Derek II

[AusDog]

Finally got my nerve up and overclocked the FSB to 210mhz. Seems nice and stable. Too bad I still can't tweak the RAM thanks to the stupid MoBo. Be interesting to see what Everest has to say.

[DerekT]

You don't want to go too high with those components. They weren't really made for any high overclocking (thin PCB's, etc.) but it sounds as though you are being moderate and careful. :)

[AusDog]

Appreciate the info to think on. Ran the new Everest 4.60 and only ran the stress test for about 20 min but temps never went over 33C. When reading Everest it's hard to separate whether it is reading theoretical potential speed setting or actual current reading.With the memory clock set at 210mhz in the bios (5% overclock), I saw one place that said the FSB was only running at 367.8 mhz and the Hyper Transport clock was at like 860mhz. It said memory timings were 5-5-5-18 at 400 mhz and 4-4-4-13 at 270 mhz. Because it is trial version it seems to have most of the actual memory readings blocked. As usual most is over my head since I never touched a mouse until age 45. What Mobo could I change my Amd 2400 and 800mhz Corsair Ram into so I don't burn up this sorry Biostar? Thanx. Ed

Also my System specs are not correct. My RAM is Corsair XMS2-6400C4 having two 1024 sticks.

[DerekT]

I personally wouldn't make an upgrade of the motherboard. I would save up for the next purchase of a system and go with a good mainboard, a highly overclocking dual core Intel, use the 800Mhz DRAM and clock it up.

 

A Core2 Duo E7200 2.53Ghz CPU. Many are getting 4.0Ghz out of them and they will easily take a 1GHz overclock. For ~119.00.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115052&Tpk=e7200

 

Then a P5K Motherboard which will do all you need for ~90.00

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131180R

 

So, for ~200.00 you can have a superfast system. Sell off that board and CPU and you should be able to transition on the speed highway for cheap.

 

The E7200 has a 9.5 X muliplier so 9.5 X 400 = 3.8Ghz and this can be run with 800Mhz DRAM. The E7200 has an M0 stepping and runs very cool, so just a cooler like an Arctic Freezer 7 (24.00) will be all you need.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134

[AusDog]

Thanks muchly Derek. I just tried again to manually set RAM timing and no way. Doubt if I can find a buyer for my soon to dump hardware as the cows don't mess with computers much. The boondocks of NC has its' pluses and minuses. The Cable Co. said I am the only one on this whole broadband circuit. The rednecks don't surf much either. Thanx again!

[DerekT]

Thanks muchly Derek. I just tried again to manually set RAM timing and no way. Doubt if I can find a buyer for my soon to dump hardware as the cows don't mess with computers much. The boondocks of NC has its' pluses and minuses. The Cable Co. said I am the only one on this whole broadband circuit. The rednecks don't surf much either. Thanx again!

 

LOL - Well, you've got a fast Internet connection then and really, unless you are doing heavy duty operations such as high end gaming, audio/video creation and multiplexing, etc. that's still a very robust system as it is. With a high end motherboard and CPU cooler, you might reach 2.8GHz or so. That's just not worth it in my view. :)

[AusDog]

When we were kids we all HAD to have a GTO or similar. I guess I still need to outgrow the aimless lust for the absolute fastest and best. :-) Thanx again Derek. You've saved me from myself.

[AusDog]

The mobo you suggested uses DDR2 1066 with an fsb of 1300. There is an a similar buard that uses the P5K SE EPU but uses memory standard DDR2 1200 for an overclocked FSB of 1600. Probably too fast for my Corsair OC able RAM? The faster board is $20 cheaper. Hank PS it's CMX1024-6400C4

[DerekT]

Removed the car pics. :p:

 

At this point in time, if you are looking for an excellent motherboard that is very low priced and a cheap fast CPU, you might wish to look at the Biostar TG31-A7.

 

I installed this board, a 45nm Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 with 2GB of 800Mhz DRAM.

 

An easy 3.4Ghz with this board. Passes 10 hours of linpack, both with the integrated video and an external card. 53C Load temps with the stock cooler.

 

Amazing overclock for a very low priced board.

[AusDog]

Another Biostar, he he. If it runs like a raped ape for that price I will be very happy with a Biostar. Don't know how you manage to stay at the top of your game like you do but it is much appreciated. I decided to go ahead because I ran into roadblocks every way I turned with my current board. Thanx again Ace!!

[AusDog]

BTW. What ever happened to the manufacturers attempts to lock down the clocks on CPUs? Also on this new Biostar board will I be able to individually set the timing on my RAM? I guess if the fsb will run 1300 and CPU OC by a gig then I really don't have to worry with that little stuff. Actually I went and got copies of the pdf's for bios and system so I would be a bit prepared. Do you by chance recall the voltage and frequency settings you used? And how far would the Auto-OC program push things and did it change voltage as well? My grateful thanks as always.

[DerekT]

BTW. What ever happened to the manufacturers attempts to lock down the clocks on CPUs? Also on this new Biostar board will I be able to individually set the timing on my RAM? I guess if the fsb will run 1300 and CPU OC by a gig then I really don't have to worry with that little stuff. Actually I went and got copies of the pdf's for bios and system so I would be a bit prepared. Do you by chance recall the voltage and frequency settings you used? And how far would the Auto-OC program push things and did it change voltage as well? My grateful thanks as always.

