Overclocking (Main Thread)

darkowl72 said:@ swiftcobra65

You're just talking nonsense...

Just grab a decent motherboard without that "L" version—it’ll save you the headache. $27 The differences... regarding the P35-DS3... just grab an Intel Core 2 Duo processor for it. $200 I pushed him up to 3GHz without any issues using the stock cooler—if you end up worrying about the temps later, you can always just pick up a better heatsink, but I honestly don't think you'll need to. Also, I got my Kingston memory running at 800 MHz.

For a bargain like that, you're getting two cores running at 3GHz—it handles everything just fine, whether you're pairing it with an HD 3870 or an 8800GT.

All that's left is finding a solid hard drive and a decent monitor—maybe a 20-inch one—and then your friends will finally start showing up. 😉

I’ll take your advice regarding the motherboard—I don't know much about the LGA 775 socket anyway.
Regarding the CPU—I'm leaning toward the Intel Core 2 Duo. I don't plan on upgrading this rig for at least three years, so my strategy is simple: grab a decent cooler now and push it to 3.5 GHz later. Right now, 3.0 GHz feels like plenty—totally fine for today—but in three or four years? I'm not so sure.

Regarding that Kingston memory—I’ll probably just grab it because wiredmarlin5 recommended it. From what I can see, he's pretty much an authority around here. 😁

I don't really need more than 250GB—maybe 320GB at most. I'm currently sitting on a 120GB drive and about 30% of it is still empty, plus everything I actually need is already on my PC.

I'm still deciding on a monitor—it’ll either be the Dell 2032BW or maybe an LG 206WTQ. Samsung might have better build quality, but I think the LG wins on actual performance—specifically when it comes to viewing angles and contrast.

Hopefully this finally happens... I'm really banking on it—I honestly don't have the energy to keep overthinking this anymore. 😁
Thanks, everyone!

swiftcobra65 said:fine, I’ll defer to you regarding the motherboard, since my knowledge of the LGA 775 platform isn't exactly exhaustive...
as for the processor, I’ve decided on the Intel Core 2 Duo because I don't plan on replacing this rig for at least three years; once that time rolls around, it will be much easier to just grab a decent cooler and overclock it to 3.5 GHz, seeing as 3.0 GHz feels plenty sufficient right now, but in four years... well, I can't say for certain...

regarding that Kingston meme, I'm only picking it up because wiredmarlin5 recommended it, and from what I can gather, he seems to be some kind of authority figure among you lot... 😁

I won't need more than a 250GB hard drive, maybe 320GB if I'm feeling generous, because I'm currently sitting with a 120GB drive and about 30% of it is empty, and everything I actually care about is already on the machine...

The monitor is still a toss-up; I'm looking at either the Dell 2032BW or perhaps an LG 206WTQ. Samsung might offer better build quality, but LG tends to have the edge when it comes to actual performance—specifically the viewing angles and contrast ratio.

So, I suppose this should finally be the end of it... which is exactly what I'm hoping for, because quite frankly, I am exhausted from overthinking this entire process... 😁
thanks, everyone!

the Pro series and the motherboards are solid, and as for that comment toward wiredmarlin5... he's a total newbie who only looks at PCPartPicker😂 😂just kidding, wiredmarlin5, don't take it personally🙏

Honestly, wiredmarlin5 is being such a total pushover... he really needs to get banned... just my two cents...😁

On a different note, I've got some supertalent C4 2 x1GB (D9GHM👍) arriving this Wednesday, and the DS3P should be here later this week too... so things are finally looking up for some serious overclocking...😲

Oh boy, look at this absolute beginner, wiredmarlin5...
D9GMH 👍 not GHM

Actually, I don't think you quite caught my drift when I asked why you’d go with the DS3P while running an NVIDIA card.

The DS3P is built to support Crossfire, but since you're rocking an 8800GT,
I couldn't help but wonder—why didn't you just grab the standard DS3 instead?

