Asus M4A87TD EVO & F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM

[Daze]

Greetings,

I've been having some difficulty getting the following build stable:

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition......Rev. C3 (thank god)
MB: Asus M4A87TD EVO (painfully troublesome as you all know, but I found out after ordering)
Mem: G.Skill 8Gb DDR-1600 F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM (2x4Gb 8-8-8-24)
Vid: Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD6870 1Gb
PSU: Mushkin 600W

So I'll spare you all the details but it took hours of research and troubleshooting to even get this this to boot in to Windows on default settings. Came across these forums, and while I'm typically not a forum poster, I've been following other users issues to resolve mine.

I have it relatively stable (boots and no BSOD) for idle - low loads but freezes under stress tests after 15-30 min at the following settings:
DDR3-1333 8-8-8-22 1.5V 2T
CPU Vcore & CPU-NB offset +.1 (Was at +.06 previously, testing +.1 with prime95 as I type and having good results so far with 1hr of running, so I may have found the sweet spot)

Also Memtest 4.20 ran overnight @ 1333 with no errors so probably not bad modules..

I really would like to be at DDR-1600 since from what I've read its entirely possible with the right config. I have tried the Bus speed increase to 240Mhz and multiplier reduction to x14 or so to bring the Core speed down to 3.5Ghz but freezes under heavy load almost immediately. I don't think it's a temp issue since I've never seen the CPU/Core temps go higher than 57C/63C. Safe temps from what I've seen but too hot for my liking so I have a Cooler Master V6GT on the way.

If the current test I'm running is stable for 2hrs I will be trying 1600Mhz 8-8-8-24 CPU-NB +.1

I'm open to anyone's advice on what you think I should try to reach 1600 and still be rock solid stable.

Thanks
-Daze

[GSKILL TECH]

Do you have the latest BIOS? It should be fine by configuring it like the sticky guide explained.

Thank you
GSKILL TECH

[Daze]

Yes, version 2001 from 03/08/2011.

As an update during the recent prime95 test it locked up right around the 2 hour mark.

Bumped DDR freq up to 1600Mhz with the same settings and it locked up during boot.

[NemesisChild]

Max operting temp for the C3 965 is 62c.
Most CPU overclocking attempts will fail once you hit 55c (sustained) with a Denab chip.
The individual core temp readings are NOT taken from a thermal sensor, they are calculated values.
Use a program like HWMonitor, ASUS PC Probe II, or AIDA64 to get the actual CPU temp reading.

Set the CPU & NB frequencies to default before attempting to get your memory stable.

Did you clear the CMOS after updating your ASUS bios?

[Daze]

Yes I reset CMOS after the BIOS update and I am using HWMonitor for those temps.

Strange that it is running that hot under load, even at 1333 with no OC. For now I'll just run at 1333 with timings tightened down to 7-7-7-22 until the new HSF arrives tomorrow, the stock from AMD is crap.

I'll let you know of the results.

Thanks.

[GSKILL TECH]

Which slots are they installed in? Try the other two slots.

Thank you
GSKILL TECH

[NemesisChild]

Yes I reset CMOS after the BIOS update and I am using HWMonitor for those temps.

Strange that it is running that hot under load, even at 1333 with no OC. For now I'll just run at 1333 with timings tightened down to 7-7-7-22 until the new HSF arrives tomorrow, the stock from AMD is crap.

I'll let you know of the results.

Thanks.

What case do you have and what is the case fan configuration?

[Daze]

@ NemisisChild - Antec 902 v3

Two 120MM in front pulling in. One 120MM rear, One 120MM side panel, and 1 200MM top, all pushing out.

@GSKILL TECH - reset BIOS again (DDR3-1600 by default) and changed two sticks to the other slots. Freezes on boot. Pulled one stick, froze on boot, swapped that stick for the other one, and boots just fine. Running Prime95 right now for past 45 minutes and no freezing. Typically with both sticks in @ DDR3-1600 with default voltages it would either freeze during startup or minutes after getting into windows. Bad stick not playing nicely maybe?

[NemesisChild]

Yeah, sounds like a bad stick, suggest running memtest on each one individually.

[Daze]

Did just that, with the problem stick memtest 4.20 froze at 64% of test #1, the other one is still successfully testing at DDR1600 8-8-8-24 for the past couple hours.

Will have to RMA with Newegg as long as they don't give me crap for tossing the plastic packaging.

Thanks for the help.

[GSKILL TECH]

They probably will, so you need to RMA directly through us.

http://www.gskill.com/rma.php

Thank you
GSKILL TECH

[Daze]

Should I return the whole kit or just the one? I'd rather not be without my PC waiting for the replacement if I don't have to.

[GSKILL TECH]

You can try returning a single module first, but you can't be upset if the replacement does not work with the existing since they were not tested together. If that happens, another RMA would be needed.

Thank you
GSKILL TECH

[Daze]

Cool, I'll take my chances for the first one, and do the kit if it doesn't work out.

Thanks!

[Tradesman]

Let us know what happens