Q9450 ...Underclocked?

[dashbarron]

So I've got a new Q9450 running, rated at 2.66GHZ. I run CPU-Z a few days after I have most of my programs installed, and I got around to it, and something seems off.

The core speed it lists is a mere 2000 MHZ? Multiplier is at 6, according to CPU-Z. I dont use this program a lot, but it seems my CPU has been ...underclocked? Voltage jumps from 1.128 - 1.136 - 1.144. Is this correct? I've got an EVGA 780I board. Is it as simple as cranking the multiplier up to 8 to get the correct, 2.66GHZ speed?

I've got a Hyper 212 Coolermaster on it, and I've seen reports of similar processors being crnaked to 3.86, though I'm not interested in pushing it that far.

 

[dashbarron]

Hmmmm... or is this possibly the new power-save feature of Intel, and it throttles itself down?

 

[windie]

Hmmmm... or is this possibly the new power-save feature of Intel, and it throttles itself down?

yes, except its not new, its been around. your fine dont worry

 

[mosdapwn]

start any heavy program or run any stability test , and watch the core speed . Even my Q6600 brings the multiplier down to 6 (from 9) to save power and lower temps at idle. If the speed doesn't change , then the multiplier is set at 6 in the bios, crank it up to 8 so you'd get your 2.66Ghz (333*8)

 

[dagger]

If you don't overclock, it's good as is. But if you overclock even a little bit, turn the throttling off or it will cause problems.

 

[Thanatos421]

That's not always true dagger. Try your OC with it enabled first. Why not really? It will save you some money. I have Speedstep enabled on my OC and haven't had a single issue. If you notice strange problems when you put your CPU under load, then try disabling it. Or, get to the OC you want with it disabled and enable it for a bit to see if it causes instability. If not, leave it on. It is actually a very nice feature.

 

[dashbarron]

That's really interesting, I would of never thought to leave it on while overclocking. I'd have to look into the voltage increase increments and try it out some lazy summer day.

 

[Evilonigiri]

That's not always true dagger. Try your OC with it enabled first. Why not really? It will save you some money. I have Speedstep enabled on my OC and haven't had a single issue. If you notice strange problems when you put your CPU under load, then try disabling it. Or, get to the OC you want with it disabled and enable it for a bit to see if it causes instability. If not, leave it on. It is actually a very nice feature.

You should always turn Speedstep off. If your pc is unstable, what caused it? Speedstep? Or cpu/ram/motherboard? We don't need more variables when OCing, so it's best to leave it off when OCing. After you find your pc stable, it's a great idea to turn it on and see if the pc is stable.

 

[Thanatos421]

Very good point. Kinda why I second guessed myself in my own post I guess I could have edited it instead