Can my system be OC'd at all?

[ditto1958]

I am a complete novice at overclocking. I didn't build my system for overclocking- it is basically a budget system where I tried to get the most bang for my buck with Newegg deals, combo's, etc., but now that it's built and I've been using it, curiosity has been getting to me. Should I be able to overclock this system at all?

Here are the important parts:

GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128376

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Brisbane 2.7GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103218
(link is to the OEM- Newegg doesn't seem to have the retail one any more)

SAPPHIRE 100245HDMI Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824

So far the small experiments I have done have been pretty unsuccessful. I have tried to bump up the CPU a bit using AMD Overdrive, but even a small amount of tweaking has caused instability.

I have also tried to speed up the HD 4850, but that has not been very successful either. I am using pretty roomy Antec case with a 92mm front fan and a 120mm rear fan. I have the stock cooler that cam with the CPU. The 4850 seems to create a lot of heat.

 

[OvrClkr]

If you are planning on doing any overclocking at all I suggest you buy an aftermarket cooler for your brisbane.... After that is installed you can overclock that chip to about 3.2Ghz with a slight voltage increase.....

You need something like this :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207006

 

[ditto1958]

I have been thinking about getting a different cooler for it. The one you link to appears to be very good for the price. Also, the reviewers claim that it can be installed without removing the motherboard.

With a budget of around $50 would I get my money's worth if I spend a little more? If so, what would be a good recommendation for around $50?

EDIT: okay, let's be honest- if I'm going to spend the money/effort buying and installing an aftermarket cooler I'd like one that looks cool.

 

[OvrClkr]

IMO no, for example I have a good friend here on Toms that uses the Core Contact for both his E8500 and i7 920 CPU's and he is getting INSANE overclocks with low temps... If your case has a side window and you want something flashy then yea go ahead and spend more but if this is not the case then don't throw away your money on something fancy that will give you the same results...

 

[OvrClkr]

I use a 30.00$ AC freezer pro and I am VERY happy......

 

[AKM880]

IMO no, for example I have a good friend here on Toms that uses the Core Contact for both his E8500 and i7 920 CPU's and he is getting INSANE overclocks with low temps... If your case has a side window and you want something flashy then yea go ahead and spend more but if this is not the case then don't throw away your money on something fancy that will give you the same results...

Yeah....OVERSHOCKED!!! :lol:

Yeah the Sunbeam CCTF is a great CPU cooler for the price. Also take alook at the Xigmatek Dark Kinght..I don't think it looks that bad.

 

[overshocked]

IMO no, for example I have a good friend here on Toms that uses the Core Contact for both his E8500 and i7 920 CPU's and he is getting INSANE overclocks with low temps... If your case has a side window and you want something flashy then yea go ahead and spend more but if this is not the case then don't throw away your money on something fancy that will give you the same results...

*cough cough*

Check out my sig.

 

[overshocked]

You need something like this :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207006

Thats the 92mm,

how about this one

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004

 

[jonsy2k]

Also, with the 15 dollar rebate, the cooler price drops down to 15, which is an absolute steal for this cooler.

I have the dark knight, and I'm even thinking of picking this up for this price, just to mess around a bit with different coolers.

 

[OvrClkr]

Yea the Core Contact dissapates heat a lil better than the ziggy....look at his sig....lol

 

[overshocked]

Also, with the 15 dollar rebate, the cooler price drops down to 15, which is an absolute steal for this cooler.

I have the dark knight, and I'm even thinking of picking this up for this price, just to mess around a bit with different coolers.

Yeah, im thinking about putting the 92 mm on my NB [:jaydeejohn:3]

 

[OvrClkr]

Yea i know, just wanted him to save some cash and still have a kickass cooler....

Btw I am gettin a CoreContact 120mm in about a week or two.... [:lectrocrew:6]

 

[overshocked]

Eh, its 10 bucks....

 

[overshocked]

Yea i know, just wanted him to save some cash and still have a kickass cooler....

Btw I am gettin a CoreContact 120mm in about a week or two.... [:lectrocrew:6]

nice, what are you using now?

Is it for your NB or CPU?

 

[OvrClkr]

For the 550 ..... Going to see if I can get it to 4Ghz.....

 

[overshocked]

Yea i know, just wanted him to save some cash and still have a kickass cooler....

Btw I am gettin a CoreContact 120mm in about a week or two.... [:lectrocrew:6]

Oh, i forgot to tell you...

Im idleing 32 and my room temp is 26.2C!

1.35V and 3.6Ghz!!!

Thats all from that build i did last night!

 

[OvrClkr]

My NB is the sh*$!!! Never goes over 60c no matter what I do.....I will send ya a picture when I get home....

 

[OvrClkr]

Im idling @ 38c with an ambient of 31c... so its not that bad....@ night when its cold it goes back down to 33-34c idle @ 3.7Ghz

 

[overshocked]

Nice man^

ill upload some pics of the most recent build...Im using the stock cooler to cool the ram. LOL.

 

[jonsy2k]

Maybe look at the Cogage true spirit too for around 40 bucks, they don't seem to be selling them anywhere, but Tom's did a thing about them with the conclusion that its a great cooler but a bit harder to put on than others.

I feel that this isnt really a problem for most people but it depends on you.

 

[overshocked]

Here are the pics...

for the temp probe, the top temp is the ambient and the bottom is the temp of the heatsink fins.

 

[OvrClkr]

Here are the pics...

for the temp probe, the top temp is the ambient and the bottom is the temp of the heatsink fins.

http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/7605/1000799j.jpg

http://img194.imageshack.us/img194/4880/1000800n.jpg

http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/3084/1000801f.jpg

http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/9712/1000807.jpg

http://img188.imageshack.us/img188/9726/1000809a.jpg

You need to hide those cables............ lol nice mod... the intel stock fan to cool your RAM...

 

[meatwad53186]

I wouldn't bank on the idea of getting your MIR back, I never recieved my rebate for my Sunbeamtech Transformer case, and they do their rebates in house. I even tried sending emails to their customer support (since they don't have phone support, I think companies really need to get back to phone support, the email support generally sucks), but I never received any emails back from them.

 

[overshocked]

^ yeah, the placement of the cables is just for benching right now b/c im oc the graphics cards.

Those pics were from last night, im taking more now. You gotta see my new fan arangement!

 

[megamanx00]

Well ditto, if you can spend $50 bucks on a cooler then what you need to consider is if your case is big enough for a 120mm cooler. You may want to take a look at

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029

or

Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 mm Core-Contact Freezer
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004

You should be able to get to 3.0GHz with the stock cooler, or just shy of it if you have a G1 rather than G2 Brisbane, but past that how far you get is just going to depend on your sample.