First ever overclock i7 950

[Necrocoil]

Hello!

I've been thinking about overclocking my 950 for a while, and since I got my watercooling setup running stable I thought this would be the perfect time to do it,altho I suspect I might improve temps by changing fans...

It's not the perfect enviroment to be in, as my room isn't ventilated too well so take that into account please.

Setup:

Antec 902 case, radiator mounted in the front with dust filters in place.

i7 950 @ 4.2Ghz

ASUS P6T Deluxe v2

4x Yate Loon D12SL-12 1350RPM

EK Supreme HF

EK Coolstream XT 240

EK DCP 4.0 pump

EK Multioption res v2 150

3/8 tubing

Multi 21

BLCK 200

Vcore 1.34

PLL 1.9v

VTT 1.3v

RAM 1.64v

Any idea's or tips on the OC? To get lower voltages \ temps, or are the voltages \ temps good as they are?

Would it be wise to go for 4.4Ghz?

Ambient temp: 27.7c

New screenie with new voltages @ 28.6 ambient.

 

[Chaffe]

Temperature wise I'd say your at your limit for a 24/7 O/C. The other thing is you've been priming for about 25 minutes in that screenshot which really isn't an indication of stability or max temps. You may still need more volts to get your 4.2 OC stable. So I'd go and sort out your OC first then look at the possibility of going further for 24/7 purposes.

 

[Necrocoil]

Yes it BSOD'd while ingame with prime in the background, I instantly upped the VTT to 1.30v and the Vcore to 1.34v it's dead stable now and running like a charm with prime running overnight

Still, I have my doubts about the VTT and PLL / Vcore voltages, should they be that high? Or did I put them too high?

Do you think it would be wise to change the fans for 1500rpm gelid wing 12 fans? Or do you have a different suggestion? Could possibly change the pump for a D5 next month or something, or both. It's a pretty small loop with 3/8's tubing, won't the pressure be too much?

The temps are just a bit too high for my taste, but I'm a noob so what am I to judge, don't know if these temps are normal with these relatively low speed fans and pump.

The stock dust filters of a 902 might also be a bit too restrictive but I kind of don't like the idea of dust building up in the system wich happens fast due to the carpet it's sitting on.

 

[Chaffe]

As far as dust goes ~ it's a pest, I've got 932 with both an internal rad and external rad sitting on the floor and the dust definately accumulates over a few months but mainly on my fans. An easy maintenance custom build is on the cards for me when I get out of uni

. The key to reducing dust build up inside is having more air going out then in. ( Your fans will accumulate a layer of dust over time though unless you have good intake filters; still better then your case becoming a dust box)

You've gone down the water cooling path and if you like the current noise levels of your PC I'd consider what the difference is between 4.2 and say 4.0 Ghz is. If the you have CPU speed sensitive applications where you regularly notice the difference an extra 200 Mhz makes then yes I would consider gettings some stronger fans and crankin em to get some extra thermal headroom and going for 4.3 or maybe 4.4. I spose as well if it's currently summer where you live then maybe as the temps drop look at pushing it a bit further if you don't mind the cold in your room (my computer has been a pretty good heater for the last few months

).

As for the original question I would try using your 23 multi and see what you get to with it. What you lose in MHz with your ram you can often make back and them some with alittle bit of experimentation by either raising your ram multi or lowering timings. Before you go shooting for 4.4 though you'll need better cooling. I run a set of Patriot Vipers rated at 2000-8-8-8-24 at a speed of 1600-6-6-6-20 for general use because they require a fair bit of VTT to be stable at 2000Mhz.

As far as voltages -

Vcore looks good, (I assume you mean CPU or IOH) PLL looks high (this normally isn't even an important setting for Overclocking), Can't really tell whether VTT is high or low as you haven't given a ram speed (probably the key thing is it's below or at intel's max ~ 1.35V). I'd have a play around with IOH voltage (important if you have a powerful graphics card) and QPI PLL voltage (this one is similiar to CPU VTT and is rated 1.35V max by intel) if you have the option as they are normally important for overclocking.

GL in the future with your overclocking endeavours!

P.S unless you have the shittest pump in the world I wouldn't worry about upgrading