hey guys. new 2 the forum, hope to become an active member

[lazer_viking]

Hey, I didn't know where to put an intoduction for myself at, so I decided to post it in the forum which I have the most interest in, and where I have my initial questions in.
But first before the questions, let me introduce myself. My name is Mike and I live just outside of Seattle, Washington. I'm 14 (going on 15 5/5/06) attending a Jr.High school (8th + 9th grade). At the beginning of this year I bought my first high-performance computer (some of the specs are in my signature) after a year spending what seemed like every waking hour of my weekends mowing lawns. This computer is a HUGE upgrade from my former gaming/only computer, my laptop (2.8Ghz intel mobile, 512 ram, 64mb integrated graphic memory, 80gb HD). Since I got my new computer with its awesome uber robust power, I've naturally wanted to squeeze a bit more out of it and overclock it. Heres where my questions start and there is several lol.

(this first one sort of doesn't apply to anything... just something that has been buggin me) I know that my new computer is hella faster than my laptop, but why is my AMD 64 FX-57 rated with almost the same speed as my laptop? (a normal 32 bit intel stuff).

My next few questions are about my BIOS. I was reading this tutorial on overclocking and after it got passed the normal part about setting the FSB higher, it started talking to me about memory dividers to squeeze a little more out of my CPU. I didn't find anything related to what they were talking about in my BIOS so I tried to look for on some information on how to upgrade my BIOS. Then I realized... I got the least expensive motherboard and maybe that is affecting my ability to overclock like I'd like to. I still don't know much about specs of a motherboard, but here is all it says:

EVGA NFORCE4 SLI CHIPSET SOCKET939 DDR400 SATA RAID DUAL 16X PCI-EXPRESS W/ 7.1AUDIO, USB2.0, & GbLAN

Performance
� Based on NVIDIA nForce4 SLI chipset
� Supports Dual-Core, Athlon 64 FX, and Athlon 939-pin processors
� 1GHz Front Side Bus

Memory
� 4 x 184-pin DIMM sockets
� Dual Channel DDR
� Maximum of 4GB of DDR266/DDR333/DDR400 SDRAM

Expansion Slot
� SLI: 2 x PCI-Express x16 slots (x8 effective bandwidth in each slot)
� Single card: 1 x PCI-Express x16 slot
� I/O: 1 x PCI-Express x1 slot
� 3 x 32-bit PCI, support for PCI 2.1

Storage I/O
� 2 x UltraDMA133
� 4 x Serial ATA 300MB/sec with support for RAID 0, RAID1, RAID 0+1
� 1 x Floppy disk drive connector

Integrated Peripherals
� RealTek AC'97 8 Channel Audio
� Gigabit LAN via Integrated NVIDIA Gigabit LAN

Multi I/O
� 1 x PS2 Keyboard
� 1 x PS2 Mouse
� 1 x Parallel Port
� 2 x Serial Ports
� 8 x USB2.0 ports (4 external + 4 internal headers)
� Audio connector (Line-in, Line-out, MIC)

Form Factor
� ATX Form Factor
� Length: 12.0in - 304.8mm
� Width: 9.75in - 247.65mm

Is it possible for me to upgrade my BIOS on that motherboard to something that will allow me to employ the use of memory dividers? Or are my fears realized and I need to replace that? If so, what is a motherboard I need to have to overclock everything I have with super precision?
My last question: I'm only able to 100% stabally overclock my CPU to an FSB of 108mhz... the tutorial said that 110mhz was safe grounds to start with, but I can't even get that far!!! Is this something I'm doing wrong? Or is that as far as my CPU will go? And will/how far will memory dividers go to improve this? And what the heck are memory dividers anyway? The tutorial explained, but I didn't get it. Something about syncronization...

Thanks for all your help! I look forward to..... hmmm.... I look forward to any good things that I may experiance here!!!!

edit: another question I just developed... I was told by my dad who was trying to give me adivce (shouldn't have listened to him...) he told me that RAM was RAM so I got the cheapest RAM available. I know now that higher quality (name brand) RAM is better for overclocking so since I already have two sticks of 1gb RAM (getting two more soon; those will be name brand) can I overclock individual sticks of RAM? I don't want to overclock my generic RAM because.. well its generic. But the newer ones will be able to withstand more beating so I'll want to overclock those. Thanks again!

