion
This guide is just intended to introduce you to overclocking, and help you gain your first extra clock cycle. While you spend time with your computer, you will get to know how it performs, what it can do, and what it can't do. For instance, I know that I cannot run more than 213 FSB, and that my Athlon XP-M 2600+ will do 2.55GHz at 1.75V. I also know that I can run 2.6GHz at 1.85V, but that generates too much heat to keep a quiet system. Over time, you too will start to gain intimate knowledge of your computers inner secrets. So, go on into your BIOS and see if you can't increase the power consumption and speed of your computer!! Enjoy!


this post is from http://forums.guru3d...threadid=122731