# Overclocking Problem: Need Help Finding Source Of Bluescreen



## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

I've been working on overclocking my e4300 for the last couple of days. I've finally gotten very close to what I assume will be my final stable settings but I keep getting a blue screen. I'm not quite sure what settings to tweak. Any help would be most appreciated.

*1st Blue Screen*
Time Orthos Ran Before BS: 4HR 23MIN
vCore: 1.3v + 0.1375v
NB: 1.3v
Note: 1st BS happened overnight while I was sleeping

*2nd Blue Screen*
Time Orthos Ran Before BS: 4HR 36MIN
vCore: 1.3v + 0.1500v
NB: 1.3v
Note: 2nd BS happended right as a DVD finished ripping.

*3rd Blue Screen*
Time Orthos Ran Before BS: 5MIN
vCore: 1.3v + 0.1500v
NB: 1.35v
Note: 1st BS happened while I was reading my email in my web browser.

*OTHER SETTINGS*

Test run in Orthos was the _Small FFTs - Stress CPU_ test
The south bridge, memory voltage, and FFT voltage are all stock
BIOS is latest revision (1.4)
FSB is 1400 (3.15GHz)
Memory timings are set to 4-4-4-12 (stock rated values)
Intel SpeedStep is enabled
C1E is enabled (by default and does not appear in the BIOS to disable)
*Note About Memory:* I've tested my RAM on two occassions, 12+ hours each time, in memtest86+ and no errors were reported. I'm using a 650i motherboard which allows me to use "manual" settings (often referred to as "unlinked") for the FSB and memory speeds. My BIOS confirms that my memory is running at 800MHz which is its default rating.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

I have seen the Blue Screen more than a few times and more often than not it was produced by CPU and or Ram overloads caused by System software. Errors cause tremendous load surges in the system. Multiple surges cause the Blue Screen of Death. I have seen the same issues, overload with errors, from 98SE to Vista Home Premium which I am currently running in an HP Pavilion a6077c Asus P5LP-LE 4400. 

I have isolated or removed three Vista programs that have caused overload and have changed my settings without permission, denied access to my software, have incorrectly identified my software, and locked me out of my software. The three are.

1.)Windows Defender
2.)Windows User Account Control
3.)Windows Vista autotunning

y


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

Running Windows XP Pro SP2. I'm pretty familiar with it as I've been an avid OS Settings Tweaker since it was first released. While these machines are clean installs that have virtually no settings changed, I'm still pretty damn sure the OS isn't producing these errors. 3DMark06 on the other hand is a program I have not used before. The fact that it froze during a loading screen, when temps and cpu/mem load are much lower than during testing, also has me thinking the program is probably to blame. I've been trying to come up with a better and more reliable way to test my GPU.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

does your power supply have the extra power available for overclocking


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

It has more than enough. As far as research goes, it took me about a month to decide on all the parts before purchasing them, I spent the most time picking out the PSU. I picked the Thermaltake Toughpower series because of its solid record of high performance under heavy load situations. There is more than enough power on the rails and these PSU's have a reputation for always providing constant and clean power without fluctuations of any kind.

I also used the PRO version of the eXtreme Power Supply Calculator to make sure I would have enough juice to power everything after I had overclocked my CPU. I inflated some of the values (capacitor aging, load, tdp, etc...) to make sure the PSU would last over the next couple of years as it started to age. My calculations even include a Quad CPU, 2nd 8800GTX in SLI, and more RAM for future proofing. Even with all of that my PSU still has plenty of power left over. I can say without doubt that my PSU is more than capable of handling my system


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

try increasing your ram voltage slightly and see if there is an improvement
it's a change to see someone that thinks ahead most ignore the psu


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

My BIOS doesn't tell me the current voltage of my RAM. It is set to Auto but I'm not sure how to check the voltage. I looked in CPU-Z but it didn't contain that info. Any idea how I could find the "Auto" voltage so I could raise it? Also how much should I raise it? I know hen overclocking a CPU you should move in increments of 0.0125v but not sure about memory.


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

I forgot about posting in this thread after I fixed it. When I replied to this today I thought this was the video card crash problem I was responding to. My apologies.

I was able to get a stable 3.15GHz by upping the voltage to the vCore one last time and returning the NB back to 1.3v. It passed 24HR of straight Small FFTs testing in Orthos yesterday :grin:.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

In Bios you should find a setting for ram 1T/2T . Choose 1T. Your 4.4.4.12 ram is the fastest in it's grouping and will blow the doors off your GPU first off and then your CPU. If you can volt up your Ram more than 0.10v it would surprise me, because you will be clocking the GPU to keep up.

riva tuner:
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download737.html
ati tool: 
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4109.html


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

Just curious. What do you mean by blow the doors off of my GPU first and then my CPU? Not quite sure what your saying. My RAM is currently manually defined at 2T because that is what Auto had it set to (according to CPU-Z). I'm also not sure how setting it to 1T could affect my GPU or CPU directly. 

