Ok, first off I got an ASRock ALiveDual-eSata2 1.30 BIOS and 2 GB DDR2 of RAM. I tried to OC the CPU, but the computer would keep freezing. I'm now gonna show you what my BIOS looks like, so plz tell me what should I put at each option, and wherever you see a (?) sign after it means I'm not sure about it :

AM 2 BOOST : Disable/Enable (?)
Overclock Mode: CPU,PCIESync/Async (?)
CPU Frequency: the computer would freeze at 250
PCIE Frequency: (?)
Spread Spectrum: Auto (?)
Enhanced Halt State: (?)
Processor Frequency: 10,5 x 2100 Mhz (?)
Processor Voltage: (?)
Memory Clock: 400 Mhz (?)

If you guys could tell me what to put in those spaces or tell me if its ok where it is completed, I would apreciate it!

So could someone help me in overclocking this by looking at my BIOS ^ ? Thx

OK. First I will explain something to you.

Overclocking via the BIOS isn't normally a "set it at this and it will work" type of thing. You do get more control over what you can do, but nothing is pre-defined as being functional. Everyone typically gets different overclocks with different hardware. They may end up having the same speed of overclocked processor...but usually they got to that point with different settings. It will take time for you to get stable and find out what works for your specific set-up. Even with the same exact hardware in two different computers, it's never guaranteed that the same series of settings will be stable on both computers. Overclocking is funny that way.

Second, BIOS terminology typically varies from motherboard to motherboard. One company might call their RAM frequency just that..."RAM Frequency", while another might call it "RAM divider" or "RAM Bandwidth" or even "Memory Settings". The same follows for each individual setting within your BIOS. Given that not everyone has an ASRock board, not everyone will know what those settings mean just because you list them straight out of your BIOS.

My advice to you is to find an ASRock dedicated forum, or even ASRock's support forum and find out what each term generally means. Even though they might be called something different from motherboard to motherboard...in the end, the settings do the same thing. You don't need to know how to use them just yet, but you do need to know what they do when you change them. After you find that out, either the people on this forum can assist you further or people on the ASRock dedicated forums can assist you further.

There's a lot of trial and error when overclocking through your BIOS. It's typically not a straight and easy process until you've become accustomed to your specific hardware. You will need to find your boundaries and you will definitely be getting a number of BSODs and a number of restarts. You will also have to clear your CMOS a number of times, too. It takes time and effort, honestly it really does.

Ok, anyways I kinda played with the BIOS and now reached 2,5 Ghz with no freezing I just put 240 frequency, put the voltage to 1,350v and increased some FSB. Is this a good method to OC (just randomly playing with the settings till reaching good Ghz?)

This message was edited by stefan_seusan on Jul 20 2008.

Which voltage did you put to 3.850 volts? That doesn't sound safe for any component that you might be overclocking! Course...I don't know of any board that even gives you that option...so I'm thinking that's a typo. Unless it's your RAM...which you might end up frying. BH-5 chips could handle that type of current...but not many others.

quote Anonymous

3.850 volts

Put an XP90/XP120/SI120 on your CPU and it will handle 1.55-1.65v easily. If you have to go to 1.55v on THAT cpu, it's probably reaching its maximum.

quote Iceguy2003

Put an XP90/XP120/SI120 on your CPU and it will handle 1.55-1.65v easily. If you have to go to 1.55v on THAT cpu, it's probably reaching its maximum.

Oh, they are CPU heat sinks. Much better than the stock heat sinks.

If 1.35v is the max your motherboard will do, then that's all you can do, I guess. Your RAM may need to be put on a different divider or up the voltage to it.