P5Q-E & E8400 overclock n00b

hi there,
I just wanted some help getting my e8400 to 4.5Ghz, i can run it 24/7 at 4.0 but that isnt enough! :p:
trouble is, i'm a bit of a noob when it comes to all these extra settings like FSB termination voltage, CPU GTL etc. etc. so i just wondered if there was anyone else with the same setup that got theirs to 4.5
atm its 450x9 @ 1.4v BIOS and 1.384v in reality Everest says.
even if you dnt have the same setup, help on overclocking would be appreciated! :shrug:

btw my cpu has a triple rad all to itself so cooling is not much of a prob. 40 degrees tops running orthos for hours and at half fan speed :up:

thanks! :D

use 1406 bios : try to get 500FSB stable first with 8 multi... then try 8.5 multi and so on... 4.5Ghz 24.7 stable might need beefy voltages as you are already on 1.4ish at just 4Ghz

JumperFree Configuration Settings
AI Overclock tuner: AUTO
CPU Ratio Setting: 8
FSB Strap to North Bridge: AUTO
FSB Frequency: 500
PCI-E Frequency: 101
DRAM Frequency: 1000
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A1: AUTO
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A2: AUTO
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B1: AUTO
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B2: AUTO
DRAM Timing Control: MANUAL

1st Information :

CAS# Latency: 5
DRAM RAS# to CAS# Delay: 5
DRAM RAS# Precharge: 5
DRAM RAS# Activate to Precharge: 15
RAS# to RAS# Delay : AUTO
Row Refresh Cycle Time: 55

DRAM Static Read Control: Disabled
DRAM Read Training: AUTO
MEM. OC Charger: AUTO
AI Clock Twister: AUTO
AI Transaction Booster : AUTO

CPU Voltage: 1.4
CPU GTL Voltage Reference (0/2): AUTO
CPU GTL Voltage Reference (1/3): AUTO
CPU PLL Voltage: 1.56 --> try to go as low as possible for 4Ghz
FSB Termination Voltage: 1.26 --> try to go as low as possible for 4Ghz
DRAM Voltage: --> depends on ya required ram voltage
NB Voltage: 1.26
NB GTL Reference: AUTO
SBridge Voltage: AUTO
PCIE SATA Voltage: AUTO

Load Line Calibration: Enabled
CPU Spread Spectrum: Disabled
PCIE Spread Spectrum: Disabled
CPU Clock Skew : AUTO
NB Clock Skew : AUTO
CME : COMPATIBLE

Advance CPU Settings
CPU Ratio Setting: Manual
CPU VID: Default
C1E Suppport: Disabled
Max CPUID Value Limit: Disabled
Intel® Virtualization Tech: Disabled
Vanderpool Technology: Disabled
CPU TM Function: Disabled
Execute Disable Bit: Disabled

I run 4.25Ghz daily, for 4.5 I need to push FSB Term over 1.3 to regain stability...

thanks so much for the reply - ultra helpful :)
you can add me to your lovely list soon!

hi,
still no luck getting my e8400@4.5 :(
I lowered the multi to 6 and increased fsb to 480 so that cpu was underclocked but ram was overclocked. this resulted in errors in orthos in the blend, and ram modes. my ram stock voltage is 1.8v, upped to 1.86 but still no luck.:mad: is this a big enough overclock? my ram is rated for 800mhz and was running at ~1000mhz . :shrug:

pleeeease can someone help me get to 4.5ghz with my e8400 i know it can be done!

which ram do you have in fact ? did you try loose timings etc 6-6-6-18 instead of 5-5-5-15...

hi again.
I have 4gb of GEIL black dragon 800mhz. I beleive the timings are 5-5-5 atm havent tried 6-6-6 yet. thanks for all your help. still not broken 4.3 :(

okay tried that, upped various voltages to see if anything made a difference. still nothing. I think i'm gonna have to accept it at 4.0 . :( thanks anyway. :up:

Well try a bit higher voltages on your RAM. I think 2,3 should be max safe... We just tested this board out on dice with my friend this weekend and we managed to get 590FSB.

Also you can lower the RAM multi. NB voltage to 1,4 should be ok, we tested on 1,46-1,48.

Also try tweaking the GTL Ref. The first one is more important, we got E7300 to 5350Mhz with GTLs set to 0,670/0,670 and FSB termination voltage around 1,4.

