Heavy overclock 6870 but no performance gain?
April 2nd, 2014
I just overclocked my MSI 6870 OC edition from 920/1050 to 1000/1175.
I did the crysis benchmark: Only 0.4 fps gain.
I did the HL2 lost coast benchmark: only 1 fps gain.
Is this normal for such an overclock or what?
Thanx on advantage
What’s your CPU?
-paroxysM^ replied: What's your CPU?
AMD Phenom II 965 Black edition @ stock 3.4ghz
Hypertransport:2000 mhz
8GB ddr3 @1600 mhz
The stock northbridge frequency wont cut it. You’re being bottlenecked by it. Aim for around 3GHz NB freq on a Phenom 2.
-paroxysM^ replied: The stock northbridge frequency wont cut it. You're being bottlenecked by it. Aim for around 3GHz NB freq on a Phenom 2.
I see. Thank u very much for ur reply.
currently my NB is running @ 2000 mhz.
Do you think i can achieve 3 ghz no problem by just playing with the NB slider in bios? and maybe add a little voltage?
Also is there a risk involved? Because i can’t see the temps of the NB on my modo.
If you’re overclocking the NB might as well OC the CPU along with it. There is always a risk involved with overclocking but one that is completely negated if you know what you’re doing. I haven’t overclocked a Phenom myself but I’m sure you can look around for guides.
Berke53 replied: Because i can't see the temps of the NB on my modo.
You sure there are no NB senors? Have you tried looking at your temps in HWMonitor?
http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html
SmAsHeDr replied: Berke53 replied: Because i can't see the temps of the NB on my modo.
You sure there are no NB senors? Have you tried looking at your temps in HWMonitor?
http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html
With Hw monitor i got: Systin = 32°c/ Systout = 340c and auxtin = 84°c
Auxtin 84°c.? I don’t even know what the diffrence tot these are and wich the nb temps are.
Is auxtin to hot?
A bad or missing sensor. In either case the readings would go wack if the app fails to read data off them. Don’t worry about it. SYSTIN is probably the NB but you can’t be so sure as there isn’t a set label for it in HWM. Can you post a screenshot?
Berke53 replied: With Hw monitor i got: Systin = 32°c/ Systout = 340c and auxtin = 84°c
Normally with HWMonitor you see:
SYSTIN - NB
CPUTIN - TJ
AUXTIN - SB
I also see a lot of comps report these:
TMPIN0 = NB
TMPIN1 = TJ
TMPIN2 = SB
If there is a bad or missing sensor, a lot of times it will report a high, static number.
Also, it varies from system to system which sensors go with which parts.
-paroxysM^ replied: A bad or missing sensor. In either case the readings would go wack if the app fails to read data off them. Don't worry about it. SYSTIN is probably the NB but you can't be so sure as there isn't a set label for it in HWM. Can you post a screenshot?
Here is the screenshot of Hardwaremonitor:
http://imageshack.us/f/252/hwmonitor.png/
I just booted the system and Auxtin already shows 73°c. The numer isn’t static because yesterday it was 84°c.
If there is a bad or missing sensor, a lot of times it will report a high, static number.
It doesn’t need to be static and the number can be the other way around as well.
I just booted the system and Auxtin already shows 73°c. The numer isn't static because yesterday it was 84°c.Just ignore it.
-paroxysM^ replied: It doesn't need to be static and the number can be the other way around as well.
So a bad/missing sensor can report like a normal sensor?
That explains so much. I have been having an issue with a friends CPU running hot. And by hot I mean 20C over TJ, and its been that way for months now.
Whats weird is the temps change as CPU usage increases. So it acts like a working sensor.
Ok ill just ignore it. Today my zalman cnps11x xtreme cpu cooler arrives. can i overclock both the cpu and northbridge or should i just oc one of them? (if so wich gives me the best performance gain for gaming? And should i lower HT when overclocking? Also, what is the recommended safe temp for NB?
