ASUS P5B: New BIOS Adds Unlocking & Improved Overclocking
by Wesley Fink on August 24, 2006 3:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
As more experience has been gained in overclocking Core 2 Duo chips, it is becoming clear that the 4MB cache E6700 and E6600 do not overclock quite as well as the 2MB Cache chips. There is not a huge difference in the overclocking of 2MB and 4MB at each multiplier, but there is a small advantage to the 2MB design for overclocking. Keep in mind, however, that 2MB performance is lower, so that tends to offset any advantage the 2MB E6400 and E6300 designs might enjoy.
E6400
The E6400 starts at 8x266 or 2.13GHz. With the new 507 BIOS we managed to reach stable speeds of 445x8, 511x7, and 514x6. This composite should give you a better idea of performance at a FSB of 445x8. There is a huge amount of capture information in this image, so you will need to click to enlarge it to readable size.
The jump from 2.13GHz to 3.58GHz is an amazing overclock of 1449MHz, or almost 1500 MHz. Percentage wise, this is a bit more than 68%. With the new ASUS BIOS, we now have the ability to do similar overclocks with the bus speed. With the 6400 the bus speed can now be adjusted from 266 to 514, which represent s a potential bus speed overclock of 93% - almost double the stock 266 FSB speed.
E6300
At $183 the E6300 represents the best value among the Core 2 Duo processors. The 65nm architecture combined with a low starting speed of 1.83GHz presents buyers with some amazing overclocking potential. These capabilities are enhanced further with the ASUS 0507 BIOS.
The E6300 unlocked down and reached 525x7 at stock multiplier. We were very near the limits of the ASUS P5B with the new BIOS and Scythe Infinity air cooling since dropping to x6 only gained us a few more MHz on the FSB, namely 532 at 6X. This is a100% bus overclock and it clearly demonstrates the added flexibility of the lower speed Core 2 Duo chips.
While the 2MB cache E6400 and E6300 reached higher bus speeds and CPU clocks than the 4MB E6700 and E6600, keep in perspective that the 4MB versions perform faster clock for clock. Any advantage the 2MB might have in our testing is small and is more than offset by the 4MB performance advantage. Still, the 2MB models are definitely impressive overclockers and they are both excellent values in the Core 2 Duo line-up.
E6400
The E6400 starts at 8x266 or 2.13GHz. With the new 507 BIOS we managed to reach stable speeds of 445x8, 511x7, and 514x6. This composite should give you a better idea of performance at a FSB of 445x8. There is a huge amount of capture information in this image, so you will need to click to enlarge it to readable size.
 |
| Click to enlarge |
The jump from 2.13GHz to 3.58GHz is an amazing overclock of 1449MHz, or almost 1500 MHz. Percentage wise, this is a bit more than 68%. With the new ASUS BIOS, we now have the ability to do similar overclocks with the bus speed. With the 6400 the bus speed can now be adjusted from 266 to 514, which represent s a potential bus speed overclock of 93% - almost double the stock 266 FSB speed.
E6300
At $183 the E6300 represents the best value among the Core 2 Duo processors. The 65nm architecture combined with a low starting speed of 1.83GHz presents buyers with some amazing overclocking potential. These capabilities are enhanced further with the ASUS 0507 BIOS.
 |
| Click to enlarge |
The E6300 unlocked down and reached 525x7 at stock multiplier. We were very near the limits of the ASUS P5B with the new BIOS and Scythe Infinity air cooling since dropping to x6 only gained us a few more MHz on the FSB, namely 532 at 6X. This is a100% bus overclock and it clearly demonstrates the added flexibility of the lower speed Core 2 Duo chips.
While the 2MB cache E6400 and E6300 reached higher bus speeds and CPU clocks than the 4MB E6700 and E6600, keep in perspective that the 4MB versions perform faster clock for clock. Any advantage the 2MB might have in our testing is small and is more than offset by the 4MB performance advantage. Still, the 2MB models are definitely impressive overclockers and they are both excellent values in the Core 2 Duo line-up.
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Visual - Friday, August 25, 2006 - link
does the non-deluxe p5b get the same oc results?what exactly are the differences between deluxe and normal?
