Odd voltage numbers on my MSI motherboard

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Moondrinker

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Jan 23, 2008
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Hi! I'm trying to overclock my E8400 to 4.0ghz. There is something i don't understand.
I am following this guide: http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=717&p=2

Here it states that in order to reach stability with the 4.0ghz overclock i need to increase my voltage to 1.400V. Well, currently my motherboard says that my CPU is running on 1.1500V (no overclock). This number is greyed out and on the right hand it says 'Default voltage (grey)'.
I don't know how to interpret this.

Question is, would it be safe to crank the voltage up to 1.400V (numbers start to turn red = not recommanded settings. System may be unstable)? It just seems like a big jump going from 1.1500V to 1.400V.

So is it safe? :)

 
oh boy... i tried increasing my FSB by x so that i got to 3.403GHZ and my computer wouldn't start up windows. Shouldn't i be able to overclock it to 3.600ghz without changing a whole lot? hmm :/ am i missing something?
I've changed my settings back to 3.000ghz so that's not a problem.
 
what msi mobo do you have?

look for an option called speed spectrum and disable it. i couldnt overclock that much with spead spectrum enabled on my msi 750i sli mobo. once disabled i am running my 8400 at 3.5ghz on stock voltage

3.5ghz is at 389 fsb or 1556 rated fsb
 
MSI p35 Neo2.
I disabled spread spectrum but i can't get above 3150ghz (cause then vista wont start). Hmm worrying.

My question is if it's okay to crank up the volt to 1.400? hmm i want to avoid frying my precious E8400 but i want it to preform atleast at 3.6ghz overclocked. Why i bought it, cause it's easy to overclock.
 
i wouldnt up the voltage that much. for me upping the voltage to 1.3 increases core temp during prime 95 by 5-10C from 50-55C to 60C

what is your ram? could be your ram doesnt like the overclock. If theres an option separate fsb and ram timings like on my msi 750i theres an option to change FSB and Ram frequency manually instead of it being linked. and check to see if you can get a updated bios. you might have to contact MSI as they usually have a beta bios you can get from them.
 
Moondrinker,

Have a look at this guide. http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?func=html&name=tech_p35_1

Also make sure that your memory settings are correct. I have an MSI p35 Neo2-FR and I couldn't even install Windows until I set the correct Memory voltage.

If your MB is similar to mine, it should have hardware overclock jumpers that you can set. You might try setting them to 333MHz. I think you can remove them also for a higher setting (maybe 400MHz) but I can't remember for sure. The jumpers will set the minimum OC and should loosen the NB timings. Details are on page 2-19 of the Neo2 manual.

With my Neo2-FR and a Q6600 @2.4GHz with a VID of 1.325 volts, I have it OC'd to 3.0GHz without raising any voltages.
 
Thanks man! :) That is really a lot of help!!

I think my ram can handle the overclock allthough i only have 2x1gb sticks:
Crucial Ballistix
DDR2 SDRAM
PC2-8500
1066MHZ
2.2v

In addition i believe to have the newest BIOS for my board.

Currently i don't know how to handle my ram, what timings should i set them on? 1:1.25? Thanks for all the help!
 
I got up to 3.6GHZ today and ran Orthos for 41min before a failure in core2. What would the next step be?
Do i simply up the voltage for the CPU or could adjusting NB/SB voltage make any difference? :)
 
I bet 3.6GHz is nice and speedy. Good job! Did you get there with stock CPU voltage?

I'm not sure if you saw the OC guide here at Tom's so here's the link. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/240001-29-howto-overclock-quads-duals-guide

Make sure your RAM voltage is 2.2v and keep the ratio at 1:1 for now. The timings look to be 5-5-5-15 and you might get by with leaving the rest as is. You want to keep the timings loose for now and can tighten them up later. It's a good idea to test your RAM with memtest first before overclock your CPU. All the info is in the link I just posted.