Sb voltage max 1,3, i would try 1,2 in your case

I also got an P5Q-E and a E8400, I hope it's OK to "hi-jack" that thread?!?!
I have the following settings:

JumperFree Configuration Settings
AI Overclock tuner: AUTO
CPU Ratio Setting: 8
FSB Strap to North Bridge: 400
FSB Frequency: 533
PCI-E Frequency: 101
DRAM Frequency: 1066
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A1: AUTO
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A2: AUTO
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B1: AUTO
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B2: AUTO
DRAM Timing Control: MANUAL

1st Information :

CAS# Latency: 5
DRAM RAS# to CAS# Delay: 5
DRAM RAS# Precharge: 5
DRAM RAS# Activate to Precharge: 15
RAS# to RAS# Delay : AUTO
Row Refresh Cycle Time: 55

DRAM Static Read Control: Disabled
DRAM Read Training: AUTO
MEM. OC Charger: AUTO
AI Clock Twister: AUTO
AI Transaction Booster : AUTO

CPU Voltage: 1.38125
CPU GTL Voltage Reference (0/2): AUTO
CPU GTL Voltage Reference (1/3): AUTO
CPU PLL Voltage: 1.56
FSB Termination Voltage: 1.28
DRAM Voltage: 2.12
NB Voltage: 1.30
NB GTL Reference: 0.590
SBridge Voltage: 1.1
PCIE SATA Voltage: 1.50

Load Line Calibration: Disabled
CPU Spread Spectrum: Disabled
PCIE Spread Spectrum: Disabled
CPU Clock Skew : AUTO
NB Clock Skew : AUTO
CME : COMPATIBLE => don't have this setting, I'm on BIOS 0803,is that new in one of the newer BIOSes?


Well, any hints on what settings I should/could change? I have an Orthos "blend" test running right now, I wasn't able to get this blend test stable, but I played around with the settings a little bit, and I changed the NB Voltage anywhere from 1,26 to 1,40 => made no difference
So I started playing around with FSB Termination Voltage, and it seems that ONLY 1,28 Volt is working?!?! That's quite strange, isn't it?? Or is it that only THAT one setting works??

And how about those GTLs?? I found out that NB GTL Reference works best when set to 0.590, all other values are a "no go", and I think I tried EVERY value, some won't even post, but a lot will get me into windows just fine, but Orthos blend stops after a few seconds...

So, to sum my questions up:

1.: Is FSB Termination Voltage very "sensitive" to my overclock?? I can set it to 1.22 Volt and Orthos Small FFTs will run just fine at the same other settings, but Orthos Blend will fail after a few seconds..

2.: How about the GTL settings (NB and CPU), if e.g. one setting gets me into windows but Orthos crashes after a few seconds, is it quite possible the one value (0.05) up or down will be more stable? Or could it be a whole different setting, e.g. 0.2 up/down??

I just flashed a mates P5Q Deluxe with 1611 bios this afternoon and its quite an improvement over 1406. CPU parameter recall actually works most of the time now, and DRAM Read Training isn't as aggressive now it seems as it doesn't result in frequent memory read errors anymore provided you use it sanely ;D

Memory latency seems a little more consistent across the board as well, and what surprised me was that I could run low 54ns on 12:10 divider and 473mhz FSB without too much difficulty as I came across with every other bios I've used on it. Still had issues with excessive jitter and persistent fatal bus error hard locks when going above 473FSB on the Q6600 the system has, but that's probably not something a bios update will ever fix.

Heres the settings I used for a Q6600 G0, though I dont know whether they willbe of much help. I know this system back to front as I've spent too many hours fixing it every month or so the chipset suffers from PMS.

1135Mhz memory, 473Mhz FSB, CPU 7x multi (3310mhz), GSKILL PI 8800 2x2GB 5-5-5-15 kit in slots A2/B2.
A1 fine delay = 6T, A2 fine delay = 2T, B1 fine delay = 2T, B2 fine delay = 4T
P45 appears to set dram skew delay adjustments in another register than the X38/X48 do, but those values Everest reads are the persistent clock skew delay offsets. Intel publically denies that they exist or what they actually do! There are other similar skew timings in the registers they are read from, and furthermore the following 1Fh-2Fh range of registers for both CHA and CHB offset addresses :D. 1T is roughly equivalent to 50PS in BCLKs or along those lines.

AI Overclock tuner: AUTO
CPU Ratio Setting: 7
FSB Strap to North Bridge: 333Mhz
FSB Frequency: 473
PCI-E Frequency: 103
DRAM Frequency: 1135
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A1: Advance 150ps
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A2: Delay 100ps
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B1: Delay 50ps
DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B2: Advance 50ps
DRAM Timing Control: MANUAL

1st Information :

CAS# Latency: 5
DRAM RAS# to CAS# Delay: 5
DRAM RAS# Precharge: 5
DRAM RAS# Activate to Precharge: 16
RAS# to RAS# Delay : 3
Row Refresh Cycle Time: 70
Write Recovery Time: 7
Read to Precharge Time: 3

2nd Information :

READ to WRITE Delay (S/D): 8
Write to Read Delay (S): 4
WRITE to READ Delay (D): 5
READ to READ Delay (S): 4
READ to READ Delay (D): 6
WRITE to WRITE Delay (S): 4
WRITE to WRITE Delay (D): 6

3rd Information :

