...This discussion is feeling rather one sided. Please change that.
Could you post your current configuration? Today is turning out to be a slow-brain day for me and I'm getting a little lost in the revisions.
General thoughts on overclocking:
I have been overclocking since I turned a Pentium 125 into a Pentium 166 via a jumper change. In the days of slow CPU's you could boost your computer's value by hundreds of dollars relatively easily.
Overclocking today seems to fall into two major categories:
1) Serious Overclocker: The hobbyist who is interested in boosting performance to the highest level. Like a stock car fanatic, spending extra money to achieve this goal is all part of the game. When you add up what folks spend on high-performance fans, cases, watercooling, etc, they could probably have just paid for a faster CPU. The key word is "hobby" - it's a lot of fun doing it. You could spend the same money perfecting your golf game or collecting stamps, you just have more fun juicing up your computer.
2) Casual Overclocker: Buys quality parts, but doesn't mortgage the farm to do so. Pushes what they have as far as they can without going to extremes. I have an AXP 1700+ running at 2000+ speeds with the stock heat sink in an unremarkable case and mediocre memory. It was a free upgrade. If it had topped out at a somewhat lower speed (or never gone beyond its stock rating), so what? Maybe someday I'll buy a $40 heatsink, splurge on better fans, and stick the whole works in a better case. Chances are, I'll spend that money on a whole new system.
For starting out, especially on a budget, I'd recommend the Casual OC'er route. You'll learn the basics and can take the money you save and buy a better video card, more memory, etc. If money is tight now, take a look at where you expect to be financially in a few years and build a system to bridge the gap between now and then.
0
Geeky1University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
In terms of cooling, you're going to need basically 50-60cfm of airflow through a case (so 50-60cfm in, and another 50-60cfm out) to keep a modern system relatively happy.
What's your budget, by the way?
That sounds noisy. Is it really nessecary. I'm not really sure about my budget but i know that it doesn't support to much.
I meant the current config of his anticipated new system.
Yes forget about the rig in my sig. When i get a new one i'm planning to forget it sooner then a protein folds. You wanted to know my config well here it comes.
Case: Chieftec DX-01B-D-U
Mobo: Asus A7N8X-E Deluxe
Ram: Crucial PC3200 DDR-DIMM 512MB
Cpu: AMD AthlonTM XP 2500+ (45W) MOBILE
Vidcard: Sapphire Radeon 9800 Atlantis PRO 128MB Ultimate Edition
Heatsink: SLK-947U, Socket A/478
Noise Killer sound dampening kit for Chieftec DX
80mm fan filters
Antec True Power 430W or fsp 350
cpufan: 80mm Panaflo M1A or enermax 80mm
Cpu: AMD AthlonTM XP 2500+ (45W) MOBILE
chassifan: the AVC i spoke of earlier plus whatever more would be needed as long as it's not to noicy.
I've come to the conclusion that the ram can be oc:d but if i can i much rather stick to the multiplier and leave the ram alone. So does anyone know the highest multi for that mobo. I checked the manual but it didn't say. If getting a high oc requiers more expensive ram i will stick with crucial and choose a lower oc.
Ram: Crucial PC3200 DDR-DIMM 512MB
...
I've come to the conclusion that the ram can be oc:d but if i can i much rather stick to the multiplier and leave the ram alone...If getting a high oc requiers more expensive ram i will stick with crucial and choose a lower oc.
PC3200 Ram will handle up to a 400MHz FSB with no overclocking of the memory. Your Barton CPU is stock at 333MHz FSB.
You will have plenty of room to play around with the FSB, at least as far as the memory goes.
Divide the PCxxxx number by 8 to determine its rated FSB maximum:
Geeky1University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
edited March 2004
Well, it depends. The Antec SLK-3700AMB, 3700BQE, and the Sonata will all take 120mm fans. They're also crap cases for overclocking. They do all right with stock systems, but they don't have good enough cooling for overclocking.
If you can find that one in Sweden, I'd probably go for it.
