Oc'ing 955

[kdad92]

ok, hi all
before a month ago, getting a new computer meant going to walmart and saying " WOW, THIS ONE IS ONLY $399.00"
i've been watching vids, reading forums and have a much better understanding and appreciation as of late. i said all that to let u understand that if i sound like a total noob i am...lol
from what i have learned....popular opinion is that a single gpu solution is usually best. so i am trying to understand more about oc'ing the 955 BE i am intersted in building my system around. if i can oc it to 3.8 - 4.0 like most people say it is easy to do, my processor will be sending info much faster to my GPU. Is it better to crossfire/sli? I mean, will i get more performance from my system, avoiding bottlnecks, if i have 2 gpu's? if so, can anyone suggest a good mobo that offers 16 lanes x2. thanx and if i'm missing something please feel free to comment.

oh and i plan on gaming at 1600 x1080 using two 23 inch monitors, albeit, i only want main monitor for gaming and second monitor will have windows open with music or other stuff. price not factor but i dont play crysis. i hate fps. lol

 

[hythos]

I have a 955BE running 3.6Ghz at 57C under load (just a slight O'C with plenty more to go), with a cheapy (but purdy beefy) CPU fan/sink, and custom RAM heat-sink fins. While I went with a budget Biostar TA-890GXB board, I can't comment on XFire, but, I think you might have some trouble with using just two displays - you'd have the wide border down the center.
I'm using 2-40" Samsungs, and realize it's not gonna work too well unless I remove the LCD elements from the form-factor, as it adds a 4" separation in between...

 

[aznshinobi]

Well, I'd actually get a better card then even just with a single card, a 460GTX is good, but at your resolution pretty much impaired. Since your using 2-40"s which use 1980x1080 (I think something like that) but yeahhh.... Usually the 460GTX is good about the 1680x1050 or below. However since your not really playing graphically intensive games the 460GTX is good enough, MAYBE the 5770. But I'd say go for a 460GTX (there 180$ I think after the Promo and discount from Newegg. Plus you get Mafia II free and I think another game.

As for OCing your chip, the sweet spot is more like 3.8-3.9 on a 955, depends on the quality as not all C3's are made with the smae perfect quality. I got mine to 3.9 on 1.49v at 57*C on load. CPU Fan at 100%. As you can tell I use a V8, its pretty decent, but i actually have to hand it to good thermal paste (Innovation Cooling 24 carat). What heatsink are you using? Sometimes cooler temps can allow you to OC further, after lowering my temps way lower