New OC'er needs help please

[JBA1989]

Hello,

I recently put together a new rig consisting of:

ASUS M4A87TD EVO AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131647

AMD Phenom II X4 925 Deneb 2.8GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Processor HDX925WFGIBOX

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103656

HIS H577FK1GD Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161338

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277&cm_re=4gbrl-_-20-231-277-_-Product

RAIDMAX HYBRID 2 RX-630SS 630W ATX12V V2.2/ EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Modular LED Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817152035&Tpk=raidmax%20630

Heres the issue:

I am not sure on how to overclock it the way I would like to. Whenever I change the speed of the CPU, from the standard 200, up to anything else (My goal is 214), the RAM also changes. I am unsure of how to make it so changing the CPU speed does not affect the RAM speed. I would just like the RAM to be at the 1600 and the CPU to be at 214 (Which equates to about 3Ghz/core). I tried looking through the manual and it was of really no help to me. I've also heard that the Asus boards and some G Skill RAM do not like each other. I have the latest BIOS as well.

The second issue is no matter what I do I cannot get my RAM to be in dual channel mode. I took care to make sure they were in the right slots securely and everything. I use CPU ID and it still says single channel. The odd thing is when I open AMD Overdrive and then re-open CPU ID, it then says it is in dual channel. I have no idea why that would happen as I do all my OCing and changes like that through the BIOS as I heard that is the best way to do it.

Any help would be appreciated. I will be checking this thread frequently and will provide any more info, pics, etc that is necessary. Thank you in advance and I really would like to solve this problem, it has been killing me, haha.

 

[JBA1989]

Okay, turns out all I can do is increase the FSB since I do not have a Black Edition CPU, so, I guess changing the CPU will also have to effect the RAM. So, does anyone have any suggestions to getting the CPU to just 3.0 from 2.8, and getting my RAM into dual channel mode? Thanks.

 

[lowjack989]

underclock the RAM to 1333 MHz then raise the FSB..that should get you where you want to go...make sure the RAM is in slots 1 and 3....then in BIOS make sure your running the RAM unganged

 

[mlcaouette]

Your ram should be in dual channel so long as you installed it in the correct slots. In the Asus bios it shows the combined ram speed rather than individual speed. Set your overclock mode to manual, raise the reference clock incrementally until you reach the cpu speed you desire. Lower the dram speed back to stock or below, the HT and Northbridge need to be lowered back to stock as well. This is if you only want to go from 2.8 to 3.0, since the change is minimal you should not have to mess with the voltages unless the overclock is unstable. You should read the guide below and your entire M/B manual if you have not already.

Here is an old guide but it is still good:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/259899-29-core-overclocking-guide

 

[JBA1989]

Okay, thanks for the help. I successfully got the RAM in dual channel. Turns out they were not in the correct slots..I thought I had at least that covered, haha. I also have the CPU at 214 which gives it about 3.0 GHz, the RAM is like at 1444 or something. I wanted to do a stress test but I am unsure what software would be the best so right now I am using AMD Overdrive's Stability Test. Right now my CPU seems to be idling around 50 celcius. Is that a safe temp and should I underclock the RAM more?

 

[jfby]

There would be no need to underclock the RAM anymore. Having your RAM running at less than stock will not be noticeable in gaming as the increase in CPU will more than make up for the loss of speed.

I don't know about your CPU as well as mine, but idling at 50 C seems high (some sources I've read said that CPU is OK past 75C for the max, but personally I'd rather idle in the mid 30s or less). What is your case airflow situation like? Also are you using a stock cooler? My recomendation would be to try and free up/increase case airflow, and maybe pick up an aftermarket cooler. Also how long have you had your system? I waited a few months between cleaning my case with compressed air can and it made a slight but measureable difference.

As far as programs, I'd start with LINX. It stresses your CPU hard and fast. If you can pass that at a high level, then I'd say your stable, but I'm guessing you'll either crash your first try, or your CPU will overheat. After you are LINX stable, then some would say minimum 24 hrs of Prime95 is needed, but honestly I have yet to be LINX/Intel Burn Test stable and Prime95 unstable.

 

[saint19]

Hi.

1- Get a decent PSU, for overclock you need something solid and that PSU isn't the best one.
2- I can't see a cooler for your CPU, so, What cooler do you have?

 

[JBA1989]

Well, I dont want to OC much is all, only the CPU to 3.0 from 2.8 and possibly the GPU, I dont care about OCing the RAM, I just didnt know why it changed as I changed the CPU before, now I do. I have a stock cooler but will get another. Normally the CPU idles around 30, the stress test got it up to 50.

 

[JBA1989]

There would be no need to underclock the RAM anymore. Having your RAM running at less than stock will not be noticeable in gaming as the increase in CPU will more than make up for the loss of speed.

I don't know about your CPU as well as mine, but idling at 50 C seems high (some sources I've read said that CPU is OK past 75C for the max, but personally I'd rather idle in the mid 30s or less). What is your case airflow situation like? Also are you using a stock cooler? My recomendation would be to try and free up/increase case airflow, and maybe pick up an aftermarket cooler. Also how long have you had your system? I waited a few months between cleaning my case with compressed air can and it made a slight but measureable difference.

As far as programs, I'd start with LINX. It stresses your CPU hard and fast. If you can pass that at a high level, then I'd say your stable, but I'm guessing you'll either crash your first try, or your CPU will overheat. After you are LINX stable, then some would say minimum 24 hrs of Prime95 is needed, but honestly I have yet to be LINX/Intel Burn Test stable and Prime95 unstable.

My airflow seems to be pretty good, I have an Antec 900 case and I added the optional side fan. I also clean it pretty regularly and did my best as far as wire management. I am using a stock cooler and paste but I do own some Arctic Silver 5. Do you know a good cooler to get? I've had this system since about January of this year Id say.

 

[JBA1989]

Also, how exactly do I test with LINX? I have the program and all that, I am just not sure what to tell it to test.

 

[mlcaouette]

Prime95 is a great cpu stress tester I don't know if it is supported on linux but I think that it most likely is. Some people run for a full 24Hr I think that 8Hr is good enough. You don't want your cpu temp over 55 degrees C (full load).

 

[JBA1989]

Im using HW Monitor and the highest temp Ive seen it at is 54 celcius. You mean CPU temp and not the cores right?

 

[lowjack989]

Download OCCT perestroika to test LinX...This test is hardcore...watch those temps...core temp is the temp to look at

 

[lowjack989]

http://www.ocbase.com/perestroika_en/index.php?2009/05/21/39-occt-perestroika-310