As for fans; Papst is just about the best you can get. They're also expensive as hell, but those "Made in Germany" stickers are expensive.
3 of these papst fans in that LiteOn case would be pretty quiet, and you could use a rheobus to turn them down even more if you wanted to, and you'd still probably have acceptable cooling http://www.chillblast.com/customer/product.php?productid=153
Also, go for a Radeon card with the ArcticCooler VGA cooler thing on it, or put one on. Passively cooling the radeon (like the Zalman does) is not a good idea in a case with little airflow.
Edit
How would a Chieftec BX-03B-B-B be. It seems to have a pretty weird airflow pattern.
And how about a Zalman ZM-OP1 on the vidcard. That would make it active?
Another edit
Case: Antec Performance Plus 1080AMG
Additional case fans. The AVC plus a Antec Led in the front.
I doubt that the case comes with papst fans so i'll forget about a ultra silent rig and go with that. I say antec since then i don't have to replace the stock psu. But what color should i choose for fan. There are so many and i cant find a fan without leds
Vidcard: the sapphire ultra edition + Zalman ZM-OP1
cpufan: Any ideas. Cant find any tt smartfan.
Ok this is getting out of hand and i've changed my mind on oc:ing. I'm going back to jsut silence. Here's my revised specs:
cpu: 2800+ Non mobile perhaps even a 2500+
case: Antec Sonata
SLK-947U With a 80mm Panaflo M1A. Could a 80mm papst work as well or would it get to hot.
An additional 120mm papst casefan
Is there some other cpucooler that would be quiet yet be slightly cheaper than the slk. I don't mind the price but if i can find something else i could go with that as long as it's silent.
I've been thinking. After spending some time over at silent pc review i want to know if this rig will need some silencing. If so what would be best. Dampening or fancontrollers. Controllers are expensive but so is dampening so price isn't a factor.
What i've been thinking is that controllers might make the rig to warm since they slow down fans. Most of the articles i've read on SPCR says that cpus rarely gets used 100 % but that's not true for folding so while fancontrollers might be a good idea in general they're not if folding is done. I'll dive into their forums and see if i find anything but i want your opinions too.
Well as far as my last post goes i've already made a separate thread about it so on to something else i've been wondering. I have heard some stories of sata cables falling of or at least comming loose. How big a risk is it. Should i consider pata untill the issue has been rectified or stick with sata. I know of WD:s secure connect but though that might be interesting their noicelevel isn't.
Edit
As far as the specs go, overclockers.se now have a mobile athlon 2400+ so i'll be ordering that. Also i changed cpufan to a 92mm papst. I still don't know when i'll get a chance to actually order something but hopefully i'll find a job soon so i get some cash. Untill then my rig is racing through those tinkers so fast it's nuts.:D
Changes to what we've talked about. Well i added a Netgear DG834SWE ADSL Firewall Router and switched cpu to an Athlon Xp 2800+. Overclockers never seemed to have the mobile in stock so i skipped it. OH no. Just checked and they now have a 2500 xp-m in stock. And i've already ordered a cpu but not from them. :banghead: :banghead: Oh well.
Since i'm switching all my movies over to dvd i ordered several of them. Here's what: DEEP IMPACT, TRON Col.ED, JASON X (prolly a mistake), IRON GIANT, VOLCANO,The mumie returns, The ODYSSEY, Scream 1 and 2 and last but not least MONKEY BONE. All together 900 sek or $116,5 for the movies. That's quite cheap. It's good to like older movies sometimes.
The cost of all orders including shipping was 21.689 sek or $2807. But in that cost are about 3000 sek of software as well as 2000 sek for an ups (APC Back RS 800) and the movies. What i did not order were the speakers and dvdplayer. I wanted to keep the cost down and though i really would like to hear movies in surround i want a new rig more and getting the speakers would mean more waiting. Without speakers a dvdplayer aren't of much use.
So soon my folding will get a ubernice boost but untill then this rig will still be folding away and should finish a wu in a few hours.
