Overclocking Phenom II 965 BE

Pulssqt · Oct 21, 2014

Hello my friends, I'm new on this forum, and i hope Ill have great time here.

My current PC specs:
Asrock 970 Extreme3
AMD Phenom II 965 Black Edition with CM Hper 212 Evo (twin coolers, push and pull)
G.Skill 1600 MHz CL9 2x4 Gb
XFX 280x Boost DD
XFX 650w Core Edition

So, Ill explain my problem now, it may be a bit larger post, sorry about that.

I started with overclocking by raising a multiplier to x19, then to x20. Voltage bellow 1.4V would cause BSOD in Prime95, so i raised it to 1.4750(Could probably be stable at less Vcore)
So i started with Nortbridge, Raised the multipler to x12, 2400 Mhz, as Prime 95 said, it was all good.
Then i raised it to x13, 2600 Mhz @ 1.250 V, and in Prime 95 FFT test, worked flawlessly, but in Blend test, 4th core would stop working immediately.
I had no idea what to do next, so i downcloked it to 2400 Mhz.
I knew it was a RAM problem, so i went to try something with RAM.

According to the CPU-Z : 9-9-9-24, 800 Mhz, 1:4 Ratio, 2T..
In BIOS, its set to 1600 Mhz, if i lower it to 1333, PC wont boot.

So i have few questions now.
1. What exactly is HT BUS Speed, what does it do and what does it mean ?
2. What should i do with BUS Speed ?
3. What should i do with RAM, 400 Mhz 1:2 or 800 Mhz 1:4.. Once i checked in CPU-Z, timings were 6-6-6-15 ?
4. Should i change DRAM frequency, 1600/1333/800 ?
5. Should i try to reach 2600 Mhz NB or keep it at 2400 ?
6. Should i be worried that my CPU-Z shows a little bit above 1.5V in load ?
7. Is it possible that i reached my motherboards limit, and cant overclock it higher ?

I would like to thank alot everyone in advance for helping me, all your answers are highly appreciated.

Here is a picture of my CPU & Memory settings at the momment.

4Ryan6 · Oct 21, 2014

Dolks' Guide is pretty good IMO

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php/596023-Dolk-s-Guide-to-the-Phenom-II

Wisecracker · Oct 21, 2014

... According to the CPU-Z : 9-9-9-24, 800 Mhz...

Your RAMs are 'double-pumped' -- or, running at 1600MHz.

Keep your HT Link speed as close to 2000MHz as possible (or lower if required -- as long as the speed as faster than your RAMs speed you are good to go)

If you wish to use the system clock for your OC'ing the sweet spot for your RAMs is 240MHz. Simply drop your RAMs divider one notch to 1333MHz and your HT Link speed to 8x ....

Your RAMs will be running 240MHz X 6.67 (or, 1600MHz) and your HT will be running 240MHz X 8, and your IMC/NB will be running 240MHz X 10. Be sure to lock your PCIe speed to 100MHz. That's pretty much it since the IMC is already 'unganged'

Your volts seem a bit high. 1.4v should be enough for 3.8-4GHz. I suspect your mobo may well be holding you back.

Pulssqt · Oct 21, 2014

4Ryan6 :

Thank you for that. Gonna read that twice, but atm im stuck at this part, which i dont understand.

DRAM Frequency = [ (FSB * DRAM Ratio) / FSB Ratio ] * 2

''For example I will calculate 1066 RAM: (Using standard AMD Settings)

200 * 8 = 1600
1600 / 3 = 533.333
533.33 * 2 = 1066.666''

How it looks to me, with gihter ratio he is getting bigger frequency. I thought we should aim for 1:1.

Damn im so confused.

4Ryan6 · Oct 21, 2014

Pulssqt :

I wasn't going to post my guide because it is so simple and the information is older, but maybe simple is just what you need, seeing as how some of the information is hard for you to grasp, one of the CPUs used to write the guide was an AMD 965BE.

3DMark06 mentioned in the guide should be replaced for testing by either 3DMark Vantage, 3DMark11, or 3DMark using Firestrike, the guide really needs to be completely rewritten but it has already been done 4 times since it's initial writing and I'm pretty much done with that AMD era.

