CPU and Motherboard clock speeds
- by NZHammer
I have been doing some reading about CPU clock speeds and how CPU clock speeds are calculated. After reading several articles, I have come to the understanding that your CPU clock speed is determined by:
CPU clock speed = cpu multiplier x mobo clock speed
A few questions came about after reading this which I cannot seem to find the answer to anywhere:
If the CPU clock speed is dependent upon the mobo clock speed, then how is the clock speed of the CPU predetermined upon buying the CPU (i.e. written on the box without knowing what mobo is being used)? After installation, does the CPU adjust it's multiplier based upon the mobo clock speed to achieve advertised speeds? For example, if the CPU clocks speed is advertised at 2.4GHz and the mobo clock speed is 100MHz, will the multiplier be automatically set to 24x?
Why does mobo clock speed seem to not be very important / talked about? For example, when I search on Newegg, mobo clock speed never seems to be listed. When I search enthusiast forums and overclocking forums, mobo clock speed is rarely mentioned. To me, it seems like the mobo clock speed would be pretty important. If I am understanding things correctly, a lower mobo clock speed means that you CPU must work harder to achieve advertised clock speeds.
I guess that I should stop there with the questions for now, as I may be asking my questions based on incorrect assumptions.
Thanks!
