Opteron 165 Overclocking

[luminaris]

Hello all,

I've decided to create this thread in hopes of shedding some light on basic overclocking. The reason I chose the opteron 165 is because it has been discussed rather heavily in the forums lately. In response to that, I decided to take delivery of one and see what all the "hype" is about. Additionally, I've seen many threads of people asking for overclocking help and this information should certainly help no matter what board or processor your using. I'm going to include pictures of my BIOS settings so you can get a feel of how I have them set. This thread is only intended to really help get started in the right direction and get the BIOS setup for overclocking.

Before I begin, I do want to point out a few things as well as my system specs.
1. Overclocking is a skill - It takes lots of patience, trial and error and reboots of the machine. Be prepared for it.
2. The BIOS on my machine has what is called CMOS reloaded. This is where I can save my current BIOS settings in storage banks. In case my machine becomes unstable or won't boot, I can reset the BIOS and pull up the last good settings from those banks. A good tool to have and use if you have it.
3. Overclocking is done purely at your own risk - You void most warranties as soon as you start overclocking and you can cause damage to your machine. This information is only to be used as guidelines only. Take your time and most importantly, take one step at a time and test the machine for stability. If you don't take your time, you'll certainly be destined for disaster that of which, I take no responsibility for.
4. Use good cooling and equipment - The power supply, case (airflow) heat sink fan etc. should be in good working order and should be well enough to keep things running smooth especially during overclocking.
5. Monitor your temps - Have a good tool handy to monitor your temps and board specs. Most motherboard manufacturers include some sort of monitoring software to keep track of your specs. This is critical as your processor can overheat and be destroyed.

Here's my machine with a Zalman 9500 Cooler mounted on the processor for cooling:

http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=Zalman9500.jpg

Here's one of the stock cooler with the zalman for comparison:

http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=CoolerComparison.jpg

As you can see, there is plenty of space around the cooler for airflow. This is important. Keep the cables tucked as far out of the way as possible.



Now onto the good stuff. Here's my system specs:

DFI Lanparty UT NF4 SLI Expert
AMD Opteron 165 @2.5Ghz, CCBWE 0551WPMW
Zalman 9500 Air Cooler
Antec TP2 550w PSU
Chieftec Dragon Case
Antec and Cooler Master case fans
XFX Geforce 7800GT
Crucial Ballistix DDR500 2X512 RAM 3-4-4-8 280Mhz Currently
Lite on DVD burner
Western Digital Raptor 36gig

As you can see, it doesn't seem like much of an overclock and in all reality, it isn't. This machine has the potential to go higher but right now, this thing is blazing fast as it is and, its almost to fx-60 specs which says alot of this processor.

The first thing I did when I put the machine together is run prime95 to get it burned in good at stock speeds. I usually run it for 8 hours or overnight. This gets the processor and the RAM broken in. My board came with memtest as well and I ran that just to make sure I had good RAM sticks.

After the machine ran overnight, I started going into the BIOS to get things setup. I went into the BIOS and made these changes:

1. LDT/FSB - I set this to 2.5
2. I locked the PCI-e to 100
3. CPU/FSB - I set this to 9.0 as my processors multiplier is set to 9
4. Disabled anything that I don't need such as, my second LAN, on board audio, additional USB or SATA ports not being used, RAID controls, floppy seek and anything else that I don't need. Disabling these things help the machine boot up slightly faster and also, takes some of the load off the board.
5. I set the RAM divider for 1/1 and set the default timings for my RAM which are 2.5-4-4-8. I did not have the 2.5 option in my BIOS so I set it to 3.

I saved the changes and rebooted the machine to check for stability.

I then went back into the BIOS of the machine and started raising the FSB frequency (multiplier) up about 2-3Mhz at a time. I saved changes and rebooted the machine to check for stability. I ran prime95 and superpi to ensure stability. If the machine is unstable, usually prime95 will let you know of this within the first few minutes of testing.

Once I get to the next Ghz number with the processor, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 etc., I ran prime for about 8 hours and checked for stability. Once I got to 2.2Ghz, I went ahead and raised the voltage on my RAM to 2.64 volts.

I repeated these steps until prime95 would generate errors which meant, unstable machine. So I backed off the multiplier until it was very stable and ran solid.

A good tool to use is CPU-Z as this will help you keep track of your processor voltage which in my case, I did not have to increase at all, and memory stats.

I'll include some screenshots of my BIOS and a few benchmarks I ran as well. I hope this helps those who are just starting out in the overclocking world and who maybe thinking of getting the Opteron 165. Its a sweet processor that really does a good job for me.