 

The voltages for the core are in the percentages. This is not a heavily tweakers board. This is a board for a person to buy a low priced dual core CPU and ramp it up. I have tested both an E2180 and E5200. Both make 3.3Ghz easily and pass a 10 X Linpack which is far more harder to pass than Prime95. I would not insert a high FSB processor (333Mhz) and overclock with it personally. A 200Mhz FSB processor with a high multiplier is what this board is made for in my opinion. Yes, you can set the voltage and timings on the DRAM. I have inserted Micron D9GMH sticks and run them with 1066 @ 2.2v with 4-4-4-12. I installed 6400C5 and ran them at 800 with 5-5-5-12 and 6400C4 with 4-4-4-12. The Auto OC worked fine and ran the 5200 up to 3.0Ghz with the second setting. I did not try any higher and yes, any Auto overclock will by the nature of the settings, raise voltages. Would you like a few screenshots?

[AusDog]

The mobo manufacturer says the FSB is 1066/1333/1600. I always thought that the CPU speed was FSB and a multiplier, right? Can't you just go in and specify the setting for FSB and then pick the multi that gives you the desired CPU speed? So what you're saying is it's best to just use a higher multiplier and not push the FSB? The CPU voltage I have no clue as to what is a reasonable range to work in (This will be my first Pentium since my first computer). Just because a given setting boots doesn't mean you won't do damage in the short or long-haul?

[DerekT]

The mobo manufacturer says the FSB is 1066/1333/1600. I always thought that the CPU speed was FSB and a multiplier, right? Can't you just go in and specify the setting for FSB and then pick the multi that gives you the desired CPU speed? So what you're saying is it's best to just use a higher multiplier and not push the FSB? The CPU voltage I have no clue as to what is a reasonable range to work in (This will be my first Pentium since my first computer). Just because a given setting boots doesn't mean you won't do damage in the short or long-haul?

 

I am saying that in my eyes, personally, this is a board for taking a low end CPU and clocking it up well. Since you can not tweak it like a P5K-Premium and since the board is not an 8-phase, 8-layer PCB, etc. etc. I would not treat it like one. So yes, I agree with what you think I am saying as that is indeed what I am saying :p:

 

I would personally not take the board higher than the Intel Spec which is 400Mhz. I have not taken it higher than 320Mhz with the 2180 (10 X 320) 3.2Ghz) and 280Mhz with the 5200 (12 X 280 = 3.3Ghz). I played with higher numbers but settled with these as long term and very fast, (for the money) machines. I set the Vcore to a simple 10% raise and that was enough for such an overclock. A 2180 @ 2.0Ghz will take a 1GHz overclock and an E5200 @ 2.5GHz will take an 800Mhz overclock easy. I did not try for heavier overclocks. It doesn't make sense to me. These clocks will not generate heat and the board/system will take it with aplomb.

 

This is a budget gaming machine that with a good 9800GTX will play any game at 1600 X 1024 and the highest eye candy and 2X AA.

 

So, you can save your money, put the extra to a better video card and still have a very quick system.

[AusDog]

I don't do delayed gratification well as my ex's will attest so I'm going with a BFG 9400 512mb card for $70. Found a 585W power supply that can give up to 36A at 12V and has a PCI-E plug for $20.(The card requires min 18A @ 12V). Ran Passmark Performance benchmark just now and it so happened that one of the baselines they had was for a system like we are building. I like to messed my pants seeing the huge jump in all areas of performance.:p: Looks Good! Hank PS: Had to drop back and punt. They ran out of the Biostar boards so I went back to the Asus mobo. It should take my jerking around better than the Biostar but doesn't have the easy built in OC. What were your settings to get 3.5mhz out of that board? One guy had posted to the reviews that he had gotten a 1600 FSB out of that board but he thought the board was not conducive to OC.

[DerekT]

I don't do delayed gratification well as my ex's will attest so I'm going with a BFG 9400 512mb card for $70. Found a 585W power supply that can give up to 36A at 12V and has a PCI-E plug for $20.(The card requires min 18A @ 12V). Ran Passmark Performance benchmark just now and it so happened that one of the baselines they had was for a system like we are building. I like to messed my pants seeing the huge jump in all areas of performance.:p: Looks Good! Hank

 

I would not go so cheap on the video card unless you like playing in 1024 with low eye candy. The amount of DRAM matters little if the game can not be played with good eyecandy. Buy an 8800GT at a minimum or don't game. Might as well just stick with what you have. I mean how fast do you want to scroll through Excel? Foolish to clock up a system to be fast and then castrate all gaming with that card. Buy a good sounding stereo for cheap and then throw some radio shack speakers on it? Doh!!!

[AusDog]

The darn thing lost my update. They are out of the Biostar boards so I had to get the Asus P5K. Too bad because your last response did not post until today unless the box is just loading from cache. I will check that setting in control panel. GefForce makes no sense to me. A 9400 should be better than an 8800. Unfortunately I ordered the 9400 during the nite not having seen your post. I will return it and get an 8800. BTW. What are your settings with the P5K to get 3.5?

