overclocking Asrock G31M-S with 8 GBs of Patriot RAM

[sankukai]

Hello to all the OCers in the board.

I am totally new to overclocking but not to computers as a whole so a I am not a complete ignoramus when it comes to PCs. I live in Nicaragua and PC components here are not that cheap to purchase unless you come from a rich family or have a comfy middle-class job.

In a few days I will get my hands on 8 GBs of PC-6400 enhanced latency (5-5-5-12) Patriot DDR2 gaming memory for my modest rig. The thing is, I have been wanting to overclock my machine but don't know just how stable it would be after I install the new memory. For now I am using 4 GB of PNY PC-6400 ddr2 (800 mhz) memory.

My current setup is this:

G31M-S Asrock motherboard
Core2Quad 9400 @2.66
4 GB DDR2 PC-6400 RAM (brand PNY)
Radeon HD 6870
Western Digital 320 HDD
Kmex 650W PG PSU
Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

Based on what you guys know about this board( I know it's kind of cheap but its the most affordable one for me at this time), how would I go about overclocking it to the most stable ( and coolest) velocity this board could handle with the 4 gb of RAM I already have ?

And also....

Would I have to do anything different once I install the 8GBs of Patriot memory in it? I have been wanting to OC my (very modest) baby for months now but don't know how to go about it without messing it up big time.

I hope one of you veteran OCs can help me out

Regards from Nicaragua:)

[_dangtx_]

hola amigo!!

welcome aboard.


and secondly, no overclock for you lol!

why?


check this out :

ASRock > Products > G31M-S




or rather, take it easy with the voltage as your board's regulating power station

is not among the best...an exemple :








soo..any overclock will be done with no voltage increases. now, even though you will

not touch the voltage, the components on the motherboard will work harder when overclocked.

so, take it easy and good luck!


btw, can you give us more info about your psu?

[boggtrotter59]

I don't think you should be trying to overclock a quad core on that board... you will probably end up toasting the board. You might get away with a mild overclock but I wouldn't try to push it too far...

Pretty sure someone (SKYMTL i think) blew up a similar board during the Chimp challenge... It was scary...

[sankukai]

Hey thanks for the welcome dangtx amigo....

now to your inquiry...YES!!! I am only talking about a mild OC, nothing drastic. As far as the PSU, I believe it is from a Chinese manufacturing brand and perhaps not the greatest. It was expensive to buy here in Nicaragua, around 80 dollars ( I know, I know, it sounds like a ripoff but often times retailers here in Nicaragua do rip people off). But back to the subject, YES!! I am aiming for a very mild OC as you said. What would you suggest? ( and how would I do it???)

[_dangtx_]

hmm...like i said i need more info on it. :)

give us a snapshot of the side where it says the ul number etc.

also the 'paper specs'

im thinking itll blow either because of the board or psu or both.

unless the psu is actually a decent unit in its wattage range, but i doubt it.

[sankukai]

Originally Posted by _dangtx_

hmm...like i said i need more info on it. :)

give us a snapshot of the side where it says the ul number etc.

also the 'paper specs'

im thinking itll blow either because of the board or psu or both.

unless the psu is actually a decent unit in its wattage range, but i doubt it.

You mean the PSU specs???

I definitely don't want to blow my cheap baby to pieces

Like I said, It doesn't have to be radical thing, just something that will make my quad-core a bit more efficient

[_dangtx_]

yes, give us the specs on the psu, all the numbers that it says on the side. you can check the ul number here :

UL Online Certifications Directory - File Number Search

[sankukai]

Originally Posted by _dangtx_

hmm...like i said i need more info on it. :)

give us a snapshot of the side where it says the ul number etc.

also the 'paper specs'

im thinking itll blow either because of the board or psu or both.

unless the psu is actually a decent unit in its wattage range, but i doubt it.

This is the link to the PSU's webpage. I think it has all the specs you are referring to Welcome K-mex Website!

thanks again Dan!

[_dangtx_]

on paper it looks good.

an easy way to tell if,at least on the efficiency side its ok, is to plug your pc into
a kill a watt or something along the lines P3 - Kill A Watt




with all the components at stock and watch how many watts its pulling at the wall.
idle at desktop/cpu load(prime95)/gpu load(3dmark/furmark(extreme))

you can do a calculation on power consumption based on different reviews, for graphic cards

look it up here : ASUS GeForce GT 440 1 GB Review - Page 24/30 | techPowerUp






and round it up. if the numbers shown on the device(given its accuracy is decent)
are more or less what you'd expect than its ok. if the difference is rather large(say 50-75 watts or more)

then watch out.

i always plug any build into my kill a watt and at boot i take a look at the watts. anything funny i shut down right away.



anyway, look on your psu for some numbers, its not the watts or stuff like that but more like a string of numbers, at least 5-6 caracters



exemple : e176105

and you put it in here : UL Online Certifications Directory - File Number Search


and it gives you this :


Company Name
Category Name
Link to File
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment Certified for Canada - Component
QQGQ8.E176105
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment - Component
QQGQ2.E176105
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment Certified for Canada
QQGQ7.E176105
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment
QQGQ.E176105



basically it tells you antec is the manu, well antec has units made by other oems like seasonic,delta
but anyway you get the idea.

[sankukai]

Originally Posted by _dangtx_

on paper it looks good.

an easy way to tell if,at least on the efficiency side its ok, is to plug your pc into
a kill a watt or something along the lines P3 - Kill A Watt




with all the components at stock and watch how many watts its pulling at the wall.
idle at desktop/cpu load(prime95)/gpu load(3dmark/furmark(extreme))

you can do a calculation on power consumption based on different reviews, for graphic cards

look it up here : ASUS GeForce GT 440 1 GB Review - Page 24/30 | techPowerUp






and round it up. if the numbers shown on the device(given its accuracy is decent)
are more or less what you'd expect than its ok. if the difference is rather large(say 50-75 watts or more)

then watch out.

i always plug any build into my kill a watt and at boot i take a look at the watts. anything funny i shut down right away.



anyway, look on your psu for some numbers, its not the watts or stuff like that but more like a string of numbers, at least 5-6 caracters



exemple : e176105

and you put it in here : UL Online Certifications Directory - File Number Search


and it gives you this :


Company Name
Category Name
Link to File
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment Certified for Canada - Component
QQGQ8.E176105
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment - Component
QQGQ2.E176105
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment Certified for Canada
QQGQ7.E176105
ANTEC INC
Power Supplies, Information Technology Equipment Including Electrical Business Equipment
QQGQ.E176105



basically it tells you antec is the manu, well antec has units made by other oems like seasonic,delta
but anyway you get the idea.

So... assuming that the PSU I own is working correctly and all, what would be the highest frequency I could rise my Q9400 to using my modest motherboard and stock intel cooler without messing it up big time? 2.8Ghz, 2.9Ghz? and how would I go about doing it.

Please, anyone...... I am desperate here