OverClocking the XBox

Well folks, as we all know the XBox has nearly arrived and it contains everything that a midstream PC now has (save the GF GFX chip). What we all want to know is why we are buying this console instead of Nintendo and Sony's comparable consoles. If you dont know already, check out XBox.com.
The next matter is most important however, since the XBox contains mostly PC hardware.
How overclockable is it? I have been asked by colleages to start a discussion about this. So those of you who have knowledge about the subject, please submit your brains!

If it uses a 750 PIII, couldn't you just replace it with a faster processor? Or will intel have a different die for the xbox?

Since it is virtually a PC, and it has gobs of disk space, is it not conceivable that some intelligent bored person might make a PS1/PS2 emulator for it. That would be pretty sweet.

Why try to OC your game console?

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Originally posted by Radical Dreamer:
Why try to OC your game console?

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Yeah it like slaping a turbo into a rocket cer. It works the way it is so I would leave it alone. That's just me but I see Rad is thinking the same way.

Really I don't give a whoop about the Xbox, but here I go anyway...

I believe that the components will all be hard wired in (not unlike how Nintindo and Sony have been doing) so swaping components would be impossable. This would be to protect the game developers from having to make the game compatable with differant hardware specs.

You will not be able to overclock this configuration because everything is hardwired in, no jumpers, no BIOS no anything the user can get ahold of and F*** up the whole system. If Microsoft (or any other console maker) wanted to put their system at risk in user hands they would put out a PC, not a console.

Tweaking a console system will be impossable (without the proper tools and knowledge, hell, I've seen a Billy Big Mouth Bass tweaked on TechTV :)) but no console devloper in their right mind would allow a user in any way mess with their system.

Why OC the Xbox. The processor itself isn't really going to do much work, the graphics chip will handle most of the hard work, including Floating Point Instructions, and why risk OC'ing the best graphics chip on the market anyway?

If altering consoles is impossible, how do you explain mod chips. They alter systems considerably, now you can listen to MP3's on a PS1.

twelve, I know this is kinda off topic, but what does one need to do to listen to mp3's on a ps1. that would be sweeeeet!!!!
MT.

any way about the XBOX.... to stay remotly on topic.... i feel that the engineers went all out on this thing and that it should please 95 percent of the people who get one... however there is always going to be that other 5 percent who have to timker..... who knows, after a few smoked x box's i am sure someone, smoewhere will come out with some sort of MOD for it.. dontcha think???
CMT

Sorry this is a bit off topic, but to Cable Modem Tech.........
My suggestion GET A DC!!
Only $99.00 AND I can play all my Nintendo, SNES, AND *most* Playstation games on it and even use your PS controller!. It can read burned discs **hint hint** with no mods, run Linux and BSD (why? because you can!) or watch Windows CE crash! you can mod the internal modem to run at nearly ISDN128K speeds, and watch movies you have DL'ed *of course only if you OWN the the movie* The trick is to try to get an older DC. Some of the newer ones, I have heard (but can't confirm) can't play CDR...thats my 2 cents

this is a link for PS MP3 modules http://www.psxdepot.com/mp3.html

www.gamegizmo.com

The mp3station device, not internal like the modchips, but still pretty cool. Personally, I just burn cd's of my MP3s complete with winamp playlists, insert, load list and play.

Sorry about the off-topic stuff.

OK, in an attempt to have a legitimate post on this topic:

If you could overclock the system, does anyone know if the software (games) would be any different, ie better, because of it? I am not familiar with how it works as far as setting the games timing vs processor speed etc.

Look at it this way, the games made for the Xbox are made FOR the Xbox. Tweaking the system will not make them run any better, for they are already designed for the machine in the first place and run great as-is. Like ElBatcho said

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Yeah it like slaping a turbo into a rocket cer.

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Nice spelling by the way :)

well i have started to wonder my self since the xbox is made by M$ do u think it wil run a version of windows??? also if it ran windows do u think it would be posable to in stall pc gamse on it?? it dose have a hdd in it 8.4gb so what are they going to put on the hdd just saved games??? i would think that you would be able to install games on to it and run them off the hdd or even copy the xbox games to the hdd so u don't need the disk any more.(but if it is running windows i would rather not copy games on to hdd incase of crashing

After looking at the posts I am sad.
First, because there seem to be no extreme OCr's here, and second because you can OC anything. The 'mod' chip for the ps1 was the begining for consoles IMO. You think MS is going to make everything integrated? Im sure the cpu wont be. It takes alot to make a packaged cpu into a IC. Why waste more money (they are already losing money on each console)switching from a PCB PGA?

Considering the X-Box is a proprietary device, I doubt you'll be able to do anything to overclock without hacking the BIOS majorly. And besides, the games are going to be based on and optimized for the X-Box's standard specs. It more than likely won't be able to take advantage of any modifications you do to increase the speed.

Most components are made within cetain specs. Not every component is a failed 133MHz item thrown in the 100 MHz bin people. Overclocking can ruin a few things, I know. By the time you finish paying for the Big ticket items to keep your overclocked monster going, you might as well have paid for what you overclocked it to in the first place.

if i was going to do anything else to the physical specs of the xbox the only thing i would want to do to it would be to bump up the ram or hdd if it is posible i would agree thing that every thing would be soudered to the board so that u can't change it if it wasn't y over clock just put in a 1gig processor

(Slightly off tangent)-->Since the XBOX is made by Microsoft, does that mean it will have a modem built in so that you can download XBOX updates periodically as bugs are reported just like for Windows or IE?
http://xboxupdates.microsoft.com/
(not a real site)

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Originally posted by twelve:
OK, in an attempt to have a legitimate post on this topic:

If you could overclock the system, does anyone know if the software (games) would be any different, ie better, because of it? I am not familiar with how it works as far as setting the games timing vs processor speed etc.

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That depends the x-box supposedly has some xp-platform (correct me if i'm wrong) so i don't know how that would affect it but since the games are set to run at a certain speed it would probably increase the speed over all. A friend figured out how to speed up his nintendo ( after frying a dozen ) and everything sped up. imagine mario on crystal meth and that is the effect you can see.

(Sorry off topic a little, but interesting futuristic topic)

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Originally posted by robbydobby:
well i have started to wonder my self since the xbox is made by M$ do u think it wil run a version of windows

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The question is, with their future plans for internet access, what browser will Xbox have in it? Will they risk yet another fight involveing IE, or will they deploy a xbox only browser.