Help me Overclock my Firestix.

[Dethredic]

Ok, I have these.

I have never overclocked ram before, and I am wondering, is it better to have tight timings, faster frequency or do they not effect each other.

As of now, all the timings are set to auto, the ram is unlinked and running at 850.


Apparently, "Auto" means a lot higher than factory settings.
they are suposed to run at 5-5-5-18, but they are running at 5-7-7-19 (what is the 26)?



How much would you suggest I increase it, and how would I test it?

[3.0charlie]

You oc ram just like you oc a cpu. Loosen the timings (5-7-7-19-26, why not), raise the speed by 10Mhz. If it does boot, use this little program to test: MemTest: RAM reliability tester for Windows. Test all unused ram, to 100%. You can also use SuperPi 1M (SuperPI - 1.1e Download - EXTREME Overclocking) to test the oc.

If no errors, re-raise the speed by 10Mhz. Re-test. If it does not boot (though it should), check your FSB and mem voltages. Raise one notch. Re-boot. Once you have reached the max speed, it is time then to tighten the timings one setting at a time. Still test using Memtest and SuperPi.

Make sure you have proper cooling on the North and South bridges. One last test I perform is running dual SuperPi 32M instances (running from seperate folders). If it passes that test, the memory is stable.

John

[Dethredic]

Ok, thanks. When you say tighten the timings, do you mean change it from 5-7-7-19-26 to 4-6-6-18-25, or something like 54-7-7-19-26???

[Babrbarossa]

Buffalo Firestix PC2-6400 vs. Crucial Ballistix PC2-8000 review

that's a review of firestix vs ballistix that mentions some overclocking settings that should give you an idea of what you might shoot for

[Dethredic]

Do you recommend going over 2.1 volts if I don't have any special cooling? ( I want these to last a long time)

[3.0charlie]

2.1V is no problem.

[3oh6]

Originally Posted by 3.0charlie

2.1V is no problem.

going over 2.2v for daily use is a hit and miss gamble with Micron based memory (like your Firestix). eveyone has theories as to why Micron tend to die randomly from power supply ripple, to electro migration, to heat, but no one knows for sure. in my experience, they can die at pretty much any voltage but staying at 2.2v or less is a pretty safe bet. staying at 2.1v or less is a great bet to keep them alive. at the other end of the spectrum, there are people that claim to run Micron based memory at 2.4v daily for over a year now...but i wouldn't try it

as for timings...you can check out my Firestix PC2-9600 overclocking report here:

OC Report :: Buffalo FireStix 2x1GB PC2-9600 C5

you obviously won't get as high frequencies at the different timing ranges because the 9600s are a much higher bin, but you can at least sort of see how Micron timings tend to scale and the hierarchy they run at. i guess this is all assuming that the PC2-6400 Firestixs still have Micron D9GMH...or at least yours do. HTH

[Scratch]

I was running OCZ Titanium that claimed to highly OC and found them to be anything but, so was perusing the forum one day and came across this excellent review by Babrbarossa . I was so impressed I bought 2 gigs and have them OC'd at a modest 900mhz for daily use.
I have just ordered another 2 gigs as I couldn't pass up the price at tdDirect.ca $110.00 for 2 gigs. I highly recommend them.
There is also an indepth memory comparative review done by Toms I think that was very helpful in determining latency v speed. To summarize the determination was that speed>latency. So attain your highest stable speed then lower your latency.

[Dethredic]

What are your voltages / timings Scratch???

EDIT: NVM I see your sig.

Double EDIT: What are you voltage?

[enaberif]

D9 can run pretty good but unless you need to run them at a higher voltage start low and work your way up.

Remember to also stress the CPU/RAM when you do overclocking to make sure they are stable. You might be able to run your memory at 1.9v and not need 2.1 or 2.2 for a good overclock.