I have a Alienware ALX i7 960 with liquid colling and since it´s already a bit old, some games and addons are starting to suffer. I mainly use MS-FSX and simulators like DCS World and Flaming Cliffs 2. Over the years I have installed more addons.
First I upgraded the video card to a newer AMD GPU and that produced some good results.
However I need more CPU speed so I decided to start overclocking, however I have only found some alienware settings for i7-920 and i7-975.
What settings do you recommend to reach 4.0Ghz preferable with HT enabled?
TIA
Hello hralch
Have you gone into the BIOS yet to see if it has the factory overclock presets? You can do it that way or you can follow the directions in the article I linked to do a manual overclock. There is a chance that if the presets are not there or if the BIOS is locked that you will need to update the BIOS to the newest version.
BE WARNED! . If you update the BIOS and it fails during the update process it could brick your motherboard requiring it to be replaced. I suggest calling Alienware tech support to have them walk you through updating it. That way if it does fail and brick the motherboard they will replace it free of charge.
Thanks for your quick response. My Alienware does not has the factory-overclocks-presets you mention (I think you mean the L1, L2, etc, that I have seen in other alienware systems and that indeed makes everything much easier). My BIOS is at A11 which is the latest one available.
The settings mentioned in your link are for other alienware systems. Can you help me with some specific settings for my system? In summary:
First thing that comes to mind after skimming the first section ... If it's only going to use 4 cores, maybe turn off HT so the 4 cores it picks are all true cores and not just threads ... just something to try.
Ideally, I suggest you find a flight simulator with an engine that utilizes multiple cores/threads and is still under development. Seems like all the serious people have moved forward.
Thanks for your quick response. My Alienware does not has the factory-overclocks-presets you mention (I think you mean the L1, L2, etc, that I have seen in other alienware systems and that indeed makes everything much easier). My BIOS is at A11 which is the latest one available.
The settings mentioned in your link are for other alienware systems. Can you help me with some specific settings for my system? In summary:
My Aurora (plain vanilla) comes with a 960, the high speed with rock solid stability is 3960mhz (165x24).
Bios settings are as follows:
speedstep: enabled c state: enabled turbo mode: disabled speed spectrum: disabled XMP support: disabled QPI frequency: 4.8GT memory ratio: 12 CPU Bclk: 165 CPU vcore voltage offset: +300 RAM voltage: 1.65 IOH voltage: 1.30 QPI ad uncore voltage: +320
One thing of note is that even though Alienware supplies, officially, either 1067mhz and 1333mhz RAM, I find the mobo is perfectly capable of running much faster RAM. I replaced the factory-installed 3GB 1067 RAM with 6GB of Kingston HyperX 2000mhz-rated RAM to amazing result. My RAM is currently set at 1980mhz with 1T.
Morblore, I"ll try these settings tomorrow and report the results since it's already very late in here.. It's really conforting receiving this support from you guys, and I am very confident in reaching a good stable OC level.
I just have one additional question, why my motherboard is locked or why it doesn't have the OCn levels enabled? Do I have to install or download some other software from alienware support?
Thank you Tesla, over the years I've made lots of tunning with some good results, but it has cone the time to OC my alien. I didnt mentoned, but I also have sone other flight games such as hawx 1 and 2 which by the way dont have any performance issues. However, FSX and Prepar3D are in OC need :)
Morblore, I"ll try these settings tomorrow and report the results since it's already very late in here.. It's really conforting receiving this support from you guys, and I am very confident in reaching a good stable OC level.
I just have one additional question, why my motherboard is locked or why it doesn't have the OCn levels enabled? Do I have to install or download some other software from alienware support?
Hmmm...why isn't the 960 unlocked? You Sir have asked a bigger question then I think you are aware of.
At first the extreme CPU was the only one that could be overclocked. Dell locked everything else in the BIOS. Their stated reason for this was why would anyone buy the extreme when you could buy the 920 and overclock it to be just as good for a fraction of the price? This was at a time when the CPU to buy was the 920. Everyone bought it because it was cheap and overclocked very well. Other then the quick path speed ( that didn't matter ) the 920 was the exact same CPU as the $1000 965e and would overclock to it's speed. The 920 sold for about $275, 1/4th the price.