Im sorry for all these maybe newbish questions but im a beginner to this advanced overclocking. with my old rig i could ony increase fsb and cpu voltage and thats it.
OC them both. No sense in OCing just one.
Check out guides like this
http://www.overclock.net/amd-general/777378-official-gappos-little-deneb-thuban-overclocking.html
http://www.overclock.net/amd-general/624908-official-amd-socket-am3-knowledge-base.html
And check out the overclockhowto[.]com guides on Youtube.
-paroxysM^ replied: OC them both. No sense in OCing just one.
Check out guides like this
http://www.overclock.net/amd-general/777378-official-gappos-little-deneb-thuban-overclocking.html
http://www.overclock.net/amd-general/624908-official-amd-socket-am3-knowledge-base.html
And check out the overclockhowto[.]com guides on Youtube.
Thank u very much.
I thought that maybe i could overclock just one since its all connected to eachother. or cpu till the max, or NB to the max or just a bit of both. but that isnt how it works i guess?
NB freq is defined by it’s multiplier and the FSB. So to have a high NB freq you’ll also need to have a high FSB which will result in a high CPU freq either way.
-paroxysM^ replied: NB freq is defined by it's multiplier and the FSB. So to have a high NB freq you'll also need to have a high FSB which will result in a high CPU freq either way.
I thought by increasing the fsb u overclock the intire system. NB,CPU,RAM…the works..
So its best to increase the fsb as aswel instead of just increasing the NB multiplier?
Also do u think the gain in performance zhile playing games is worth it?
They say my gpu is bottlenecked by the NB freq, but how bad is it?
I know u cant tell exactly offcource but if the increase is just 4-5 fps i think its not worth the risk and trouble. I really cant afford to fry my rig i worked hard for it i would be devestated.
Is there a big risk involved in this?
I thought by increasing the fsb u overclock the intire system. NB,CPU,RAM...the works..
Yes it will. It’s also common practice to find the highest stable FSB first before trying the multi with Phenoms.
So its best to increase the fsb as aswel instead of just increasing the NB multiplier?
Yes both need to be increased (well if you want to do it the right way that is).
Also do u think the gain in performance zhile playing games is worth it?
http://www.overclockers.com/the-importance-of-northbridge-overclocking-with-the-phenom-ii/
Check the Vantage CPU scores. You can expect to see something like 40% improvement with Source engine based games like HL2 Lost Coast. I don’t know about Crysis.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-cpu-overclock,2396-7.html
Is there a big risk involved in this?Nah. As much risk as you’ve already been through overclocking your video card. Don’t worry too much.
I urge you to join a good hardware community though and ask for help there.
And one more thing. What settings are you running the benchmarks with?
-paroxysM^ replied: I thought by increasing the fsb u overclock the intire system. NB,CPU,RAM...the works..
Yes it will. It's also common practice to find the highest stable FSB first before trying the multi with Phenoms.
So its best to increase the fsb as aswel instead of just increasing the NB multiplier?
Yes both need to be increased (well if you want to do it the right way that is).
Also do u think the gain in performance zhile playing games is worth it?
http://www.overclockers.com/the-importance-of-northbridge-overclocking-with-the-phenom-ii/
Check the Vantage CPU scores. You can expect to see something like 40% improvement with Source engine based games like HL2 Lost Coast. I don't know about Crysis.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-cpu-overclock,2396-7.html
Is there a big risk involved in this?Nah. As much risk as you've already been through overclocking your video card. Don't worry too much.
I urge you to join a good hardware community though and ask for help there.
And one more thing. What settings are you running the benchmarks with?
Crysis 32bit @dx10
All settings high (not very high)
Resolution 1440×900
Average fps: 57
Okey so I installed my aftermarked zalman cooler today and went overclocking.
I left the fsb at 200 to just try something..
My cpu is now running stable on 4 ghz still very cool.
But i also changed the NB multiplier from 10 to 13. Normally i would get an 2600 mhz NB but CPU-Z states the NB is still running at 2000 mhz.
How is this possible?
