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**Darthtanion** · 12-31-2004, 03:11 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Cooling is more than just a good heatsink setup. While the HSF you currently have isn't top of the line, it is certainly serviceable and should allow a decent degree of overclocking. From the sounds of things so far you probably need to look at case cooling. There are only two types of cooling that will give you decent temperatures with poor airflow; peltier (thermo-electric cooling) and phase change (refrigerated cold plates). With air or water you still have to rely on good overall case airflow. A little info on your current case would help in letting us see what can be done to help out.

Oh, and though this is just my own personal criteria, I always aim for temperatures under load no higher than about 42C.

**Grunty313** · 12-31-2004, 03:48 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

im using an athlon xp 3200+ running at stock speeds and im getting 41c on my cpu even after playing games such as doom 3 and hl2 etc but then agen i have a good case airflow im using a lian li aluminium case with 2 intake fans at front one taking air out at back and my psu has an exhaust fan built into it aswel my cpu fan is an arctic cooling copper silent 2L.

**D3xxx** · 01-01-2005, 05:53 AM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Hi Darthtanion & Grunty313 thx for the replys............currently my case

has a 80mm inlet fan and 80mm exhaust, + two hard drive coolers which
also draw air in from outside accross top of case + ennermax psu has a fan drawing air out of the top. This case is a mid tower.

However all this is very noisey..........so at this christmas I treated myself to a thermatake 'Shark' full tower case......... this has two 120mm fans 1 inlet + 1 exhaust + huge side vents. This case is designed for 'Bigwater' setup...........hence my interest.............I am also hoping the larger interior space should make heat buildup less of an issue....

However at the moment I am still struggling on with old case......

As an asside I have tried upping the Barton Multiplier from 11x200fsb to
12x200fsb ........... all seems well @ present ......... but Sandra reports
2.21 ghz and multiplier of 11......... (my pc should be running @ 2.4ghz???)

Your thoughts are welcome
Cheers
Richard

**Darthtanion** · 01-01-2005, 06:16 AM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

First off, use a utility called CPU-Z for checking processor speeds. www.cpuid.com is where to find it.

As for the case choice, it is a good one. I am currently using that very case for my Athlon FX rig and it works well. As to the choice of water cooling, though, what kind of budget are you looking at? There are better choices for water cooling than the Thermaltake unit.

**D3xxx** · 01-01-2005, 01:33 PM

**Darthtanion** · 01-01-2005, 06:49 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

When it comes to water cooling your best bet is to not skimp. Even if it means saving up your money for a bit before buying, it will do far better for you in the long run. I'm using the Swiftech line of water cooling right now and it is very good. There are better out there, but they offer a solid performing "kit" with performance in mind. It also keeps the noise a lot lower than any air cooler I've tested to date. The only problem is that it goes for about $225 (works out to a bit over 166 Euro). You can check out the review I did of their latest kit here. It isn't a beginner kit but there isn't anything terribly difficult about the installation. Just follow the detailed instructions that comes with the kit and you're set.

While I haven't tried the Big Water deal from Thermaltake, I can say that I have looked at there other products in this line and they generally have some things in common... and here I mean bad things that are all right for a beginner but won't grow with you as you become more involved in overclocking and performance. For the most part, these type kits use a smaller diameter tubing which inhibits water flow rates, they don't have nearly enough liquid in the cooling circuit which doesn't allow the water to cool properly before being recirculated, and they almost always have a pump that simply isn't up to the task of cooling off a performance rig. I'll say again that I have not tested this particular water cooling system, but other Thermaltake (and other all-in-one kits from most manufacturers) fall into this same trap of substandard components. While I usually had good luck when running at default speeds, they weren't able to take the punishment when I began cranking up the MHz.

**D3xxx** · 01-02-2005, 03:30 AM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Hi Darthtanion,
Thx for the reply and the review of swiftech.........I think the tubing diameter, expansion tank and pump are really killer features.............

However I found this review of 'Bigwater' ..... take a look http://www.madshrimps.be/?action=get...65&articID=270 , the tubing is smaller, the pump has less capacity and the expansion tank is smaller...............
however......the cooling ability still seems pretty good.........especially with the minor tweaks suggested........I really am very tempted as
1) it is very quiet 21db
2) it allows pretty good overclocking
hmmm........I am going to check out swiftech......................
I will let you know how I get on.........let me know what you think of the link....

