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June 28th, 2014 07:00

Alienware Area 51 ALX i7 LGA1366 X58 System Main Motherboard J560M

I had some old parts and wanted to build something with them so combined with a few parts I had to buy one of which was the Area 51 motherboard I put together this machine:

Alienware Area 51 ALX i7 LGA1366 X58 System Main Motherboard J560M
i7-950 @ 4GHz
Sapphire Radeon HD 6970 2GB
G.SKILL 6GB DDR3 1600
Crucial M500 240GB SSD
Corsair H110 cooler
Corsair 650-Watt

It all went together easily and worked from the first boot.

I plan to overclock it but I can't find much information about the motherboard and bios so I was hoping to get some help with it here.

I found a page with BIOS and driver updates on it (http://downloads.dell.com/Pages/Drivers/alienware-area51-all.html#BIOS) and that is what I plan to do first but need some help picking the right ones.

Can anyone help me?

6 Professor

 • 

1.8K Posts

June 28th, 2014 09:00

OC1.JPG

Resetting System Setup (BIOS) Defaults Clears Overclocking Settings on the Alienware Aurora and Area 51


When resetting the System Setup (BIOS) to its default settings on the Alienware Aurora and Area 51, whether using the jumper or in BIOS keyboard commands, the factory shipped overclocked settings are reverted to a non-overclocked state. After defaults are loaded, the factory overclocked settings must be manually input.
Once the system has been overclocked, this does not mean that it will always run at the overclocked speed. The system will automatically throttle the speed when required, such as during performance taxing video games or applications. The only reliable place to determine the maximum speed once the system has been overclocked is in the system BIOS as many software applications may not reliably determine the maximum speed.




Overclock the Alienware Aurora or Area 51 to the Factory Overclocked Settings


Solution 1: Overclocking the Area-51 and Aurora Automatically

  1. Reboot the computer.

  2. When prompted during POST, press the key to enter the setup screen.

  3. On the System Setup screen, use the and keys until Frequency/Voltage Control is highlighted, then press the key.

  4. On the Frequency/Voltage Control screen, press the key to highlight Load Level X OC setting (where X is the overclock level as received from the factory)and press the key (Figure 1).
     Note:
    On the Alienware Aurora, only Load Level 1 OC setting is available. On the Alienware Area-51, Levels 1 through 3 are available.


     7875.OC2.jpg
    Figure 1: Loading Automatic Overclock Settings on an Alienware Area-51 and Aurora

  5. On the Load Level X OC setting? screen, press the key on [Ok].

  6. Press the key to return to the System Setup main screen.

  7. On the System Setup screen, use the key until Save Changes and Exit is highlighted, then press the key.

  8. On the Save configuration changes and exit setup? screen, press the key on Ok to restart the system.

Solution 2: Overclocking the Area-51 and Aurora Manually


Alternatively, the below tables (Table 1, 2, 3 and 4) and instructions detail how to manually configure the factory overclocked settings on the Alienware Aurora or Area 51.

 Note:
Alienware Aurora or Area 51 computers shipped with a processor other than the Intel Core i7 920 D0 and i7-975 XE are not factory overclocked.


  1. Reboot the computer.

  2. When prompted during POST, press the key to enter the setup screen.

  3. On the System Setupscreen, press the key to load setup defaults.

  4. On the Load Optimal Defaults? screen, press the key on Ok.

  5. On the System Setup screen, use the and keys until Frequency/ Voltage Control is highlighted, then press the key.

  6. On the Frequency/ Voltage Control screen, press the key to highlight Overclock Configuration and press the key.

  7. On the Overclock Configuration screen (Figure 2), press the key to highlight Intel (R) TurboMode Tech and press the key.
     4336.OC3.jpg
    Figure 2: The Overclock Configuration Screen with Factory Defaults for Overclock Level 1 Displayed

  8. On the Options menu, press the key to highlight Enabled and press the key.

  9. Press the key to highlight 1 Core CPU Turbo Ratio Limit and press the or keys to adjust Core Ratio to the value defined in Table 1, Table 2 or Table 3. Repeat this step for 2, 3, and 4 Core CPU Turbo Ratio Limit values.
     Note:
    For the Alienware Aurora, reference only Table 1. For the Alienware Area-51, whether Table 1, 2 or 3 are used, ensure the same table is used for all of the manual overclocking steps.

  10. Press the key to highlight Turbo Mode TDC Limit Override and use the number pad to adjust TDC to the value defined in Table 1, 2 or 3 and press the key once complete.

  11. Press the key to highlight Turbo Mode TDP Limit Override and use the number pad to adjust TDC to the value defined in Table 1, 2 or 3 and press the key once complete.

  12. Press the key to return to the Frequency/ Voltage Controlscreen.

  13. On the Frequency/ Voltage Control screen, press the key to highlight Overvoltage Configurationand press the key.

  14. Press the key on Dynamic CPU Vcore Offset (Figure 3).
     2273.OC4.jpg
    Figure 3: The Overvoltage Configuration Screen with Factory Defaults for Overclock Level 1 Displayed

  15. On the Options screen, press the key to highlight the Dynamic CPU Vcore Offset value as defined in Table 1, 2 or 3and press the key to select the value.

  16. Press the key twice to return to the System Setup main screen.

  17. On the System Setup screen, use the key until Save Changes and Exit is highlighted, then press the key.

  18. On the Save configuration changes and exit setup? screen, press the key on Ok to restart the system.

BIOS Field Value
Core 1, 2, 3, and 4 Turbo Ratio Limit 27
TDP 180
TDC 160
VCore Offset 80mv

Table 1: The Aurora and Area 51 Factory Overclocked Settings at Level 1

BIOS Field Value
Core 1, 2, 3, and 4 Turbo Ratio Limit 28
TDP 200
TDC 180
VCore Offset 120mv

Table 2: The Area 51 Factory Overclocked Settings at Level 2

BIOS Field Value
Core 1, 2, 3, and 4 Turbo Ratio Limit Core 1: 30
Core 2, 3, and 4: 29
TDP 200
TDC 180
VCore Offset 160mv

Table 3: The Area 51 Factory Overclocked Settings at Level 3 1

BIOS Field Value
Intel (R) Turbo Mode Tech Disabled
Adjust CPU BLCK 160 MHz
Memory Ratio
1333 MHz Memory: 8
1600 MHz Memory: 10
Dynamic CPU VCore Offset +20mv

Table 4: The Factory Overclocked Settings for Systems with the Intel Core i7 930 Processor and 1333 or 1600 MHz Memory Ratio

June 30th, 2014 05:00

I updated the drivers and the BIOS was up to date so I am ready to go.

My first question is how do I change the vcore?

There is a Dynamic CPU vcore Offset, DDR3 Memory Voltage, IOH Voltage and QPI and Uncore Voltage but nothing that I can see that controls vcore directly.

6 Professor

 • 

1.8K Posts

June 30th, 2014 08:00

I don't oc anything but the memory; from Forum Home > troubleshoot by model > area 51 >

6. Motherboard
Overclocking on the Alienware Aurora and Area 51

http://www.dell.com/support/troubleshooting/us/en/19/KCS/KcsArticles/ArticleView?c=us&docid=117679&doclang=en&l=en&s=gen&cs=

if not there, wait for a member to jump in w/answer, or scrounge the forum (top right search box) it's probably been discussed before

July 11th, 2014 05:00

How do I get the voltage higher?

Never mind, I figured it out.

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