Overclocking a i5?

SHATORR · Sep 10, 2014

So I've checked around Tom's for awhile now and I've stumbled upon a few threads about it, not enough to give me some form of basics tho.

Anyhow, I'm to OC a i5-4690K with a Z97-G55 SLI. What should I look for? Just increase the multiplier? Anything else I should check up on? What's the worst that can happen with a failed OC? Perhaps you could point me in the way of a few good tutorial/guides or give me some quick basics.

Tried using OC Genie, made my PC crash twice.

TheConsiderateIlliterate · Sep 10, 2014

I'm at work at the moment so I can't provide links but look for some video tutorials online.

The worst that can happen? Destroy your CPU.

Don't overclock until you have a strong understanding of what to do and what not to do.

SHATORR · Sep 10, 2014

TheConsiderateIlliterate :

Oh thanks, alright! Thought the worst was loss of data, damn. When'll you get home? Going to sleep in an hour or two. So is it dangerous even if I mildly OC? Such as from 3.5 to 3.8 or 4.0?

Eximo · Sep 10, 2014

Plenty of step by steps out there. If you are looking for an exact match to your configuration that isn't likely. Just look up Haswell overclocking.

SHATORR · Sep 10, 2014

Eximo :

Thanks, some night litterature to digest.

menetlaus · Sep 10, 2014

SHATORR :

Everything has risks. Some people have been known to UNDERclock CPU's in order to reduce the thermal stresses. I seem to recall seeing a rule of thumb that for every 10C hotter a CPU runs - it shortens the lifespan by half.

On the other hand, there will be a small number of people who have hot running overclocked CPU's that are still going strong, while a few of the underclocked ones have failed. (rare but it does happen)

There is no way to say the CPU you have will run X years at Y GHz (or Y temp). Every CPU is different, even between identical model/batch/revision.

If you read up on overclocking, some people will say they "won" the OC lottery because they got an i5-2500K that runs 4.8GHz with no voltage increase, while others "lost" because the i5-2500K they have won't go over 4.2GHz no matter how much increased voltage they give it.

SHATORR · Sep 10, 2014

menetlaus :

Oh alright. I don't care fox Max performance but since I'm to add another Radeon R9 280 later on, I'd guess I'd have to OC the CPU to at least 3.8GHz.

So if I've understood the guides correctly, all I actually have to do is set the voltage to 1.2-1.25V (as high as I can without overheating the CPU) then increase the multiplier slowly, seeing how far up it can go without crashing. Am I missing something? Can the CPU get damaged from clock speeds or just from overheating? Why did my OC Genie crash my PC @3.9GHz?

Thanks for taking your time!

mlga91 · Sep 10, 2014

Are you using an aftermarket cooler or the stock intel one?

SHATORR · Sep 10, 2014

@mlga91, I can't seem to find the reply button on my phone..

Anyway, I'm using the CM Seidon 120M, stock fan but getting a 120mm Aerocool DS for the radiator.

SHATORR · Sep 11, 2014

Did y'all die?

mlga91 · Sep 11, 2014

Not yet, give me a few more years, what have you done already? did you only used OC genie?

mlga91 · Sep 11, 2014

I just made this, dont be impressed by my mad paint skills:

Basically you start stepping up the frequency, then stress test, check temps, if you have problms in the tests step up a little the voltage and try again, always taking care of the temperature.

SHATORR · Sep 11, 2014

mlga91 :

Alright! And yeah, tried OC Genie, after that I just enabled XMP.

So I'm using a 850W 80+ Gold PSU, is it the PSU or CPU that messes up the voltage part?

mlga91 · Sep 11, 2014

You change the voltage on the bios, there should be somewhere something that says Vcore, there you change it, always try in little steps, like 0.05, less if you can and want. Also with the frequency use steps of 100 or 50 MHz (0.1 and 0.05 GHz) and again, less if you want and can.

