Is pelt cooling worth it???

[Cieprus]

At first, I thought pelt cooling was just plain overkill...

But afte taking some time and reading up on it, it seems kind of cool..

You can get your proc to sub-0 temps, but is it that worth it?

All the sealing and waterproofing you have to go through, voids all warrantys, can screw you horribly if you ph0k up...

I mean, how far will I be albe to OC my 1600+??? Can I get it up in the 2200+ range?

Im running the infamous AK35GTR, its probally the BEST ocing board around... along with the AK35GTR2.

So tell me what you guys think..

And Bigben, I know your dual pelt chill'n, So what do you think?

[ambient]

Try it if you got the extra power supply and the room for it in the case. I think the difference in oc won't be that much. Maybe 100 - 200mhz more then you can now.

[webmedic]

I think you've never used an abit board. And you are correct if you are just a crazy overclocker then have fun. If all you care about is a moderate overclock and few extra 3dmarks it's hardly worth it.

One of the main drawbacks I've heard is the electric bill. It's not going to get you what you think whithout volt moding the board also and whatever other tricks heavy metal overclockers resort to.

[ambient]

It's not going to get you what you think whithout volt moding the board also and whatever other tricks heavy metal overclockers resort to

Actually the Shuttle board he has allows for up to 2.3vcore so he doesn't need to volt mod, and the board oc's pretty damn good. Better then my Abit board

[bigben2k]

(My rig isn't put together yet, and I may yet switch back to a single Pelt.)

Pelt cooling has many advantages, but requires a lot of careful details. It will allow you to cool a CPU beyond any other type of cooling.

The question: "How far will I be able to OC my CPU?" isn't easily answered. Most will tell you that it depends on the CPU you have, which batch it was made from, etc... then they'll tell you that it depends on all the other components (Mobo, ram, etc...)

In short, you can't pick a target speed for OC'ing a CPU. You just cool it down, and hope for the best. A pelt (aka TEC - Thermo electric couple) will allow you to OC better than water or air cooling.

Me, I'm targetting 166 FSB with the new Athlon 2200+, whenever it comes out. (or 33MHz above spec FSB). Anything else is just a bonus.

When setting up Pelt(s), you have to consider:
-isolating for condensation
-powering it
-cooling it
-mounting it

That's the basics, then there's the water-cooling aspect of it.

I've seen people OC an Athlon 2100+ (1.73 GHz) to as much as 2.2 GHz (stable???).

Once it's all setup, then you have to run some tests, start the burning in, and take measurements. The CPU temp will probably rise above freezing, under full load.

This is why I'm building a thermally controlled PSU for my pelt(s). That way, my rig will hold a CPU at a rock steady temperature, regardless of the load on it, and it will save energy in the process.

I'm not there yet...

[ambient]

This is why I'm building a thermally controlled PSU for the pelt. That way, my rig will hold a CPU at a rock steady temperature, regardless of the load on it.

Are you just limiting the voltage to the TEC based on temp? Sounds very cool. Hope it works. I bet a lot of people would be interested in a setup like that. Best of both worlds....

[webmedic]

Not sure as I don't get into the crazy stuff but ask jcviggen over at [H]. He does this crazy stuff and he can tell you which board will get you the highest front side bus speeds. It's not shuttle. It's abit. What he does to get it I don't know but he does. As for me moderate oc is fine. More like to see how far things can be pushed without voiding waranties.

[bigben2k]

Thanks. I'll definitely write an article on it.

The biggest problems I've encountered so far are:
1-The huge power consumption
2-Staying away from PWM (pulse width modulation) or an average on-off PSU, because Pelts aren't designed for that.

But I've got a few circuits that I'll merge for my purpose...

[bigben2k]

I'll be using an ASUS board, probably the A7V333. I've distributed ASUS in Canada, and I know their products very well.

ASUS makes very, very good boards, but you have to use one to see that, because they don't give out any more information on the design than they have to. I can tell you though, the more you use them, the more you'll see how smart a design they have.

They've been criticized on many sites for doing this or that, but in every case, it turns out that it was smarter (like the 2-level voltage regulation versus 3, the lack of memory voltage adjustment, etc...)

You can easily achieve maximum FSB on an ASUS.

[ablaze]

hey guys you forgot all about the Epox 8k3a+! highest fsb possible, vcore up to 2.2v, vdimm up to 3.2v all without mods! i think THIS is the best overclocking board around (yeah memory performance's pretty lacklustre with the current bioses though..)

[Cieprus]

Originally posted by ambient


Actually the Shuttle board he has allows for up to 2.3vcore so he doesn't need to volt mod, and the board oc's pretty damn good. Better then my Abit board

Thank you very much

[Cieprus]

Well Ive gotten my FSB up to 153, using a shity Staples HSF, and it was damn near perfect. (1.4 to 1.6 Mhz)

So with a pelt, I think I could OC my FSB to something ALOT higher...

But then I can up my VCore and Multiplier up ALOT aswell...

So who knows

It looks fun though (And expensive)

[bigben2k]

It's not about fun but yes, it can be expensive, especially if you don't do it right and fry something, like a CPU or mobo.

The pelt itself is only about $30, but the power supply can run up to $200. Then you need a cold plate, clamp it to your waterblock, etc...

Usually though, the gains are marginal. There are a lot of obstacles to higher speeds, beyond a cold CPU. Mobo design is one, memory is another. Also, a vid card cooler is the next step, because what's the point otherwise?

Many have tried many have failed, and some would never do it again. So if you've got the time, money, and the patience, then go for it.