I think because of how popular the i7 920 was with everyone buying and overclocking them Dell had no choice but to allow it to be overclocked in their systems to stay competitive. Once that happened they opened a can of worms. Now there was a BIOS that had the OC levels in it and everyone had the bios. This allowed anyone to overclock the CPU whether they paid for the OC or not. Dell stated that while anyone could overclock it they would only support ( make sure the OC worked ) on systems that people paid for the OC.
Dell left it this way for a while. Only the 920 or the 965 extreme could be OC'd. But then another consequence popped up. Nobody bought anything else. Most people on the forums here had ether the 920 or the 965. It was clear the middle ground CPU's were not selling well. So here we are today where all CPU's can be overclocked in the BIOS for free. The only people that pay for it are the ones that don't know this.
You are one of the rare people that did buy a i7 960. Now think to yourself. If you had known this back then would you have bought the 960 for more money or would you have bought the 920, overclocked it ( for free ) so it was just as fast or faster and the pocketed the saving?
I left a little bit out giving the short version but that's the main part of the story. And of course none of us know what was truly going on at Dell at the time. We could only see it from this end of the computers.
I tried all the settings from user 10_mall in the link you provided but the system did not start not even the POST. First I tried with Hyperthreading Enabled and then Disabled but no luck.
Then I tried this settings from user Robster_123 and my alienware passed at least all the WIndows Experience Index and there was an improvement.
However I am worried because I see my memory has been left very slow at least according to the following screenshots. I know my memory is very capable (Corsair 1x317-3174 6GB Triple Channel 1600MHz DDR3 )
What settings should I change in the memory? Should I use the settings written in my memory-module-labels?
I did some more tweaking to the memory and finally obtained 3.9Ghz for the CPU and 1657Mhz for the memory with the following settings. Windows Index Experience improved some more, specially the memory. Rock solid stability so far. The only thing is that the temperature goes up pretty fast but nothing the cooling system can't handle.
Maybe the only disadvantage is the increased nois, but I think there is nothing I can do to lower temperature while keeping this OC settings, right? (Or maybbe something with the voltages?)
Don't use the Windows Experience Index for anything. It's completely worthless so don't judge your system performance by it. Pretend it's not there
You also won't know if it is completely stable until you stress test it. Most of the time you would run something like memtest over night before you would think it's even close to being stable. The CPU needs to be tested with Prime95.
Burn the Memtest CD, run it and go to bed. The next day you will want to check it and see if you got errors. Some people will run it for a few days. For the Prime95 you want to watch it because if your cooler can't handle the clock it will overheat. If that happens and you don't shut it down it could damage it. It would also mean you need a better cooler before running that overclock. Run Prime95 for about an hour and WATCH IT!.
You may also want to play with your volts some now that you got a OC that will boot. Most people will start with one and bring it down until it stops booting. The idea is to get it to run, stable, with your volts as low as possibly with your desired overclock. Lower volts means a more efficient and cooler system.
My personal view is 3.9ghz is too high for that CPU with the stock cooler. I wouldn't go over 3.6/3.7 without getting a better cooler.
morblore, you are right about the proper stress testing tools. I don't like them too much because they impose some unrealistic loads. However since I only use the alienware with specific games and video encoding tools, I could see yesterday that the system was stable with them Anyway I will follow your advice this weekend.
I am also thinking on reducing the OC because the temps yesterday reached 90C (according to coretemp) during peaks. The cooling system inmediately increased it's throughput and lower them to 82C aprox. However I don't feel so safe with those temperatures so I will lower some paremeters and test them.
After reducing a bit the BClk which Voltage parameter should I try to reduce in order to lower temperatures? Only Dynamic CPU Vcore Offset ?
morblore
2 Intern
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2.4K Posts
0
February 11th, 2013 16:00
Hello hralch
Have you gone into the BIOS yet to see if it has the factory overclock presets? You can do it that way or you can follow the directions in the article I linked to do a manual overclock. There is a chance that if the presets are not there or if the BIOS is locked that you will need to update the BIOS to the newest version.
BE WARNED! . If you update the BIOS and it fails during the update process it could brick your motherboard requiring it to be replaced. I suggest calling Alienware tech support to have them walk you through updating it. That way if it does fail and brick the motherboard they will replace it free of charge.
