E6420 vs E6600 vs E6700 - Newbie need help!

[phassat]

Hi, I'm a newbie here and need some help on overclocking information. Some of my questions maybe silly and I would like to pardon in advance.
1. If I use E6420 and let say achieve 3.0Ghz will my system quicker compared to E6600 or E6700? I would use air cooling in my plan, maybe something like Zalman 9700 or Thermalright U1 plus fan
2. If the system refuse to boot, do I still have the access to Bios in order to change the settings back to where was the system still stable?

Thanks in advance for your answers.

 

[minty]

1. If I use E6420 and let say achieve 3.0Ghz will my system quicker compared to E6600 or E6700?

If we are talking about those two on stock speeds, I think yes, it will be "faster", but maybe not necessarily the same in terms of temperatures/power consumption (Im not sure, but guessing since you probably need to raise the voltages a bit).

2. If the system refuse to boot, do I still have the access to Bios in order to change the settings back to where was the system still stable?

Nope. If the system doesnt boot after a non-successful overclock, then you have some choices to reset it to its default values (clearing CMOS in the MoBo, pushing a key or I think messing around with the power button on the PSU but Im not sure about this last one), then you can boot again "safely" and start over.

 

[phassat]

1. If I use E6420 and let say achieve 3.0Ghz will my system quicker compared to E6600 or E6700?

If we are talking about those two on stock speeds, I think yes, it will be "faster", but maybe not necessarily the same in terms of temperatures/power consumption (Im not sure, but guessing since you probably need to raise the voltages a bit).

2. If the system refuse to boot, do I still have the access to Bios in order to change the settings back to where was the system still stable?

Nope. If the system doesnt boot after a non-successful overclock, then you have some choices to reset it to its default values (clearing CMOS in the MoBo, pushing a key or I think messing around with the power button on the PSU but Im not sure about this last one), then you can boot again "safely" and start over.

Thanks for the info mate... Just want to ask further... 'The choices to reset to default values' is this options comes up automatically during the boot, or is it as if I need to take out the CMOS battery for several moment until it re-boot to its default values?
Thank you.

 

[minty]

First of all, dont thank me yet. Im also a newbie like you, but I have annoyed the pros here for over two months (from knowing nothing about new technologies to now caring about "advanced" OC'ing settings! :lol, so Im just giving you temp answers, but you're better off waiting for the pros to arrive and give you the "good" answers.

Just want to ask further... 'The choices to reset to default values' is this options comes up automatically during the boot, or is it as if I need to take out the CMOS battery for several moment until it re-boot to its default values?
Thank you.

Look, there might be two things (I think).
Not being able to POST, and being able to.
When you POST, you usually hear a "beep".

In some cases I think the MoBo will go on a cycle like crazy (reboot constantly and such), so you need to be as fast as you can to hit the Del key to enter the BIOS screen (this is, provided you can POST).
If you're not able to POST (I'd call this, not being able to boot at all), then yes, the "choices" are usually clearing the CMOS battery and the like.

 

[phassat]

At least there's someone respond to my questions immediately and I appreciate that, so thank you.

I will build a new PC for gaming & other multimedia task and will overclock the system. So I guess it's important to know how to do that and what might happened when I'm doing that.

Right now I'm a bit confuse of overclock it the right way, which PSU to choose, and how make the boss of da house to approve the purchase of new computer (trying to reassure her that it is the correct system for her to be able to have stable emailing station & gossips surfing and extra water cooling system maybe required for even more stable system :twisted: )

Back to overclock, with E6600 what max result should I got if I use air cooler only?

 

[phassat]

I Also always have this question

How to remove the stock heatsink and fan? I would want to use better air cooling or probable liquid one but there's never been an article anywhere about how to change it....

 

[minty]

At least there's someone respond to my questions immediately and I appreciate that, so thank you.

I will build a new PC for gaming & other multimedia task and will overclock the system. So I guess it's important to know how to do that and what might happened when I'm doing that.

Right now I'm a bit confuse of overclock it the right way, which PSU to choose, and how make the boss of da house to approve the purchase of new computer (trying to reassure her that it is the correct system for her to be able to have stable emailing station & gossips surfing and extra water cooling system maybe required for even more stable system :twisted: )

Back to overclock, with E6600 what max result should I got if I use air cooler only?

For the PSU choice check out the sticky @ PSU Forum by mpiltchfamily (or something ). After you go through it, your choice will almost be a matter of which videocard you will be using, and how much money you have

E6600 on air? Provided you have good cooling inside your case, I think 3.0 Ghz qualifies as "walk in the park". I think I read somewhere people could also achieve 3.4 Ghz, but Im not sure if stock heatsink will do (in this case you would need pretty good cooling in your case, and a good heatsink, I think Ive read something about "Ninja").

I Also always have this question

How to remove the stock heatsink and fan? I would want to use better air cooling or probable liquid one but there's never been an article anywhere about how to change it....

What do you mean? :?
By your first post Im guessing you havent bought anything yet... So its all a matter of not using the stock heatsink/fan and that's it.
Otherwise its a different business, you can check a lot of topics about it.