[webmedic]

Well Like I said ask JcViggen. He got his abit over 200mhz fsb. Don't ask me how all I know is he did it and I've seen it. So untill you guys can show me I know which board will hit it. He's also tested most other boards and can tell you the strong and weak points of each.



By the way when ocz started selling 400mhz ddr they specificly stated on there site the only two boards that could hit it at the time were abit and iwill. And the iwill board has other problems with it's ali chipset.

[bigben2k]

Originally posted by ablaze
hey guys you forgot all about the Epox 8k3a+! highest fsb possible, vcore up to 2.2v, vdimm up to 3.2v all without mods! i think THIS is the best overclocking board around (yeah memory performance's pretty lacklustre with the current bioses though..)

ASUS A7V333: 2.3V core.

Memory voltage mods are highly questionable, since mem sticks regulate their own power, and sometimes perform better at lower voltages.

[bigben2k]

Originally posted by webmedic
Well Like I said ask JcViggen. He got his abit over 200mhz fsb. Don't ask me how all I know is he did it and I've seen it. So untill you guys can show me I know which board will hit it. He's also tested most other boards and can tell you the strong and weak points of each.

By the way when ocz started selling 400mhz ddr they specificly stated on there site the only two boards that could hit it at the time were abit and iwill. And the iwill board has other problems with it's ali chipset.

What are you talking about? Jc didn't get 200 FSB! Jc is running Intel. That thread was about a guy (jaofos) who reached 200 FSB on an ABit AT7 but it wasn't stable. Another one said he got there stable, but didn't test it, and anyways, it was on an Epox...

You need to stay away from [H], these guys are just trying to out-do each other, lol!

[ambient]

Well Like I said ask JcViggen. He got his abit over 200mhz fsb. Don't ask me how all I know is he did it and I've seen it. So untill you guys can show me I know which board will hit it. He's also tested most other boards and can tell you the strong and weak points of each.

HERE is a review of the Abit board your probably talking about. I don't think ABit is bad (I just don't want to be a beta tester for them any more ), nor do I think shuttle is the best. The nice thing about the Epox, Asus, and shuttle boards, there is no vmod needed. I would buy a board from almost any mobo manufacturer, (aside from a few) that performed well. Also FSB overclocking isn't the only factor in oc'n.

[bigben2k]

ambient: nice article, 225 FSB! I wonder how long it would stay that way...

There's also a comparison test: Epox versus Asus:
http://ocplus.freeservers.com/epox8k3avsasusa7v333.htm
(without loading the latest BIOS)

I've also seen reviews with A7V333 outrunning an Epox.

The thing is... it's not going to run stable at that speed, so you're still better off with an Asus, with all of its extra features, like USB 2.0, overheat protection (bye-bye MBM), 22 IRQs, CMedia sound, etc...

Also, Epox is what started a very large discussion because they didn't respect PCI specifications, so you couldn't fit the latest GeForce 4 Ti4600 on their board. They also had a problem with connecting a CD-ROM, because the mobo was in the way... (all is fixed now)

Personally, I'd rather go with an Asus, just because it has all I need, and it's capable of doing what I'll require it to do. It also won't have those squiggly paths on the mobo ("S" shape), a sign of poor design.

[Cieprus]

Originally posted by bigben2k
ambient: nice article, 225 FSB! I wonder how long it would stay that way...

There's also a comparison test: Epox versus Asus:
http://ocplus.freeservers.com/epox8k3avsasusa7v333.htm
(without loading the latest BIOS)

I've also seen reviews with A7V333 outrunning an Epox.

The thing is... it's not going to run stable at that speed, so you're still better off with an Asus, with all of its extra features, like USB 2.0, overheat protection (bye-bye MBM), 22 IRQs, CMedia sound, etc...

Also, Epox is what started a very large discussion because they didn't respect PCI specifications, so you couldn't fit the latest GeForce 4 Ti4600 on their board. They also had a problem with connecting a CD-ROM, because the mobo was in the way... (all is fixed now)

Personally, I'd rather go with an Asus, just because it has all I need, and it's capable of doing what I'll require it to do. It also won't have those squiggly paths on the mobo ("S" shape), a sign of poor design.

Ya, I guess I feel the same way about my Shuttle...

When it comes to the best of the best boards, its kinda like you style, you choose what you like and need...

[gone_fishin]

My last rig was a PIII 700 that I overclocked to 933 but it would not post unless the vcore was at least 1.9v, with an 85watt pelt it ran at default voltage with a temp of 12C. I ran it off of the systems 350watt power supply also. I used a PEP66 heatsink and fan ducted directly out of the case.

[Kevin]

"Worth it" is a pretty relative term. I do it because I just enjoy messing around with that kind of stuff. It probably isn't economically a viable solution though if that is what you mean.
-Kev

[webmedic]

Naw jc posted about this at least a couple months ago. He's only been playing with the intell recently.

[Cieprus]

I wouldnt believe much from [H], there all little kids...

[Brad]

if you have a 1600+ and are interested in pelting, I just wouldn't. I'd spend the money on a 2200+ in a couple of weeks. It gives guarenteed performance, you know it is going to run at whatever speed, and you don't have to go all through the route of finding a psu, and all the rest of that crap.

But if you have a 2200+ and want more speed, then sure, pelts are an option

[Cieprus]

Originally posted by Brad
if you have a 1600+ and are interested in pelting, I just wouldn't. I'd spend the money on a 2200+ in a couple of weeks. It gives guarenteed performance, you know it is going to run at whatever speed, and you don't have to go all through the route of finding a psu, and all the rest of that crap.

But if you have a 2200+ and want more speed, then sure, pelts are an option

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