How can i overclock my cpu?

[mb87]

I have no idea how overclocking works because I've never done it. However my knowledge of computers is not zero. I build my own computers. anyway, how can i overclock my cpu?
It's an AMD Athlon 64 X2 +6000 3.0ghz.
I've read that my motherboard plays a role too. This is my motherboard(will buy it in 2 weeks :
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128074

 

[Droogie]

Yep you can overclock any CPU, its almost always done by raising the FSB and sometimes the voltage. The motherboard is very important for overclocking as is the system memory.

couple of good guides to start:
http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=1804

http://www.wikihow.com/Overclock-a-PC

 

[StrangleHold]

Well if you want to be on the safe side and not worry about your HT and memory. Bump your HT back to X4, bump you memory back one speed, say if you have DDR2 800 set it to 667 and so on. Then start raising you Bus speed up a few mhz at a time till it gets unstable, then back off the bus a few mhz. Then after that your talking about raising voltages, then you have to start keeping a eye on your temps.

 

[concorde]

Overcooking is what you are doing unless you have a very good heatsink/fan.
Don't do it too much.

A general rule of thumb: don't overclock no more than 5 - 10% of its clock speed.
And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

 

[Ethan3.14159]

A general rule of thumb: don't overclock no more than 5 - 10% of its clock speed.
And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

wow, thats not a rule of thumb at all. i have my 2.6ghz 5000+ oc'ed to 3.2ghz consistently. and a lot of people have oc'ed way over 5-10% look at how some people have oc'ed their e8400's or q6600's

when overclocking you start high and work your way down until its stable and not too hot. but you have the 6000+ which runs hot normally so your going to need a good aftermarket heatsink.

 

[fade2green514]

Overcooking is what you are doing unless you have a very good heatsink/fan.
Don't do it too much.

A general rule of thumb: don't overclock no more than 5 - 10% of its clock speed.
And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

haha i overclocked from 1.86ghz to 2.67ghz bro... tell me thats not more than 10%.. lol im at like a 43% overclock

 

[Computer_Freak]

when overclocking you start high and work your way down until its stable and not too hot. but you have the 6000+ which runs hot normally so your going to need a good aftermarket heatsink.

I started Low, and then worked my way up to find my ceiling (0.05GHz at a time)

And you dont need a good heatsink. Ive OCed mine from 2.13GHz to 2.534GHz by just raising the core clock (no voltage increase). And my temps are 25 at idle 50 (max ive ever got) at load

And since your processor is at 3GHz already, raising the core clock will do...

 

[DannyGuitarkid]

so I just read this entire thread about upping the FSB speed and all that, but that means nothing to me, considering I have no idea how to do any of that. I'm good with computers, but I have no Idea about any overclocking. Can someone possibly walk me through this?

 

[Geoff]

A general rule of thumb: don't overclock no more than 5 - 10% of its clock speed.
And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

And where did you hear that? Several people (myself included), overclocked their Q6600 from 2.4GHz to 4GHz, which is more then 10%.

 

[Shane]

A general rule of thumb: don't overclock no more than 5 - 10% of its clock speed.
And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

nah thats not good advise,people have their cpus overclocked ALOT more than 10%

Mines 50% overclocked

 

[sg1]

And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

But isn't that the idea behind most OC'ing anyway? so you don't have to buy a new CPU

 

[vix]

Overcooking is what you are doing unless you have a very good heatsink/fan.
Don't do it too much.

A general rule of thumb: don't overclock no more than 5 - 10% of its clock speed.
And if your processor isn't fast enough, buy a faster one.

Well, all of my systems run perfectly with overclocks slightly more than your "general rule of thumb."

E8400 (Primary workstation)
Default: 3.0 GHz
Current: 4.2 GHz @ 1.267v (although it's run at 4.6 GHz/53.9% OC stable in the past)
Current OC: 40%
Speed increase: 1.2 GHz

Q6600 (Backup workstation)
Default: 2.4 GHz
Current: 3.6 GHz @ 1.475v
Current OC: 50%
Speed increase: 1.2 GHz

Q6600 (Home Server)
Default: 2.4 GHz
Current: 3.6 GHz @ 1.475v
Current OC: 50%
Speed increase: 1.2 GHz

As far as just buying a faster processor, my question is: WHY? If I can save hundreds of dollars and get the same performance, there really is no reason to buy the more expensive processor. Temps can be a concern for some, but on my main workstation even my Orthos load temps max in the mid 40's, which is what many mainstream processors run at when idle.