Are you using the stock intel cooler? If so, you may not be able to OC any further. You'll want to keep an eye on your temps as high temps can cause instability. Details are in the overclock guide.
 
Thank you! :)
Oh yes i have read the sticky guides.
No i did not, i am running with 1.1875V currently on 3.6ghz.

I believe my timings are 6-6-6-12 and currently the volt on my ram is [auto] which i now will change to 2.2v and try to run Orthos for 8hours+.

I have a fine cooler on my processor (XIGMATEK HDT-S1283) and a fine cabinet fitted with 5 fans+processor fan (Antec p192). Current temps while running speedfan/orthos is a bit high though (idle: 35 - 37 , stress: 47 - 51 (peeked at 54 at one point) ). I rather not want to run my computer at a temperature higher than 55 degrees but i believe i have the volt a bit higher than neccesary ( .037V from stock for a simple 3.6ghz overclock) which is nothing near the standard set by intel of 1.375V (i think it is).

A bit worried about the temperatures with the current setup.

Thanks man, appreciate it!

 
Okay, i'm up on 4.0ghz but not stable at all. I can run vista though.

Current:
Vcore: 1.375V (not a fan of hitting 1.4V)
Ram volt: 2,2
NB: 1.275
Rest is on auto/default.

Temperatures:
Idle: 35-37
Stress: 54-57

Memory:
FSB/memory ratio: 1:1.2 (Adjusted DDR memory frequency: 1067)

Problem:
Orthos crash after 35 seconds. I am seeing people running 4.0ghz at 2.125V and can't understand why i have to get that high on voltage. Maybe it's my memory? Hold on... just trying to push it up on 1.387V and see what Orthos has to say:
Yep... it crashes after 35 seconds again. What do you suggest i do? It's time consuming to overclock, that's for sure!


btw my timings on the ram was 6-6-6-15
 
FYI, the e8400 has a max Tcase temp of 71c (c0 stepping) and 74c (e0 stepping).

Is that voltage your bios setting or what cpu-z reads under load?

I got my e8400 (e0 stepping) to 4.0ghz (444x9) at a vcore of 1.25v.

you could try bumping your NB to 1.3 that might help. Other thing is your VTT may need tweaking. This thread may help you:

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/249271-29-e8400-quasi-stable-4ghz-move

This was the process I went through to get mine up to 4266mhz stable. Again I have a e0 stepping which tends to go higher than c0.

Hope that helps
 
The voltage is bios settings. I wouldn't know what it's reading on cpu-z since i'm not using it. Why would it make any difference? :)
How can you get up on 4.0ghz with only 1.25v? that's insane!

I played a bit with the VTT and NB last night but it crashed even earlier in orthos when i tuned those values up.

I allready read that guide but thank you anyway! :)
 
It seems like, if i want to reach 4.0GHZ, i need to push the Vcore to 1.4V which will give me temperatures (during stress) of 58-60c which is just too hot. I guess i'll stay on 3.6-3.8ghz then.
 
cpu-z is a very important program. Tells you a lot of useful information. esp, what your true vcore is. Bios settings are not always right on with what is actually going through your system. I have no idea why this is, but that's how things are.

Temps: your maximum tcase temp is 72c. core temps are usually 5-7c higher than tcase temps. Also, you will generally hit tcase max long before you hit your core temp max. In both cases, the cpu has throttling built in to the chip.
So, 60c is not that big a deal. I wouldn't start fretting if I were you till it started htiting 65c. I'd be more concerned about exceeding intel's vcore specification.

I could probably hit 4.5ghz on my chip, if I were willing to go to 1.4vcore. But I don't like the idea of exceeding intel's spec. Plus, at 4266mhz and 1.36vcore I'm hitting 62c on air. and another bump to 1.4 would probably push my temps well past 65c.

Oh, did you ever try disabling cpu features like c1e, and thermal management? I found that over 4.0ghz I had to disable all cpu features to maintain stability.
 