Cheers
Richard @ Bolton UK

**Darthtanion** · 01-02-2005, 07:41 AM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

I'll still conclude that it is an entry level system. While this might suit your immediate needs, it will not grow with your system. You'll end up spending the money for this kit and then still spend more in the future for a real water cooling setup.

The results were impressive for a kit like this but I wonder about the low ambient temperatures used in testing. Most folks (even enthusiasts like me) don't have a 17C degree room for their computer. Mine is generally closer to 70F (about 21C). I'd also be interested in a comparison between this "entry level" system and the hog he pictured on the first page of his review. This would give you an appropriate idea as to how it compares with a real-world water rig.

Yes, I'm picky but that isn't anything new. I enjoy the low noise provided by water but have yet to be anywhere close to satisfied with these all-in-one water kits that are becoming so popular nowadays.

**Yawgm0th** · 01-02-2005, 01:27 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Personally, I'd suggest you not look into watercooling at all with that setup. For starters, your RAM is limiting you as much as your temperatures. On top of that, even people with Mobile processors (better for OCing) and the best overclocking motherboards out there tend to only get around 2.8GHz or so anyway, but that's with unlocked processors and better RAM. Even with watercooling and some loosed timings, I'd be suprised if you could get much past 2.6GHz.

Most importantly, for the price of a quality sytsem that Darth is trying to suggest (and something cheaper won't be all that great), you could just replace the board and CPU with an Athlon 64 setup that will perform better, overclocked or not.

If you do get a watercooling system, you really shouldn't try to go too cheap on it. You get what you pay for when it comes to computer hardware (or much of anything, really), especially watercooling setups.

**Joe89** · 01-02-2005, 11:21 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Well, the zalmon resanotor shows us watercooling isn't just for insane OCers but also people who just want a quiet environment. I heard that kit isn't really that good, but I think it'd be a good idea to keep that loudness is a factor for him. Sure, he wants good speeds, but I think he also wants a quiet environment too.

**D3xxx** · 01-04-2005, 01:01 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Hi Darth & Yaw,
I have manged to get a very good price on this setup and I have decided to go for it..........for several reasons...........
1) It is very quiet.
2) It fits with my shark case perfectly
3) Despite your views on shortcommings.........it does offer a significant upgrade for me.....I am not a serious overclocker..........however.....in future I could perhaps upgrade the pump.........+ despite all this it does offer very good cooling.......
4) When I upgrade to AMD64 .......... it will cope easily..........

However, can I despite all the above can I ask the following.............
the Barton XP3200 ......... is the multiplier locked.............the std multiplier is 11
when I used the NF7 S bios multiplier of 12 ......... it still only worked @ 11.
I assume from this it is locked...........can the L1 bridge be modified ala the Throughbreds..........to give access to the other multipliers????

Are there issues with dual channel opperation and overclocking the FSB..............
I have tried 210FSB but this bugged out in Doom3............it seemed to occur when the sound got complex...........is there an issue with Audigy sound cards and overclocking......????

Kind Regards
Richard @ Bolton uk

**Yawgm0th** · 01-05-2005, 02:05 AM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

All socket A CPUs from early 2003 and on are locked and cannot be unlocked by connecting or cutting any bridges.

The FSB problem is a board limitation that requires a mod to fix. Try searching around some, because I'm not sure about the specifcs when using a 200MHz FSB processor.

**D3xxx** · 01-06-2005, 06:49 AM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Hi Yawgm0th & Joe89
Sure quietness is really important to me......those 80mm fans really do my head in....as for the processor I have done some experiments.....the processor appers totally locked ........... is there a solution for unlocking this late Barton.......a while back I saw a little plastic pin reconfigurator that went between the processor and socket.......can anybody help..

**Yawgm0th** · 01-09-2005, 09:32 PM

Re: Barton XP3200 overclocking

Last time I had checked, the only solution was involved turning them into unlocked Athlon MPs that don't even work on most single-CPU Socket A boards.

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