WRITE to PRE Delay: 14
READ to PRE Delay: 5
PRE to PRE Delay: 1
ALL PRE to ACT Delay: 6
ALL PRE to REF Delay: 6
DRAM Static Read Control: Enabled
DRAM Read Training: Enabled
MEM. OC Charger: Disabled
AI Clock Twister: Moderate
AI Transaction Booster: Manual
Common Performance Level 9
Pull-In of CHA PH1: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHA PH2: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHA PH3: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHA PH4: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHA PH5: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHB PH1: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHB PH2: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHB PH3: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHB PH4: DISABLED
Pull-In of CHB PH5: DISABLED

CPU Voltage: 1.38750
CPU GTL Voltage Reference (0/2): 0.630
CPU GTL Voltage Reference (1/3): 0.655
CPU PLL Voltage: 1.58
FSB Termination Voltage: 1.28
DRAM Voltage: 1.94
NB Voltage: 1.34
NB GTL Reference: 0.630
SBridge Voltage: 1.10
PCIE SATA Voltage: 1.50

Load Line Calibration: enabled
CPU Spread Spectrum: Disabled
PCIE Spread Spectrum: Disabled
CPU Clock Skew : Normal
NB Clock Skew : Delay 200ps
CPU Margin Enhancement: Optimal

I didn't have time to mess around getting the following working as previously.
Performance Level 8 w/ PHA1 pull in, CPU margin enhancement at performance, and fine tune the CPU/NB clock skews for them.
Those values are quite a headache to get his board to operate completely stable with, though there are slight memory latency and bandwidth gains getting them all right, along with L2 cache latency and bandwidth. Whether getting the chipset down to the 52ns range of latency is worth it though I'd say not really. I've found the P45 MCH isn't particularly fond of too tight latencies on the 12:10 divider, and even full stability is questionable at least with a quad core and over 470mhz FSB.

But Deluxe is not E, so what BIOS is best for 8x533 24/7 overclock???

Principally the same, just slightly different bios'. Use Ket's modified P5Q bios' they are slightly more consistent/compatible than the Asus ones.

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=200109
First page of thread, bottom of first post is the latest 1611 mods he did.

It breaks previous OC profiles though, so if you have any note the data down before you flash the bios. '

From my experience 1611 has given me the least headaches over all with a quad core, so chances are that's a good sign there may be extra headroom using a dual core since they aren't nearly as straining.

I can tell you from personal experience, there is no magical bios to get a 533mhz FSB overclock, the key to it is to spend some time getting to know the board and its behaviour before you try and attempt it on any bios. Not one P45 I've used has been very consistent when I go beyond 450MHz FSB. They all behave differently to the next, even with a dual core. Best results I've had are on the P5Q though. I can't offer much wisdom when using the 1:1 divider though, since I don't really ever use it. 12:10 or 5:4 give me the best synthetics and linpack calculation performance so i've found no need to use the closer divider sets.

My board does more than 533MHz, I found out that the memory (Corsair Dominator, rated 5-5-5-15 at 533/1066...) is limiting, at 6-6-6-18 it works fine, but at the rated 5-5-5-15 it just won't work - gotta find out why...

What RAM-slots should I use for them anyway? Black ones or yellow ones?

Thanks for the hint with the mod BIOS!!

I haven't found too much of a difference with either colour pair. For 2GB sticks I found the farther pair (a2/b2) to be a little more tolerant to clocking high. For 1GB sticks it didn't really matter. Which revision are your corsair dominators? It says on the dimm, ie. rev1.2, rev4.1 etc and what capacity are they?

I've clocked two different pairs of 1GB dominators on this board, rev1.2 which are micron ic based and they gave me no problems at all clocking all the way to 1240mhz at 5-5-5-18, then another pair of rev5.1 which i believe are elpida based ics and they were complete garbage they werent even stable at 1120mhz no matter the timings or voltage.

My Dominators are Rev 1.1, it say "2.1V" on them, they are 2x2GB, the part-number ist "TWIN2X8500C5DF", I installed the fan on them now, but I doubt that the fan on them makes such a big difference??
And I changed them for a1/b1 to a2/b2 as you said...

just checked this thread after forgetting about it! thanks for the replies guys!

btw hijack this thread all you want if it helps people out!

Hey guys,

i got a p5q-e sitting here but i cant decide if its going to be an improvement from my p5k-e. im o.c'd to 4.48ghz stable @ 1.392v core. on the p5k-e with my week 22 E8600 but im trying to decide if i will get more stable voltages etc out of the p5q-e so as i can potentially go further...

whats the general views on this board from you guys that are running them daily....

cheers

Gordy!

cant really help you since i have never owned the p5k, but my q is great! never had any trouble and there seems to be no fsb limit! :P:

Keep the P5K-E board mate and cherish it, it might be doable to do 9 x 500 on the P5Q-E , but this is where ya CPU will top out for sure (24/7 stable)... enjoy the better ram performance of the P35 chipset... no need to swap mobo's as it will not be a real upgrade, P45 is just a tad better with quads...