Overclocking

[CaptainKirk]

Could somone give me a link to a good overclocking guide? I have a good system, but know that it could be better with a few tweaks.

Specs:

OS: Vista Ultimate 32 bit

Motherboard:
CPU Type Unknown, 2400 MHz
Motherboard Name Unknown
Motherboard Chipset Unknown
System Memory 2048 MB
BIOS Type Award (12/20/06)

Display:
Video Adapter NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTX
Video Adapter NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTX
Monitor Dell E171FPb [17" LCD] (5W5403251IIS)
Monitor SyncMaster 205BW/204BW, SyncMaster Magic CX203BW/CX205BW(Digital) [NoDB] (HVZP101688)

Multimedia:
Audio Adapter High Definition Audio Controller

Storage:
IDE Controller NVIDIA nForce 590/570/550 Serial ATA Controller
IDE Controller NVIDIA nForce 590/570/550 Serial ATA Controller
IDE Controller NVIDIA nForce 590/570/550 Serial ATA Controller
IDE Controller Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller
SCSI/RAID Controller Microsoft iSCSI Initiator
SCSI/RAID Controller SCSI/RAID Host Controller
Disk Drive WDC WD15 00AHFD-00RAR SCSI Disk Device
Disk Drive WDC WD20 00JS-00MHB0 SCSI Disk Device
Disk Drive WDC WD20 00JS-00MHB0 SCSI Disk Device
Optical Drive FL8302C JFE657W SCSI CdRom Device
Optical Drive FL8302C JFE657W SCSI CdRom Device
Optical Drive SONY DVD RW DW-G120A ATA Device
Optical Drive SONY DVD RW DW-G120A ATA Device
SMART Hard Disks Status Unknown

Partitions:
C: (NTFS) 143086 MB (80208 MB free)
D: (NTFS) 190779 MB (118307 MB free)
E: (NTFS) 190779 MB (145486 MB free)
Total Size 512.3 GB (335.9 GB free)

Input:
Keyboard HID Keyboard Device
Keyboard HID Keyboard Device
Mouse HID-compliant mouse

Network:
Network Adapter NVIDIA nForce Networking Controller
Network Adapter NVIDIA nForce Networking Controller (192.168.1.104)

[=98=]

I'll wang you one out through sexfire.

But, by the looks of things, your rolling on Dell, so it doesn't look hopeful from the outset...

[camper.]

Not going to happen without a Dell XPS if it's Dell, you'll need a new motherboard and possible case and PSU if you want to overclock.

If it's an XPS system, just go into the BIOS and jack up the FSB.

[CaptainKirk]

I don't actually have a Dell. Just a Dell monitor.

Alex helped me a lot and we decided that I need to seriously upgrade cooling before I do anything...

I think I might up case fans.... How big of an ordeal is installing water cooling?

[camper.]

You don't need watercooling if you manage your PC well. I built a PC for a friend recently where everything runs in the sub-20*C range, it's a very basic build that "just works" - the interior is spacious, full airflow, good CPU cooler tailored for airflow (meaning, a chunky tower with a fan, not a shinier version of the stock cooler with a brand name), and cool room temperatures.

Upping case fans will only work well if you can direct the air correctly. Do it wrong and watch the temperatures soar as air is either lacking for crucial components or not exiting the case at all.



What sort of temperatures are we looking at? My E6300 has been running consistently at 50*C idle to 70-80*C loaded (TAT temps) for the past year (bad luck with coolers, and laziness). Sometimes it ran at 30*C, but not long enough to matter.

If you tend to turn your PC on and off a ****load or in general, put the CPU through a large number of hot/cold cycles, you'll obviously decrease its lifespan, but my PC runs in sleep, suspend, (ACPI S1 or S3 states) or away mode (logged off, monitor off, PC running). Perpetual 50*C, as I said.