Biostar TF560 A2+: Overclocking NVIDIA's new nForce 560

Test Setup

Standard Test Bed Vista Ultimate 64-Bit Test Configuration
Processor	Intel E2160, (1.8GHz, 1MB Unified Cache) AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+, (3.00GHz, 2x1MB Cache) AMD X2 BE-2300, (1.9GHz, 2x512KB Cache) AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+, (2.00GHz, 2x512KB Cache)
RAM	OCZ Reaper HPC PC2-6400
Hard Drive	Western Digital 150GB 10,000RPM SATA 16MB Buffer
System Platform Drivers	AMD 7.7 NVIDIA 15.01
Video Cards	1 x MSI 8800GTX
Video Drivers	163.11
CPU Cooling	Retail Stock Cooler
Power Supply	SeaSonic S12 II 380W
Optical Drives	Plextor PX-760A, Plextor PX-B900A
Case	Cooler Master CM Stacker 830
Motherboards	Biostar TF560 A2+ - (nF560, AM2) BIOS 0612 EVGA 122-CK-NF66-T1 - (nF650i Ultra, 775) BIOS P03 Biostar TF7050-M2 - (NV7050, AM2) BIOS 0716 Jetway M2A692-GHG - (AMD 690G, AM2) BIOS A07
Operating System	Windows Vista Ultimate 64-Bit
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Test conditions were maintained the same, as much as possible, over the platforms tested. Our game tests were run at settings of 1280x1024 HQ with an 8800GTX to ensure our GPU was not a bottleneck during testing. We selected the AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+, AMD X2 BE-2300, and the Intel E2160 processors as our processor choices as they represent great bargains at this moment along with a similar cost. Our motherboard choices for each chipset selected were based on comparisons of performance and similar cost. All results are reported in our charts and color-coded for easier identification of results.

We utilize new drive images on each board in order to minimize any potential driver conflicts. Our 3DMark results are generated utilizing the standard benchmark resolution for each program. We run each benchmark five times, throw out the two low and high scores, and report the remaining score. All results are run at stock speeds for this article with optimized memory timings.

Our choice of software applications to test is based on programs that enjoy widespread use and produce repeatable and consistent results during testing. Microsoft Vista has thrown a monkey wrench into testing as the aggressive nature of the operating system to constantly optimize application loading and retrieval from memory or the storage system presents some interesting obstacles. This along with the lack of driver maturity will continue to present problems in the near future with benchmark selections.

Our normal process is to change our power settings to performance, delete the contents of the prefetch folder, and then reboot after each benchmark run. This is a lengthy process but it results in consistency over the course of benchmark testing. All applications are run with administer privileges.

Note that for overclocking, all of the test CPUs topped out at between 3.0 and 3.2 GHz using stock cooling. We decided to normalize the speeds for direct clock-for-clock comparisons to 3.0 GHz, though we will also include results for the BE-2300 running at 3.15GHz. The X2 3800+ might have been able to squeeze out a bit more, but it didn't seem worth the effort, and the E2160 could get another ~80 MHz. With a Tuniq 120 and additional voltages, overclocking results would be a bit better, but using a $65 heatsink for a $150 setup didn't seem to make a lot of sense.

On a side note, the new performance BIOS releases from Biostar and Jetway for their respective NV7050 and AMD 690G equipped boards allowed us to match the HTT 333 setting for our BE-2300 overclocked test results today. We kept the memory settings the same as our nForce 560 board in order to show consistent results between chipsets. Our Jetway 690G board had the ability to run slightly tighter timings and an HT Link speed of 1600. We reached a maximum HTT setting of 342 on this board. In contrast, it was everything we could do to get our Biostar 7050 board stable at HTT 333 and until the 0716 BIOS release the board refused to POST past HTT 310. The maximum stable HTT setting reached was 335 with our BE-2300 and 306 with the X2 3800+.