Core Speed And Stuff

[DCMan]

Hey there all :)

Been poking around this site for a while, and finally decided it was time I actually asked for some advice....

Just a couple of questions:

1) Is there ANY other way of finding out the core speed of an Athy without using screwdrivers and pliers to rip it apart?? (I'm expecting a no to that - but its worth a try ;) hehe ) I've had my 800 up to 920 with it fairly stable by playing with the FSB (at 8*115), but I would still like to know the core speed, so i dont kill something....!

2) Anyone know where to get a FreeSpeed from (or any other decent GFD).

Fanks.

:)

[Lolboy]

Welcome to the board DCMan :xwavey:

This is a question that is asked fairly often. The only way to be 100% sure is to crack it open and have a look. Check this earlier thread as it may help also. http://www.ninjamicros.com/vbulletin/showthread.php3?s=&threadid=4500

Is your Athy a classic or a T'bird? If its a classic then you may be able to get a higher clock speed by changing the Level2 cache divider speed to 1/3 (it will be 2/5 at the mo)

I see your looking for a GFD. With one of these you should see a gig so long as you are able to change that L2 divider.

Lolboy.

[dicki]

the best thing to do to find a GFD is to have a look in the buy sell and trade section of this board, you'll most likly only find them second hand now... the freespeed has been out of production for about a year or so now.

dicki

[DCMan]

My Athy is a Classic. Will I be able to change the L2 Divider in the Bios, or do I have to use another program? (My mobo is an Asus K7V)

Fanks for the info so far, tho :)

[Lolboy]

If I remember correctly you can flash your bios to a later version which will allow you to change. If not, then you could try using a program called Mathlon which can be unsuccessful most of the time or solder it (my choice)
Check my link to see how its done.

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

ooooooooooooook - so, i have my GFD (finally), i have MAthlon, i have all the stuff i need.... after taking off the case of the athy - anything i should do? apart from plug in the GFD and test a bit??

[4.6POWER]

yeah... when you put it back together clean the surfaces really well and use arctic silver thermal paste. Don't use any paste on the cache... they don't get hot and all it does is leak off and make a mess. Also clean and use a small amount between the heatplate and the heatsink. Mount the thermal probe securely... and you will see 1 gig easy.

Joe

[dicki]

humm not really... is the heatsink coming off? you could reapply your thermal paste and ensure it's on nice and tight... if your really feeling brave you could strip the athy compleatly and take a peak at the actual core speed and the speed of the cache chips before re greasing and trying it but i personally wouldn't do that

dicki

[DCMan]

ok - NOW i'm gonna sound silly....

before i take off the athy case - i have to remove the bits that lock onto the mobo... how do i do that??? it is attached to the outer casing in a way that means that i cant get the screwdriver in to take it off....

and to answer the other question, i am only gona take off the back for now - i'm not brave enough (and dont have a pair of pliers handy) to take of the heatplate - yet ;) hehehe

[Pistol]

the parts on the mobo can stay there,there is a tab on the bottom and top that you have to squeeze to release cpu,you should hear them click when you squeeze inwards

[DCMan]

ok - done it.. taken case off, got GFD fitted... and no post....

eh??

computer runs fine when no GFD fitted, but as soon as it is on the top of the cpu, nothing, even when default settings of my CPU/VCORE setting are used.... whatcha reckon?? (fanks for the help so far... :))

[Lolboy]

What are setting the core voltage to on the GFD. You say standard but what is the standard? Do you know?
Usual things; make sure the connector is clean, make sure your switches are definately set correctly.
Hope you haven't got a faulty GFD as it has ben known. :(

Lolboy.

[Pistol]

I have also found that sometimes when you seat the FSP all the way on it wont post,this doesnt happen that often,try to push it all the way on then take the top part of it and tilt it just a little towards the case side that you have open

[DCMan]

As a default my system runs at 800mhz with a 1.75VCore - thats what i set it to on the GFD...

I'll try the re-seating and cleaning things....

