Why Overclock?

[dhlucke]

Alright, I'm being a devils advocate here since I'm just about to overclock for the first time (maybe).

First off, I was thinking of just getting a 1.0 Ghz T-Bird and overclocking it to 1500-1700 depending on which stepping I would get. The average overclock on these chips are <A HREF="http://www.athlonoc.com/steptbird.php" target="_new">amazing</A>.

My question is simple though. Why even bother? In order to overclock I'll need to buy an OEM chip for $70 and then a HSF which will cost me a lot more than just buying a retail T-Bird 1.4 Ghz which is pretty damn good in itself.

My biggest problem is that I live in an apartment so I don't want and can't stand noise. I really want a quiet HSF. From what I've seen the Noisecontrol Silverado is not only a great HSF, but quiet. For $90 USD though that sure makes overclocking a stupid idea. There are others as well, but they all seem to cost $80+

So what do I do? I have a 400 Watt Antec powersupply in a Antec SX1040 ready to go. How crappy is the stock HSF, and are there any good HSF's out there that aren't noisy and don't cost an arm and a leg? I want to overclock, but overclocking is supposed to yeild better performance for less money. I guess I just need a good HSF that's quiet and doesn't cost too much. Which one is that???

Thanks....

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[Scout]

Having a quiet HSF combo that cools well is almost a contradition in terms! Some are quieter than others, but none of the good overclocking fans would be considered quiet... On my Athlon I use a Thermaltake Volcano II which has a relatively slow 4500 RPM fan... It's tolerable, but not as quiet as the stock fans Intel sends out with their boxed PIII's

And I think you miss the point on overclocking. You do it because it's fun to see how much you can get. Shoot, none of us really NEEDS the extra performance... and you're right, a 1.4 Athlon is an excellent performer. You won't notice ANY difference between that and something you overclock to 1.6 GHz. But I gotta tell ya, a 1.4 Athlon will need some serious cooling even in stock form so don't expect a totally quiet machine even there!



Scout

 

[Crashman]

Make sure that power supply is putting out the right voltages! Antec has serious problems there! I gave up on Antec when none of my power supplies could keep my system stable!

Back to you Tom...

 

[CALV]

The main problem with overclocking is that you WILL produce more heat, therefore needing better cooling, ok, like you said, for the price of a decent hsf/case fans you could buy the 1400, BUT, you can then overclock that, its a viscous circle in a way- the more you have, the more you want . you havent caught the o/c bug yet, but you will do once you start, if noise is a problem, then that will probably be the thing that limits your overclocking success, unless you do away with all case fans and the cpu fan by going watercooled like I did <A HREF="http://www.calvsplace.cwc.net" target="_new">here</A>, dunno if you will get 1700 from a 1 gigger, Im aiming for 1500- not there yet, and have a non standard, but efficient cooling setup, cooler than I'd ever have got with air.




Next time you wave - use all your fingers

 

[Guest]

All that ^^^^^ and more, totally agree with everything that has been said.

A question of patience and skill and some balls to boot!

If you want to go hard at it noise is common, quiet is only a dream or refrigeration unit or water-cooled stuff.
Question? What are you trying to achieve, what is it that drives you to insanity to over clock?
I have caught that bug, if I kill my CPU right now I wont be able to get back on the net coz ol' PIII is down too it will be another 2 weeks before I can budget for another CPU. But hey thems are the breaks!!!!!!!


~I want a vapochill inside~

 

[dhlucke]

I've built a handfull of computers but have never overclocked. I'm just up for it I guess. I can't get over the fact that 2 years ago a processor that cost under $200 was unthinkable.

I'm not out after the 1700 Mhz either. 1500 would of course be nice.

Do all decent HSF's that cost under $80 have to be noisy? I don't want silence, but at what dB do they just become annoying? I've <A HREF="http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/tecar.html" target="_new">listened</A> to a bunch of sites MP3's of HSF audio, but I can't get a feel for it. They all sound like leafblowers to me.

Am I asking for way too much? It just doesn't make any sense to buy a $90 HSF IMOP.

In my case do I just go retail, or should is there at least a better HSF than stock that I can go with? I might as well have some fun with it even if it only gets me to 1100...

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[Stick_e_Mouse]

If you ge a retail 1.0 CPU, the stock HSF should get you to 1.2ghz without any problems, maybe even to 1.3ghz with temps below 60 celcius. The Global Win FOP-32 is a good, cheap, and not so loud, HSF that will get you to 1.4ghz or 1.5ghz.

See a real naked pic of Britney Spears <A HREF="http://www.geocities.com/stick_e_mouse" target="_new">here</A>!!!

 

[igottaknife]

try water cooling. It's dead quiet and pretty inexpensive for the results you get. I'm undergoing a huge project for my first attempt at watercooling. Everyone will want to see this.

<font color=red>To <b>HELL</b> with your damned cookie</font color=red>.... ptooo!!

 

[dhlucke]

I have this thing about water and computer components. Call me paranoid, but I think I'll stick to air. This is my first time OC so there is no point in me spending a lot and going crazy from the begining.

<font color=red>Ever wonder what it would be like to be eaten alive by a Great White shark?</font color=red>

 

[jg38141]

Why? Need you ask

1ghz t-bird(ayhja-y 90 bucks on line) at 1600 1.85v
OCZ Gladiator
Asus a7v133

What other reason would one need?


My Jesus is whiter than your Jesus.

 

[CALV]

gottaknife, you WILL be putting pix up on the net wont u ?


Next time you wave - use all your fingers

 

[Yahiko81]

Yeah you had better show us your setup.

What is the difference between <font color=red>pink</font color=red> and <font color=purple>purple</font color=purple>? The <b>GRIP</b>!