Troubleshooting
overclocking problems ( Part 1 )
The mere mention of the
word overclocking brings different images to mind. There are those who are
the "hard-core" in the world who would never run a CPU at its rated
speed if they could help it. Then come the "hobbyists" who would
like to try it but may not know how. Last of course come the "masses"
who have no concept what overclocking is much less would they like to try
it less they offend the x86 gods. While the different views of overclocking
are easy to categorize obtaining good information to help your overclocking
project is much harder to find. The net abounds with wild stories of amazing
people who can overclock a toaster oven to run Quake III at 1280 x 1024 with
60 fps but rarer is the person who can actually explain in detail how they
achieved the amazing feat. This guide is not meant to be the only source of
data you should consult nor will it obtain all the information necessary to
complete your overclocking goals. It merely will help you to troubleshoot
problems you may be experiencing with your project and give you solutions
you may not have considered previously.
Origins of Overclocking
It would be naïve
to think that overclocking is a new concept. The idea of increasing output
from any machine with little improvements is nothing new. A simple machine
such as a lever can be fine-tuned when its fulcrum is moved to a more optimum
position. This allows more work (output) to be performed with the same amount
of effort (input). Obviously the automotive industry is no stranger to these
ideas. How often do we see improvements in a cars power ratings year to year
with only minor reengineering of its components?
I have seen computers
that have 20 MHz 386 processors overclocked to 25 MHz however when Intel released
the 486 platform there was finally a computer worthy of overclocking. The
486 family rapidly increased in clockspeed until the range it was available
in became quite impressive (25 MHz to 100+ MHz). A new concept was introduced
with the CPU multiplier. It was basically a multiplier that allowed a higher
clocked chip to utilize the slower bus speeds of the other chips available.
For example: a 66 MHz chip utilized a 33 system frontside bus with a multiplier
of 2 while a 33 MHz chip utilized the same frontside bus with no multiplier.
Intel had created a workaround for the problem with slow bus speeds that actually
benefited the overclocking community. At that point the accommodations for
overclocking were already present on the motherboard. I have overclocked 25
MHz chips to 33 MHz and have seen systems with 66 MHz chips running at 75
MHz. At some point people began to overclock their 486 chips to the point
they realized they were damaging them from heat, thus forcing them to reconsider
their cooling requirements and strategies. The basic techniques of overclocking
have not changed since then and consist of either modifying the multiplier
or frontside bus that the CPU utilizes and controlling the subsequent increased
processor heat. This guide will apply to almost anyone but if you own a 486
based system to the newest systems you will benefit the most (sorry 8086-386).
Owners of chips made by manufacturers other than Intel should remember that
your chips meet the x86 standards so this applies to your chip(s) too.
Fundamentals of Overclocking
As I stated before the
basics of overclocking deal with either changing the CPU multiplier or the
frontside bus of the system. Intel saw that the manipulation of CPU multipliers
was leading to remarked chips entering the market so now all Intel CPUs come
with a multiplier that cannot be manipulated. This means that for most of
us the only modification available to increase system performance is to raise
the system frontside bus speed. Definitely gone are the days of the 486 and
Pentium that could accept changes to both their frontside bus and multiplier
to gain increases in speed. This couldn’t have hurt Intel’s profits either
since making CPUs harder to overclock forced the consumer to purchase upgrade
processors rather than overclocking their own processor. As CPU speed ratings
have increased so has the quality of the CPUs themselves. A 233 Pentium MMX
could never be expected to obtain the dramatic increases now available to
us simply because the CPU’s quality will not allow it to. Intel needed to
increase quality in their chips to continue offering new products and that
has directly benefited the overclocking community. If you own a more recent
CPU then your chances at success are higher due to these quality issues.
If you have seen all
the testimonials on the net that people post about products such as heatsinks
and case fans you have probably realized that one of the most important things
you can do to increase your overclocking success is to reduce the temperature
of the CPU. Like anything electronic the reduction of heat increases reliability
and may actually allow you to hit speeds that would be unavailable to you
without extra cooling. Also be aware that you may have to increase the quality
of signals that travel through the tracings of your CPU by increasing the
amount of current that these signals use. Obviously that is one of the chief
reasons people damage their CPUs as they become overzealous in their approach.
That is why you often see an article like this accompanied with a warning.