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers...dition-overclock-guide-raisng-multiplier.html

Pulssqt · Oct 21, 2014

Wisecracker :

Thanks man!
I just lowered the Vcore to a 1.4125, look stable for now.

Ill try to aks like this. What should i aim for, what DRAM Frequency and Ratio ?

4Ryan6 :

Thank you. ANd yes, still some 'easy' thing are hard for me to understand. TOO many things going on at the same time haha

Anyway, im reading whole day, so thats good.

ONly thing that confuses me at the momment is RAM Frequency and ratio, what should i aim for and what do i get with each.

Pulssqt · Oct 21, 2014

Hellou again. I just finished with all i wanted to do. I'm happy with clock right now.

4.0 Ghz @ 1.4125 V, 2.4 Ghz NB
RAM is at 1:4 Ratio, 1600 Mhz, 9-9-9-24

Thanks everyone who tried to help me!

Kevin2015 · Oct 21, 2014

4Ryan6 :

The 1:1 ratio thing you were talking about is from older intel chips mostly (before i3/i5/i7) and really old AMD chips maybe I dunno about the AMD chips. 1:1 ratio was used because the FSB was a bottleneck, using RAM that was any faster yielded very marginal performance increases and the faster RAM was IIRC alot more expensive than what was usually needed to get 1:1. Going less than 1:1 would cause a memory bottleneck if I'm not mistaken. Using anything but 1:1 meant that you were running asynchronous which IIRC carried a small performance hit and was less stable (could be wrong on the stability, memory isn't too clear on that one)

If you want to read about it more there's a great write up about it here starting about 3 or 4 posts down:
http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=157439

This is how processors with a FSB work:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/fullimage.php?image=1730
Notice that with a FSB the memory data has to go this route Memory bus > Northbridge (memory controller) > FSB > CPU.

This is how your processor works:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/fullimage.php?image=47811
Here the memory data goes this route RAM > Memory bus > CPU (Integrated memory controller). Thus the bottleneck of the FSB no longer exists. You can also see where the HT bus is in this image.

Either way, you should be fine running your RAM at the rated1600mhz and timings if I'm not mistaken since you are OC'ing using the multiplier. I think the deciding factor here would be what your motherboard supports and what your processor's IMC supports. I'm definitely no expert on OC'ign using hte multiplier so get a second opinion

.

Pulssqt · Oct 21, 2014

Kevin2015 :

4Ryan6 :

The 1:1 ratio thing you were talking about is from older intel chips mostly (before i3/i5/i7) and really old AMD chips maybe I dunno about the AMD chips. 1:1 ratio was used because the FSB was a bottleneck, using RAM that was any faster yielded very marginal performance increases and the faster RAM was IIRC alot more expensive than what was usually needed to get 1:1. Going less than 1:1 would cause a memory bottleneck if I'm not mistaken. Using anything but 1:1 meant that you were running asynchronous which IIRC carried a small performance hit and was less stable (could be wrong on the stability, memory isn't too clear on that one)

If you want to read about it more there's a great write up about it here starting about 3 or 4 posts down:
http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=157439

This is how processors with a FSB work:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/fullimage.php?image=1730
Notice that with a FSB the memory data has to go this route Memory bus > Northbridge (memory controller) > FSB > CPU.

This is how your processor works:

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/fullimage.php?image=47811
Here the memory data goes this route RAM > Memory bus > CPU (Integrated memory controller). Thus the bottleneck of the FSB no longer exists. You can also see where the HT bus is in this image.

Either way, you should be fine running your RAM at the rated1600mhz and timings if I'm not mistaken since you are OC'ing using the multiplier. I think the deciding factor here would be what your motherboard supports and what your processor's IMC supports. I'm definitely no expert on OC'ign using hte multiplier so get a second opinion

.

Thank you alot for this info. Definitely cleaned few things I did not understand before.

I did OC it only with multiplier, and it looks like i did a good thing

Pulssqt · Oct 23, 2014

Hey guys. I have one question..

My CPU Voltage is set in bios to 1.4125 V, but in idle,as my HW monitor shows its 1.425V, and in load 1.45V.. Is that normal ?

Wisecracker · Oct 23, 2014

... Is that normal ?

Yup.

