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Hi all,
Just want to ask if overclocking a Cyberstorm II 060@50MHz to 66MHz is as easy as changing the square 50MHz crystal on the card with a 66MHz one. I already have a juicy heatsink attached to the CPU and fitting a fan is no trouble at all as i have the one i removed as its not needed at stock speed.
Cheers
Yes, but you need 60ns ram and your milage will vary.
Each card is unique. One might overclock to 72mhz.... another will refuse to boot at 60mhz.
Also, 060s usually dont require cooling, but if you are going to clock it at 66 AND if it is going to live in either an a4k desktop case, or (worst still) an a3k desktop case, you really need more than a passive cooling system. I would stick a fan to circulate air past the heatsink. If you want to keep noise to a minimum, use a 5v 40mm fan (dont wire it to 12v though :)).
Another issue is the CyberSCSI module (if you have one). It may not work if you overclock the CPU card. This happened to me when I used a 60mHz crystal on my MKII. It doesn't damage the SCSI but the machine freezes.
And usually you have to change XC68060RC50 CPU by MC68060RC50 as XC variant might refuse to work even at 55MHz. With MC CPU and without SCSI module attached CS MK II can be overclocked up to 80MHz (checked by me).
Thanks for the replies guys. I dont have scsi connected to the 060 card, but i think i'll leave it as is, as i dont really play with it much and i dont have time stuffing about with ram if it was going to be an issue. i dont even know what type of cpu it has (XC or MC markings) as the heat sink covers the whole thing.
That was a great point stachu100 and abraXXious made, some 060s will happily accept certain overclock speeds but refuse to work with others.
Cosmos overclocked my MkIII (it has and old 060 and not the latest mask) and it would only work at 60Mhz, anything more and it would crash. My advice would be to get the latest 060 you can find and perhaps try a few different clock crystals and see how you go, certainly ditching the SCSI will mean higher clock speeds will be possible, 060 permitting. Fitting a cooling fan wont do any harm either, but I think the later 060s run cooler than the earier ones. Perhaps stachu100 could confirm this? :unsure:
I've been quite lucky, most XC '060's have done 64-66MHz reliably here with good cooling. The voltage regulators can run hot, especially overclocking the XC parts as they draw more. Temperature difference between Rev 1 and Rev 6 has been no more than 5C in my testing. (I think the "cool to the touch" 80MHz '060's are mythical. Run Quake for an hour, they'll be hot at 66MHz.)
The SCSI problem is a bummer when overclocking the MK-II... Mine won't work beyond 56MHz. :-/
I really don't get the idea of overclocking any Motorola processor :blink:
It's not like it makes the Amiga that much faster and in most cases it will damage the board or processor.
Basicly your running more trough the lines and therefor creating more noise on the copper lines and more heat from the processor.
Well, I take it easy on the hardware these days and don't overclock much. I also don't modify any new hardware I acquire that's never been tampered with/overclocked, and I don't recommend others do. It can cause damage, especially if you're reckless and lack common sense.
That said, I've yet to experience an overclocking related failure. The MKII was designed for 66MHz, and with the proper precautions it's been known to handle it reliably for years without issue. (My own MKII runs at 66MHz, sometimes for weeks without rebooting.) But you are right, overall, the difference in performance is probably not worth the risk.
The mileage always varies because no two CPU's are ever identical. This statement might sound crazy but it works largely on this this basis.
Motorola make a batch of 060 CPU's. Before they can be labelled, they have to be soak tested. The ones that fail to perform get re-badged according to what part of the CPU failed. Some might fail with the MMU, some with the FPU and some will clock further than others too. So, after the soak testing, they get binned @ whatever speed they are stable at. Unfortunately, there is no way to Disable 68xxx CPU features before your Miggy Boots. Your system has to have all CPU features available as Binned when you press the Power Button on. There is an option in the early Start-up Screen to disable CPU Cache, but you can't disable the MMU or the FPU if it has one. Shame really, because it could be this part of the CPU causing the over-clock fail.
It's much the same with Intel these days. i3 & i5 Socket 1156 CPU's are just failed versions of i7 Socket 1156 CPU's. It's a clever way to recycle the cr4p they make whilst aiming for almost perfect Silicon Slices.
I run an i7 Skt 1366 2.8Ghz CPU @ 4.2Ghz under water. She's perfectly stable @ 4.4Ghz with Hyper Threading turned off, but the consequential Loss in FPS is not worth the extra 200Mhz on the CPU.
Kin