Q9400 overclock on GA-EX38-DS4

swimtech · Mar 9, 2009, 02:25 AM

I just recently had the good fortune to be able to replace my trusty Q6600 (OC'd to 3.2 Ghz, bios volts set at 1.3825, with a VID of 1.325) CPU and slide a nifty Yorkdale Q9400 (2.66Ghz, 1.20 VID - yes, it's a fairly low one...) in its place.

I didn't change any software at all, nor install Vista64 again - just put it in and turned on the machine. It fired right up as anticipated...

I got to overclocking some earlier this evening and wanted to share my results. Using the 375 FSB (8 stock multi) I tried 3Ghz first - using stock volts - and it worked, even running Prime95 for about 10 minutes before Core3 errored - no big deal... I then took a guess at a higher voltage and pushed forward at 400Mhz FSB for a 3.2Ghz clock rate. Booted to Vista64 just fine and ran OCCT a few minutes (5-10 mins?) - I was actually surprised by the lack of error.

Feeling frisky, I rebooted to the bios setup again, and set it to 425 FSB for a net 3.4Ghz clock rate. No voltage changes, with the memory set to auto this whole time, and that voltage bumped up close to Crucial's recommended 2.2 volts (well, compromised at 2.15 volts as the GSkill set recommends 2.1 volts...) for these overclock attempts. Guess what?

Shot at 2009-03-08

The core voltage (1.2325 set in bios with loadline calibration enabled) really surprised me and wanted post here for y'alls perusal and comments. Under OCCT's load shown, total wattage consumption (less one of the two monitors in the system specs at left, though does include a Logitech X-540 system turned on but idling) is 323 watts as measured by a Kill-O-Watt unit. With the Q6600 installed at that frequency the draw was 360 watts as memory serves me...

I think I lucked out and got a good one - at least so far...

Oh, as a sidelight - a lot of folks might enjoy this comparison:

Shot at 2009-03-08

I had wondered about these - now we know.

Mac Daddy · Mar 9, 2009, 11:34 AM

Nice O/C man and decent CPU core temps too

swimtech · Mar 9, 2009, 07:54 PM

Thanks! Yes, a tad surprising - with an Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 and Tuniq TX-2 gook using the dallop method...

Looks like maybe 3.8 is doable, though my board will have to handle a 475FSB and ram across all 4 slots - but it's supposed to be a good board for that.

Wondering how close I can get to those Core i7s in the DH Photoshop Bench test. Should see shortly.

Mac Daddy · Mar 9, 2009, 11:36 PM

Cool stuff and keep us posted for sure

Mar 9, 2009, 02:25 AM	#1
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 124 System Specs	Q9400 overclock on GA-EX38-DS4 I just recently had the good fortune to be able to replace my trusty Q6600 (OC'd to 3.2 Ghz, bios volts set at 1.3825, with a VID of 1.325) CPU and slide a nifty Yorkdale Q9400 (2.66Ghz, 1.20 VID - yes, it's a fairly low one...) in its place. I didn't change any software at all, nor install Vista64 again - just put it in and turned on the machine. It fired right up as anticipated... I got to overclocking some earlier this evening and wanted to share my results. Using the 375 FSB (8 stock multi) I tried 3Ghz first - using stock volts - and it worked, even running Prime95 for about 10 minutes before Core3 errored - no big deal... I then took a guess at a higher voltage and pushed forward at 400Mhz FSB for a 3.2Ghz clock rate. Booted to Vista64 just fine and ran OCCT a few minutes (5-10 mins?) - I was actually surprised by the lack of error. Feeling frisky, I rebooted to the bios setup again, and set it to 425 FSB for a net 3.4Ghz clock rate. No voltage changes, with the memory set to auto this whole time, and that voltage bumped up close to Crucial's recommended 2.2 volts (well, compromised at 2.15 volts as the GSkill set recommends 2.1 volts...) for these overclock attempts. Guess what? Shot at 2009-03-08 The core voltage (1.2325 set in bios with loadline calibration enabled) really surprised me and wanted post here for y'alls perusal and comments. Under OCCT's load shown, total wattage consumption (less one of the two monitors in the system specs at left, though does include a Logitech X-540 system turned on but idling) is 323 watts as measured by a Kill-O-Watt unit. With the Q6600 installed at that frequency the draw was 360 watts as memory serves me... I think I lucked out and got a good one - at least so far... Oh, as a sidelight - a lot of folks might enjoy this comparison: Shot at 2009-03-08 I had wondered about these - now we know. __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it.

Mar 9, 2009, 11:34 AM	#2
Mac Daddy DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 7,950 Rep Power: 80 System Specs	Re: Q9400 overclock on GA-EX38-DS4 Nice O/C man and decent CPU core temps too __________________ "My mom said the only reason men are alive is for lawn care and vehicle maintenance." - Tim Allen

Mar 9, 2009, 07:54 PM	Thread Starter #3
swimtech HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: North Carolina Posts: 4,040 Rep Power: 124 System Specs	Re: Q9400 overclock on GA-EX38-DS4 Thanks! Yes, a tad surprising - with an Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 and Tuniq TX-2 gook using the dallop method... Looks like maybe 3.8 is doable, though my board will have to handle a 475FSB and ram across all 4 slots - but it's supposed to be a good board for that. Wondering how close I can get to those Core i7s in the DH Photoshop Bench test. Should see shortly. __________________ It's not so much getting your way that matters or not - what matters is how you go about getting it.

Mar 9, 2009, 11:36 PM	#4
Mac Daddy DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 7,950 Rep Power: 80 System Specs	Re: Q9400 overclock on GA-EX38-DS4 Cool stuff and keep us posted for sure __________________ "My mom said the only reason men are alive is for lawn care and vehicle maintenance." - Tim Allen