[reggie_da_man]

Ok first off I'd like to welcome you to Tech-Forums!

Because of the architecture of AMD's cpu, it can do more work in one clock cycle than Intel current chips. That's why an FX-57 @ 2.8GHz absoluetly creams an Intel P4 at the same speed.

You're pretty much stuck with your bios, updating or flashing your bios will just give better preformance with certain hardware by fixing bugs and stuff.

Memory is not just memory, especially in a high preformance system like that. Lower latencie timings such as 2-2-2-5 used by good ram will beat out higher latencies used by value ram such as 3-4-4-8. Better ram also allows for much better overclocking and are ready to take a lot more voltage. If you plan on overclocking, you should always have the same model/brand of ram, because it inceases overclocking abilities and overall stability.

Hope that helps a little, I was too lazy to thuroughly read through your post so I just answered your major questions that stood out.

[gaara]

All RAM runs at the same speeds therefore you memory overclock will be limited to whatever your weakest DIMM is going to be capable of reaching

Your FX-57 has shorter pipelines in its design, therefore it requires less clock cycles to complete a task when compared to a processor with larger pipelines. For example, P4s have about 30 or so stages whereas an Athlon64 will have about 12, so you can see how much more efficent 1MHz on the A64 will be compared to 1MHz on a P4

Your first issue lies in the fact that you have a complete crap board that isn't built to overclock whatsoever, if you want any decent results you need to get that replaced before you start anything. You want a DFI if you want the absolute best, or an MSI if you don't wanna speed a lot of money

[lazer_viking]

Hey sweet, wasn't expecting a reply that soon! Nice!!
Okay so basically the only remaining questions are:
1.) If I completely replace my motherboard (dreading that.. I have heard a lot of horror stories) will I be able to get a better BIOS?
2.) Is upgrading my BIOS going to allow me to employ the use of memory dividers?
3.) What is a memory divider?
4.) Will memory dividers allow me extra overclocking out of my CPU?

[lazer_viking]

replies are coming in faster than i can type new messages. okay so i basically need a new motherboard? thanks for clearing that up. now is DFI a type of board? because my birthday is coming up and i definatly want the best of the best, and im going to need some detailed info to know what to get.
on the subject of RAM: so basically i just need to start replacing what I have already before I buy additional? my dad could probably use the RAM i have now, so it wont go to waste..

[Nitestick]

http://tech-forums.net/showthread.ph...639#post763639

thats a thread i wrote a while ago about the difference between AMD and Intel processors.

DFI is a manufacturer, they make probably the best overclocking motherboards around.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136166

you will probably want something like that

[lazer_viking]

yes!! i forwarded by dad that link you gave me and he bought it that same night for my birthday. w00t!!... i hope i don't screw my crap up when i try to stick it in my computer. thanks 4 all ur help guys

edit: with that DFI board, i'm probably going to need to get a real sound card and real netowrk card, right? mine are currently built in with the motherboard and i didn't see anything about integrated sound or network...

edit #2: duh............

Onboard Audio
Audio Chipset Realtek ALC850
Audio Channels 8 Channels
Onboard LAN
LAN Chipset Vitesse VSC8201 Gigabit Phy
Second LAN Chipset Marvell 88E8001
Max LAN Speed Dual 10/100/1000Mbps

blonde moment.

[boomstick666]

just to let you know you dont even need to get screws . it comes w/ mobo and case. i built mine w only one handy reversable +,- screw driver and 1 razor blade. thats all i needed. its like expensive lego.

[Nitestick]

dang forgot to mention you will need to buy some arctic silver 5 if you're going to swap the processor over. you will also need a lint free cloth and some isopropyl alcohol/methylated spirits to clean the heatsink and top of the processor. look up the instructions on arcticsilver.com for how to use arctic silver.

[lazer_viking]

yea my dad gets a butt load of that stuff (not name brand, but still conductive gunk) from work for free. he's also gonna get some anti static stuff too. man i cant w8!! only about 4 more days until it should be here!!!!