Overclocking on a P5B Deluxe with a Q6600

[qwertymess]

Ok, so i have been running my system OC'ed now for almost a year now with no problems, Although i wonder if my current setup is the best way to OC. This is how i have my BIOS set right now:

- Proc: Q6600 OC'ed to 3.2 Gig With 355 FSB
- DDR2 800 set to 4-4-4-12 timings / Auto Voltage, had to set too DDR2 667Mhz in order to get a 1:1 Ration at stock CPU Speeds, now its up too 710Mhz with the CPU OC'ed too 3.2 gig
- Multiplyer x9
- All Voltages are stock, i know RAM should be set to 2.1 at 800MHZ but im not even hitting that yet so i have it on Auto, which yeilds 1.8v
- Most recent BIOS was just updated
- PCI Frequency is set to 100
- PCI Clock Sync is 33.33MHZ
- Speed Spectrum is disabled


I guess my question here is, is should i have to downlock the RAM to go to a 1:1 ratio, it is what i find stable so far. I always see people Over clocking RAM to 1066MHZ or so. What is the correct way to set this up. i know i dont have much info. here, but has anyone else seen similar setup's? Also, should i be clocking higher in oder to go around the Strap. I beleive it kicks in at 400 or 401 FSB.

 

[Mondoman]

... should i have to downlock the RAM to go to a 1:1 ratio, it is what i find stable so far.

Yes, that's exactly right.

... I always see people Over clocking RAM to 1066MHZ or so.

They are spending more money, for no significant performance gain.

As for DIMM voltage, you *should* set it in the BIOS to whatever your RAM manufacturer's spec is for your modules. 1.8V is the DDR2 standard, but much RAM is sold these days according to overclocked specs, and doesn't always work right at 1.8V (sad but true!). To make sure your RAM is really working OK, run memtest86+ through at least a couple of complete cycles to verify no errors, then run Orthos in "blend mode" for at least a couple of hours without errors.