:)

[DooM Fly]

which GFD did you wind up getting?
are you sure it's on properly? (facing the right way)
try setting it to the normal settings for your processor & get it to post before trying to o/c
MAthlon can be tricky, but I know it works.
Cpuid reports 1/2 cache speed (which is default), but I know it's actually at 2/5 'cause my machine won't post over 800 without slowing the cache.
good luck

[DCMan]

OK - i got the Northwind GFD REV3 in the end.... was the only one i could actually find for a decent price.... i have already tried getting it to post with the multiplier/VCore at the original settings and no luck. and i'm 99% sure its in the right way round ;) hehe....

if i was to try it the other way round - how likely am i to fry something if it is put in the wrong way??

[Pistol]

from what I know of the northwind is that the dip switches will go towards the bottom of the cpu,so for you to make any adjustments to it should be from the back part of the case,as for its settings I would set the voltage to 1.85 on the northwind and set the cpu speed to what ever your cpu is for the moment and see if you can get it to boot,in your bios (cpu speed)should be set to user define,the voltage settings should be controlled by the bios even tho you have a higher setting on the northwind,that also should be set to user define,I havent used a northwind or FSP,been useing a Maximzer myself but they should be close,as for this part (if i was to try it the other way round - how likely am i to fry something if it is put in the wrong way??)I dont know,never tried it

[DCMan]

ok - fanks....

i'll go and try some more stuff, and not fry anything... ;)

[DCMan]

Ok - so it works now... woohoo :) got the 800 up to 900, but dont wanna go past there till i get some better cooling for the cpu....

What about this whole cache divider thing? and if i cant do it through the bios, is it worth trying MAthlon?

and also, what would you say the max MB temp should be before i start gettin worried?? i dont have a probe on my cpu core yet... hehe

[Lolboy]

Ah-ah! Finally your overclocking properly with a GFD.

To go above 900 you will need to change your level 2 cache divider to 1/3 to be stable. You could give Mathlon a go but don't hold your breath. The best way is to solder it. I'm not sure but I think there was a bios from Asus which had a divider setting. Have a poke around the bios files on their site and see.
What have you set your core voltage to to get 900? If you've had to up the voltage then go for a better cooler but if you haven't then dont worry too much, it'll start crashing before it cooks!

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

right - me AGAIN!! (i really dont wanna kill my cpu, and i've got a horrible feeling i'm about to sound really dumb.... hehe)

Mathlon + WinXP = no config.sys file


where do i put the line: "DEVICE = C:\MATHLON\MATHLON.SYS -1/3"

it says to put it into the config.sys file.... but there isnt one in winXP

any ideas - without soldering?? hehe

[Lolboy]

Should have mentioned earlier that you need the correct version of Mathlon for the OS your using. Not sure about XP though.

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

ok - i have to up the core voltage to 1.85v (from 1.75) to get it to run stable @900... worth goin for a better cooler??

and i still cant find out how to get MAthlon to run with XP... is there an XP version anywhere? :)

[Lolboy]

I'm not suprised you've had to up the core voltage to 1.85 cos standard 900's have a core voltage of 1.8v.

What cooler have you got at the mo?

Not sure about Mathlon for XP. Might be worth having a look at the Windblows 2K version.

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

The cooler is a Cooler Master something or other... rated @ 850... not entirely sure because i got the computer about 18 months ago, and wasnt really into the whole overclocking thing, and so just got whatever came as standard....

[Pistol]

I would suggest a bigger cooler

[DCMan]

ok cool... thanx for all of that, guys.. very helpful

might still need to ask a bit more about MAthlon and/or soldering.. but that depends how brave i get with the soldering iron... ;)

[Lolboy]

Good luck.

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

ok - one last thing.

got gfd. fitted it. Got new cooler, up to 1000mhz. flashed bios to allow l2 cache divider changing.

if i wanna take cpu up to 1ghz, what should l2 divider be at? and for 900? or is it just trial and error? sorry to be dumb, but i dont wanna cook anything on my cpu just yet!

thanx guys :)

[Lolboy]

Anything over 900 meg usually needs a 2/5 divider.

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

ta :) will try

[Lolboy]

Sorry mis-lead you there. Anything over 900 meg needs a 1/3 divider not 2/5 like I originally said!

Someone slap me.

Lolboy.

[DCMan]

hey there guys :)

just wondering - is it possible to change the I/O or any other voltage (apart from the core voltage) on my mobo (Asus K7V). I have bios 1008 beta.

any ideas?

DCMan :)

[Lolboy]

Use the jumper on the motherboard.

Lolboy.