Daniel Nguyen3 said:Oh man, wiredmarlin5 is such a rookie...
The D9GMH 👍 not the GHM

😁 just a little typo

Daniel Nguyen3 said:Actually, I don't think you quite caught my drift when I was asking why you'd go with the DS3P if you're running an NVIDIA card

See, the DS3P supports CrossFire, but since you've got that 8800GT,
I was just wondering why you didn't just grab the standard one, you know, the DS3

Micek, honestly, don't even sweat it... things like FireWire, better thermal management, and having a dual BIOS are absolute must-haves on a motherboard for me... not to mention I'm actually getting the rev 2.1 version for about the same price as the DS3L edition😛

That whole 16x+4x CrossFire setup doesn't really do anything for me, which is why it isn't even a factor in my choice for this board. 🙂

I might actually take offense at being called a mouse 😁

Oh, my apologies if I caused any offense there! It’s just that when you have a guy and his girlfriend getting all cozy together, it feels more like a friendly little pat on the back for everyone on the forum...🙂

just a little smiley face at the end 😁👍

Daniel Nguyen3 said:well, you might actually take offense at that one, Mickey 😁

hehe
@wiredmarlin5/">@@wiredmarlin5, just show us those benchmarks once you finally get your hands on the motherboard and the RAM 🙏😁

wiredmarlin5 said:Mickey, you don't need to overthink this. Firewire, better cooling, and dual BIOS—those are the features I actually need in a board. Not to mention, I can get the rev 2.1 for the price of the DS3L version 😛

The 16x+4x CF isn't a selling point for me, nor is it why I'm picking this board. 🙂

Actually, good call on reminding me—I didn't even check if the P35-DS3-ci has FW built-in. I really need it for my camera, and upgrading to something like the DS3P right now is just too expensive. $290n.p.
So, would this FW PCI card (controller) work well for $33?
And does it run at the same speeds as the onboard FW, or is it slower? This one is 400Mbps, but I see some rated for 800Mbps. Are the built-in ones the 800Mbps type?

Click Me

1000MHz CL4 at 2.3V

I am going to continue running some more tests to see how this holds up...

Oh, I should also mention that my motherboard seems to be capping the memory voltage; it won't let me push past 2.45V.

wiredmarlin5 said:Honestly, wiredmarlin5 is being totally soft here... someone needs to ban him... what a joke.😁

On a different note, my supertalent C4 2 x1GB (D9GHM👍) should arrive this Wednesday, and I'm also expecting the DS3P later this week... so there should be some great OC potential there.😲

Are those Supertalent-i worth picking up? I'm not really familiar with them, though I've heard from a few people that they're a total best buy.

What's their voltage rating? Are we looking at 1.8 or 2.2?

Give it up for Daniel Nguyen3... just keep it coming! 🙂

The Supertalent-i are decent enough, I suppose, though you have to be careful because they tend to show up with all sorts of different chipsets under the hood... specifically when you're looking at that C4 OC version. As for the other two, well, they aren't exactly built for overclocking, so there's not much room to play there...

Click me 1060 MHz CL4 2.35 V

1060MHz CL4 2.35V

The testing phase continues 🙂

Alright folks, I’m heading out to see if I can actually track down that gear... though I am having a bit of a moment here because for some reason Links.com just won't load on my end...

Heading straight into the wild unknown...
Maybe, I can't say for certain just yet.
Perhaps I've gone and messed something up entirely.

I tried bumping it from 1060mhz cl4 up to 1140mhz cl4, but it wouldn't even boot.
Then I cranked the voltage up to the max at 2.45v, and still, nothing. No boot.
I attempted 1200mhz cl5, but then the BIOS threw an error, things started acting erratic—just my luck, right?

So, I pulled it out and set up the rendering tests. I'll give you an update tomorrow to let you know if I've caused any permanent damage. Interestingly, the chips weren't hot at all; they might have been slightly warm, given I'm using a 250mm fan.😁😁😁
It's likely just some kind of software error. I'll run some more tests tomorrow.

Stay tuned for more!😁

Oh, come on now, don't be silly, you should still have your warranty intact... 😢 I really am so sorry to hear that happened, but if the claim actually goes through, maybe we could look into swapping those out for some Ballistix instead, since the ones you have are totally out of stock now...

My apologies... 🙂

The warranty lasts for five years 😁. Honestly, I don't think anything actually happened to it. Even if there is an issue, I can just take it back to Links.com; there’s no way for them to figure out whether I played around with the voltage settings or not, right? 🙂

Besides, they carry Crucial products at Links.com
.
Their server seems to be down today; I can't get the site to load
.
But generally speaking, you're looking at roughly $53 1 gigabyte, whereas the Ballistix models usually run around 280-300
.

Seriously, what the hell is wrong with you guys? Why is everyone so obsessed with this P35-DS3-ci motherboard? I guess there’s something about it that people think is special, but I don't get it.

It’s easily the best bang for your buck... you get plenty of extra features, it's rock solid, and there are tons of overclocking options... a total best buy... just like the ma69g-s3h was for Athlon builds, even if there are other, more expensive ones out there... the whole point isn't to blow as much cash as possible, it's about finding that sweet spot component... anyone with deep pockets can afford to buy whatever they want... 😉