Overclocking

[Smith]

Well..I've got a Socket AM2 +4200..yeah its a little older..but it does a good job. I was wondering..I know AMD chips can be OC'd to hell..even with a stock fan. right now its idling at 42C.

What kind of speeds would I be able to reach safely with this CPU? Do I need to buy a new cooling fan (because I will if its the best thing to do). And what kind of performance gain can I expect?

Thanks.

[limpingjaret]

I've worked with 4200+'s before and achieved stable clock speeds at 2.6Ghz @1.45v(faster than the 4800+) with stock cooling, I know of people that have OC'd it to 2.8Ghz at a higher voltage. It's a really good overclockable processor

[clocker]

The speed you can safely/stably run is completely dependent on your system in toto and how much energy (time and money) you're willing to devote to the pursuit.

The performance gains are hard to predict and, in most cases, even harder to quantify.
Not "hard to quantify" in the sense of benchmark numbers- they're easy- rather, hard to tell if you'll actually notice the difference.
Depends on what you do with your PC.

[Smith]

Game, thats all I use that computer for along with music. Ive got this for a PS:
http://www.enermaxusa.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_46&products_id=100&osCsid=eea63de4134e9750854eccdb7404a0ac

What should I do if I want to OC my cpu?

[clocker]

Well, first you have to explore the BIOS and see what options are available to you.

[Smith]

Well..what should I be looking for?

[clocker]

Well..what should I be looking for?
The ability to control voltage and memory timings.

[Smith]

http://img455.imageshack.us/img455/8791/dscn0852ct4.jpg

Does this help?

[clocker]

Does this help?
Nope.
That's showing you what you have, not what you can change.

You could read this (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=139778) to get an idea of what's involved.

Read here (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=154184) to see how to document/test your efforts.

*I realize this is probably not your hardware but the systematic approach and ability to control all settings might prove educational.*

[Smith]

Alright, Ill look though those articles. I was looking through my bios and found something called Jumperfree configuration. It had all that stuff I'm supposedly looking for.

Does that sound right?

[mr. nails]

amd chips can not oc very good. 200-400 increase is suck.

instead of me explaining...

just go here (http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=391768).

[S!X]

Alright, Ill look though those articles. I was looking through my bios and found something called Jumperfree configuration. It had all that stuff I'm supposedly looking for.

Does that sound right?

Assuming you have an asus board, yes.

[lynx]

Alright, Ill look though those articles. I was looking through my bios and found something called Jumperfree configuration. It had all that stuff I'm supposedly looking for.

Does that sound right?Sounds right, since we know you have an Asus board (because of the Q-Fan options). :P

[Smith]

Its an ASUS M2N-E Socket 940..for future refrence.

Alright guys, I've read through those pages and I still dont quite understand it. I know that by overclocking im pushing more voltage through my cpu and ram, but how do I accomplish this safely? Programs, process?

[clocker]

amd chips can not oc very good. 200-400 increase is suck.
That is sheer nonsense- some of my 939 chips have run fine at increases of 800MHz and could have gone higher were I not such a lazy fuck.
instead of me explaining...

just go here (http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=391768).
Good link though.

@Smith...
You really don't understand yet.
Upping the CPU's frequency does not automatically "push more voltage" through the chip(s) but frequently it IS necessary to manually increase voltage to sustain the overclock.
This voltage increase will typically require more sophisticated methods to deal with the increase in heat that will be generated.
Thus, the domino effect begins...

Seriously...if you want more speed, look first to just acquiring a faster chip- it's sooo much simpler.
If you are hell-bent on overclocking, first you must do two things.
-One, read alot more about the process.
-Two, be prepared to kiss off the hardware you're playing with- mistakes can be fatal.

[Smith]

Where can I read up more on the basics of this?

[clocker]

The link Mr. Nails posted would be a start.

[Peerzy]

Beginners Guide (http://filesharingtalk.com/vb3/f-guides-and-tutorials-65/t-beginners-guide-overclocking-83982)