 

[Stagletto]

Hey there Minty - just popped in for a look at some E6600 OC info and here this is. Ive got a Dell 9200, so therefore its got stock cooling. Do you reckon I can get it up to 3.0Ghz painlessly?

Cheers 8)

 

[Stagletto]

Hey there Minty - just popped in for a look at some E6600 OC info and here this is. Ive got a Dell 9200, so therefore its got stock cooling. Do you reckon I can get it up to 3.0Ghz painlessly?

Cheers 8)

EDIT : Whoops! Double posted there

 

[phassat]

Hey there Minty - just popped in for a look at some E6600 OC info and here this is. Ive got a Dell 9200, so therefore its got stock cooling. Do you reckon I can get it up to 3.0Ghz painlessly?

Cheers 8)

I wouldn't dare.... but let's hear what the expert says.....
Some of the good cooler as Thermalright U1 is quite cheap already.

 

[Rripperr]

If you have a good aftermarket cooler, you should be able to get to 3.2 Ghz (333 FSB) with out too many problems. Go slow and stress test after every change. Good OC'ing takes days, even weeks. Don't forget, you might have to step down your memory to 1:1 to get some of the higher FSB frequencies. Try to find the top stable FSB, then back of 5-10%.

Also, don't forget to use some Artic Silver 5 compound when mounting a new HSF. A really good set-up can reach 3.4- 3.6 GHZ (over 400 FSB) with temps no higher than 65-70 C.It just depends on a little bit of luck and some careful work.

 

[phassat]

A really good set-up can reach 3.4- 3.6 GHZ (over 400 FSB) with temps no higher than 65-70 C.

Is it with aftermarket air cooler or have to be liquid cooling?

 

[Rripperr]

Personally, I think water cooling is overkill for these CPUs (C2D). At most, you might get 30-50 MHz more out of the FSB, but your paying $100-$200 more. Not to mention the hassle and bother of trying to install a WC system. For that kind of money, you can get a TEC cooler (like the Vigor Monsoon Lite II) which cools almost as good but takes up a lot less room and uses about the same amount of power.

 

[minty]

Hey there Minty - just popped in for a look at some E6600 OC info and here this is. Ive got a Dell 9200, so therefore its got stock cooling. Do you reckon I can get it up to 3.0Ghz painlessly?

Cheers 8)

I have no idea about Dells...

Let me tell you something. I think I could reach 3.0 painlessly, but my idle temps would be something around 50 C and 65/70 on full load...
Obviously my case is an el cheapo ye olde crappo one and I dont have 10 fans around it...
I guess if you have good air cooling inside one could reach 3.0 with the stock heatsink, without compromising the PC so much, and getting "descent" after-OC temps.

Check this out

http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardware/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=1668212#1668212

A really good set-up can reach 3.4- 3.6 GHZ (over 400 FSB) with temps no higher than 65-70 C.

Is it with aftermarket air cooler or have to be liquid cooling?
I think most of what I read in here is simply air cooling... maybe water cooling is good for "extreme" overclocks, but most of time (not to say "all of the time") I read people write about their good OCs, using good aftermarket air coolers.

 

[Rripperr]

To clarify: yes, my reference to 3.4 - 3.6 is with very good after-market coolers.

 

[phassat]

Personally, I think water cooling is overkill for these CPUs (C2D). At most, you might get 30-50 MHz more out of the FSB, but your paying $100-$200 more. Not to mention the hassle and bother of trying to install a WC system. For that kind of money, you can get a TEC cooler (like the Vigor Monsoon Lite II) which cools almost as good but takes up a lot less room and uses about the same amount of power.

Hi, I've checked on the net about this TEC cooler and specifically for Vigor Monsoon Lite II which costs around $100. I like the idea of this Peltier cooling and how monsoon lite II will still operates through conventional air cooling if at any time the electrical fails. I also like that it has PCI card that can warn you if the system get too cool or too heat.

But.... I try to compare that with conventional heatsink such as Thermalright U-120 extreme ($50) and the article says U-120 extreme is still better compared to monsoon lite II.

The idle temp for X6800 @3.96GHz is 42 C for monsoon and 36 for Ultra-120 Extreme
The stressed temp for X6800 @3.96GHz is 54 for monsoon and 47 for Ultra-120 Extreme

and for cooling device around $100, the one who can reach 3.96GHz is only the monsoon II and Ultra-120 Extreme

The drawback of Ultra-120 extreme is it doesn't include any fan, so a good fan has to be added to your budget. The article use Scythe S-Flex for the fan and as the based of the above result. The total cost of Ultra120 Extreme plus the fan is $70-$75....

So I guess air cooling can have a very good result as well.... but I believe with the Peltier system, once the technology becomes more mature, I guess the probability to beat the conventional air cooler is open.

 

[cpw20]

Hi,

To my knowledge you can't overclock most Dell systems. The BIOS settings for all the frequencies are locked. You could have a look at the forums on the Dell website and see if there are any workarounds.