I'm not sure if this matters but my motherboard has a setting where I can manually adjust the speed of my memory and FSB so I don't have to use dividers when overclocking. My CPU is at 3.15GHz but my RAM is at the stock speed of 800MHz.

Also you linked to ATI Tool, which I have installed, and to my knowledge it has nothing to do with adjusting normal RAM timings. Obviously it can tweak the speed of my vid card RAM but I'm pretty sure you are talking about system memory as you mentioned the 1T/2T setting.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

when you click on the ram listing in in the bios a box should come up allowing you to choose manual
you should then get the voltage options try 0.01v 0.02v


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

DDR800 ram should be able to go to 2.2 volt I would defintely try sneaking it up a tad


corsair, OCZ and maybe even crucial have memory forums manned by their techs to verify this info


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

The memory is GeIL and currently my CPU is stable at 3.15GHz (24 hours in Orthos verified this). Is it still necessary to up this? I can't see any gain. In fact it should raise the heat the RAM generates right?


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> Just curious. What do you mean by blow the doors off of my GPU first and then my CPU? Not quite sure what your saying. My RAM is currently manually defined at 2T because that is what Auto had it set to (according to CPU-Z). I'm also not sure how setting it to 1T could affect my GPU or CPU directly.
> 
> I'm not sure if this matters but my motherboard has a setting where I can manually adjust the speed of my memory and FSB so I don't have to use dividers when overclocking. My CPU is at 3.15GHz but my RAM is at the stock speed of 800MHz.
> 
> Also you linked to ATI Tool, which I have installed, and to my knowledge it has nothing to do with adjusting normal RAM timings. Obviously it can tweak the speed of my vid card RAM but I'm pretty sure you are talking about system memory as you mentioned the 1T/2T setting.



If you can set your ram in bios to 1T manually then try it. you should be able to select the option and set 1T. My advice is try that first because it will accelerate your entire system dramaticaly just with that one setting. I should have said...update your bios first thing. then go to the 1T setting. then work your way back. Tick your CPU up after the 1T set because you can pop a diode if you clock ram first without raising CPU voltage. and yes rivatuner and ati tool are Video tools. your motherboard bios should have lots of ram adjustment for air cooling. that is quality ram you have meaning it is very fast. your video card is going to be your slowest part and it is going to get hot fast and you may have to back off on the voltage. black screen and artifacts are the first sign of GPU and GDDR over heating.
y


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

personally unless you are "searching" for the breaking point of the board, I would have quit at 3.0 ghz and been happy :wink:

especially if the heat was lower !


I dont see much noticible gain even by the additional 10% at the end ??


you will be *hard pressed *to see the diff between 3.0 ghz and 3.2 ghz !


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

linderman said:


> personally unless you are "searching" for the breaking point of the board, I would have quit at 3.0 ghz and been happy :wink:
> 
> especially if the heat was lower !
> 
> ...


that is good advise. which mobo do you have mulsiphix ?


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

MSI P6N SLI Platinum. I actually couldn't overclock this processor past 2.8GHz without dramatically raising the vCore. I had it at 1.4125v and it died in Orthos after 6 hours. I was finally stable at 1.4375v as it withstood 12+ hours in Orthos. Once I raised the voltage to 1.4625v I was able to hold a 3.15GHz clock in Orthos for 24+ hours.

The difference in temperature is only 2C to 3C (3GHz = 54C / 3.15GHz = 56-57C). The temps I'm mentioning are the max temps recorded during the 12HR and 24HR Orthos runs each processor was tested under. Their actual idle and load temps are much smaller. I've yet to see a single application or game push the 3.15GHz past 43C. Frankly that temperature is more than satisfactory to me.

Keep in mind the hardware is in an Antec 900 case with 6 Antec Tri-Cool fans all set on High. The fan on the Tuniq Tower is set to maximum speed. There are four 120mm intake fans, 1 120mm exhaust fan, and 1 200mm exhaust fan. Ambient room temperature of the room the PC's are in (there are two of these rigs) is 76F during the hottest portion of the day and between 72F to 74F during the coldest portion of the night. 