Gary Key - Friday, August 25, 2006 - link
No, expect around 7x430 with a very good setup and 7x450 with an excellent setup that is stable with the E6300. The main difference between the boards is the P5B-D has eight phase power compared to three on the P5B along with the Asus heat pipe cooling technology. The P5B-D has upgraded audio, components, additional x16 PCIE slot (x2 or x4 operation), dual Gigabit LAN, and a USB WiFi option along with additional SATA ports.
yyrkoon - Friday, August 25, 2006 - link
How about an article for those of us who havent OC'd in a while ? Things to test, things to change in the BIOS etc? Last truely sucsessfull OC I've personally had, was a P55 233mmx intel CPU, on a ABIT board (yes, YEARS AGO).Anyhow, whats the impact on a system with a dropped multiplier, and increased FSB ? I'm pretty sure the longevity of said system wouldnt be as long if run stock . . .
daneel3001 - Friday, August 25, 2006 - link
I've got a P5B non deluxe with a E6600 + 2GB of Crucial Ballistix PC6400.As I am no expert in overclocking the only thing I tried to up was the FSB, from 266 I managed to push it to 310, before that it would crash.
Can anybody tell me settings for say going from 2.4 to 3.0 ?
My guess is :
FSB to 333 so core speed is 333*9=3ghz
Up CPU voltage to 1.4v
..and the thing I am really not sure is the memory setting, 1. whether or not to use spd and 2. what speed to use and maybe 3. what volt to use (the Crucial is guaranteed up to 2.2v but board is limited to 2.1v).
Cheers
Dan
Gary Key - Friday, August 25, 2006 - link
Have you tried the 0309 bios yet? It improves overclocking a great deal but comes at the expense of needing "good" memory capability in order to do it. Start with SPD, raise your memory to 2.1V, use the 1:1 divider, and set your CPU vCore at 1.375V, MCH around 1.45V as a start.
daneel3001 - Sunday, August 27, 2006 - link
Yep tried the 0309.I am currently set at :
CPU vcore @ 1.4v but showing 1.368v on CPU-Z
Mem voltage @ 2.1v
FSB @ 340
Mem @ 428 (860 DDR2).
Not sure about MCH you mentioned.
For some reason I can't get my machine stable past 3ghz, SuperPi will be ok but Sandra burnin will crash. I'm going to try with current settings..
Dan
DudemanX - Monday, August 28, 2006 - link
I also have the P5B non-deluxe using the new 0309 BIOS.Core 2 Duo E6600
ASUS P5B
4GB (4x1GB) Corsair PC2-6400 4-4-4-12
I wasn't looking for max overclock as this chip is so fast already so I started by turning my multiplier down to 6, FSB to 400, and memory to 1:1. Worked fine without any voltage tweaks so I started upping my multiplier. I'm now running at 8 x 400(3.2Ghz) without messing with any voltage settings. I may be able to go higher but this is more than enough to drive the single video card that this board supports and I'm quite happy.
A weird thing I noticed is that checking the ASUS site again today(Mon. 8/28) no longer has the 0309 BIOS listed. Are some poeple having issues with it or did Intel make them remove it?
lopri - Friday, August 25, 2006 - link
I can't help but to think this article is some kind of a stunt, which is in line with AT/ASUS alliance. It'd make a good Inquirer article, though.Black69ta - Wednesday, August 30, 2006 - link
I seem to remeber hearing that the Conroes would be unlocked for all grades not just the extremes but intel was going to wait to do this for a little while after launch. it seems like I heard this even before they were called Core 2 duo's. maybe Intel locked the early one so that people would have a reason to buy the Extremes, I also seem to remember the extremes would eventually get hyperthreading back, maybe as a middleground between Kentsfield and Core 2 Duo? maybe this is why nvidia is putting off releasing any intel edition 590 boards because they didn't was to spend so much money on constantly having to update BIOS and this and that while the dust settles from the launch. not to mention the reputation. If they could release the Intel 590's without any Major bugs then that would make the new "oddball" chipset maker major kudos, at least compared to the Intel and Ati chipsets.splines - Thursday, August 24, 2006 - link
There's a difference between being 'in the industry' and 'clobbering people over the head with my obvious superiority and subtle hints'. If people think you're coming off as arrogant, maybe you should reconsider your approach to criticism.I know quite a few people who know to some very important and NDA-protected facts. None of them troll the net bashing people over the head with stuff like this, because it can get you into serious trouble.
Secondly, you never never never ever try and come across as if you're speaking for the company.
Ever. Never ever. Is your supposedly leet job worth you seeming like a big man on a message board?
If you're meant to be someone of importance, you're a rank amateur at keeping your mouth shut, and a liability to boot.