Post screenshots of CPU-Z. Is cool & quiet turned on? What’s the DRAM freq?
-paroxysM^ replied: Post screenshots of CPU-Z. Is cool & quiet turned on? What's the DRAM freq?
I’ts fixed already I got the NB now @ 2.6ghz but isn’t very stable.
Now the only thing I have to know is how far i can take the NB voltage and temps on my mobo to push it up to 3 ghz. Got any suggestions?
Also I checked sensors in AIDA64 and the temp that matches the SYSTIN in hardwaremonitor is displayed as the motherboard temp in AIDA64.
Is the motherboard temp sure to be the NB temp? Or could this sensor be located somewhere else?
Yeah motherboard temp would be NB temp. AMD chipsets and CPUs can take quite some voltage. 1.5v is around the upper limit for most people.
-paroxysM^ replied: Yeah motherboard temp would be NB temp. AMD chipsets and CPUs can take quite some voltage. 1.5v is around the upper limit for most people.
Okey. I(ve got one question more though. What is the difference between the NB cpu voltage and the NB core voltage?
Any recommended safe voltages?
The NB-CPU is the voltage for Hypertransport and the NB Core is the Northbridge/PCI-E voltage.
I wouldn’t know any values for overclocking on AMD platforms as I’ve already said. I urge you to join a good hardware forum and continue this discussion there.
Anyway, is it stable enough for benchmarking yet?
-paroxysM^ replied: The NB-CPU is the voltage for Hypertransport and the NB Core is the Northbridge/PCI-E voltage.
I wouldn't know any values for overclocking on AMD platforms as I've already said. I urge you to join a good hardware forum and continue this discussion there.
Aahh I see. And this 1.5V limit is for the core or cpu?
And I joined overclockers.com yesterday and started a thread but still no replies..
Can you recommend me a good hardware forum?
I started all over with overclocking. I just increased the fsb and voltage. I’m running on 230 fsb stable now. When i find my limit im going to fine tune.
I’m running prime95 at the moment for 15 minutes still stable.
Around 1.4v for NB and around 1.5v for CPU-NB. Remember, the NB-CPU is on the CPU die and the NB is on the motherboard. You don’t need go near this limit. Just keep increasing it by small increments and find the lowest voltage it’s stable at.
Try overclock[.]net or hardforum[.]com
-paroxysM^ replied: Around 1.4v for NB and around 1.5v for CPU-NB. Remember, the NB-CPU is on the CPU die and the NB is on the motherboard. You don't need go near this limit. Just keep increasing it by small increments and find the lowest voltage it's stable at.
Try overclock[.]net or hardforum[.]com
Hi again,
I can’t seem to get my NB stable cause everytime i try to raise the NB core voltage a bit with the overclocking tool that came with my mobo I instantly get a Blue screen of death. In the BIOS i can select adjust the core voltage but when i reboot it’s stuck again at the stock 1.1v.
Max stable NB freq is about 2400 mhz for me on stock voltage.
I don’t understand.. ASRock made the option in the BIOS for the user to adjust NB core voltage but it slides right back to 1.1v? And when trying with other software instand bsod? Then why did they made this option in the bios if the mobo can’t handle te slightest change in voltage?
Software overclocking is dangerous for that reason as the changes are effective immediately where else when you change it from the BIOS it will auto load safe values when it finds a misconfiguration. Keep trying. You’ll get it. How’s the performance at 4GHz/2.4GHz NB. What’s your motherboard? Maybe it cannot handle the voltage you’re supplying. The BIOS and software would be generic to that particular series of motherboards. Just because the option is there doesn’t mean it would necessarily work.
whell the performance at 4ghz/2.4ghz is a step in the right direction :d
60 pfs gain on HL2 lost coast benchmark and 6fps gain in crysis benchmark.
Here is a link to my mobo:
http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=880GMH/U3S3&cat=Specifications
There is basically no VRM cooling on that motherboard and it looks like it only got 4 phases. I think you’re at it’s limit already. It’s an entry level 880 motherboard after all.