AMD Phenom II 940, need help overclocking it

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
C

che3zeman

Distinguished
Jul 22, 2010
26
0
18,530
Hello,
I really want to overclock my CPU to at-least 3.6ghz. Right now I have managed to overclock it to 3.5 at 1.425volts, but going to 3.6, even at 1.5volts would crash the computer. I running at the stock cooler, maybe that's my problem? I do not want to buy another cooler because I am saving up money to build a new PC.

I will give you my temperatures shortly. Thanks for any help.
 
Solution
E
60 is way too hot for idle. You will probably need to upgrade from the stock cooler. :( Sometimes the stock cooler is sufficient but, in your case, it looks like you need something better. You could re-apply thermal paste and try again. Maybe the initial application was not very good...

The voltage you end up with will differ from system to system. Too little voltage and your overclock will not be stable (machine will crash often or will not boot). However, more voltage = more heat (which leads to instability) so you have to do a bit of a balancing act. :)

Here's a good guide for overclocking phenom II's.

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=596023

If 60 C is your idle temp, I suggest backing off your...
Sort by date Sort by votes
C

che3zeman

Distinguished
Jul 22, 2010
26
0
18,530
I would say idle. Way too high. but running a graphic intensive game still gives off the same temperature....

Maybe just to test it out I would like to hit 3.6 to see the temperature, but I do not know what voltage setting that I should put on the CPU
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
E

eightdrunkengods

Distinguished
Apr 28, 2011
424
0
18,860
60 is way too hot for idle. You will probably need to upgrade from the stock cooler. :( Sometimes the stock cooler is sufficient but, in your case, it looks like you need something better. You could re-apply thermal paste and try again. Maybe the initial application was not very good...

The voltage you end up with will differ from system to system. Too little voltage and your overclock will not be stable (machine will crash often or will not boot). However, more voltage = more heat (which leads to instability) so you have to do a bit of a balancing act. :)

Here's a good guide for overclocking phenom II's.

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=596023

If 60 C is your idle temp, I suggest backing off your overclock until you get a cooling solution worked out.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
C

che3zeman

Distinguished
Jul 22, 2010
26
0
18,530
I had my system overclocked to 3.4 for years without any problem. I guess I am going to have to buy a new cooler. Maybe the Cooler Master hyper 212+?

The width of my case is around 8.1 inches. Will it fit?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
E

eightdrunkengods

Distinguished
Apr 28, 2011
424
0
18,860
It seems like a lot of people like that one.

I have this one and it works really well. It costs a little less than the cooler master. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134&cm_re=freezer_pro-_-35-186-134-_-Product

Keep in mind that there can be other limitations to overclocking besides temperature so swapping coolers isn't a guarantee that you'll be able to get 3.6 stable. However, since your temperatures are as high as they are, I think you are probably hitting the heat wall in which case a better cooler will probably help a lot. Either the hyper 212 or the freezer pro will keep you cool @ 3.6.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

chriskrum

Distinguished
Aug 11, 2009
198
0
18,690
I've had two 940s. Based on my experience, (and online research of others experience) I wouldn't invest in a better cooler thinking it will dramatically improve the overclock. Most of them max out right around 3.6, often slightly lower, and even then that OC is often not totally stable (though it will pass prime95 for 24 hours). 3.4 seems to be the optimal 24/7 total stable OC.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
arson94

arson94

Distinguished
Apr 18, 2008
867
0
19,010
3.4Ghz can be done via a FSB or a multiplier overclock and requires an ever so slight increase in volts if I remember right. Max operating temp for a 940 is 62C and AMD's listed max voltage is 1.5v. I'd definitely back off until you got a new cooler. But before you overclock any higher, you'll also want to reapply your thermal compound like another poster suggested. If you've been running your 940 as long as I have then your thermal compound is probably dust like mine was last week.

I could run my 940 at 245 FSB (15x245) with 1.5v and it was stable. I needed to increase volts to my NB too but I don't have a temp sensor to read for that so I didn't go any higher on FSB. I kept everything at default ratios so my NB, HT, and RAM were being overclocked too. I had 1066 RAM I downclocked to 800 speeds so I had the room to OC with the FSB. But temps hovered right at 60C on full load and I'm not fond of that. I have the OCZ Vendetta II cooler in an Antec 900 case just for reference. This is all also on a 790FX Foxconn A79A-S. As eighdrunkengods just said though, the new cooler won't guarantee anything except for cooler temps but I think it'll give you a little more headroom if you go with the already mentioned hyper 212 or freezer pro. Just saying your board has alot to do with this.

What board and RAM are you running?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

chriskrum

Distinguished
Aug 11, 2009
198
0
18,690
Just to add to my comment above those are overclocks with good air coolers (Xigmatek and the like) and equivalent, cooler master liquid coolers, (not stock coolers) where CPU temperatures under prime95 never go above 60.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

che3zeman

Distinguished
Jul 22, 2010
26
0
18,530
475 mm(W) x 233 mm(D) x 530mm(H) <-- those are the dimensions for my case

120 x 79.7 x 158.5 mm <- heatsink ( Hyper 212+)
120 x 120 x 25 mm <- fan for heat sink

So will it fit?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
arson94

arson94

Distinguished
Apr 18, 2008
867
0
19,010


My OCZ Vendetta II is 159mm tall compared to the Hyper 212's 158.5mm and it fits in my Antec 900 v1 case which is 205mm wide compared to your case's 233mm. My case is as wide as your's but my heatsink is taller and it fits so you should be just fine.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

che3zeman

Distinguished
Jul 22, 2010
26
0
18,530
Okay thank you. One last thing, my video card is permanently stuck in my PCIE slot because the PCIE retention clip thingy broke off. Will that cause a problem trying to install the heat-sink?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
arson94

arson94

Distinguished
Apr 18, 2008
867
0
19,010
Wow, I said my previous statement all @ss-backwards. Our heatsinks are the same height but my case isn't as wide as your's. Lol still the same result in that it should fit though.

Well, it might get in the way a little. But you should still be fine. If you can, you could take your board out when you get the new cooler (before you install it) and go ahead and use some angle cutters and cut the retention clip off so you could get your card out if you wanted. I've never had a retention clip on my pci-e slot break off before lol.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
C

che3zeman

Distinguished
Jul 22, 2010
26
0
18,530
The radeon 4850 x2 was over heating and was crashing in games constantly. I only had 155$ to upgrade so I sold the card and got a brand new radeon 6850 for 155$ :). Yes, I know that it was kind a side upgrade but at-least it still has the same or a little better performance plus it runs a heck of a lot cooler, plus dx11 is always nice.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
arson94

arson94

Distinguished
Apr 18, 2008
867
0
19,010
Yea, less heat because it probably uses alot less power lol. I hear dx11 does look better in some games, I've just never been able to see it myself. I'm just waiting for Bulldozer to come out before I upgrade anything. I just hope it's a good release...
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom