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**BongWizard** · 10-09-2008, 12:00 AM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

try this for a 4GHz OC, which shouldnt be a problem with the board you've got

MB Intelligent Tweaker(M.I.T.)
Robust Graphics Booster ...............: [Auto]
CPU Clock Ratio ..........................: 9
Fine CPU Clock Ratio.....................: 0.5
CPU Frequency ...........................: 4.00GHz

Clock Chip Control
Standard Clock Control
CPU Host Clock Control..................: [Enabled]
CPU Host Frequency (Mhz) ............: 421MHz
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz) .........:100MHz <--Always 100!!

C.I.A.2 .................................:[Disabled]

Advanced Clock Control
CPU Clock Drive...........................:800
PCI Express Clock Drive.................:900
CPU Clock Skew (ps)....................: Auto or 0
MCH Clock Skew (ps)...................: 50-150

DRAM Performance Control
Performance Enhance...................: [STANDARD]
Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.).....: Disabled
(G)MCH Frequency Latch...............: 333MHz or 400MHz
System Memory Multiplier ..............: 2.66
Memory Frequency (Mhz) ..............: 1120MHz (421x2.66=1119.6)
DRAM Timing Selectable ................: [Manual]

Standard Timing Control
CAS Latency Time............................. 5
tRCD .............................................. 5
tRP'.............................................. ... 5
tRAS.............................................. .. 12-15

Advanced Timing Control
tRRD...........................................3-6
tWTR.......................................... 4-8
tWR............................................3-8
tRFC...........................................55-62
tRTP...........................................4-7
Command Rate (CMD) ....................:2

Channel A
Static tRead Value............................:7-11
tRD Phase0 Adjustment...................:Auto
tRD Phase1 Adjustment...................:Auto
tRD Phase2 Adjustment .................:Auto
tRD Phase3 Adjustment..................:Auto
Trd2rd(Different Rank)....................:Auto
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)..................:Auto
Dimm1 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto
Dimm2 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto

Channel B
Static tRead Value..........................:7-11
tRD Phase0 Adjustment...................:Auto
tRD Phase1 Adjustment...................:Auto
tRD Phase2 Adjustment .................:Auto
tRD Phase3 Adjustment..................:Auto
Trd2rd(Different Rank)....................:Auto
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)..................:Auto
Dimm1 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto
Dimm2 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto

Motherboard Voltage Control
Voltage Type.………... Manual
CPU
CPU Vcore….……….........................: 1.375V (as a starting point... if you can't get to Windows, increase it... if you get to Windows then your rig dies, decrease it)
CPU Termination…..... 1.200V*.......: Auto (or you can manually set as 1.3V)
CPU PLL…………………....1.500V*.......: Auto (should be fine)
CPU Referen.…………....0.755V*.......: Auto
CPU Reference2………,,0.800V*.......: Auto

MCH/ICH
MCH Core…………….....1.100V...........: 1.2-1.35V
MCH Reference….…….0.800V...........:Auto
MCH/DRAM Ref.…......0.900V...........:Auto
ICH I/O……………….....1.550V............:Auto
ICH Core…………...……1.100V............:Auto

DRAM
DRAM Voltage ……....1.800V............: 2.3V (off the top i think thats it, you might need a bit more tho)
DRAM Termination .…0.900V............: Auto
Channel A Reference 0.900V............: Auto
Channel B Reference 0.900V............: Auto

Advanced Settings
Limit CPUID Max. to 3.....................: [Disabled]
No-Execute Memory Protect............: [Enabled]
CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E)................: [Disabled]
C2/C2E State Support....................: [Disabled]
x C4/C4E State Support..................: [Disabled]
CPU Thermal Monitor 2(TM2) ...........: [Enabled]
CPU EIST Function.........................: [Disabled]
Virtualization Technology................: [Disabled]

hope that works out for you

EDIT: Oh yeah, make sure you've got good cooling on that CPU... and i like your choice in GPUs, thats actually a really nice card, is it the OCed version or the standard?

**Major Pita** · 10-09-2008, 12:26 AM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Thanks, I'll try that as soon as I get my latest problem (RAID) sorted out. I'll post that one up on another thread.

edit: here: http://forums.tweaktown.com/f69/ep45...43/#post263342

And yeah, I'm really impressed with the 260. Got its the evga superclocked edition. Runs freakin hot though, just running the Nvidia demos it peaked at 70C, and that's with no additional overclocking!

Althought in it's defense it was hot here in the home office today, and from what I understand they run pretty hot anyway.

**BongWizard** · 10-09-2008, 07:36 AM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

i replied to that thread and saw you got that running, so give those settings a try... and maybe run Memtest86+ as well (get it here -> Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool).

Yeah when you stick 24 more stream processors with the same cooler, then jack up the clocks you know you're gonna get a bit of heat... dont worry about it too much, it should run just fine up to about 80-85C, but really id like it a bit cooler than that

**Major Pita** · 10-09-2008, 12:08 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Wiz,

Yeah, thanks on the help,

On the sata-raid/sata-dvd boot issue I guess I can always boot off my USB key and manually start stuff off the DVD if necessary, that should work most the time...

On the overclock suggestion, no dice. I didn't expect it to be so easy... In my previous experiences in overclocking it has always been a difficult path for some reason (bad luck?). Although I understand this mobo to be an easy overclocker, I guess I'm going to have to take the long road, probably reboot 100 times in the process. *sigh* At least it keeps me out of the bars at night..

Would you have a suggested more conservative starting point for the overclock? That might save me 15 reboots right there. heh.

Oh, on the more stream processors comment, yeah, although my understanding is that the manufacturer 'speed-bins' the cores - the perfect chips go on to become 280s, the minor defects chips get their bad SPs cut out with a laser, and the more defect chips get more SPs cut out.

In other words, all Nvidia did with the core 216 product was create a middle-speedbin, which makes sense when you think about it, why make a single SP failure into a 260 when you can sell it for more as a 260 core 216? I'm not sure if those disabled SPs consume power though, that's an interesting question...

Anyhow, thanks for the help, keep the suggestions coming...

**Lsdmeasap** · 10-09-2008, 02:01 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

For 8GB I would start here (Hope you know your CPU voltage, if not best to raise it up and lower later)

MB Intelligent Tweaker(M.I.T.)
Robust Graphics Booster ...............: Fast
CPU Clock Ratio ..........................: 9
Fine CPU Clock Ratio.....................:.5
CPU Frequency ...........................: 4.04

Clock Chip Control
Standard Clock Control
CPU Host Clock Control..................: [Enabled]
CPU Host Frequency (Mhz) ............: 425Mhz
PCI Express Frequency (Mhz) .........:Set to 100

C.I.A.2 .................................:[Disabled]

Advanced Clock Control [Press Enter]
CPU Clock Drive...........................: <<< 800
PCI Express Clock Drive.................: <<< 900
CPU Clock Skew (ps)....................: <<< 50-100
MCH Clock Skew (ps)...................: <<< 100-200

DRAM Performance Control
Performance Enhance...................: [STANDARD]
Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.).....: Disabled
(G)MCH Frequency Latch...............: [400] << Set Voltages, then Static tRead and reboot, then only set this and reboot again. Then you can set the rest

System Memory Multiplier ..............: 2.00
Memory Frequency (Mhz) ..............: 850
DRAM Timing Selectable ................: [Manual]

Standard Timing Control
CAS Latency Time........................5
tRCD .........................................5
tRP'...........................................5
tRAS..........................................15/18

Advanced Timing Control
tRRD...........................................3-5
tWTR..........................................3-6 (May need 8-14 to start)
tWR............................................4-6 (May need 10-16 to start)
tRFC...........................................52-80
tRTP...........................................3-8
Command Rate (CMD) ....................:2

Driving Strength Profiles
Driving Strength ............................

Channel A
Static tRead Value.........................:9-12
tRD Phase0 Adjustment...................:<<< Leave for all below as well
tRD Phase1 Adjustment...................:Auto
tRD Phase2 Adjustment .................:Auto
tRD Phase3 Adjustment..................:Auto
Trd2rd(Different Rank)....................:Auto
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)..................:Auto
Dimm1 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto ps
Dimm2 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto ps

Channel B
Static tRead Value.........................:9-12
tRD Phase0 Adjustment...................:<<< Leave for all below as well
tRD Phase1 Adjustment...................:Auto
tRD Phase2 Adjustment .................:Auto
tRD Phase3 Adjustment..................:Auto
Trd2rd(Different Rank)....................:Auto
Twr2wr(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Twr2rd(Different Rank)...................:Auto
Trd2wr(Same/Diff Rank)..................:Auto
Dimm1 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto ps
Dimm2 Clock Skew Control...............:Auto ps

Motherboard Voltage Control
Voltage Type.………... Manual
CPU
CPU Vcore….……….........................: 1.325-1.35 ACTUAL (Bios setting may need to be 1.38 or more)
CPU Termination…..... 1.200V*.......: <<< 1.34
CPU PLL…………………....1.500V*.......: <<< 1.56
CPU Referen.…………....0.755V*.......: <<< .64% Of Vtt (Termination above)
CPU Reference2………,,0.800V*.......:<<< .67% Of Vtt (Termination above)

MCH/ICH
MCH Core…………….....1.100V...........: << 1.25-1.35
MCH Reference….…….0.800V...........; <<< Leave
MCH/DRAM Ref.…......0.900V...........: <<< Leave
ICH I/O……………….....1.550V............: <<< Leave
ICH Core…………...……1.100V............: <<< Leave

DRAM
DRAM Voltage ……....1.800V............: 2.08
DRAM Termination .…0.900V............: <<< Leave
Channel A Reference 0.900V............: <<< Leave
Channel B Reference 0.900V............: <<< Leave

Advanced Settings
Limit CPUID Max. to 3.....................: [Disabled]
No-Execute Memory Protect............: [Enabled]
CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E)................: [Disabled]
C2/C2E State Support....................: [Disabled]
x C4/C4E State Support..................: [Disabled]
CPU Thermal Monitor 2(TM2) ...........: [Enabled]
CPU EIST Function.........................: [Disabled]
Virtualization Technology................: [Disabled]

Integrated Peripherals
Legacy USB Storage Detect ..............[Disabled] *Note* Must be enabled to flash from USB

**Major Pita** · 10-09-2008, 05:46 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Just curious, when you guys give a range of values, what end of the range do you suggest I start at?

**BongWizard** · 10-09-2008, 05:59 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

start with your timings as loose as you can, then if you can boot, you can tighten them up one at a time... if the range is really wide, you might be able to tighten it 2 or 3 clock cycles at atime

**Lsdmeasap** · 10-09-2008, 11:16 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Right!

How you coming along with this?

**Major Pita** · 10-13-2008, 04:31 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

How you coming along with this?

Thanks for following up, L...

Sorry about not responding sooner - I wanted to add a fan to keep things cool before subjecting my shiny new system to overclocking and it took a few days get that done and to get apps installed, etc. As it is, now I've got a nice 120mm fan blowing down over the ram & northbridge chip at a 45-degree angle and things are much much cooler now!

But my results are mixed, at best. First, here's what I did:

Following your instructions (with a little interpretation) I set:

Voltage:
CPU Vcore = 1.35
CPU Termination = 1.34
CPU PLL = 1.57 (closest available setting to your recommended 1.56)
CPU Reference = 1.873 (.755 * 64% = .8576 rounded to .875 nearest setting)
(btw there is no CPU Reference2 setting in this bios that I can find)

ICH/MCH:
MCH Core = 1.34 (closest avail to your recommended 1.35)
MCH Reference = .760 (you say 'leave' but refer to stock setting of .800?)
MCH I/O = 1.500 (again you say 'leave' but refer to a stock setting of 1.550)

DRAM:
DRAM Voltage = 2.08

Advanced Clock Control:
CPU Clock Skew = 100
MCH Clock Skew = 200

DRAM Performance Control:
Performance Enhance = STANDARD
System Memory Multiplier = 2.00D
DRAM Timing Selectable = MANUAL

Standard Timing Control:
CAS = 5
tRCD = 5
tRP = 5
tRAS = 18

Advanced Timing Control:
tRRD = 5
tWTR = 14
tWR = 16
tRFC = 80
tRTP = 8
Command Rate = 2

At this point I rebooted and could POST and boot to Vista (x64) at the stock 333 FSB speed.

So, I rebooted, entered the BIOS, saved the BIOS profile to a 'RAID & Perf 1' slot, then set:

CPU Host Frequency = 425

Saved & rebooted. System would POST but not boot windows. Rebooted and backed off to CPU Host Frequency = 400, rebooted, and could POST and boot to windows. System appears stable. Saved as a 'RAID & Perf 2' CMOS profile slot.

I ran the IntelBurnTest, and was pretty concerned with what I saw.

The CPU temp peaked at 72C. Ouch! The warning buzzed sounded because that's what I had set to trigger at 70C... The temp didnt go over 72C, but this is a little warm for my comfort-zone...

At default voltages & 333 FSB, the temp never exceeds 55C.

So currently I'm a little uncomfortable running at even 3.8GHz (400 FSB) and haven't even started to tighten the ram timings due to the high CPU temps.

So I guess the first question is, am I doing everything right?

