Q6600 (G0 Stepping) Overclock Guide

DISCLAIMER: Game and Tech Reviews is not responsible for any damage you do to your CPU or other components.

In this tutorial, I will walk you through the over clocking process on a Asus P5K-E motherboard. First, you are going to need several programs to record temperatures, monitor your processes, and stress test. You are going to need coretemp to monitor your….well… core temperatures. A download can be found here: http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/ . You are also going to need CPU-Z to list all the different settings found on your processor and RAM. Download link: http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php . Finally, to test system stability you will need Prime95 v25: http://www.majorgeeks.com/Prime95_d4363.html .

A very important note: Make sure you have proper cooling. Stock cooling will probably not cut it. The T-Junction on the Q6600 (G0) is 100C. The T-junction is the maximum temperature at the junction between the processor die and the PCB it sits on. I recommend you don’t press past 75C. It will shut down to avoid damage, but it is best not to push it. I have a Thermalright 120 Extreme. That is one of the best heat sinks available right now. You will need proper cooling to over clock your CPU. Over clocking is a trial and error process. You will probably crash a couple of times. After a crash your computer might not restart right away. THIS IS NORMAL. Turn off your PSU, wait about 15-30 seconds and try again. Different CPU’s over clock differently. If you haven’t already done so make sure your chip is a G0 revision by looking at CPU-Z. This revision runs cooler and over clocks better. Your results will probably differ from mine. This is a very basic tutorial, and is written for those with very limited computer knowledge, so, vcore, North Bridge, and RAM voltages will not be altered. They will all remain on auto. This reduces the chances of damaging your precious new system.

Let’s start with a run down of all the terms you are going to need to know. Here is a very simple diagram of how the computer works: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/98/Motherboard_diagram.png It is very important to understand how the computer works before you begin to tamper with it.

BIOS – Basic Input Output System- This preps all of your system components and runs tests to make sure everything is functioning properly.

CPU (Central Processing Unit) – If you don’t know what this is you probably shouldn’t be over clocking in the first place. But, if you want to continue, the CPU handles all the data. Literally every shred of information is passed through this chip. Basically it just does a whole bunch of math.

FSB (Front Side Bus) – This relays information from the CPU and the north bridge.

Clock Multiplier– Basically this allows the CPU to run at a higher speed/frequency than the North Bridge and FSB. The CPU speed is found my multiplying the FSB with the clock multiplier. For example: 9 x 333= 299.7

Let’s Go!

Restart your computer and hit delete during the first few seconds. This will bring you to the BIOS.

Use your keyboard to select the “Advanced” tab on the top. You will see a whole bunch of different settings; and, this is intimidating at first.

Switch the Ai Overclocking to manual. This begins the trail and error. The higher the FSB the higher the performance. So, drop your Ratio CMOS Setting (multiplier) to 7; and, try 475 for your FSB frequency. If, it doesn’t boot or it’s not stable in a stress test lower it by increments of 5. I found mine was stable at 7 x 470 which gives me 3.29. Not bad for no voltage increases. It runs at about 57C under load and 30C idle. Remember, idle temperature mean next to nothing. Load temperature is what matters. Your results WILL vary. You may find that your FSB is stable at 480. That’s great. Just always remember TEST STABILITY. Run small FFT’s and then Large FFT’s. I recommend doing stress tests of 5 hrs minimum. Prime95 is your stress test application, and you should see 4 instances of it running: 1 for each core. Remember to watch your temperatures during testing. They should not exceed 70C.

(For those of you wondering why your CPU-Z reads a low clock speed. It’s because your CPU isn’t under stress, and you have C1E enabled on the CPU Configuration menu. This drops down you multiplier to x6 to save power during times of low CPU usage.)

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