Overclocking on the Alienware Aurora and Area 51. Automatically and Manually
http://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/kcs/document?&docid=117679&~lt=print
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 11th, 2013 21:00
Morblore,
Thanks for your quick response. My Alienware does not has the factory-overclocks-presets you mention (I think you mean the L1, L2, etc, that I have seen in other alienware systems and that indeed makes everything much easier). My BIOS is at A11 which is the latest one available.
The settings mentioned in your link are for other alienware systems. Can you help me with some specific settings for my system? In summary:
1 262-5778 Alienware Aurora ALX
1 317-3429 Intel Core i7 960 (3.2GHz, 8MB Cache)
1 317-3174 6GB Triple Channel 1600MHz DDR3 (corsair)
TIA
Tesla1856
8 Wizard
•
17.4K Posts
0
February 11th, 2013 22:00
Are you really seeing all cores maxed-out during play? Sounds like you have a nice system ... I wouldn't OC it if I was you.
See this:
http://www.flightsimworld.com/forums/topic/201175-general-guide-to-building-a-pc-for-flight-simulator-x/
Looks like some good tips in there.
First thing that comes to mind after skimming the first section ... If it's only going to use 4 cores, maybe turn off HT so the 4 cores it picks are all true cores and not just threads ... just something to try.
Ideally, I suggest you find a flight simulator with an engine that utilizes multiple cores/threads and is still under development. Seems like all the serious people have moved forward.
morblore
2 Intern
•
2.4K Posts
0
February 11th, 2013 22:00
Try this then
From this thread: http://en.community.dell.com/owners-club/alienware/f/3746/t/19327931.aspx
My Aurora (plain vanilla) comes with a 960, the high speed with rock solid stability is 3960mhz (165x24).
Bios settings are as follows:
speedstep: enabled
c state: enabled
turbo mode: disabled
speed spectrum: disabled
XMP support: disabled
QPI frequency: 4.8GT
memory ratio: 12
CPU Bclk: 165
CPU vcore voltage offset: +300
RAM voltage: 1.65
IOH voltage: 1.30
QPI ad uncore voltage: +320
One thing of note is that even though Alienware supplies, officially, either 1067mhz and 1333mhz RAM, I find the mobo is perfectly capable of running much faster RAM. I replaced the factory-installed 3GB 1067 RAM with 6GB of Kingston HyperX 2000mhz-rated RAM to amazing result. My RAM is currently set at 1980mhz with 1T.
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 11th, 2013 23:00
Morblore, I"ll try these settings tomorrow and report the results since it's already very late in here.. It's really conforting receiving this support from you guys, and I am very confident in reaching a good stable OC level.
I just have one additional question, why my motherboard is locked or why it doesn't have the OCn levels enabled? Do I have to install or download some other software from alienware support?
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 11th, 2013 23:00
Thank you Tesla, over the years I've made lots of tunning with some good results, but it has cone the time to OC my alien. I didnt mentoned, but I also have sone other flight games such as hawx 1 and 2 which by the way dont have any performance issues. However, FSX and Prepar3D are in OC need :)
morblore
2 Intern
•
2.4K Posts
0
February 12th, 2013 01:00
Hmmm...why isn't the 960 unlocked? You Sir have asked a bigger question then I think you are aware of.
At first the extreme CPU was the only one that could be overclocked. Dell locked everything else in the BIOS. Their stated reason for this was why would anyone buy the extreme when you could buy the 920 and overclock it to be just as good for a fraction of the price? This was at a time when the CPU to buy was the 920. Everyone bought it because it was cheap and overclocked very well. Other then the quick path speed ( that didn't matter ) the 920 was the exact same CPU as the $1000 965e and would overclock to it's speed. The 920 sold for about $275, 1/4th the price.
I think because of how popular the i7 920 was with everyone buying and overclocking them Dell had no choice but to allow it to be overclocked in their systems to stay competitive. Once that happened they opened a can of worms. Now there was a BIOS that had the OC levels in it and everyone had the bios. This allowed anyone to overclock the CPU whether they paid for the OC or not. Dell stated that while anyone could overclock it they would only support ( make sure the OC worked ) on systems that people paid for the OC.
Dell left it this way for a while. Only the 920 or the 965 extreme could be OC'd. But then another consequence popped up. Nobody bought anything else. Most people on the forums here had ether the 920 or the 965. It was clear the middle ground CPU's were not selling well. So here we are today where all CPU's can be overclocked in the BIOS for free. The only people that pay for it are the ones that don't know this.