Good luck with your build and let me know if you have any thoughts, questions or comments on this thread.

Peace, Love and Harmony to all,
~Luminaris~

http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=BIOS1.jpg
http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=BIOS2.jpg
http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=BIOS3.jpg
http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=BIOS4.jpg

http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=OpteronMemBand.jpg
http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/Opteron%20Screens/?action=view&current=OpteronDhrystone.jpg
_________________

 

[MadModMike]

Nice thread, hopefully this takes off and we can have some INTELLIGENT discussions, .

~~Mad Mod Mike, pimpin' the world 1 rig at a time

 

[Covered_in_bees]

There's also a nice sticky in the Overclocking section under CPU's written by speeduk here.

I also found some nice links that others have posted recently:

Madshrimps posted by alien

Short-media posted by ToxicCow

 

[dizman]

Thanks! I look forward to getting my OC'd I just need to wait till I have some time, been working 7days a week :?

But anywho, nice starter/intro advice that I know I'm finding useful

 

[Rustol3um]

I assume this applys to the 175 as well? not entirely but as the multiplier is set a little higher on the 175 but the same concept...?

 

[luminaris]

Thanks guys and yes, I agree that this should be a sticky.

This pretty much applies for most processors and BIOS combinations. My particular board is the SLI Expert and has TONS of BIOS features. Not every board has all of those features so things will be different however, my thread will at least guide everybody in the right direction.

I'm getting ready to do the same for my Intel. The BIOS on my 925X is very different. Hopefully that will be useful for all the Intel fans.

 

[Caboose-1]

I hear the Opt's. overclock like beasts, in truth I don't know much about this processor, never paid much attention to sadly. Im gonna check into it.....

 

[luminaris]

Yeah, I've always been an Intel enthusiast myself and never really paid much attention to AMD in general. I do have a couple of other AMD machines but this opty machine has certainly gained my attention. Its so fast, I can hardly keep up with it. I am definately hooked on these AMDs.

 

[jokersgrin]

nice thread bro. Hopefully this will answer alot of questions for people

 

[suras]

Nice post!

I'll be getting my 165 tomorrow or the day after and are really looking forward to play with it!

My initial plan is to take a go with the stock cooler. I understand that it cant compare with the zalman, but Im hoping that Ill atleast would get it above 2.0 with the stock cooler. I guess Ill see what hapends.

Whats the noice profile on the zalman compared to the stock cooler?

/Suras

 

[luminaris]

Thanks


The stock cooler I found to be quite effective in cooling but not noise. Its noisy compared to the 9500. I ended up changing all of my case fans from Antec units to Cooler master units. I got a great bundled deal from Newegg. Now its much quieter and can hardly hear it. The temps on the processor dropped about 5-7 degrees across the board.

 

[MadModMike]

Thanks


The stock cooler I found to be quite effective in cooling but not noise. Its noisy compared to the 9500. I ended up changing all of my case fans from Antec units to Cooler master units. I got a great bundled deal from Newegg. Now its much quieter and can hardly hear it. The temps on the processor dropped about 5-7 degrees across the board.

I can't fathem why people complain about noise. I can't hear Raptors, I can't hear stock cooling on my CPU or GPU. I can't hear my fans or any hard drives. It may be because I have huge desk fans and room fans blowing like sh!t and I don't notice, but than again, my PC is about 10" from me, =/.

~~Mad Mod Mike, pimpin' the world 1 rig at a time

 

[luminaris]

Well, in my dungeon downstairs, its very quiet in there. Believe me when I say you can hear an ant fart.

Noise with me is usually not a big issue either and your right about the noise factor. To me, its blissfully sweet to hear the sounds of my three computers sitting there humming away. Unless I'm trying to watch a movie or something.

 

[MadModMike]

Well, in my dungeon downstairs, its very quiet in there. Believe me when I say you can hear an ant fart.

Noise with me is usually not a big issue either and your right about the noise factor. To me, its blissfully sweet to hear the sounds of my three computers sitting there humming away. Unless I'm trying to watch a movie or something.

This reminds me of back when I was just getting into computers, I was a big noise-freak and said something really stupid: "I think I can hear my processor". lol, and I wasn't talking about the HSF, but I was misinterpreting it, it really was the HDD, heh.

~~Mad Mod Mike, pimpin' the world 1 rig at a time

 

[WOWchamp]

Very nice guide. Thats a damn thorough stability test there bro... 8 hours of prime for every 100mhz. But you know for damn well sure that its stable as a mofo.

