I have a PIII, with an unknown mainboard. Now, I see little switches on the board. There are about 10 of them in a row. What do these do, and is there any POSSIBLE way to OC? Any guide is appreciated! Thank you!

Also, I am using a program called SoftFSB to OC my FSB to 150 Mhz. It stills says the internal clock is at 501 MHz. Any info is greatly appreciated!

Use http://www.motherboards.org/index.html to identify your mobo. They have links to the sites for the main makers for manuals and what not. If you have something like a E-machine or Patriot, it will be harder to locate good info. There should be some silk screening on your board to help id the functions of those DIPs.

Thanks for the help! However, playing around with the mobo, I found out it is a Soltek (from an eMachines) I have a PIII 500 MHz. What kind of a chip is this? (Slot A, Socket A?)

Also, where can I find out how to overclock this mobo. Can I flash a new BIOS that has that feature? TIA!

Update. Maybe this can help determine my CPU:

CPU Family: 6
CPU Model: 7
CPU Stepping: 3
CPU Revision: E

Overclocking features in a BIOS or on a board are at the discretion of the manufacturer. With 10 switches, your ability to adjust FSB will probably be limited. You'd need more info on the mobo to determine what and how to overclock.

Socket/Slot A is a AMD product. Slot # is Intel. Got to http://testcpu.webz.cz/ and d/l a copy of TestCpu. This will give you a better idea of your CPU type. I think you have a Katmai core .25um Slot II cpu.

Do a web search on overclocking. That way you can pick and choose based on your own level of comfort and understanding.

Ok, I have a Slot 1 PIII. And, I realized it is only 8 switches. I found out that adjusting the first 4 switches changes something to 2x, 2.5x, 3x, etc. Would that help me?

Mario:

Those are multiplier switches.

Other switches may be for FSB frequency. They might have 66Mhz, 75MHz, 83MHz, 95MHz, 97MHz and 100MHz.

The product of your multiplier and FSB will determine your CPU frequency. For example, with a multiplier 4.0 and an FSB of 75MHz, the MOBO will try to get the CPU to run at 300MHz.

Make sure you have a heat sink fan that is working well before you try any overclocking. Overclocking will cause your CPU to run hotter and temperature is what frequently limits your overclocking ability.

Thanks Maude! I definitely know about cooling. However, before investing $50 in fans, I want to make sure I can overclock it. So, when I set the multipliers to lets say 4x, and I use a program called SoftFSB (which changes FSB), I can overclock it successfully?

Thank you everyone here helping me, I appreciate this so much!

I think you can use your FSB program to dial up the FSB. You should start at an FSB that will give you the rated frequency for your CPU. Then make SMALL adjustments in FSB. You are looking for the edge of the envelope without tearing it up.

Lockups and crashes occur frequently when overclocking so I like to keep the number of programs open to a minimum. That way, fewer corrupted files when the OS blows up.

I don’t know about Heat Sink Fans for PIIIs because I only play with AMD products but I bet you can get a state of the art HSF for $25 or less delivered on Price Watch.

Ok, I tried using the FSB Program, and while it says it is running at 112 MHz, the Intel Frequency Utility says it is still @ 100 MHz. :(

Motherboard Monitor will tell you your CPU frequency. It’s a free download.

http://mbm.livewiredev.com/

Ok, thanks. I don't think the FSB program I was using worked. Are there any other ways I can try to get to the FSB?

I wish I could help more.

Really need to know what your MOBO is.

Ok, after extensive research (few hours!), I finally found out that I have a Napoli-2, or Napoli-II motherboard. Wow, ok, getting farther! Any luck on OC'ing on this main board?

I looked at the manual for that board and I can see how you change the multiplier but I can’t determine how you set the FSB. It accommodates PIIs and PIIIs of different CPU frequencies from 233MHz to 550MHz.

On page 2 it says that the Main Chipset has an ICS 9148-26 clock that supports 60, 66, 75, 83, 90, and 100 MHz. Nowhere can I see where you actually set this. I suspect that it may be on a page in the BIOS setup but the manual that I was able to download doesn’t show BIOS setup pages.

PS:

Here is the link for the MOBO manual.

http://e4all.freeservers.com/mobos/mobos3.htm

Dave Rogers posted on this “Overclock Slot 1 PIII” on 4/9/02. Right now it’s about 3 threads above yours.

Ok, thanks alot! So, I see the clock chipset, and next to it: a little metal cover, bout 1/2 long, and 1/10 inch wide next to the chipset. It seems to be covering something. Hmm... should I/can I take it off?

BTW, on the main page for the Napoli-2 @ that site. If you click on the CMOS Setup (.PDF), it shows you screenshots of the BIOS, and all the functions it has.

Ok, upon further examination, I have seen atleast 20 tiny, VERY tiny rectangle things. They each have a line, on the mobo, that goes to that chipset. They also have something written on them, but they are far to small to read. Any ideas? I definitely believe this motherboard can OC...

Hi, I've got a dual socket pIII mb, GA-6vtxd.
Both CPU's I have are the PIII 1GHz Tualatin.

Im having trouble setting the jumpers for the multipliers, can anyone help?
If i get these jumper settings wrong, it keeps crashing.

Cheers.