**4+1** power-phase motherboards typically over-volt +0.025v above BIOS settings --- at least, in my experience.

You should have no issues with your OC by enabling Cool&Quiet, and your volts at idle should drop considerably ...

I simply ignore that 'ratio' thang, as noted it's typically related to older tech which actually has a FSB --- just remember that your RAMs speed is 2X that reported in CPUz.

Pulssqt · Oct 24, 2014

Wisecracker :

Thank you.

Btw, i just managed to OC my Phenom a bit more. It passed Prime95 small FFT test, but after 15-20 mins it failed Blend test, ''uncorrectable error' by win8.. Could it be because i set RAM Voltage to Auto ?.

Ill post the setup.
BUS: 234
HT Link: 2106 Mhz
Multiplier: x18
CPU/NB: 2574 Mhz @ 1.250 V
Core Speed: 4212 Mhz @ 1.4875 V

Idle temps are about 38 celsius, in games 45-50. Prime95 managed to get it to 59 but after some time.
All this with CM Hyper 212 Evo.
All other voltages, RAM, NB etc. are set to auto.

My only concern is, that this voltage is causing some problem for the CPU, at idle its somewhere around 1.495-1.505V, and in load, 1.525-.1.53V. Should i be worries about that ?

Here are the pics of the CPU-Z at idle.

Also my BIOS settings are:
Asrock UCC: Disabled
CPU ACC: Disabled
CPU LLC: Disabled
Spread Spectrum: Disabled
Cool'n Quiet: Disabled
Enchanced Halt State: Disabled
Secure Virtual Machine: Disabled
CPU Thermal Throttle: Disabled

Wisecracker · Oct 25, 2014

Those volts are quite out-of-line ... that's not a long-term scenario for chip survival

I would suggest keeping the HT Link speed to 2000MHz (and below) with the IMC/NB at 2400MHz or so (with no more than 1.25v NB VID). That pretty much takes them out of the equation and allows you to focus on the CPU clock speed.

And, an important thing to remember is *less is more* when OC'ing a PhII quad. Finding the minimum voltage at a certain clock speed is really a good thing as more volts add more heat, and that holds your ultimate CPU clocking back.

Set your clocks low(er) and find your minimum volts. When you stub your toe, bump your VCore up +0.0125v and test again ...

Pulssqt · Oct 25, 2014

Wisecracker :

Ouch, im gonna downlock it to 4ghz stable then, untill i get the water. Should i expect better results with water or i wont be able to do that because of voltages ?

Wisecracker · Oct 25, 2014

Good water may help a bit, but I suspect your motherboard (and the 4+1) will ultimately hold you back more so than anything.

8+2 mobos are too, really, 4+1(x2) ... what this does is provide more stable volt delivery as you move your clocks higher.

4GHz or so at 1.4v is reasonable with your rig, and with the IMC/NB around 2400MHz should provide a nice boost over stock clocks.

Pulssqt · Oct 25, 2014

Wisecracker :

Tbh i thought about getting one mobo in the next few weeks. I'm thinking about Sabertooth 990FX R2.0 or Asus Crosshair V Formula-Z. Ill probably get sabertooth cause i get better warrantly and its twice cheaper. What do you think ?
Then i think ill get WC.

I was afraid that CPU could bottleneck my GPU, but seems like it doesnt, not even close.

CPU 4.0 Ghz @ 1.4125 V (200x20)
CPU/NB 2.4 Ghz @ 1.125 V
HT Link 2.0 Ghz
With LLC on Auto.
Stable with Prime95 for few hours of Blend test. Gonna keep it like this untill i get Mobo/WC.

Wisecracker · Oct 28, 2014

Looks great.

That Sabertooth will take it even higher (4.2-4.3GHz??) with good water and maybe a slight volt bump.

The PhII 965BE will take a nice under-volt, too. I'm running one 3.8GHz at 1.2875v on an old 790FX with 0.8375v on the low end with C&Q ...

Overclocking Phenom II 965 BE

Reputable

Champion

Splendid

Reputable

Champion

Reputable

Reputable

Reputable

Reputable

Reputable

Splendid

Reputable

Splendid

Reputable

Splendid

Reputable

Splendid

Share this page