[AusDog]

The board is losing edits> What other Geforce would do well? What separates the 8800 from the 9400?

[AusDog]

It's still losing edits. Never mind looking for other than 8800. I found one with 384mb for the same thing I was paying for the 9400...$74 and shipping. Shoot. I ordered it and it does not have a VGA output. Only two HDMI. No problem. The company said you just hook up an adapter to the HDMI.

[DerekT]

The darn thing lost my update. They are out of the Biostar boards so I had to get the Asus P5K. Too bad because your last response did not post until today unless the box is just loading from cache. I will check that setting in control panel. GefForce makes no sense to me. A 9400 should be better than an 8800. Unfortunately I ordered the 9400 during the nite not having seen your post. I will return it and get an 8800. BTW. What are your settings with the P5K to get 3.5?

 

Found one with 384mb for the same thing I was paying for the 9400...$74 and shipping.

 

It's the second integer that is the tell. A 8600 is better than a 9400. The 8800GS is a POS. BE CAREFUL in what video card you buy. You do NOT know what you are doing. An 8800GS is NOT an 8800GT. The price should give you a heads up. They don't drop that kind of dollars unless they are castrating the card.

 

What CPU are you getting?

[Wired]

It's not the forum, it's your browser cache.

[AusDog]

The card is an XFX 8800 GS and yes it's only $74. People rating it said they were playing heavily animated games and getting great speed with high detail. The CPU is the E5200 and the mobo is the P5K. Those were the two you recommended initially that you said ran sweetly at 3.5 And as far as knowing what I'm doing, you are dead right that I know nothing. That's why I am following your help the best I can.

[DerekT]

The card is an XFX 8800 GS and yes it's only $74. People rating it said they were playing heavily animated games and getting great speed with high detail. The CPU is the E5200 and the mobo is the P5K. Those were the two you recommended initially that you said ran sweetly at 3.5 And as far as knowing what I'm doing, you are dead right that I know nothing. That's why I am following your help the best I can.

 

The 8800GS has a castrated DRAM amount and in any game that needs more than the 384MB, you will experience heavy slowdowns as the graphic card swaps out to the system memory/hard drive. You will not be able to run with AA or AF without having serious issues. So, if you are playing games at low resolutions and not running with AA/AF then you will be fine.

 

There's not much more advice I can give you. Go with the others who say that this card works well and take your chances. As long as you have a low res monitor and keep the AA/AF down, then hey, for the few bucks you save, go for it if you want. I wouldn't but to each their own. My tastes are not everybodies and I do not cheap out on the video card or speakers. :)

 

I did not say that the E5200 makes 3.5Ghz. I said that I tried 3.4 and settled for 3.3Ghz. Where do I say sweetly at 3.5Ghz?

[AusDog]

It's been awhile but I'm thinking about your original recommendation that included the P5K Pro mobo with the Pentium CPU. I don't recall it exactly at all. What's more important is given this combo, E5200, P5K Pro and Corsair C4 ram, what would be your recommendation for settings to push it a bit. I do recall that you said some folks were getting 4.0 out of that setup. Given that I am on a fixed income as a disabled vet I just don't have much bucks to get a real good video card. Hopefully the 8800 will outshine the 9400 considerably. If the BFG 9400 with 512mb would keep up with the castrated 8800 then I will keep the BFG for it's lifetime warranty. They are the same price.

[DerekT]

It's been awhile but I'm thinking about your original recommendation that included the P5K Pro mobo with the Pentium CPU. I don't recall it exactly at all. What's more important is given this combo, E5200, P5K Pro and Corsair C4 ram, what would be your recommendation for settings to push it a bit. I do recall that you said some folks were getting 4.0 out of that setup. Given that I am on a fixed income as a disabled vet I just don't have much bucks to get a real good video card. Hopefully the 8800 will outshine the 9400 considerably. If the BFG 9400 with 512mb would keep up with the castrated 8800 then I will keep the BFG for it's lifetime warranty. They are the same price.

 

No, I was saying that some people are getting 4.0Ghz fairly easily out of the E7200 processor, not the E5200. Yes, the 8800GS is better than any 9400 and the XFX has a double lifetime warranty. This means you can register it to yourself for the lifetime warranty and then sell it and transfer the warranty. XFX has the best warranty of all.

 

BUT! You would have a far better machine with the Biostar and 3.2Ghz with the 8800GT video card. Cheaper, faster in gaming and blisteringly fast in anything with regards to productivity.

 

When you are running a Core2 with 3.2GHz it is a fast machine in anything. The difference between a Core2 and 3.2GHz and a Core2 with 4.0Ghz is not anything as severe as a 3.2Ghz with an 8800GT and a 4.0Ghz with a 8800GS when gaming. Otherwise, in normal use, there's not much difference between 3.2 and 4.0. As I previously said, how fast do you want to scroll through web pages or Excel?

 

If you are not a heavy gamer, then go with the 8800GS, the E5200 clocked to 3.2 - 3.4Ghz and the Biostar board. That's the best value for the system imo.