Second, is the Intel BurnTest (really just Linpack/64) a reasonable test of the system?

I did notice that apps like a quick crysis run, and work in my CAD software (autodesk Inventor) didn't tax the CPU nearly as much. <?>

I also notice that the system is consuming about 20W more power at idle. This isn't a good thing IMHO, although I'm willing to live with it if I can get more than a marginal performance boost. From what I can tell, I'm not getting any frame-rate/performance boost, although this is probably due to the currently relaxed memory settings.

What benchmark do you suggest to start measuring real-world performance?

Could be the CPU cooler? Currently I'm running a Zalman 9500 which is supposed to be a great cooling solution while keeping pretty quiet... I carefully mounted it according to the instructions using ArcticSilver 5, could there be a air-bubble in the thermal grease?

Sorry for all the questions, but this is where I'm stuck... Until I get the cooling issues worked out, and hear from you, I'm going to back off to the stock settings (which aren't so bad - my last system was a athlon3800, so I'm already seeing a huge perf boost over that!)

Your (and bongwiz, youre input is welcome!) thoughts are much appreciated!

Thanks...

**Lsdmeasap** · 10-13-2008, 11:36 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Anytime man, I try to be sure to not miss a post and keep on top of people who have not replied back. Just to be sure things are ok.

About this >>>

Voltage:
CPU Vcore = 1.35
CPU Termination = 1.34
CPU PLL = 1.57 (closest available setting to your recommended 1.56)
CPU Reference = 1.873 (.755 * 64% = .8576 rounded to .875 nearest setting)
(btw there is no CPU Reference2 setting in this bios that I can find)

ICH/MCH:
MCH Core = 1.34 (closest avail to your recommended 1.35)
MCH Reference = .760 (you say 'leave' but refer to stock setting of .800?)
MCH I/O = 1.500 (again you say 'leave' but refer to a stock setting of 1.550)

When I say leave, I only meant leave at Auto. And the numbers in my templates are just that, random numbers. All CPU's and different speeds will provide different values. And the reference voltages will self adjust in Auto, or manual depending on what you set your CPU Termination to.

Skews, can be tested first or last and mainly help in stability more then anything else.

Just trying to comment as I read, bad habit I guess. I read a paragraph and reply, so I dont get lost in my thoughts

Intel Burn test IS going to be HOT, I know it is a cool new test. But it is HOT, something most are not ready to see. I dont use it myself as I am on water and still see temps I do not like.

I stick to orthos/memtest86+ myself

The 9500 is a good cooler, but not really up to todays Dual Core CPU's. I was just using a 9700 and my 4ghz temps would hit 70's as well, so I have no doubt yours do. It is normal for that cooler. It is/was a good cooler when it came out, pre-dual core. I used my 9700 with a PD 925, Xeon 3075 (E6750), and my Xeon E3100 (E8400) I am using now, temps were acceptable at high overclocks but I knew they was much better air cooling solutions out there. I just kept it coming from the Pentium D as I planned to move to water. There are some VERY nice, much cooler heatsinks made for todays CPU's. Aside from my suggestions I am sure others will chime in as well about this to add to my few suggestions below

I suppose if you do want to run 4Ghz or so you should invest in a better cooler. ThermalRight Ultra 120 if it will fit in your case, if not maybe one of the Xigmatek 120 models or a Tuniq tower. Just measure/read your case specs and Heatsink specs before you buy, if you do decide to get another cooler.

Yes, you are partially going about things correctly. Saving bootable profiles is good, but I assume you know you would later have to go into each and adjust/test/adjust them to get stability in each.. If that was your plans, then yes you are on the right track.

Well if you are into energy saving, you cannot be a overclocker at the same time!

But yeah, you will have much better frame-rates and game performance once you tighten things up

Thanks for the kind words, and I do suggest a better cooler if you plan to run a high overclock and or game 24/7

**Major Pita** · 10-14-2008, 02:02 PM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

Anytime man, I try to be sure to not miss a post and keep on top of people who have not replied back. Just to be sure things are ok.

About this >>>

When I say leave, I only meant leave at Auto. And the numbers in my templates are just that, random numbers. All CPU's and different speeds will provide different values. And the reference voltages will self adjust in Auto, or manual depending on what you set your CPU Termination to.

That's what I figured, thanks for the clarification.

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

Skews, can be tested first or last and mainly help in stability more then anything else.

Interesting... So they don't effect performance? How do you go about finding the ideal skew for a given setup? Can you point me to some guidelines somewhere?