I may start looking over my shoulder for you soon enough... I hope a 2800+ won't outfold my 2.8C! Lol I hope you don't get too many tinkers! Congrats on your new system! Hope it comes in soon, some competition is always welcome. No one behind me has been determined as a threat here... yet.
EDIT: Wow! What is SFHS? They crept up behind me out of nowhere! They'll be past me by the end of the day according to EOC... That won't be the case for you, Eyes!
Comments
General thoughts on overclocking:
I have been overclocking since I turned a Pentium 125 into a Pentium 166 via a jumper change. In the days of slow CPU's you could boost your computer's value by hundreds of dollars relatively easily.
Overclocking today seems to fall into two major categories:
1) Serious Overclocker: The hobbyist who is interested in boosting performance to the highest level. Like a stock car fanatic, spending extra money to achieve this goal is all part of the game. When you add up what folks spend on high-performance fans, cases, watercooling, etc, they could probably have just paid for a faster CPU. The key word is "hobby" - it's a lot of fun doing it. You could spend the same money perfecting your golf game or collecting stamps, you just have more fun juicing up your computer.
2) Casual Overclocker: Buys quality parts, but doesn't mortgage the farm to do so. Pushes what they have as far as they can without going to extremes. I have an AXP 1700+ running at 2000+ speeds with the stock heat sink in an unremarkable case and mediocre memory. It was a free upgrade. If it had topped out at a somewhat lower speed (or never gone beyond its stock rating), so what? Maybe someday I'll buy a $40 heatsink, splurge on better fans, and stick the whole works in a better case. Chances are, I'll spend that money on a whole new system.
For starting out, especially on a budget, I'd recommend the Casual OC'er route. You'll learn the basics and can take the money you save and buy a better video card, more memory, etc. If money is tight now, take a look at where you expect to be financially in a few years and build a system to bridge the gap between now and then.
Flint
That sounds noisy. Is it really nessecary. I'm not really sure about my budget but i know that it doesn't support to much.
So that wouldn't oc the ram. I would like to avoid that if i can.
Yes forget about the rig in my sig. When i get a new one i'm planning to forget it sooner then a protein folds.
Case: Chieftec DX-01B-D-U
Mobo: Asus A7N8X-E Deluxe
Ram: Crucial PC3200 DDR-DIMM 512MB
Cpu: AMD AthlonTM XP 2500+ (45W) MOBILE
Vidcard: Sapphire Radeon 9800 Atlantis PRO 128MB Ultimate Edition
Heatsink: SLK-947U, Socket A/478
Noise Killer sound dampening kit for Chieftec DX
80mm fan filters
Antec True Power 430W or fsp 350
cpufan: 80mm Panaflo M1A or enermax 80mm
Cpu: AMD AthlonTM XP 2500+ (45W) MOBILE
chassifan: the AVC i spoke of earlier plus whatever more would be needed as long as it's not to noicy.
I've come to the conclusion that the ram can be oc:d but if i can i much rather stick to the multiplier and leave the ram alone. So does anyone know the highest multi for that mobo. I checked the manual but it didn't say. If getting a high oc requiers more expensive ram i will stick with crucial and choose a lower oc.
You will have plenty of room to play around with the FSB, at least as far as the memory goes.
Divide the PCxxxx number by 8 to determine its rated FSB maximum:
PC3200 = 400MHz FSB
PC2700 = 333MHz FSB
PC2400 = 300MHz FSB
PC2100 = 266MHz FSB
Thanks for the input prof.
So which do you recommend. And no lian lis please. They cost to much. Or perhaps i should go with a fulltower.
This case actually looks like it has a lot of potential, especially if you're willing to cut out the fan grills.
http://www.outsideloop.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=olcomp&Product_Code=FS020-NPS&Category_Code=liteon
If you can find that one in Sweden, I'd probably go for it.
As for fans; Papst is just about the best you can get. They're also expensive as hell, but those "Made in Germany" stickers are expensive.