Although if it makes anybody here feel a little better the other rig has an e6300 which is at 3.0GHz. It would have been pushed farther but the motherboard is notorious for not being able to handle FSB speeds past 375MHz (comment based on seven major review sites reviews of the mobo). The e6300 achieved stability with a FSB speed of 428.8MHz amazingly. Although the board couldn't handle any higher FSB speeds for more than six hours in Orthos.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> MSI P6N SLI Platinum. I actually couldn't overclock this processor past 2.8GHz without dramatically raising the vCore. I had it at 1.4125v and it died in Orthos after 6 hours. I was finally stable at 1.4375v as it withstood 12+ hours in Orthos. Once I raised the voltage to 1.4625v I was able to hold a 3.15GHz clock in Orthos for 24+ hours.
> 
> The difference in temperature is only 2C to 3C (3GHz = 54C / 3.15GHz = 56-57C). The temps I'm mentioning are the max temps recorded during the 12HR and 24HR Orthos runs each processor was tested under. Their actual idle and load temps are much smaller. I've yet to see a single application or game push the 3.15GHz past 43C. Frankly that temperature is more than satisfactory to me.
> 
> ...


It seems that you have clocked this system before starting this thread. If that is the case then I was not aware when I recommended the 1T setup. You mentioned that your Bios was at auto 2T. My experience with 1T and 2T settings leads me to believe that they are two different games that can be played on the same field...meaning that when you play the 1T game you should give all the players the best chance of winning...meaning set the system to default values before overclocking...especially if you have been playing the 2T game with your system. Once defaults are set then set 1T and proceed... Switching from 2T to 1T on a clocked system is almost certain crash.
y


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

When I get a fourth stick of RAM I will have to do more memtest86+ and Orthos stress testing. I think I will try 1T at that time. From what I have seen in various benchmarks though the increased CPU clock will benefit me far greater than changing the 1T/2T setting for memory. If it comes down to choosing between the two I will definitely go with the CPU and stick with 2T.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> When I get a fourth stick of RAM I will have to do more memtest86+ and Orthos stress testing. I think I will try 1T at that time. From what I have seen in various benchmarks though the increased CPU clock will benefit me far greater than changing the 1T/2T setting for memory. If it comes down to choosing between the two I will definitely go with the CPU and stick with 2T.


good decision. when you do decide to go to the 1T game do not forget to reset your system to default values. it is a different ball game especially from a CPU perspective.

Which benchmarks do you refer to?

Y


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

Those benchmarks in my memory that were obtained during reading. I actually started building these computers back in March of this year. Well I started designing them anyway. It had been over five years since I built my last "cutting edge" computer so my knowledge of hardware and the associated terminology was practically non-existent.

I started visiting many forums, asking question after question, and reading every professional website and magazine review I could get track down on the internet. After a month I finally had my computer designed. A little bit after that I ordered parts, some arrived DOA, those were returned, the new parts came, I built the computer, and here I am. 

During all of this research and learning I've seen a ridiculous amount of benchmarks that have to do with system performance. I've done a ridiculous amount of research on what truly matters to achieve the highest FPS in gaming, the primary use of this computer. I found benchmarks in various articles: RAM - Single Channel VS Dual Channel, Performance between various RAM speeds, Overclocked VS Stock RAM performance, etc... and Overclocked VS Stock CPU performance, what processor was best for my machine, 2MB VS 4MB L2 Cache benchmarks, etc... and various misc articles like BIOS tweaking, Windows tweaking, etc...

Anyway in the end I've seen so many benchmarks in a months time that it was ridiculous. So when speaking of "benchmarks" I couldn't point you in any one place. Actually I could track down several articles that I read but I have nothing in particular that I want to point you to.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> Those benchmarks in my memory that were obtained during reading. I actually started building these computers back in March of this year. Well I started designing them anyway. It had been over five years since I built my last "cutting edge" computer so my knowledge of hardware and the associated terminology was practically non-existent.
> 
> I started visiting many forums, asking question after question, and reading every professional website and magazine review I could get track down on the internet. After a month I finally had my computer designed. A little bit after that I ordered parts, some arrived DOA, those were returned, the new parts came, I built the computer, and here I am.
> 
> ...


Thank you for your reply. I gave up on benchmarks a while back. It seems that they all relate to someone's computer and not mine. The benchmarks that I have used on my systems were interesting but not very useful. If we had a set of benchmarks and a portal that maintained them then we could group PCs and compare their ratings . PC Pitstop used to do that as a service. The frames per second issue is something else.
y


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

I agree. It would be nice if there was a place that gathered all of the info from other places or that did a ridiculous amount of benchmarking as a service. You could select the components in your PC and it would find articles or stats based closely on the specs of your system. Or in the absence of anything close it would give you an idea based on statistics or mathematical formulas (comparing the power of your hardware to more/less powerful hardware) to give you an idea of what to expect. Since there is no such place I viewed as many as possible and got a "general idea" of what to expect.