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

Just trying to comment as I read, bad habit I guess. I read a paragraph and reply, so I dont get lost in my thoughts

Same here. It's kind of a stream of consciousness thing

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

Intel Burn test IS going to be HOT, I know it is a cool new test. But it is HOT, something most are not ready to see. I dont use it myself as I am on water and still see temps I do not like.

Yeah, I guess it's good at seeing what the worst/worst case looks like, but I doubt any typical application, even games subjects the CPU to full blast compute cycles for more than a few moments at a time. Even Crysis on a benchmark_cpu run didn't see these high temps, so I think you're right about Intel Burn Test.

Just curious, what temps do (did) you see in BurnTest on water?

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

I stick to orthos/memtest86+ myself

Ok, I'll give those a try and see how things run.

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

The 9500 is a good cooler, but not really up to todays Dual Core CPU's. I was just using a 9700 and my 4ghz temps would hit 70's as well, so I have no doubt yours do. It is normal for that cooler. It is/was a good cooler when it came out, pre-dual core. I used my 9700 with a PD 925, Xeon 3075 (E6750), and my Xeon E3100 (E8400) I am using now, temps were acceptable at high overclocks but I knew they was much better air cooling solutions out there. I just kept it coming from the Pentium D as I planned to move to water. There are some VERY nice, much cooler heatsinks made for todays CPU's. Aside from my suggestions I am sure others will chime in as well about this to add to my few suggestions below

Huh... I was under the apparently mistaken impression that die-shrinks & process improvements allowed the new stuff to run cooler, quieter, and suck less juice from the wall... I've observed this to be true, at least until I overclocked ans saw the kill-a-watt register a 50-80 watt jump in power consumption!

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

I suppose if you do want to run 4Ghz or so you should invest in a better cooler. ThermalRight Ultra 120 if it will fit in your case, if not maybe one of the Xigmatek 120 models or a Tuniq tower. Just measure/read your case specs and Heatsink specs before you buy, if you do decide to get another cooler.

Well, it's not that overclocking is my primary goal, I'm just looking to get the best price/performance out of my rig while keeping it stable and not hurting it's long-term durability. (This being the computer industry, long-term = anything above 2-years! ;-))

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

Yes, you are partially going about things correctly. Saving bootable profiles is good, but I assume you know you would later have to go into each and adjust/test/adjust them to get stability in each.. If that was your plans, then yes you are on the right track.

Well if you are into energy saving, you cannot be a overclocker at the same time!

Touche! Well, my ideal setup would run low-power/cool-n-quiet at idle, then ramp up to max stable overclock when under load. The Gigabyte dynamic energy saver stuff does work, I just wish it saved more power than it does.

Originally posted by Lsdmeasap View Post

But yeah, you will have much better frame-rates and game performance once you tighten things up

Thanks for the kind words, and I do suggest a better cooler if you plan to run a high overclock and or game 24/7

Well, I hppe you're being paid somehow or your work here, if not you deserve a medal!

IMHO, for what it's worth, you've got a TON of knowledge to share. You would be well served by setting up nice, clear, well-structured FAQs that preempt these dumb questions like mine that you have probably answered far too many times in the past!

[quote=Lsdmeasap;264151]

**Lsdmeasap** · 10-15-2008, 01:07 AM

Re: Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

WOW, trying to loose me in those quotes eh!

Skew is a trail and error thing only, there is no real reading on it that I know of. Yes, i did look just now for ya as well with no luck

I have not tweaked this board yet so not sure, on my P35 I did still see about 60-65 or so load temps with it at 4Ghz. I do not have a very good Rad right now though either. Orthos temps are mid 50's @4Ghz for me as of now, but my voltage still needs to go up a notch or two I think, just haven't had time to get in there yet

Yeah, it is true smaller die means less Voltage needed and thus less heat output.... But ONLY at stock. Overclocking is still the same as you pump in the volts the temps go up dramtically

Well then maybe you should be trying fro 3.6-3.8 for a trade off between the best temps
and speeds

Have you changed anything in DES? I think it is user adjustable. And I do know for sure you can set several things in vista's Power options if you use EIST and C1E

Na no payments, nor do I work here. Just a loyal Gigabyte supporter. Thanks for the kind words!!

Ya, I do have a list of Guides/FAQ's that I still need to post up. Just never have time and I kinda am thinking we have too many stickies as it is? What do you think about that?

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Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

Initial & Optimal settings for Mushkin XP2-8500 2x4GB RAM?

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