I could really use some help from some experts as I've tried several other forums but could get help on my issue...

Here is my setup: Q6600 G0, Thermalright Ultra 120 extreme cpu cooler, Cruial 800mhz 2x1gb on a gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L motherboard. (not including my HDD and GPU since they dont matter)

my current OC is 9x356 @1.376vcore with my ram downclocked to 712mhz to make it 1:1 ratio. why downclocked it ? coz one of the core (random core) would fail prime95 within 2 minutes if I dont downclock it. Per research, my memory is capable of 2.5v (2.2v default) and 1000+mhz on it...

so I tried pushing it to 3.4ghz last night with 8x multiplier and 9x multiplier. one of the cores fails within 1 minute in prime95. I tried increasing the vcore all the way up to 1.489v as well as the memory to 2.3v and NB +.1. none of them helped what so ever. one of the cores still fails within 1 minute in prime95....

here comes my question:

1: Why could be done to help in this issue ?

2: do you think replacing the rams with some Gskills would help?

3: replacing the mobo perhaps ? (in this case, which mobo ? prefer under $150)

4: besides swapping parts, is there any other particular way that you want me to try in order to get it stable @ 3.4ghz ?

THANK YOU !!

Your ram should be fine since you don't have the fsb at 400. Could you list your VID. Under coretemp or realtemp you can see the VID of the processor. That will roughly tell us how to help you and how much volts you probably need.

VID = 1.325v per coretemp.

Well, you can push the voltage higher. As long as the temperature is good, you can go as high as 1.55V and not worry. However, the DS3L is not a good board for high overclocks on quad cores. The voltage regulation modules are just ok, could be better. Plus, it only has a 4 pin plug, not 8pin on the motherboard. So for high oveclocks on a quad core, it has troulbe supplying the needed power.

Your best bet is to get a better motherboard if you want a higher overclock on your Q6600.

Maybe it's just a bum core. Bad luck, those things happen. You could try higher vcore. Or enable loadline calibration to decrease vdroop, thus making the most of existing vcore.

My guess is that you have a less than stellar Q6600.
I would be happy with my current clock.

I suspect the Q6600 @ 3.2Ghz will more than handle what it needs to handle. The rest is benchmark stuff.

The chip probably eats volts like crazy, as some do especially with a high VID.

what's the MAX vcore can a q6600 G0 with VID 1.325v specified by intel ?

No its 1.5v. 1.325v is normally the stock voltage for a Q6600.

According to Intel, your CPU is warranted to work at 0.85V - 1.5V with no overclocking. With this in mind, I would say that you can get at least 1.55V into your CPU as long as you have sufficient cooling.

What are your idle and load temps when you are overclocking?

Your mobo won't handle a high quad overclock. It is a budget board. On the other hand, it is a pretty good dual core overclocker.

When you're not satisfied with 333MHz FSB and DDR2 667 for a 1:1 ratio over clock on your GO Q6600, take some Viagra to help with your e-peen erectile dysfunction.

You would know huh? 38 years of age..

I don't know...
Assuming he is going home to a rack like that every night maybe he doesn't

I agree. Volt the hell out of it. I've been telling people this all month. You can definitely go ti 1.55v with a Q6600. Just mind those temps!