Burning in, I think, is vastly under rated and can save you a ton of headaches. Mainly because if people OC their Optys (which overclock very nicely compared to most other chips) they blame the CPU OC if anything goes wrong. They dont know for a fact if the RAM or GPU is stable, or even if the opty didnt ship defective and that higher clock just set it off. Runing Prime95 overnight before you tinker with anything should be a golden rule, that and running memtest.

That stock HSF on the 165's ( I think its on every opty and X2 above the 3800+ ) is pretty good and is slightly better then the thermaltake XP-90. That Zalman is indeed a damn nice HSF but I think you could get 2.5 out with decent temps on the stock AMD HSF.

 

[luminaris]

Couldn't agree with you more. I've heard in some cases that burning in, will actually allow more headroom as far as voltage goes and the processor will actually use less. I don't know how true that is but I've heard it mentioned by a few people.

Thanks for the comments

 

[suras]

Ok.
Then Ill start with the stock HSF (Ive spent enough of money for one weekend anyway...).
Also, It leaves some fun for next month aswell

Regarding noice; I see your point. However, since I havent put my system together, I dont really know what will be the "limiting" source of noice.

Opty 165 in a Antec P-150 case, Asus Nforce4 SLI-premium, X800GTO2.

I suspect the GPU will wreck havoc in an otherwise fairly silenced system.

/Suras

 

[luminaris]

That case your gonna use should be fairly quiet. I've never owned one but I know people that do and its a pretty good case. The problem with me is, I've got my machines up on top of my bench right next to my ears, hence the phrase, music to my ears.

I would move them underneath the bench but then people can't really see them and I do like to display them.

http://photobucket.com/albums/f16/Luminaris/?action=view&current=GamingRigs.jpg

 

[suras]

Sorry for going a little OT;
What type of synchmasters are you using?
I ordered a 940B to go with my system, but that was probably the component that I was least sure of (along with the GPU).
Its a jungle of 19" LCDs out there...

/suras

 

[luminaris]

Those are 930B. I also have an AOpen 19 incher on the other side of the bench along with a 19 inch NEC 950 CRT which I use for working on and testing machines.

I also have an absolutely adorable Daewoo 12.1 on my garage bench I use.

 

[jokersgrin]

i myself did a 8 hour prime for each 100mhz in OC and a memtest and when I reached my target (2.6) I did a 24 hour torture overnight with several memtests afterward to ensure a stable OC. These opty's are damn good procs..love them

BTW Luminaris we almost have the same setup on our experts, exceptions are the HDD's and video cards (4xWD 74g raptors) & (XFX x2 7800GTX's)
oh and different case (CM stacker 810) had the 830 but didn't have enough 5.25 bays so I sold mine to a buddy for $100 and the 810 he just got :mrgreen: hes happy and i'm happy...good deal! Used the $100 toward another 810 for my opty 170!
Right now i'm thinking about that fx-60 just to play with it along with a phase changer cooling solution :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

 

[luminaris]

Good minds think alike

 

[jokersgrin]

:mrgreen: :tongue: :trophy:

 

[luminaris]

So how is everybody doing with their opteron overclocking? I'd like to get some results ..

 

[mfurse]

Nice thread for beginners and to get all those people into trying to overclock nice and slowly!

I bought a Opteron 170 0546XPMW and have it running at 2.6Ghz 1:1 (2.5-3-3-6-1t) stable as a rock at Stock Volts :twisted: (see My sig). Will go for 2.8 soon, as soon as I check my TCCD can run @ 280 happily at those timings!

The best comprehensive guide for DFI boards I have ever found is at: http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20823. This guide helps those with tweakable DFI boards to squeeze every last ounce of performance out and to help explain all the BIOS lingo that seems to perplex many people.

Matt

(Tip of the day - buy a decent power strip to plug all your PC gear into, I went from a nasty £1.99 4 socket jobby to a properly filtered and surge-protected £15 strip and my PSU seems to be more stable under load both on my multimeter and in BIOS readings - every little helps!)


--------------------------------
> Opteron 170 (0546XPMW) @ 2.6 GHz (1.35V, 29 Idle, 38 Load)
> Thermalright SI-120 w/AS5 & Antec 120mm Fan
> Geil Ultra-X PC4400 2x 512Mb (GLX1GB4400DC) @260Mhz (2.5-3-3-6 1T)
> DFI LanpartyUT nF4 SLI-D (BIOS 06/23/2005)
> 256Mb Proview nVidia 7800GT PCIe x16 (480/1200)
> 2x WD 320Gb RE SATA (RAID-0)
> LG 4163-B DVD+/-RW
> Akasa PaxPower 400W (15A and 14A 12V rails! )
> Antec Sonata I