You are one of the rare people that did buy a i7 960. Now think to yourself. If you had known this back then would you have bought the 960 for more money or would you have bought the 920, overclocked it ( for free ) so it was just as fast or faster and the pocketed the saving?
I left a little bit out giving the short version but that's the main part of the story. And of course none of us know what was truly going on at Dell at the time. We could only see it from this end of the computers.
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 12th, 2013 15:00
And this screenshot also:
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 12th, 2013 15:00
Hi,
I tried all the settings from user 10_mall in the link you provided but the system did not start not even the POST. First I tried with Hyperthreading Enabled and then Disabled but no luck.
Then I tried this settings from user Robster_123 and my alienware passed at least all the WIndows Experience Index and there was an improvement.
However I am worried because I see my memory has been left very slow at least according to the following screenshots. I know my memory is very capable (Corsair 1x317-3174 6GB Triple Channel 1600MHz DDR3 )
What settings should I change in the memory? Should I use the settings written in my memory-module-labels?
morblore
2 Intern
•
2.4K Posts
0
February 12th, 2013 18:00
Use the memory ratio option to change it to a speed you like and it will boot with.
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 13th, 2013 00:00
I did some more tweaking to the memory and finally obtained 3.9Ghz for the CPU and 1657Mhz for the memory with the following settings. Windows Index Experience improved some more, specially the memory. Rock solid stability so far. The only thing is that the temperature goes up pretty fast but nothing the cooling system can't handle.
Maybe the only disadvantage is the increased nois, but I think there is nothing I can do to lower temperature while keeping this OC settings, right? (Or maybbe something with the voltages?)
Alienware ALX i7 960
Specs
1x262-5778 Alienware Aurora ALX
1x317-3429 Intel Core i7 960 (3.2GHz, 8MB Cache)
1x317-3174 6GB Triple Channel 1600MHz DDR3 (corsair)
Overclocking settings
Hyperthreading Enabled
SpeedStep Enabled
C State Enabled
QPI Frequency. 4.8GT
Memory Ratio 10
XMP Support Enabled
CPU Core Non Turbo Ratio 24
Advanced Memory Setting Auto
CPU BClk MHz 165
Spread Spectrum Disabled
PCI Freq 100
PCI-E 100
Turbo Tech Disabled
Dynamic CPU Vcore Offset +300mv
DDR3 Mem Voltage 1.60V
IOH Voltage 1.10V
QPI and Uncore Voltage Default
morblore
2 Intern
•
2.4K Posts
0
February 13th, 2013 03:00
Don't use the Windows Experience Index for anything. It's completely worthless so don't judge your system performance by it. Pretend it's not there
You also won't know if it is completely stable until you stress test it. Most of the time you would run something like memtest over night before you would think it's even close to being stable. The CPU needs to be tested with Prime95.
Burn the Memtest CD, run it and go to bed. The next day you will want to check it and see if you got errors. Some people will run it for a few days. For the Prime95 you want to watch it because if your cooler can't handle the clock it will overheat. If that happens and you don't shut it down it could damage it. It would also mean you need a better cooler before running that overclock. Run Prime95 for about an hour and WATCH IT!.
You may also want to play with your volts some now that you got a OC that will boot. Most people will start with one and bring it down until it stops booting. The idea is to get it to run, stable, with your volts as low as possibly with your desired overclock. Lower volts means a more efficient and cooler system.
My personal view is 3.9ghz is too high for that CPU with the stock cooler. I wouldn't go over 3.6/3.7 without getting a better cooler.
Memtest: http://download.cnet.com/MemTest/3000-2094_4-77167.html
Prime95: http://download.cnet.com/Prime95/3000-2053_4-192895.html
hralch
9 Posts
0
February 13th, 2013 10:00
morblore, you are right about the proper stress testing tools. I don't like them too much because they impose some unrealistic loads. However since I only use the alienware with specific games and video encoding tools, I could see yesterday that the system was stable with them Anyway I will follow your advice this weekend.
I am also thinking on reducing the OC because the temps yesterday reached 90C (according to coretemp) during peaks. The cooling system inmediately increased it's throughput and lower them to 82C aprox. However I don't feel so safe with those temperatures so I will lower some paremeters and test them.
After reducing a bit the BClk which Voltage parameter should I try to reduce in order to lower temperatures? Only Dynamic CPU Vcore Offset ?
TIA