Q6600 @ 3.6ghz on air...

[Commonmind]

I was sitting around and getting a bit bored with myself -- which is no surprise, really -- and decided that I'd go ahead and hit Newegg.com to look for some deals (read: something to spend the cash on). After a bit of rummaging I happened across a good price on a Zalman 9500 and a few sticks of the same Ballistix ram I threw in my C2Q system at the time of build.

With my previous setup I was able to reach 3.2ghz on air, stably @ 1.35v (memory unlinked, running at 1000mhz).

I hadn't really gotten too friendly with the 680i board I was using, and thus I really didn't stress pushing it to its limits. I attribute this to a combination of parenting and laziness. Either way, I wasn't really putting the effort in and it definitely showed.

So, after throwing down a few hundred bucks on some upgrades that I really didn't need, I decided to spend the few hours necessary to tweak as much as possible.

The result? A G0 stepping Q6600 @ 3.6ghz on air. Running @ 1.5v, temps are a little over 60c load, but passing P95 stresses with flying colors. Memory is linked (sync) at 900+mhz @ 2.1v (4/4/4/12). FSB is at 1.3v and stable, of course.

Normally I wouldn't make a fuss, but a 1200mhz overclock on air is pretty noteworthy. Here's the compare link if anyone is interested: ORB - Compare

[Lenny]

I am in awe, sir! That's an amazing achievement.

What's the rest of the computer cooling like? I'd guess that you either live in a fridge, or you've got a number of fans... surely the Zalman isn't doing all the cooling work?

[Happy Joe]

Congrats...

What is the room ambient temp?

My clocks were normally better in late spring before it warms up.
Been away form the clocking scene for several years (still regularly check XS though).

Enjoy!

[Commonmind]

Originally Posted by Lenny

I am in awe, sir! That's an amazing achievement.

What's the rest of the computer cooling like? I'd guess that you either live in a fridge, or you've got a number of fans... surely the Zalman isn't doing all the cooling work?

Thanks man. The case cooling is pretty hefty. I've got a Coolermaster Wavemaster that I modded specifically for airflow. And I do keep the house at a comfortable 69,° the PC being right below one of the vents

[Commonmind]

Originally Posted by Happy Joe

Congrats...

What is the room ambient temp?

My clocks were normally better in late spring before it warms up.
Been away form the clocking scene for several years (still regularly check XS though).

Enjoy!

Room temps are great, and same story for me really; I haven't been to XS in a while myself. Though I still try and keep an eye on Kunark and a few of the other GF's guys who I started overclocking with.

[Lenny]

Oh yes! Yours is the bright yellow case, isn't it?

What type of fans does it take? For some reason, I can't imagine you managing to keep everything cool with only a few 80mm case fans.

[Commonmind]

Yeah, the uber-banana, as my wife has dubbed it. There's five 80mm fans inside, arranged for optimal airflow and running at full speed. Of course, they're all Vantec Tornados, and that makes quite a difference too.

[Lenny]

They are 80mm's?! Well that shows me! What's the noise like?

Methinks I might try and pick your brain in September about fans and cooling, if I may?

[Commonmind]

Yeah, not a problem. And the noise is definitely noticeable, lol. Tornadoes hit about 50db at full speed, but they push about 80-90cfm too, so not a bad trade-off. Thing with me is that I have always used headphones with my PC so I rarely notice the noise while playing a game and I have a fan controller set up to turn some of the fans down while I'm just surfing the web or doing some writing.

[Lenny]

Ah, so yours sounds like a jet engine when it starts up, too? Nowt wrong with that. Makes it sound powerful!

[Commonmind]

/flex