Overclocking Ground Rules

Overclocking is a very big subject, so we really need to define where our Overclocking Guide is heading. We do not believe, at present, that AnandTech readers really want Buyer's Guides for phase-change cooling, water cooling, and other cooling techniques that change by the minute and are used in high-end overclocking. Instead, we have decided to concentrate on the best components that you can buy for overclocking on air with a decent Heat Sink/Fan (HSF). This could change in the future if other cooling techniques go mainstream, but for now, our Overclocking Guide will recommend components for an air-cooled system. Of course, if you do use water or phase-change, or other exotic cooling solutions, you could get even better performance from the components that we will recommend.

While board mods are also common in high-end overclocking - to extend memory voltage in particular - we will not be recommending board mods that will void your warranty. If we know of a board mod that is commonly used, we might mention it, but that is not the purpose of the AnandTech Overclocking Buyer's Guide. We will be recommending components that you can buy, which have proven to provide significant overclocking capabilities at stock.

If you are interesting in finding out more about the extreme end, there are plenty of places on the web that cater to extreme overclockers, with widely varying degrees of success. You can go to sites like the Forum at www.xtremesystems.org and see comments from names like Macci, OPPainter or Fugger who appear routinely at the top of the charts for 3Dmark and Aquamark3. You'll find discussions of phase-change cooling and maybe even liquid nitrogen testing. The extreme high end is as much black magic as technology, and what works almost changes by the minute. We'll leave that arena to sites that already do it well.

What we would like to do well in the overclocking area at AnandTech is to recommend components from comparative testing and experience that can give you a much better than average overclocking experience without you having to become an expert with a soldering iron - or invest in a refrigerated computer case that costs more by itself than our High-End system. No one seems to be doing a good job in this area, and we want AnandTech to become a dependable resource for overclocking component recommendations.

Performance or Value

There are really two reasons to overclock. The first is to reach the absolute top performance levels possible with computer components. The second is to get superb value from your components - to make a sow's ear into a silk purse, so to speak. While this is impossible as the saying goes, in the computer arena, it is not only possible, it is pretty easy to do.

Since these two overclocking areas are often at odds with each other, we could find no really good way to bridge the gap. For that reason, you will see two different recommendations for many of our choices - performance and value. You can expect our Performance selection to reach the highest overclocking levels that you can reach. The Value choice will give you incredible overclocking performance for the money - bang for the buck.

Some components lend themselves to overclocking better than others. Processors, Motherboards, Video Cards, and Memory are targets for most overclockers. So, we've concentrated our efforts on these components. While Hard Drives are not normally modified to perform better, they do have an impact on final system performance and, perhaps more important for the overclocker, they can sometimes limit or enhance the ability of a system to overclock. For those reasons, we will also be recommending Hard Drives in this Overclocking Buyer's Guide. The Case/Power Supply can also influence overclocking results as a result of more efficient cooling from the case or stable, high-output power from the power supply, so these components are also included.

The rest of the system components like Monitors, Optical Storage, and Input Devices are not so easily overclocked, and we will not devote attention to these components in our Overclocking Guide. Since overclocking can run the gamut from value systems to high-end, it is also almost impossible to second-guess what an overclocker might be looking for in a monitor, optical storage, sound card, speakers, LAN, keyboard and mouse. We suggest that you refer to other AnandTech Buyer's Guides for more information on our recommendations for those components.

In the end, we will summarize the recommendations in the Overclockers Buyer's Guides in four areas - Overclocking Performance, OC Performance Alternate, Overclocking Value, and OC Value Alternate. You will see quite a spread between these four systems, but they all represent the best of overclocking - from top overclocking performance on one end to the best overclocking performance that we could find for the money you would spend at the other end of the spectrum.

Index CPU and Motherboard: PERFORMANCE OC Recommendations
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  • vaeren - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link

    Well I decided to try the EVGA card for 389 from www.buyxg.com Went to the site, lo and behold the card is stated there at 389. I go to buy it and it rings up 409. Ok, so I see it's backordered and I send them an e-mail basically asking them to honor the homepage. They essentially tell me that I don't know what I'm talking about and the page is now fixed. I don't think I'd recommend them in the future as an accurate price guideline. Granted Anandtech doesn't guarentee prices, but I think poor business practices should be addressed.
  • PrinceGaz - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link

    Just a slight error in the article regarding the Mobile XP 2500+

    "However, the FSB speeds and multiplier are also a fortunate accident on the 2500+, since 11X is also the same multiplier as the top 3200+ Athlon XP. Since the 2500+ runs at 166 FSB, 3200+ performance is often as easy as setting the FSB to 200 from the default 166. Most, but not all, 2500+ can easily reach 3200+ speeds. The 2600+ mobile also looks even more promising as an overclocker, though we have not yet tested it. With specifications of the same 45 watt power consumption, a 12 multiplier, and 166FSB, it is hard not to be tempted when it is less than $10 more than a 2500+."

    The desktop version of the 2500+ does run at 166*11 (1833 MHz), but the Mobile version has a 133FSB default. Thats not a problem because as you say in the article, they are unlocked so you can set the FSB and multiplier to whatever you like. But you will need to lower the multiplier with the Mobile 2500+ to run it as a 3200+.

