Overclocking AMD Phenom II x4 840 :D

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ryukcro

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Dec 3, 2013
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Hey there, everyone :)

So, as the title already says, I am looking for some help to OC my Phenom CPU. I have only a stock cooler on it, so I guess that it isn't that smart to do it anyways. Furthermore, I saw that it is possible to unlock the L3 cache, but I can't find it anywhere in BIOS, so I guess I am using a Propus chip. By the way, there is an option in my BIOS to Auto-OC my cpu, what do you think about that and is it possible that my CPU bottlenecks my R9 270X?

p.s. I have tried to overclock my GPU just a little bit in the AMD Overdrive in the Catalyst Control Center and ran the Valley Benchmark. It was running pretty smooth, a bit better, temps were stable and than a yellow screen showed. Just a yellow striped screen, although the song in the benchmark was still running. Any ideas?

Thanks in advance :)

MOBO: ASRock 870 extreme3
CPU: AMD Phenom II x4 840
GPU: HIS Radeon R9 270X
PSU: Mastercase 600W
RAM: 8gb 1333MHz
 
Solution
plywrlw
An AMD Fx build will set you back this much

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor (£96.96 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.91 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard (£94.99 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £216.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-14 21:30 BST+0100

and this is an i7 build. Big difference as you can see. You could cut costs a little by going for a non-refresh, non over-clockable i7 like the 4770

PCPartPicker part list / Price...
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To be honest I wouldn't overclock at all with your power supply. It's a brand I've never heard of so is probably loaded with cheap parts and really only supplies 420W to the 12V rail.

There will be some bottlenecking with the R9 270X but you're right, you won't get much overclock on the stock cooler anyway. Bottlenecking isn't the end of the world. Why not save up some money and invest in a new PSU, CPU and motherboard? At the very least, save up for a power supply like the XFX 550W or Seasonic 620W models and an aftermarket cooler.
 
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Yeah, well, I was kinda broke so I bought a PSU that was the cheapest and I needed one because of my GPU. I know that I should not buy cheap PC parts, better get more money and buy something good, but I was desperate 😀

I was thinking about saving some money for a new Motherboard and CPU, so what do you think about a AMD FX-8350 and the Asus Sabertooth 990FX? Do you have any better suggestions?
 
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Those are both fantastic parts but only in conjunction with a much better PSU like this one http://pcpartpicker.com/part/rosewill-power-supply-capstone650m

Also, don't forget an aftermarket cooler for the FX, the stock ones suck. A Coolermaster Hyper 212 evo will do nicely.

*EDIT Argh PCPartpicker had limited me to Amazon only again, why must it do that, note to self; clear cookies on work PC!

This is a fabulous PSU for only $66.66 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-110b20750vr

It also comes in Gold rated for a much higher price but you don't need gold 750W for your machine
 
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Ohh, nice 😀 I didn't even know about Rosewill a week ago when I bought a new PC Case... So, Rosewill or EVGA? Thanks for the suggestions :)
Although, I am from Ireland so I won't be able to buy it from Newegg, going to check for it on Amazon...

Anyways, would you rather go with those parts and the AMD CPU or something from Intel? I mostly need it for gaming, although I do video editing and rendering as well.
Sorry for all the questions :/
 
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Ah if you're in Ireland you won't be able to get a Rosewill Capstone. We can't get them over here in Europe 🙁. The price differences mean a totally different PSU might be the best choice. I'll look at Amazon.co.uk and get back to you.

If you can afford it an i7 build would be very nice but you do pay a lot extra, an FX 8320 or 8350 will be able to meet your needs well too.

I'll get back to you in a few minutes.
 
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An AMD Fx build will set you back this much

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor (£96.96 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.91 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard (£94.99 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £216.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-14 21:30 BST+0100

and this is an i7 build. Big difference as you can see. You could cut costs a little by going for a non-refresh, non over-clockable i7 like the 4770

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor (£236.34 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.91 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£101.52 @ Aria PC)
Total: £362.77
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-14 21:35 BST+0100

Sorry the prices are in ££ and not Euros but you get the idea!
 
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Solution


OP, because of these two builds, here are my suggestions:

Looking for the best bang for your buck? Get the AMD build.
Looking for a cooler CPU and have the money? Get the Intel build.
 
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Plywrlw, thanks so much for your effort, really helped me out a lot here :)
If I will have the right money I might go with the Intel, because why the hell not 😀
This AM3+ Motherboard is even a bit cheaper than the Asus Sabertooth 990FX, but looks pretty decent as well... About the PSU, what is the difference between Bronze and Gold? Is Bronze still a decent PSU or should I really save up a bit more and get the Gold?

Thanks again, mate.
 
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No problem :) Glad I've helped! There is no great quality difference in Bronze and Gold. The gold ones do often have more modern designs but you can get low ripple (a good thing) and great voltage regulation on a bronze. The main difference is that gold uses less electricity. For me the difference is not worth the extra cost as I have an Intel i5 that doesn't use much power and a HD 7950 that again isn't that demanding. Electricity is not my worry, the cost of parts is!!
 
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I will probably stick with the XFX since it is a good brand and 650W should be more than enough 😀
I think that my rig should be okay for everything, gaming and editing/rendering, with the R9 270X, 8gb memory and the FX-8350... Finally I will have a good PC ^^
Well, the HD 7950 is actually a R9 280 if I am correct, maybe a bit slower, which is still a really good GPU 😀

Thanks again, mate, for all your effort! Really appreciate it :)
 
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