> There is only one thing worrying me, though...
> What about those suggestions that overclocking the
> processor would prematurely burn it? I always get
> contradictory answers to
> that question depending to who I'm talking to. Is there any conclusive
> information about that we could read so that we can make
> an educated
> decision as whether or not accelerating our precious Newt?
>
> -Laurent.
Well Laurent,
Here is my take on this subject...
I any system, as the clock speed increases, so too does the power dissipation.
This is a fact.
However, where people get confused is how much this changes things
in various systems.
While it seems intuitively obvious to believe that some damage may
occur, the reality is a little different.
Clearly, a P4 dissipating ~55W needs a substantial heatsink and fan to
get rid of the heat. If you were to double the power here you would run into
serious problems and the chip would fail in short order (unless you had
cryogenic cooling... but that's another topic).
The SA-110, on the other hand, dissipates ~450mW max when clocked @166MHz
rising to ~1W @ 233MHz. Here is the point: There IS an increase in power
BUT the significance is a lot smaller.
There is no difference between a SA-110 marked 100, 160, 166, 200, 233
EXCEPT that they are characterized for a certain speed.
The manufacturer doesn't want five different lines so the part starts
out life as a 233MHz part. If it fails the tests at that speed it becomes
a 200MHz part etc. etc. Whatever grade it passes gets stamped on the chip.
If you care to look at the chip you will see the speed stenciled on,
whereas the part number is laser etched.
Therefore, it WILL NOT cause your Newton to melt! The processor won't be damaged.
Running the chip outside the characterized frequency may crash the machine
but that is the extent of it.
Why does overclocking work?
The tests for characterization cover all aspects of the chip. They poke into
every corner, so to speak.
So, if your chip has a failure mode that is either in an unused portion of
it or some part of it that is never accessed in YOUR hardware application,
overclocking stands a good chance of working.
Note: There is always a good margin built in so that advertised speed is not
near the hairy edge of operation. Overclocking simply moves you closer to that edge. If you are careful, you won't fall.
.
.
*
Conclusion: We are dealing with such low powers here that it simply is
not a problem.
Go ahead! Overclock with impunity:)
But, if you are still paranoid then don't!
Regards,
PCBman
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