New to Overclocking with an Athlon 1200

[VIRGIN747]

Hello all, Firstly would just like to say wot a great site this is,invaluable links and forums with tons of information. Now here comes the brain teaser!!!
These are Vitals.

Processor 1 >>
< Processor(s) >
Model: AMD Athlon(tm) Processor
Co-Processor (FPU): Built-in
Speed: 1.20GHz
Model Number: 1200 (estimated)
Performance Rating: PR1596 (estimated)
Type: Standard
Multiplier: 9x
Generation: 7th (7x86)
Model Information: Athlon M4 (Thunderbird) 650-1.4G 1.7-1.8V
Revision/Stepping: 4 / 2 (0)
Stepping Mask: A4..A8

< Caches >
Internal Data Cache: 64kB synchronous write-back (2-way, 64 byte line size)
Internal Code Cache: 64kB synchronous write-back (2-way, 64 byte line size)
L2 On-board Cache: 256kB ECC synchronous write-back (16-way, 64 byte line
size)
L2 Cache Multiplier: 1/1x (equiv. 1200MHz)

< Host Interface >
Front Side Bus Speed: 2x 133MHz (266MHz data rate)

< Mainboard Upgradeability >
Socket/Slot: Slot A
Upgrade Interface: ZIF Socket
Supported Speed(s): 1.20GHz (or more)
Supported Voltage(s): 3.3V

< Environment Monitor 1 >
Model: VIA 686PM ISA
Version: 10.02
Mainboard Specific Support: Yes

< Processor Sensors >
CPU Temperature: 35.7°C / 96.3°F
Auto Fan Speed Control: No
CPU Fan Speed: 5533rpm
CPU Core Voltage: 1.80V

Now i would like to overclock but i'm not sure if it can be done via the motherboard or do i have to open up the chip ans start digging, i'm not very fond of the latter. Any help at all would really be appreciated..
Thanks Pete :confused: :(

[tepo]

I have same chip and You, and mine runs @ 1600 100% stable, so here's come's some x-perience based tips.

Two ways to OC:
- Raise FSB ( Front Side Bus )
- Raise multiplier

What You need to achieve higher speed:
- Higher voltage to CPU. ( Check what Your mobo can do )
- PROPER COOLING ! ( VERY important, since athlon's run veru hot ! )

Now You didn't post what mobo You have, so it makes it difficult to say exactly what to do, but some tip's I learned on the way:

FSB: raisingf front side bus is quite good way to achieve overall performance gain, not just in CPU, but in other component's too, the treouble is that PCI and AGP buses are also going up in speed, and if You raise FSB too much You will experience some funny behaviour. ( Example: My LCD panel attached to LPT goes crappy when FSB >150 ) If You raise Your FSB the speed Your memory works also with higher speed.

Multiplicator. That's on other hand somewhat different. it doesn't stress CPU so hard, but it can't be used alone to find the limit's of a chip, since the smallest step on multiplicator is 0.5 and that's 0.5 x 133 = 66 mhz or higher, depending on Your FSB.

Goto some overclocking sites, read the SysOpt's overeclocking Guide's, and have fun !

And just to prove that a TB 1200/266 is one good overclocker, here's some camshot's ( Some of You don't believe in screenshot's ) of my box. ( Details can be found in THIS (http://cp-geek.servepics.com/waterwww/) page.

http://cp-geek.servepics.com/waterwww/images/big/cpu_1700.jpg

http://cp-geek.servepics.com/waterwww/images/big/sandra_1700.jpg

Have fun !

Tepo

[bw]

If you want to overclock your T-Bird 1.2 gig cpu, you need to determine if your mobo has the tools to raise the front side bus(fsb), change multiplier, and raise voltage to cpu.

Check mobo website or manual for information...

And don't forget to get a good heatsink fan(hsf) to cool your T-Bird 1.2 gig.