    The Mobile 2600+ is probably a much better choice because it has a much higher default speed than you'd expect,
    Desktop 2500+ 166*11 = 1833 MHz
    Desktop 2600+ 166*11.5 = 1917 MHz
    Mobile 2500+ 133*14 = 1867 MHz (1.45V)
    Mobile 2600+ 133*15 = 2000 MHz (1.45V)
    the Mobile versions of both chips have a slightly higher clock speed than the desktop versions to compensate for the lower default FSB. In particular the Mobile 2600+ is a whole 133MHz faster than the Mobile 2500+ to compensate for the ever diminishing returns of higher multipliers.

    For an overclocker that means the Mobile 2600+ is an unlocked chip that is guaranteed to run easily at 2GHz while still at 1.45V. That pretty much guarantees it will reach 2.3GHz, and maybe as much as 2.5GHz at the desktop 1.65V. And you can always give it a little extra juice if that isn't enough :)
  • roostercrows - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link

    #2 bluedart
    i did some research about a month ago on the synthetic diamond heatsinks and it seems they have been used for many decades (40+ years)."Swans" research was extremely helpful. i would like to know what material you are coating the diamonds on and also if you are infiltrating the diamonds with copper etc,(if you are makeing one you know what i mean). i have one ordered using tungsten and 6%cobalt as the base metal, 1mm to 1.5mm thick. i'm glad to hear someone else is playing around with this. btw, the specs that i looked at were 7x better than silver, using single crystal. also, what size are you using and are you using an existing product or are you starting from scratch? have fun.
  • Pathogen03 - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link

    I like the writting style and thought processes behind the review.. It definetly was the most fun, and most detailed one ive seen.

    BUT,

    Your Recommendations are shaky at best. When you argued the 2500+ over the 2600+ for the mobile chip, it made sense, but the inclusion of the FX-53 over an Athlon64 just completely eludes me.. Id suggest you talk to some people on the forums before you do your next one, to doublecheck you have all of the current overclocking trends down. Oh, and a true overclocker would never even CONSIDER a Speeze heatsink.. If you want to talk about the article I can try to give you my opinion, you have my name in the forums just PM me.
  • TrogdorJW - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link

    I have to say that this is by far the best of ANY of the guides that you and Evan have put together for Anandtech, Wesley. Perhaps it's the inclusion of four system options (with prices for all four, even!), or maybe it's just that I'm an overclocker at heart? Anyway, I'm not too sure about the FX-53 on the performance end, as it's just way too expensive, but that's about my only complaint. You mention the 3500+, and for the price, I would think that's the way to go.

    I have to agree with the suggestion of just making suggestions for the five basic platforms, though. I mean, you already have done that, with the exception of the socket 754 system. Add in a motherboard (MSI K8N Neo Platinum?) and CPU (3200+ 1 MB?), and you're pretty much done.

    Anyway, great job! I'm seriously looking at a socket 754 overclocking setup in the near future, unless someone can convince me that the extra $120 for the 3500+ over the 3200+ (not to mention the motherboard probably costing ~$40 more for S939) is worthwhile. Any takers, or should I just go with a 3200+? I won't be buying for at least another month, Wesley, so you can address my needs in your next OC guide! :)
  • Wesley Fink - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link

    MSI just sent the following reply to our request for information about when the K8N Neo2 would be available for purchase by our readers:

    "I am sorry for this kind of situation and inconvenience. My first shipment of K8N Neo2 will be this coming Tue. (Aug 3rd). Most on-line etailers (newegg, ziproomfly, .......) will post the board on Wed. or Thu to allow customers to buy it.

    We will also modify the product page from "available soon" to "first week of AUG." http://www.msicomputer.com/product/p_spec.asp?mode..."

  • Parc - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link

    Great article as always. These are my favorite because it is exactly what I look to your website for the best of the hardware out. Key word out. The MSI board is not out and now had been delayed to somewhere around August 9. By August 9 the board will probably be delayed again. Why do you keep putting a board up that no one can get? The 6800s are hard to get but can be gotten . This just a suggestion. Still great article except board.
  • Wesley Fink - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link

    The Coolermaster CM stacker is not an all-Aluminum case, but a mixture of 1.0 mm steel plate for strength and Aluminum alloy. The description has been corrected in the article.
  • Anemone - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link

    Agreed Shinei...

    I'm looking at the 3700 EB (3-3-2-8) and then at the new 4000 Rev 2 (2.5-3-3-?) and curious how they compare. Had a chance to look over the new 4000 Rev 2 yet Wesley?

    Loved this article totally - as well as the 939 reviews. OC'ing on the new 925X boards has a host of connected issues with pci-e and sata, so bye bye Intel...

    Another great AT article for sure
  • Shinei - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link

    T8000 has apparently never read any of the Socket 939 benchmarks AT did, or he'd know that the AFX's stomp out Intel at media encoding (along with just about everything else). Anyway, moving on from Trollville.

    I agree about the 3500+ being the better price/performance part over the FX53. Of course, I don't own one, so I can't comment on performance, but based on AT's results, it looks like a promising component...

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