Q6700 Overclock stuck at 3.0Ghz, high temps and instability... HELP!

[lofemofe]

Here are my system specs:
Intel Core2 Quad Q6700
EVGA nForce 680i Mobo 122-CK-NF68
4 GB Ram Mushkin HP2-6400
Scythe Ninja Plus Heatsink and Fan
Gigabyte 3DAurora Case - Has 2 Fans on back, 1 on front
EVGA GTX 570 SC

I've read on forums of Q6700 going up to 3.4 Ghz no problem. But I'm having problems getting anywhere near that. This is my first overclock, can someone give me some help?

The highest SOMEWHAT stable build I was able to get is:
9 X 333.5 Mhz = 3001 Mhz @ 1.265 Core Voltage. (Using a 10X multiplier to get up to that core speed was unstable)
Idle temps: 41 - 48 Degrees
Load temps: 67 - 76 Degrees (!!!!) w/ TjMax set @ 90 Degrees

Why are my load temps so high, even though my Core Voltage is no where near the max (1.5V)? I've tried going higher FSB but it requires even more voltage and I'm already high in temps.

 

[Sgt_dr_zoidberg]

Give up, it's your motherboard, nforce 680 are crap...
Most never get a q6600/6700 past 3.0Ghz. I've tried 3 of these, none of them would work higher than that.

Your load temps are still within acceptable range. You will (almost) never reach full load under normal usage anyway. Or not long anyway.

 

[senkasaw]

^ Yep and yep to that.

My old Q6600 is on a 680 and never got past 3.0 stable (still running strong at 3.0 even after almost 4 years though...not bad considering I almost NEVER turn the thing off... (it is my minecraft server now)). Yeah and those temps are fine...tho with that sink I would imagine a bit lower. I'm using a zalman somethingorother from 3 years ago and my load temps are around 50-60c mostly. But I have really good airflow in my old case and always keep my AC cranked up. So...yeah.

If 3.0 isn't completely stable I would dial it down just a tick and call it good...and not worry about crazy overclocks until you can get newer components.

 

[lofemofe]

Wow, didn't realize these 680i's were so bad. I'm quite disappointed now. What would would you guys recommend for a cheap mobo and processor upgrade?

 

[amuffin]

If you don't have a problem, don't upgrade.

 

[iam2thecrowe]

i thought the 680i's were ok. my 750i has my q6600 running pretty sweet.... its the 650i's that were crap, i used to have one. Your temps are high, then remove your heatsink and clean off the old thermal compound. get some Noctua nt-h1 compound (no time to cure and works better than as5 in my experience). clean all the dust from your current heatsink and fan, and make sure you have adequate exhaust fans in your case. I found with my particular motherboard there is an FSB hole, meaning between 1400-1540mhz fsb was totally unstable. above and below was ok..........dont listen to the nay sayers, you have more to try. thats overclocking for you, trial and error.

 

[rubix_1011]

I owned a P45, 780i and 790i and all were good overclockers. Had my Q6600 to 3.4 or 3.6 on all of them, stable.