Overclocking Performance

[apeboyeee]

Hi guys,

I was wondering how much pc4000 ram would boost my system performance?

Here are my current system specs:
3.0 E
p4p800 deluxe
pc3200 XMS corsair
bfg 6800 gt

My OC is limited to 3.15 because of the ram. If i got pc4000 ram, would I be able to go significantly higher?(does this board support pc4400?) Also, would this in turn allow my graphics card to auto-detect optimal settings at a higher frequency?

Thanks guys

 

[Appledrop]

try running a memory divider on your current ram and see?

 

[Killmenow]

The ram itself wouldnt bring that much of a performace boost, but it might allow u to OC higher.....try using memory dividers and test the limit of your CPU. If the yield is significant, then the ram would be worth it

 

[apeboyeee]

The memory divider would be the 400/266/etc. setting in the BIOS correct?

I have OC'ed my cpu to 220 fsb but the divider became 3:2. How do I "run a memory divider" to test? What would the test procedure be?

Thanks

 

[stevty2889]

If your OC is actualy being limited by the ram, the PC4000 would let you go up to 250mhz FSB and still run the ram at 1:1, which will give you a performance boost. It will have no effect on the max overclock of your video card, and from what I have seen, using the detect optimal setting for the video card, always sets it way higher than where it will be stable..

 

[Navid]

In Bios, set DDR to 320.
Run prime95 to see if the system is stable. If it runs for 15 minutes, increase FSB by 5. Run prime95 again. Keep doing this until prime fails.
Then, increase VCore (in Bios) by one notch.
Run prime again.
Do not increase VCore too much.
You will find a VCore that is optimum. Meaning that either increasing or decreasing VCore will result in a decrease in the max stable FSB.
When you get to that point, you have found the maximum.


Since you have set the DDR to 320, your Ram is running at 4/5 times speed. So, if you set the FSB to 250, your Ram will be running at DDR400. So, you have removed the DDR from the equation and it is only the CPU that is limiting. Unless you get to 250. Then, you have to set DDR to 266.

For a valid stability test, you need to run prime overnight.

Now that you have found your CPU limit, you can decide if you will benefit from a faster memory or not.

 

[RussianSensation]

3-4% performance boost. A complete waste of money. Use memory dividers. In fact, running 250FSB/ 200mhz memory (5:4 divider) at 2-2-2-5 is faster than 250/250 (1:1) 2.5-3-3-6 on my P4 2.6@3.2ghz system. Trust me, you'll think its the worst money spent. Honestly, even getting an Audigy 2 will increase performance 10-15% by offloading the cpu and give u better sound. But most importantly, with a videocard like yours, I imagine you play games at 1600x1200 with anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering in which case CPU PERFORMANCE BARELY MATTERS.

Doom 3
HL2
Far Cry
IL2

So we have 3 first person shooter games (most intensive on the market now) and 1 simulator game (simulators are cpu intensive). But once you increase video settings, 90% of games become gpu limited. Therefore dont waste your money upgrading to faster ram or faster cpu even. For now just overclock using dividers like others said. If you want to feel the greatest boost in performance, overclock the 6800GT to 400+ and 1100+ memory.

 

[apeboyeee]

Thanks for the info guys.

Isn't a 1:1 ratio supposed to result in better performance though? How do I test the actual performance boost (or possible performance downgrade) if I OC the CPU more and the ram divider becomes 3:2 or 5:4 etc.?

As for OC'ing the graphics card, the previous owner said he got 420 1100 but with my detect optimal frequency, i only get 383 1.03. What can I do to help the graphics card OC more? (cooling unit like silencer?)

I will test my CPU to get to 250 fsb now.

Thank again guys

 

[qbackin]

Originally posted by: apeboyeee
Thanks for the info guys.

Isn't a 1:1 ratio supposed to result in better performance though? How do I test the actual performance boost (or possible performance downgrade) if I OC the CPU more and the ram divider becomes 3:2 or 5:4 etc.?

As for OC'ing the graphics card, the previous owner said he got 420 1100 but with my detect optimal frequency, i only get 383 1.03. What can I do to help the graphics card OC more? (cooling unit like silencer?)

I will test my CPU to get to 250 fsb now.

Thank again guys

Yes with your p4 you want to always try to stay 1:1
The best idea is to get some pc4000 and it will run @ 250 fsb which will make nice results.

You will need a cooler for your card to push your oc. Make sure to lock your AGP @ 66/33 in the bios.

 

[Vegitto]

For that videocard OC'ing problem, try getting ATiTool, and let that program decide what's best for your videocard.

---EDIT--- Oops, I just realised your card isn't ATi.

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: qbackin

Yes with your p4 you want to always try to stay 1:1
The best idea is to get some pc4000 and it will run @ 250 fsb which will make nice results.

You will need a cooler for your card to push your oc. Make sure to lock your AGP @ 66/33 in the bios.

Do you own a P4? Because 1:1 nets almost no benefit. It is certainly NOT worth the price. Who in their right mind would spend $100+ on new ram for 3-4% performance boost?

 

[apeboyeee]

Hi guys,

Yes I have a p4 3.0E prescott.

Do you guys know any programs I can run so I can test ACTUAL performance with the divider 1:1 and then 3:2 or 5:4?

Also, a cooler will allow my card to OC more? How do I check the temp of my graphics card now?

Thanks guys

 

[Navid]

Originally posted by: apeboyeee
How do I check the temp of my graphics card now?

For your 6800GT, you can use RivaTuner to see the GPU temperature on your taskbar all the time as explained in this thread.
You can also see a log of the temperature after having played a game.
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...hreadid=1452022&enterthread=y&arctab=y