Rah,

the 65nm CPUs like the E6600 were limited by temperatures more than voltages. You will read some higher numbers out there, and some slightly lower ones but most people considered 1.5 volts and 60C the maximum for 24/7 use.

Also note that these vCore value are the actual voltage reaching the cpu when in windows under load. The BIOS setting will always be higher. Given this, you can see that my E6600 at 3.5 only needed 1.42v and 50C was well within the comfort zone. . .it was at 3.6 as well. You should reach 3.3 - 3.4 without issue using your cooler as long as your house isn't too hot. You can use my numbers as a *rough* guide of what to expect with yours. . .but every CPU is different.

*******************************3.303GHz*******************

4/8/08 10:34pm
vCore 1.365v [1.32v to 1.33v to core under load] DDR 2.2v 2.15 under load,
fsb 367*9 = 3.303 and 4:5 mem at 917MHZDDR2 4-4-4-12 MCH1.25 set at 1.3 (uGuru indicates 1.36?) but other mobo voltages  stock.
Orthos blend - fan 1740rpm
CPU peak on either core: 44C System: 28C  PWMs: 48C


******************************3.402GHz***********************

4/9/08 10:36am
vCore 1.415v [1.37v to 1.38v to core under load] MCH 1.25: 1.30, other mobo voltages stock, DDR 2.2v 2.14 under load,
fsb 378*9 = 3.402 and 4:5 mem at 945MHZDDR2 4-4-4-12
Orthos blend - fan 1740/1800rpm (cooool ambients at start!)
CPU peak on either core: 43C System: 24C  PWMs: 44C
SuperPi1M 14.921s

******************************3.501GHz********************


vCore 1.465v [1.42v under load] DDR 2.2v, MCH 1.25@ 1.30v [uGuru shows 1.36v?], other chipset voltages stock
fsb 389*9 = 3.501 and 4:5 mem at 973MHZDDR2 5-5-5-15 2T
Orthos blend - fan 1980rpm
CPU peak on either core: 50C (46avg) System: 27C  PWMs: 47C

3.4ghz looks like the sweet spot.

I hope to be able to hit that tonight.  In looking at my setup last night...  My setup has been all jacked up...  My PC8500 Ram has been running at PC6400 speed.  Going to correct that and see if I can get her to perform at 3.4.  That should help a lot!

For your first OC attempts to 3.4 just keep the RAM at or even below your current speeds. . .you don't want to see instability and not know what it's from.

Also, PC8000/8500 sticks are usually just high binned PC6400 modules which are overclocked to reach 8500 speeds. . .they will still identify as pc6400 in your hardware monitors and BIOS.

Ok Eco..  3.4 may have worked if I would have kept bumping the voltage up...  I wimped out...

Currently clocked at 3.3.  Ran Orthos for over an hour then started using the computer like normal while orthos ran for another hour...  Browsing, watching streaming video, etc...No crashes..

Cool - so the next step is to try to work your voltages down one at a time until you start seeing some instability. . .once you do, bump them a notch, and then record those values for your permanent 3.3 GHz settings.

Of course, you should also go flying and see how the sims perform now!

My E6700 running at 3.2ghz ran all my stuff quite smoothly so you should be tidy with a quad at 3.3ghz.