3 of these papst fans in that LiteOn case would be pretty quiet, and you could use a rheobus to turn them down even more if you wanted to, and you'd still probably have acceptable cooling
http://www.chillblast.com/customer/product.php?productid=153
Also, go for a Radeon card with the ArcticCooler VGA cooler thing on it, or put one on. Passively cooling the radeon (like the Zalman does) is not a good idea in a case with little airflow.
Edit
How would a Chieftec BX-03B-B-B be. It seems to have a pretty weird airflow pattern.
And how about a Zalman ZM-OP1 on the vidcard. That would make it active?
Another edit
Case: Antec Performance Plus 1080AMG
Additional case fans. The AVC plus a Antec Led in the front.
I doubt that the case comes with papst fans so i'll forget about a ultra silent rig and go with that. I say antec since then i don't have to replace the stock psu. But what color should i choose for fan. There are so many and i cant find a fan without leds
Vidcard: the sapphire ultra edition + Zalman ZM-OP1
cpufan: Any ideas. Cant find any tt smartfan.
So geeky would this be enough airflow.
cpu: 2800+ Non mobile perhaps even a 2500+
case: Antec Sonata
SLK-947U With a 80mm Panaflo M1A. Could a 80mm papst work as well or would it get to hot.
An additional 120mm papst casefan
Is there some other cpucooler that would be quiet yet be slightly cheaper than the slk. I don't mind the price but if i can find something else i could go with that as long as it's silent.
Does this mean you ordered the goodies?
What i've been thinking is that controllers might make the rig to warm since they slow down fans. Most of the articles i've read on SPCR says that cpus rarely gets used 100 % but that's not true for folding so while fancontrollers might be a good idea in general they're not if folding is done. I'll dive into their forums and see if i find anything but i want your opinions too.
Edit
As far as the specs go, overclockers.se now have a mobile athlon 2400+ so i'll be ordering that. Also i changed cpufan to a 92mm papst. I still don't know when i'll get a chance to actually order something but hopefully i'll find a job soon so i get some cash. Untill then my rig is racing through those tinkers so fast it's nuts.:D
Changes to what we've talked about. Well i added a Netgear DG834SWE ADSL Firewall Router and switched cpu to an Athlon Xp 2800+. Overclockers never seemed to have the mobile in stock so i skipped it. OH no. Just checked and they now have a 2500 xp-m in stock. And i've already ordered a cpu but not from them. :banghead: :banghead:
Since i'm switching all my movies over to dvd i ordered several of them. Here's what: DEEP IMPACT, TRON Col.ED, JASON X (prolly a mistake), IRON GIANT, VOLCANO,The mumie returns, The ODYSSEY, Scream 1 and 2 and last but not least MONKEY BONE. All together 900 sek or $116,5 for the movies. That's quite cheap. It's good to like older movies sometimes.
The cost of all orders including shipping was 21.689 sek or $2807. But in that cost are about 3000 sek of software as well as 2000 sek for an ups (APC Back RS 800) and the movies. What i did not order were the speakers and dvdplayer. I wanted to keep the cost down and though i really would like to hear movies in surround i want a new rig more and getting the speakers would mean more waiting. Without speakers a dvdplayer aren't of much use.
So soon my folding will get a ubernice boost but untill then this rig will still be folding away and should finish a wu in a few hours.
Congrats on taking such a huge step up. I can't wait to hear how it goes. Good luck!
:sweflag:
BTW the new wu has arrived. 37 points on 40 frames. WOOt this is twice the points of the last one. Gr81 i meant it when i said don't count me out yet.
I may start looking over my shoulder for you soon enough... I hope a 2800+ won't outfold my 2.8C! Lol I hope you don't get too many tinkers! Congrats on your new system! Hope it comes in soon, some competition is always welcome.
EDIT: Wow! What is SFHS? They crept up behind me out of nowhere! They'll be past me by the end of the day according to EOC... That won't be the case for you, Eyes!