Overclocking AMD Phenom II X4 955

[Gerard_14]

Hello!
So lately, I've really been into overclocking and as I watched videos on how to do it I am still too cautious and confused to adjust anything in Overdrive. Since a couple of days ago I got a pc case from my dad, which has more fans and a better airflow than my previous case, so temperatures should be better than before, I guess. I want to try overclocking my CPU, but I'm not even sure if I will get better results or if it's even possible at all, because I'm a complete noob at this stuff. It would be really appreciated if I got some help or advice with this, because I've been really interested this kinda stuff.
System specs:
Mobo: M4A78LT-M LE
GPU: MSI R7 370 2G
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 3,2Ghz
CPU cooler: Corsair H50 with added fan
RAM: DDR3 4gb
PSU: Corsair TX750W
HD: WD blue 1tb
Case: Cooler Master Cosmos 1000

I built this pc myself, which makes me extra cautious before I do anything stupid. I've seen a couple of threads regarding my cpu being succesfully overclocked to various results , but they are different systems, which I'm not really familiar with so I'm still kinda lost.

Thanks in advance for any input!

 

[greens]

That is a legendary Deneb!
You should be able to OC the HELL out of it. One of the most OCable chips out there man.

M4A78LT-M LE
Gonna hold you back a little. The 760g means your mobo propbably isn't all that well equipped for OCing. But should be able to bring your CPU up a bit.

Again, that is a Deneb, one of the most OCable chips AMD ever made. Take zero fear in OCing it.

 

[bgunner]

First what revision of the CPU do you have? You can find this using CPU-ID's CPU-Z.

the C2 revision requires more voltage than the C3 revision and will not reach as high and overclock. This is why we need to know this.

Second do not use AMD Overdrive to overclock, Use the Bios. 1.38V should get you to 3.5-3.8 depending on the revision and how good of an overclocker it is. Adjust just the multiplier when starting, use the FSB/base clock to fine tune only.

 

[greens]

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php/596023-Dolk-s-Guide-to-the-Phenom-II

With an H50 i don't see why you can't hit 4.0!
One of the best guides out there, got me into OCing. Absolutely fantastic read with notes for your specific CPU.

 

[Gerard_14]

wow, I was really scared to try anything, but I guess there was no point in that after all

@bgunner
The reason I tried using Overdrive, is because it seemed more accessible for a newbie like me. I'd Thought that once I knew a bit more about overclocking I could reverse the Overdrive changes and just start overclocking from the bios.

Here's the revision of my cpu (it's a C3):
https://gyazo.com/3301862b7cc0f4e669cd265c35b3db9b

@greens I'm gonna read it right now, thank you for sharing!

 

[bgunner]

Overdrive adds instability to the system and another point of the overclock to fail. While it seems like an easy way to overclock the downfalls to it are so significant that it actually can harm your overclock.

I have run across that OCing guide before but found some of it to be an exercise in futility. Not all of it needs to be be done the way he says. So just be warned. It does have a lot of good information in it though.

The C3 CPU you have will run at a lower voltage than the C2 and are usually a better overclocker. expect to be able to get 3.8-3.9GHz out of it fairly easy.

Use Both Intel Burn Test and Prime 95 to stress test the CPU, just not at the sametime, and Memtest86+ to test the ram if you adjust the FSB/Base clock or frequency multiplier of it.

 

[Gerard_14]

Overdrive adds instability ....... FSB/Base clock or frequency multiplier of it.

Thanks for your advice! I've read the guide and started to understand it a little bit. I will start testing it through the bios once I get new fan cables delivered. I'm missing 2 of my fans right now, so.

Also, I've noticed there are more guides and videos about my CPU being overclocked with speeds up to 4,1Ghz. Will my cpu be able to do exactly the same, or do I have to test out everything myself because each cpu is kinda different in their own way?

The guide says: 'If you have an unlocked or Black Edition Phenom II, you can skip the step: “Finding your FSB Max.” '
I am not sure I have the black edition, but it basically says that I can already get better results from my cpu by only enhancing the multiplier. This seems like a fairly easy task to do as I should be able to get a better performance in return

 

[Gerard_14]

I started overclocking today, without altering the voltage and to my surprise I was able to reach 3.7ghz (x18,5 multiplier) without even changing the FSB, nor the voltage! This is like the easiest thing ever and I didn't even really start overclocking yet. (still waiting on fan cables).
However, 1 thing occured to me. Initially, I enhanced the multiplier to reach 3,8ghz, did a few tests and prime95 and intel burn both told my system was stable. The reason I lowered it to 3.7 and in the end to 3.6, was because I got really weird fps drops while gaming. Everything seemed fine and I already noticed a slight improvement in fps in some games (10-20ish), but then, while I was playing csgo it randomly dropped my fps to 40fps, while usually I get 150-200 on max settings. It locked at 40 for a few secs and after that it went back to normal again. This occurance happened several times and I thought my system wasn't stable enough. I looked into it and every time this happened, the cpu temperatures were just fine (50degrees on load)(again, still missing some fans).
So then I thought about my MoBo.
It's not really an ideal Mobo, and it isn't really made to support my CPU. The site says it supports 95w, while my cpu is a 125w, so I fear the worst. I might never get a badass overclocked system with this Mobo making my pc unstable, am I right?

