Hi my system is a QX6850 Quad core 4x 3.00Ghz 1333Mhz FSB/8MB L2 CACHE/ 4gb RAM/4096MB Corsair XMS2 800Mhz/MOBO ASUS Striker Extreme Duel DDR2/ Vista 64 Premium OS/ 1000w Quiet five rail PSU 120mm case fan 2x 8800GTX video cards Sli....!Black Neon Bubble case.... I would like to attempt to o/c my cpu,so my first ? is what should i be able to o/c it too without reboot problems, second could u pls decribe in detail exactly the steps i should do to do this .i.e (enter BIOS go to Tweaking, then goto..ETC cos i,m just learning this from scratch so pls be patient..:)...would i have to upgrade my cooling att the moment i have ZALMAN CNPS9700 NT TRITIUM Super Air Cooler, my CPU temps at idle are approx 48-53c getting to approx 61-63c on load...would i need to upgrade to a better cooling sys to o/clock like water cooling etc.....and what O/clock should i be able to get without upgrading cooling i was hoping for around 3.6Ghz is that possible...!also what do u think my max CPU temps r 4 this processor QX6850 intel, also would it be better to also up my RAM to 8Gb i think thats the maximum for my MOBO...And finally if i get the BSOD can i just reboot by pressing DEL while rebooting to alter settings to make it stable and able to reboot as normal....I would greatly appriciate any help from u clever lads...many thanx :) Pel..!...I hate that BSOD thats my main concern not being able to get my pc going again if that happens....lol....could u also advise if i should just up my FSB & voltage or should i also up my Multiplier at the moment its at 9x....pls describe everything clearly as i,m a first time overclocker.!

The short answer is to raise the CPU FSB from 1333MHz QDR to 1600MHz QDR. But there are several other settings that have to be changed to make that possible. Try these: AI Tuning = manual System clocks = set all PCIEX16 settings to 100MHz FSB / memory clock mode = unlinked FSB (QDR) = 1600 Mem (DDR) = 800 Spread Spectrum Control = disable ALL Spread Spectrum options, leave SPP <-> MCP on Auto Intel SpeedStep = disabled There are plenty of other settings that can be tweaked but those are the basics to get the CPU to 3.60Gz/1600MHz FSB with the RAM running in sync at 800MHz.

Thanx Jam ya a star....also what ya reckon on my BSOD question....that screen scares me..lol.....ya help very much appricaited thank you so much

also Jam do u think my Cooling system is sufficent as it is to allow o/clocking to 3.6ghz and should i also upgrade my RAM to 8GB would that give a good increase in power too...?...many thanx again....

Stock cooling *should* be adequate. What do you need 8GB of RAM for? You already have 4GB...the only way 8GB would do anything for you would be if 4GB wasn't enough for whatever it is that you do.

Thanx again for that info Jam....i just thought 8gb RAM might give more power but now i realise i dont need it.....my last and most important question is : Am i right in thinking that i up my FSB in small sections at a time like 10 i.e. until i get the BSOD then i reboot as normal pressing DEL to re- enter Setup to turn up the Voltage just a little ( what amount u suggest.at a time.?) until its stable to boot again, then continue that until i reach what u suggest 1600mhz i.e. 3.6ghz when ive done that is that it or do i need to do something with the Multiplier also at the moment its on 9x @ 333.3mhz = 3.0Ghz...if i,m wrong in anything i,ve just said could u pls describe in detail exactly the process i should take and in what order..!....My cooling is the ZALMAN 9700NT with 120mm fan.!