Interesting! CPU-Z reads lower voltage values than the BIOS! how can this be? Which application is telling the truth? I had full support in the BIOS because naturally you would assume that it shows you the correct values.

Look at this (running on 3.6ghz not stable in orthos):
In bios Vcore: 2.25
In CPU-Z: 1.72-2.0 (it swings between this and peeked at 2.0. Most of the time it's 1.84v)
 
:ouch: Holy crap dude! Are you sure you are reading that right???? 1.72-2.0vcore???? You sure that isn't for your ram? At that voltage you shoulda fried your cpu. Intel's max spec for the e8400 is 1.3625v. DDR2 Ram usually ranges from 1.8v-2.2v X38/48 NB usually stay under 1.4v


well first off, bios settings are not the actual voltage pumped through the chip. 2nd when the chip is under load, it experiences what's called vdroop which basically means the voltage drops because of the load. A lot of bioses have a voltage reading but they aren't much use because when you are in the bios, the cpu is at idle.
 
oh.. hehe woop...! 😀 you're right! That was the ram voltage! :)
The voltage is currently reading 1.216V on CPU-Z with my current setup (which is 1.25 in BIOS) of 3.6GHZ and it is Orthos stable.

Question is now, can i set the voltage to 1.4 in the bios because that would be at around 1.28 in CPU-Z or maybe lower (havn't tried it). Still temperatures reach well above 55 (think i got to 61C at one time) and i know the limit is 71 but that is the limit.. It's really hot above 60C and i plan to keep this chip for a year or so.
 
no! that is way too big a jump. The next step is to increase FSB until you get unstable. Try jumping 10 or 20 clocks per go (so try 410 or 420fsb) then go to 420 or 440. do short prime tests (20 min or less) at each stop until you get to where prime fails within 20minutes. At that point, start bumping vcore voltage 1 or 2 notches at a time until you get at least a 4 hour stable OC. Then you can either go for more stability and run your prime tests out to 24hrs or you can try bumping FSB again.

Once you get past 1.25vcore at load you can set the VTT to 1.24 and then find your max OC (rule of thumb with VTT is to keep it below your vcore). Then push vcore to 1.3265v and find your max stable OC. Then, you can try setting VTT to 1.3. That may get you a few more mhz squeezed out.

At this point you have 2 choices, stop and enjoy what you have gotten. Or press on and go towards the 1.4v area, again, 1.4v is outside of intel spec, so your risk for frying the chip increases.


Once you start pushing past 450mhz fsb you will likely need to increase your NB voltage. Pushing to 450-500mhz you will probably need aroun 1.3-1.4v for your NB.

To answer your heat question, since you're already hitting 55-60c at 1.216, I doubt you'll get to 1.3625 b4 you get too hot, unless you get a better cooler.

Incidentally, I found this web site, might have some useful infor for your board. http://www.msicomputer.com/msiforms2/maxP35.asp
 
Sorry for the very late reply. It's Verizon's fault :pfff:

Is your Xigmatek fan running full speed? (about 1400 rpms). If you have it plugged into cpufan on the MB, you can set it up in the BIOS to only run full speed when needed. In the H/W Monitor in the BIOS, You can set the CPU Min. Fan speed to either 50% or 62.5% (1000 or 1200rpm) and the CPU Smart Fan Target to 40C or 45C.

I also have the Xiggy S1283 and an Antec P182 full of fans. I've found that if you leave the front case door open, it will get you about 1C cooler. If you still have the Antec Tri-Cools fans, you could set the top and rear fans to high while stress testing. I have all mine set to med. and I have 5 in the case and 2 on the S1283.

Also, you mentioned that you had the memory divider set to 1:1.2. Set it back to 1:1 until you have a stable overclock.

You might also do a search at the MSI forums in the Overclockers and Modding section. http://forum.msi.com.tw/ You may be able to find settings others have tried.

 
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