# question about Overclocking..



## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

uh.. i have a new computer.. should i overclock it..? kinda scare of screwing it up since its really new.. i havent done many research, but according to the place i got this.. my comp should be safe to overclock.. 



-side question what is Crossfire



this is my comp specs that Ibuypower.com left for me....

Processor: Phenom X4 9850 2.5 GHz

Processor Cooling ( AVC Silent AMD CPU Fan and Heatsink Quiet & Overclocking Proof )

Motherboard: ( [CrossFire] MSI DKA790GX AMD 790GX CrossFire Chipset w/7.1 Sound, Dual Gb LAN, S-ATA Raid, USB 2.0, Dual PCI-E MB )

Memory ( 5 GB Corsair )

Video Card ( NVIDIA GeForce 9500GT 1GB w/DVI + TV Out Video )

Video Card Brand ( === High Performance === eVGA Brand Video Card Powered by NVIDIA )

Advanced Build Options ( Professional wiring for all cables inside the system tower Achieve exceptional airflow in your chassis )

Advanced Build Options ( Tuniq TX-2 High Performance Thermal Compound The best interface between your CPU and the heatsinks )


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

its upto you wether you oveclock or not, the only advice I will give you is to get a better cpu cooler and what is your power supply wattage as you need to make sure you have a decent one.

crossfire is 2 ati video cards (the same type) linked together to give twice the graphics processing power, well thats the theory anyway. It doesn't always workout how people think it will though.


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

are overclocking for games?

the limiting factor will be your graphics card and PSU you'll need to get better ones to have a big jump in performance 

a 9500GT graphics card is pretty low end


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

ekk so i shouldn't..? cuz my graphic card suck..?

and i have a 500watts power


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

you shouldnt because your power supply is only 500 watts


and if you do overclock your CPU you will be wasting your time because your video card can use what your cpu has to offer now ?

its like using a wheelbarrow moving rocks; if you cant operate the wheelbarrow when its full or rocks what good am I doing for you when I bring a bigger wheelbarrow ?


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

if you want your computer to be awesome I'd suggest getting these 2 upgrades

Corsair 750w
$120
after rebate $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Graphics Card
XFX HD-485X-YDFC Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
*Double Lifetime Manufacturer Warranty*
$170
after rebate $160
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150337


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

hey what does the memory and bits do to the graphic card..? im so noob at these things sorry..

i assume having alot of memory.. 1gb.. on the 9500GT.. (which is what mine supost to have..) is good..


and if i do get a new power supply.. do i have to throw away all the wires i have right now..? cuz mine was all neat and "professionally" cut.. im hoping if i do get a more powerful power supply i'll just disconnect the wires on my 500watt and put it on the 750watt..

AND.. does having more watts waste electricity..?


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

your PSU only draws the electricity it needs. The higher end PSU's can simply simply just draw more at better efficiencies.

The PSU's that can disconnect the wires from are modular ones. and even if it was modular I'd want to use the new wires from a new PSU

Modular PSU's are really overpriced for how good they are

The bits not too sure it has something to do with architecture of the card. having more memory is good but its by far not what you should be looking singularly.

overclock the 4850 after you get it 

take a look at your current setup and remeber how the wires were cabled to the case


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

ohh so overclocking only apply to the graphic card..? i thought if i overclock my whole PC some how goes faster.. and i still dont understand why having more memory on the graphic card is good.. if i knew.. i woulda buy something else when i bought this new computer..

i do want a better graphic card to play game.. :/..


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

the more meemory the graphics card has the more textures and pixels can held and used at one time allowing higher settings 

have a read here 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_card


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

hey can i buy the graphic card only and not a power unit..? it seem kinda rip off(the power unit)

-i have to spend 100 just for 250 Watts more..  .. and do i have to buy the corsair brand?

should i buy this one instead.. so much cheaper.. http://cgi.ebay.com/A-Power-750W-20...286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66:2|65:15|39:1|240:1318


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

for a good 750w at regular price I wouldn't trust it to be less than $80

I found a link to a A power 680w PSU
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=APBK680&cat=PWR&cpc=PWRbsc&AID=10445123&CJPID=3342876

so lets compare Corsair 650w PSU against the 680w A-Power

Corsair
-80%+ efficiency 
-single 12v rail @ 52a
-the rated efficiency is @ 50C
-120mm fan
-99% Active Power Factor Correction provides clean and reliable power to your system
2 x PIC-E 6pin plugs
100 - 240 V switchable power supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005


A-Power 680w PSU
-12v rail @20A
-the 5v and the 3v have all the power which is the exact opposite of what a computer needs
-not regulated so its probably rated 60% or less
-crappy dual 80mm fans
1 x 6 pin PCI-E 6 pin plug
15V, 230V switchable power supply
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=APBK680&cat=PWR&cpc=PWRbsc&AID=10445123&CJPID=3342876

the corsair 400w is better than the 680w A-Power piece-o-crap

good brands are
PC and Power Cooling
Thermaltake - "TOUGHPOWER" series only
Seasonic
Corsair
Cooler Master - "REAL POWER PRO" series only
Silverstone

these are the best PSU's some are ok but its not worth it


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

lol thaks for the info.. so.. should i buy a new power unit or no..? i believe i already have a 500Watts.. power unit..


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

yep get the corsair I specified and you'll be fine


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

Mcninjaguy said:


> yep get the corsair I specified and you'll be fine








"MCninja" is giving you some very sound advice; it will save you many headaches and wasted money! dirty & unstable power is the biggest killer of motherboards / ram / hard drives & video cards


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

wow i never knew power supply is so important 0_0.. ok.. is there anything better then this corsair..? http://jbrlsr.com/?aid=5336121828&b...com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

i mean i might as well go all out... i do want what's best for my PC... and what's crossfire!! no one answer me yet >.< i think im suppose to enable it but i lost the instruction on how to.. and what does it do...


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## Tinnguyen123 (Oct 18, 2008)

thank you Mcninjaguy btw.. and all who answer my thread


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## McNinja (Jun 22, 2008)

Crossfiring is when you take 2 of the exact same cards and connect them together (I know in SLI you use a litle wire to connect the two GPU's together)

you onlu get at max 50% more performance but its usually around 20% or less more performance

its better to just buy one really good card

and if you want the best bang for your buck for a PSU you should have a look at the corsair 850w. I have one myself and its a very nice PSU indeed and it keeps cool

most PSU's are rated at around 25C (crappy ones) and good PSU's are rated at 50C for their efficiency rating of 80+%

and for its hard to find a single railed PSU that has its 12v rail at 70a. the 750w has its 12v rail @ 60a. 

Corsair 850w
$150
after rebate $130
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139009

its too bad that the corsair 850w used to be around $140 only a week or so ago

if you look around you'll find that nothing really compares with a price and performance point of view with the corsair 850w


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I have not found a unit that gives more value than the Corsair 850 even at $150.00

next best .......Corsair 750-TX

but if you "think" you may someday run a dual video card set-up ....... then 850 is your baby


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