Phenom II 965 beyond the highest frequency limit
Phenom II 965 beyond the highest frequency limit
Hello, I observed unusual performance in my AMD Phenom II x4 965. It was running overclocked at a steady 3.8GHz for a while. Recently, while playing GTAV, I noticed the frequency was roughly 100MHz higher than the stable setting (around 3,890GHz), which led to instability in the game. I reduced the overclock to 3.7GHz during the session, and the issue reappeared—even when using auto multiplier at the stock 3.4GHz setting. The game remained unstable in every case, with noticeable problems like laggy mouse cursor. This occurs mostly during GTAV but also when starting up or launching other applications. What could be causing this odd behaviour?
I think it might be the motherboard. Restore its BIOS to the default setting. Apply a reset if needed. If the issue persists at standard configurations, it could indicate a hardware problem. If everything seems fine, the problem is likely with the board itself. When the operation runs without further changes, I’d be certain it’s a motherboard issue.
I think it might be related to the motherboard. Restart the board's BIOS to the default settings. If needed, perform a reset. If the issue persists even with standard settings, it could indicate a hardware problem. If everything seems fine, the problem might be caused by the OC adjusting the multiplier. Test again without any changes to the multiplier. If the issue reappears, it’s likely the board itself.
I think it might be the motherboard issue. Restore the BIOS to the default settings and apply a reset if needed. If the problem persists even with standard settings, it could indicate a hardware fault. Once everything seems normal, check if the issue reappears by adjusting only the multiplier. If it does come back, it’s likely the board itself. I also checked the frequency across three programs—OCCT and HWMonitor displayed unusual values, while EasyTune6 (with MB drivers) showed around 30MHz. The BUS and HT frequencies were erratic (around 200–210 MHz for bus and 2000–2100 Hz). To confirm if it’s the board rather than the CPU, you could test it on another board or swap in a different CPU. Would you like to know if those frequency spikes appear in the BIOS as well?
I think it might be the motherboard issue. Restore the board's BIOS to default and try resetting if needed. If the problem persists even with default settings, it could point to a hardware fault. When I attempted this, the issue continued. The frequency readings in three programs differ: OCCT and HWMonitor display unusual values, while EasyTune6 shows only around 30MHz. Bus and HT frequencies are also erratic (200-210 MHz for bus, 2000-2100 for HT).
To confirm if the problem is board-related rather than CPU-related, I would need to test another board or another CPU in this one. It’s not straightforward unless you have access to such alternatives. Are these spikes also recorded in the BIOS?
I don’t have access to a different CPU or motherboard (none of my friends/family own such). My BIOS only shows the settings I configured and doesn’t display actual frequencies.
In BIOS, navigate to MIT/Advanced Freq. Settings. When all settings are set to 'auto', the displayed frequencies are shown. Capture a snapshot if preferred.