SHATORR · Sep 11, 2014

mlga91 :

Fawk, clicked the wrong button, oh well.
So should I set the freq and not the multip? And just increase it by 0,05V each time? Shouldn't I jump to smth directly? Like 1.1, 1.2?

mlga91 · Sep 11, 2014

SHATORR :

The multiplier changes directly the frequency, and with the increases, is a matter of taste, some people step it up without mercy, and other people make it slow. I prefer the slow and more safe way.

PS You can unselect the best ansewer, there should be a button.

DubbleClick · Sep 11, 2014

Want me to unselect the solution? However, the guide he made is pretty accurate. If you got time, go by 0.005v steps. Otherwise 0.01 or even 0.02v steps are fine.

You can also fix your voltage to 1.25 (you should be able to cool that) and from then on increase the multiplicator by +1 steps until you are not stable anymore. Go back to the last step you were stable (around 4.5ghz I think) and then decrease the voltage gradually.

SHATORR · Sep 11, 2014

mlga91 :

SHATORR :

The multiplier changes directly the frequency, and with the increases, is a matter of taste, some people step it up without mercy, and other people make it slow. I prefer the slow and more safe way.

PS You can unselect the best ansewer, there should be a button.

Alright, thanks! So increase voltage, check temps, increase freq/multi, check stability, repeat?

SHATORR · Sep 11, 2014

@DubbleClick No thanks, he deserves it! So I shouldn't go for more than 1,25V? As I said, PSU is beast.

Oh and does anyone know how to reply on a phone?

DubbleClick · Sep 11, 2014

Can't reply from a phone by a button, you'd have to manually alter the adress or enter the quotation manually.

1.3v is the safe maximum for haswell, I'd rather stay below 1.25v, though, especially for you who doesn't have further experience in oc'ing.

azzazel_99 · Sep 11, 2014

DONT TOUCH the voltage first. Raise the multiplier FIRST then once your computer becomes unstable at a clock THEN and ONLY then begin raising your voltage. Multiplier first as that is what actually changes your speeds, then voltage if you get to a clock speed of say 4.2ghz and it's unstable and causing crashes. Voltage makes a overclock stable but to first overclock you must change the multiplier and do it in small increments.

DubbleClick · Sep 11, 2014

azzazel_99 :

This does not follow any logic at all.

azzazel_99 · Sep 11, 2014

The multiplier inside the bios is what changes the actual clock speed of the CPU not the voltage. The voltage allows the CPU clock speed to be increased as it changes with the CPU as (for instance turbo boost kicks in) or manually if you are overclocking yourself without using turbo boost. You don't overclock a processor by adjusting voltage you do it by changing the multiplier and then if and when needed adjusting to voltage up to allow for higher clock speeds via the multiplier.

azzazel_99 · Sep 11, 2014

If I go into my bios right now and raise my voltage the only thing that's going to go up is my temps. Now if I go into my bios and adjust my multiplier up or down my actual clock speeds of the CPU will change. I'm able to take my i5 2500k to 4.2ghz without any voltage change at all over the stock voltage. Now if I want to go to 4.4 or 4.5 I have to raise my voltage up until I find a stable setting. For me at 4.4ghz I run 1.25v I think it is and that's stable for me in gaming. Anything below 1.25v at 4.4ghz and I crash or lock up randomly. So to clock my CPU to 4.2 ghz all I do is change my multiplier from x33 in the bios to x42 save and exit bios and voila overclocked at 4.2ghz. Again anything above that I also have to play with the voltage until I find the lowest stable voltage I can run. Lower voltage = lower temps.

SHATORR · Sep 11, 2014

If I've understood it correctly, increasing the frequenzy or multiplier leads to a higher clock speed. A higher clock speed means a larger power requirement. Without sufficient power, the CPU will die down. With too much power/voltage tho, the CPU will overheat. Thus, setting voltage first then finding top multiplier would be a safe bet. After that, one could alter both freq and multi to get a speed closer to the power limits.

Have I understood things correctly? Am I missing something?

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