Talking to people in forums helps a great deal too though as I can't help but think that manufacturers, companies, or even websites supplying the hardware for testing are supplying hardware they know to be especially great performers, great for overclocking, or at least defect free.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> I agree. It would be nice if there was a place that gathered all of the info from other places or that did a ridiculous amount of benchmarking as a service. You could select the components in your PC and it would find articles or stats based closely on the specs of your system. Or in the absence of anything close it would give you an idea based on statistics or mathematical formulas (comparing the power of your hardware to more/less powerful hardware) to give you an idea of what to expect. Since there is no such place I viewed as many as possible and got a "general idea" of what to expect.
> 
> Talking to people in forums helps a great deal too though as I can't help but think that manufacturers, companies, or even websites supplying the hardware for testing are supplying hardware they know to be especially great performers, great for overclocking, or at least defect free.



DFI might be an exception to that statement. They were the first that I know of to be out front about the quality of their resistors and capacitors and if you want motherboard help for overclocking then look no farther. Some times their overclocking software can be useful on motherboards that are not DFI.
Y


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

Who or what is DFI?


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> Who or what is DFI?


http://www.dfi.com.tw/


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

y eye said:


> Some times their overclocking software can be useful on motherboards that are not DFI.
> Y


A motherboard manufacturer? So they actually include overclocking software with their boards?


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

DFI was king of socket 939 but they had a big shake up about a year ago, they lost a couple of key players from design

I dont expect to see DFI getting alot of attention now days, maybe with a select few models, but in reality thats what they were before

the big ones to watch that seem to run neck and neck performance wise all the time are asus, gigabyte and MSI

right now gigabyte seems to have the "full boat" of engineering staff, but the economy seems to have a way of altering that as time proceeds


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

most all high end overclocking boards have overclocking software ?????

asus calls their AI BOOSTER

Gigabyte call theirs EASY TUNE


manually overclocking has a big advantage over software overclocking


software overclocking for the most part is for those users who want to try overclocking but dont want to learn the manual way of doing it!


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

linderman said:


> DFI was king of socket 939 but they had a big shake up about a year ago, they lost a couple of key players from design
> 
> I dont expect to see DFI getting alot of attention now days, maybe with a select few models, but in reality thats what they were before
> 
> ...


I mentioned DFI because of the quality of their boards. I am thinking that the quality of the capacitors is of first importantance to, "high voltage boards", overclockers. My current interest is a Asrock 939SLI32-ESATA2/A/ASR with a 939CPU BOARD/CPU/ASR. It is the Asrock Board and CPU add on Board. It will accept two dual core Opterons. My concern is the quality of the capacitors because this Motherboard is easy to hard volt mod. They say that the first release of this board was solid, but second release used cheaper capacitors. yea yea there is one sure way to find out.... 
email a techie...?....maybe not
y


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

I have a MSI and didn't see any kind of software. Is this something that comes with the board or do I have to go wading through the MSI site to find it?


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> I have a MSI and didn't see any kind of software. Is this something that comes with the board or do I have to go wading through the MSI site to find it?


If you Google " MSI P6N-SLI Platinum " you will find a url titled: (H) Enthusiast-MSI P6M-SLI Platinum 

It seems that they have taken a page, page two of the article, from the manual of your Motherboard. If you right click on the clips/small images you will enlarge pages of your bios functions clearly showing extensive access to overclocking. There are warnings about advanced overclocking as well.


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

I know the manual covers how to manually overclock but I thought we were talking about windows based programs that were "user friendly" and allowed such things in a safer or at least more informative setting.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> I know the manual covers how to manually overclock but I thought we were talking about windows based programs that were "user friendly" and allowed such things in a safer or at least more informative setting.


We were and I hope that ATI Tool and RivaTuner help. If you are interested in informative settings for use of your manual's Bios overclocking then I will go back in time and virtual space and see if my virtual memory will produce some virtual memory. Oh while we are waiting.................... an explanation: 

Virtual Memory: 
That which occupies neither time nor space...


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

*Virtual Memory*
*1.* One or more fabricated memories designed to emulate existing memories found in a persons mind, usually those suppressed in the subconscious and/or no longer accessible to the host.


