Pick up coretemp to monitor your CPU temps,  GPU-z will monitor your video card(s). Make sure you have the latest bios update

Make sure you have the latest video drivers.

I have the 2.66 quad extreme, I can push mine to 4 gig with no problem.  Get really hot but runs.  Also upgraded to the 9800 GX2 vid card.  Now that rocks!

Anyone can overclock a processor to 4.0ghz. That means nothing.

I have OCed my q6600 to 4.2ghzbut its not stable, so it mean nothing.

I am sure your computer is not stable at 4.0ghz. Have you run Prime95?

I am not sure then, I have had it on for 24 hours before at 4.0 ghz playing games etc.  But longer than that I don't know.  Fans etc are running louder but other than that have not noticed an issue with lock-ups etc.

stable does not mean you can run your computer for 24 hours with out a crash.

Ive run my q6600 at 4.2 for days with out crashing, it however is still not stable.

 

Run 4 instances of prime95 so your cpu usage is at 100%, do that for atleast 6 hours, then you can call your computer stable.

A quicker way to check stability is to run OCCT for 1-2 hours.

Works like a charm for me.

A Set of Tools we All Need for our Beasts

 

 

 

Peace

 

 

Okay, so I downloaded OCCT and from all indications things aren't right in Mudville...

 

I first ran OCCT with my CPU @ 3.67Ghz. It didn't even make it to the one minute mark! The CPU's hit 70C as soon as it throttled them up to 100%.

 

I then ran it with the CPU @ 3.33Ghz. At this speed she lasted all of 3.5 minutes before hitting the 70C mark and shutting down.

 

Even at the stock clocking of 3.00Ghz my system can only run for just under 4 minutes before it gets too hot.

 

Suggestions?

 

John

If you just want to run the system for every day use at max OC, you can do so for most every day use... however, if you are running it with CPU or RAM intensive apps, then the stability is important.

I run the Folding@Home app 24/7 and that is a CPU intensive app using 95-100% of CPU cycles.

I have my Beast running at 3.20 (Bin=2.93 +1) for best results and least wear and heat.

The Beast can run at Bin+2 (3.43) or Bin+3 (3.73) happily, but the heat and wear is not worth the improvement in Folding IMHO.... my CPU can easily run up to 4.0 (Bin+4) however, it is not OCCT or Folding stable at that clock.

 

Run OCCT at Custom level for 2 hours... once for CPU, and once for RAM (not the Mix level)

If you crash on only one then you have pinpointed the cause.

 

If it is the CPU test, then run OCCT at different levels of OC until you find stability.

If the system is not stable at stock CPU clock, call Tech Support.

You could before calling, run other tests, but chances are there would be a CPU issue.

 

If it is the RAM test... then you could run MemTest to pinpoint it more.

Although Dell will not accept MemTest or OCCT test results, they will have you run their own diagnostics.

 

Also, with regards to RAM, if you have more than 2 sticks, you could run tests on different pairs until you find the culprit, and pinpoint the particular bad stick.

 

Again, if the system is not stable at default clock speed, chances are one of the two, CPU or RAM may have gone or be going bad.

 

 

 

Peace

 

 

Okay. I'm currently running through the CPU & RAM tests separately and we'll see how that goes.

 

Since I wiped my PC upon purchase and loaded Vista 64-bit, which Dell diagnostics program are they going to want me to run when I call tech support? I might as well download it and get it installed before I make the call in an effort to save some time. I feel this is going to be a long and drawn out affair before it gets resolved... :smileysad:

 

John

 

P.S. Should I leave the max temp at 70C in OCCT or should it be raised?

No. The fans never do ramp up during the CPU tests!? Their RPM's always seem to stay about the same...  here are my results thus far.

 

The following tests were at stock CPU clock speeds (3Ghz). CPU temps at idle averaged between 32-37C.

 

First run through of CPU test resulted in a stable completion with temps hovering between 62-63C throughout the run.

 

The first run through of the RAM test failed with an error code 4 on thread 0 after 23 minutes. A second test was performed and this time it made it all the way through without error. CPU temps during RAM test stayed between 56-58C.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

The following tests were at BIN+1 (3.33Ghz). CPU temps at idle averaged between 33-38C.

 

First run through of the CPU test failed at just 2.8 minutes into the test when the CPU's hit 70C.

 

The first run through of the RAM test failed with an error code 4 on thread 3 after 8.5 minutes. A second test was performed and this time it made it only 6 minutes before an error code 4 on thread 2 this time. CPU temps during RAM test stayed between 58-60C.

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

I didn't even bother trying the BIN+2 OC because I knew it would fail almost immediately.

 

So now I'm going to start pulling ram and re-running tests...

 

John