It seems for now 3,6Ghz works fine and, since this is already an improvement, I'm really happy I looked into overclocking. This is all very interesting stuff!

 

[bgunner]

The issue is the motherboard. As your already mentioned Asus says it supports up to 95W CPU's, well the issue lays in the VRM and mosfets getting to hot and not being designed to handle 125W+ output. When overclocked these components start to fail and can not sustain the current throughput causing the CPU to starve for electricity. This is causing the CPU to not perform properly under loads.

While adding Mosfet heat sinks would help some it will not stop the problem.

 

[Gerard_14]

The issue is the motherboard .............. not stop the problem.

Thanks for your replies! Today I got my fan cables delivered, which makes my pc run with some nice temperatures. Although i'm not gonna push my overclock any further, because the mobo makes it unstable, I do believe once I get a new Mobo I should be able to get a nice performance in the future (I should be able to reach 4,1ghz). Do you have any suggestions for good Mobo's that can handle overclock around 70-95 euros?

Again thanks for the replies, I learned quite a lot and I'm happy to see my pc running better than ever.

 

[bgunner]

Don't expect to get much over 4.0 GHz with that chip. The 955's usually top out around 3.9 or so, depending on how good the chip is at overclocking (Silicon Lottery). The 965's and above (970, 975,980's) have a hard time getting over 4.05 GHz stable. While some can get over this and be stable those are rare and some of the best Deneb chips.

What country are you located in? Not all motherboards are available in all areas.

 

[Gerard_14]

Don't expect to get much ............. are available in all areas.

I am living in the Netherlands, so I believe I should be able to get a decent variety of mobo's.
Btw, I know a guy who has an ASRock 890GX Extreme 3, which he's selling for 40-45 euro. I usually don't buy used hardware, but he barely used it, since he kinda had it laying around as backup, in case he ever needed it.
You think I should do it?

If i can reach 3,9ghz, then i would already be very happy!
I mean I have this processor for 5-6 years now, and being able to get even a slightly better performance out of it after all this time is just amazing. always thought it was performing really good already

 

[bgunner]

The ASRock Extreme 3 motherboards are entry level overclocking motherboards is it should work fine if you choose to save some money by going that way. If not have a view of these new motherboards:
http://www.newegg.com/global/nl/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128651
http://www.newegg.com/global/nl/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157688

Personally out of these new boards I would go with the ASRock board (970A-G/3.1) since it has all of the OCing features needed plus has almost all of the new technology on it to tide you over for quite a while. These selections are from Newegg and from the Netherlands so you wont have an issue getting them.

 

[Gerard_14]

The ASRock Extreme ............. no issue getting them.

That asrock 970 looks amazing. I was gonna go with that one, untill my neighbour who owns a small pc shop presented me this MSi 970 gaming mobo, which he's selling for 65 euros. He bought it a year ago for his son, but his son bought himself a new one.
I gotta say, I'm in love with this msi mobo. The layout is sick and I'm definately considering buying it, untill someone tells me there's something really wrong with it.
If I won't make that deal I'm gonna go with that asrock 970, so guess I'll be overclocking at the start of a new year

 

[bgunner]

Well good luck with which ever way you choose to go.

 

[Gerard_14]

Well good luck with which ever way you choose to go.

Thank you, you've been a great help! I might be asking more questions later, as I will maybe encounter new problems once I start overclocking. At least if that's okay with you. If everything goes fine I will post the results for whoever is interested

 

[bgunner]

If you run into issues with Overclocking start a new post in the Overclocking section of these forums. Many of us have OCed the Phenom II's before and will be happy to try to assist you with your overclocking needs.

Rules of thumb with the Phenom II's, all rules have exceptions though : 1. try to keep the CPU Vcore voltage under 1.50V Air Cooled but with proper cooling, Liquid, you can push 1.55V before damaging the CPU.
2. Try to keep the Core temperature under 50°C. Around this temperature is where the CPU starts to become unstable. My 965be can go to 55°C before it becomes unstable so just keep an eye on the temps.
3. CPU temp. Keep it under 62°C as this is where damage can start to occur over this. While the MAX temperature is 72°C it has been my experience this is around when the CPU also becomes unstable due to heat.
4. Hyper-Transport frequency: This will get you more performance also so be sure to up this and stress test to ensure stability. Hyper-Transport is the connection between the CPU and the North-Bridge. Because most things flow through the North-Bridge speeding up this connection allows for faster data transfer rates allowing for them to be processed quicker and sent back quicker. The max frequency will depend on the board and the CPU but usually the Phenom II's will hit 2400 MHz easily some may even get around 2600 MHz where as stock is 2000 MHz.

5. And the biggest of them all: Do Not Skimp Out On Stress Testing! This takes quite a while to do but cheating and not fully testing can lead to an unstable system with crashes. The issue is it is time consuming but you want instant gratification but it just does not work that way doing this.