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> *Virtual Memory*
> *1.* One or more fabricated memories designed to emulate existing memories found in a persons mind, usually those suppressed in the subconscious and/or no longer accessible to the host.


fairly close. The article I was searching for has been moved... and there is no longer reference to it; however, there is a ton or more of relevant information easily accessable on: forums.vr-zone.com/

another motivator:
http://imageevent.com/marginjohn/viperjohn

another note of interest maybe:
http://sq.vr-zone.com/?i=4409


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

y eye said:


> fairly close. The article I was searching for has been moved... and there is no longer reference to it; however, there is a ton or more of relevant information easily accessable on: forums.vr-zone.com/
> 
> another motivator:
> http://imageevent.com/marginjohn/viperjohn
> ...


The review can be found here:
http://sr.vr-zone.com/?i=4409&s=18


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

nVIDIA's nForce 650i SLI supports nTune which is arguably the best enthusiast software available. It allows users to control their systems and realistically with nTune, there is no longer a need to go into the BIOS to adjust settings, now you can do everything within WindowsXP or Vista! 

MSI's Dual CoreCell:

These days virtually every manufacturer supports dynamic overclocking, fan speed control, voltage adjustments along with a spiffy software interface. MSI was one of the first with its CoreCell technology and with some updated features, MSI now calls its custom software Dual CoreCell. 

Dual CoreCell promises to improve performance, cut system noise output, enhance 3D performance along with providing a better image quality and finally improve sound circuitry which will decrease signal noise and provide better signal quality. Unfortunately image quality and sound improvements are quite subjective and difficult to test but we can definitely vouch for Dual CoreCell's ability to keep noise at a minimum and overclock the system.

The MSI Dual CoreCell software allows you to monitor and adjust not just the motherboard clock speed and voltages, but also the videocard as long as you're running a compatible MSI videocard. MSI's Dual CoreCell software not only allows you to adjust motherboard FSB, videocard core and memory clock speeds, it also gives you the options to adjust CPU, memory, videocard core and memory voltages!

Yes you read that right.. videocard voltage options too. Just make sure you're careful with what you're doing! Extra cooling is definitely recommended if you plan on adjusting voltages of your videocard and or CPU, motherboard and memory. MSI's Dual CoreCell does an excellent job with fan speeds and those options are adjustable in both Windows and the BIOS.


http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2099&page=4


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

linderman said:


> nVIDIA's nForce 650i SLI supports nTune which is arguably the best enthusiast software available. It allows users to control their systems and realistically with nTune, there is no longer a need to go into the BIOS to adjust settings, now you can do everything within WindowsXP or Vista!
> 
> MSI's Dual CoreCell:
> 
> ...


Several months ago Nvidia pulled support, drivers, for ntunes. It was right after Samsung sold all their GDDR4 chips called "Pele". Is there a source for ntunes still available? Nvidia ia now talking "Pure Video HD".


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

Thanks for the info linderman. So y eye your saying you know Nvidia no longer supports ntune?


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

Alright I just downloaded nTune. It doesn't show any of the voltages for my system. I see no way to even help point it in the right direction for displaying them and I don't see a single overclocking thing here. nTune is the overclocking application that is used on the 650i boards right?


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> Alright I just downloaded nTune. It doesn't show any of the voltages for my system. I see no way to even help point it in the right direction for displaying them and I don't see a single overclocking thing here. nTune is the overclocking application that is used on the 650i boards right?


welcome to ocing 101


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

What is that supposed to mean?


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Mulsiphix said:


> What is that supposed to mean?


It means that I have work to do on my own machine. Have a nice day. Talk at ya later.


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I "think" *dual core cell *is the software you are looking for ?????????


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## Mulsiphix (Aug 14, 2006)

y eye said:


> It means that I have work to do on my own machine. Have a nice day. Talk at ya later.


No need to reply y if your busy. Especially if you don't have any help or real information to offer.

I tracked down *MSI Dual Core Center* on the MSI website. Going to give it a run now and see how good it is. It is the second download on this page


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

Especially if you don't have any help or real information to offer. that's 101 for ya


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

fellas I am not going to sit back and watch this thread deteriorate into a flame! :normal:


not gonna happen



if you wish to continue this thread in a civil collaboration of informative sharing ; then by all means, I enjoy that ray:


if the barbs are going to continue to be thrown I will close this thread immediately; its that easy

the rest of the members wont want to contribute in such a conversation


best to say nothing than say something less then friendly

thats for the consideration :wave:


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## y eye (Jul 22, 2007)

linderman said:


> fellas I am not going to sit back and watch this thread deteriorate into a flame! :normal:
> 
> 
> not gonna happen
> ...



Thank you linderman. y


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