My warning is simple: I am not responsible for any damage you cause your processor.
Be sensible with your project. I will give you several tips to help you reach
your goals but if you don’t approach your project with patience and the realization
that you may never reach these goals then you may in fact damage your processor,
system, or its components. A damaged processor is actually very rare since
most systems will either work at the higher clock speed or won’t but careful
attention to cooling will always be necessary. That is why I will tackle cooling
problems first since that is probably the most common reason attempts at overclocking
fail. The tips are listed in no particular order. Consider which will help
you in your situation (overclocked or not):
- Use heatsink compound
between your heatsink and CPU. Very few systems actually come with heatsink
compound on the CPU. It will fill the irregularities on the surface of the
CPU and heatsink to increase the transfer of heat.
- Apply heatsink compound
between the CPU and heatsink sparingly. More is definitely not better in
this situation. You should feel the CPU and heatsink scraping on each other
when you move the heatsink around. The heatsink should not be floating above
the CPU on this goop.
- You can never have
too much cooling especially where the CPU is concerned. The heatsink and
fan that came with your CPU was probably designed for its original speed
rating. Consider upgrading to a better heatsink/fan if programs lock up
more than they did before you overclocked the CPU. Better heatsinks will
allow you to reach higher clock speeds (if your processor is able to).
- The truly radical may
decide that standard heatsinks are not enough for them. At that point it
will be time to consider refrigerant cooling, peltiers, and water-aided
cooling devices.
- Make sure there is
adequate airflow being pulled into the case as well as being exhausted from
the case. Many cases may have either an intake or exhaust fan but rarely
do they have both. A $10 case fan can be used for intake or exhaust purposes.
The more the better.
- You can cut holes in
your case to accommodate more intake and exhaust fans. A blowhole (exhaust
fan mounted to the top of the case) is a very efficient.
- If your case is too
small to accommodate more fans remove the covers on your case for all the
PCI and ISA components. This will allow as much air to circulate as possible.
- Keep your heatsinks
and fans dust free in order to maximize cooling.
- You can fashion a simple
airfilter from the thin foam material that surrounds most new components
(such as motherboards) when they are new.
- Your power supply is
not an exhaust fan. Most power supplies run at approx. 70% thermal efficiency.
That means that 30% of the heat generated by your power supply is entering
your case.
- In severe conditions
you can remove the cover from your case. This will let you know if your
stability problems are truly heat related.
- Remember that heat
rises. Don’t place your exhaust fans at the bottom of the case. Likewise
never place intake and exhaust fans next to each other as this will cause
the cool intake air to be immediately exhausted before it can travel to
other areas in the case.
- Keep intake fans low
if possible. A combination of a low intake fan and a second intake fan higher
in the case may neutralize hot spots and create large cooling increases.
- Full towers tend to
have their power supplies mounted towards the middle of the case. Look for
one that has an exhaust fan opening either beside the power supply or above
it. An exhaust fan above the power supply is more desirable as it will remove
the heat trapped at the top of the case.
- Route your cables so
that they do not block the natural airflow up and out of the case.
- Mount your 5.25"
components as high in the case as possible as they tend to intrude into
the airflow within the case.
- 7200-RPM harddrives
run hotter than 5400-RPM drives. Consider directing a fan at a hot harddrive
or even buying one of the available harddrive cooling devices that use multiple
fans and/or heatsinks.
- A video card running
at high frontside bus speeds will run hot. Consider mounting a fan and heatsink
on a chipset that does not have one. You can use parts leftover from replaced
CPU heatsinks. You can also mount heatsinks to your video card memory.
- The truly hardware
inclined can remove the fans from old power supplies as they make great
intake and exhaust fans or they can be used to direct air at specific components.
- There are software
cooling aids such as Rain and Waterfall. They allow the CPU to cool down
by not forcing it to run 100% when it is sitting idle.
In the second installment
of this article we will begin to look at solutions for problems you may be
experiencing with your installed components, memory, and specific techniques
that may get you a little more processing power. Those of you who have never
attempted to overclock your system will find the information in the next article
to be interesting. Lastly we will cover overclocking strategies for specific
CPUs. I recommend you review the above cooling tips and correct any deficiencies
you find in your system before any attempts at overclocking. Obviously if
you are experiencing occasional heat related problems they will be magnified
when you overclock your CPU.
