Overclocking i5 6600k

temps are normal, if you don't increase the voltage then you won't affect it at all, if you increase the voltage a bit then you won't affect it much.

however the weakest point is the mobo, they have many more discrete components and will fail before the CPU.

Here is a decent vid for your CPU OC and your MB Bios. Its best to stress test the CPU at stock frequency to get a base line for how your cooler is coping. You won't go far on AIR cooling and really need an AIO Water Cooler of H100 or better to go more than 4.6GHz.

Go here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAr4VygoWWg

Core voltage set to Auto may not get you there but give it a try initially and if not and your OC fails then raise Core voltage in small steps from about 1.3500V - 1.3875V on the core. This should provide stability if required.
Depending on stress tests and temperatures and the quality of your chip will determine your MAX OC.

wow "Leave voltages on auto" - in conclusion what dude said in the video.
Did you even try to watch the guide yourself before posting it here? Its terrible and i would never recommend to beginners to have voltage over 1.4v when starting to overclock.

That's why 'read the sticky' is the normal answer to 'how do I oc' because of things like this, so that BS in the videos can be spotted,

Here are my current, and ultra stable/safe, BIOS settings for i5 6600K on Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI:
[1] - CPU Core Ratio: 46
[2] - FCLK Frequency For Early Power: 1 GHz
[3] - Uncore Ratio: 46
[4] - CPU Flex Override: Disabled
[5] - Intel Turbo Boost Technology: Disabled
[6] - CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E): Disabled
[7] - C3 State Support: Disabled
[8] - C6/C7 State Support: Disabled
[9] - C8 State Support: Disabled
[10] - CPU Thermal Monitor: Enabled
[11]-CPU EIST Function: Enabled
[12]-Voltage Optimization: Enabled
[13]-Residency State Registration (RSR): Disabled
[14]-Hardware Prefetcher: Enabled
[15]-Adjacent Cache Line Prefetch: Enabled
[16]-Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.): Profile 1
[17]-System Memory Multiplier: 32
[18]-Memory Enhancement Settings: Relax OC
[19]-Channel Interleaving: Enabled
[20]-Rank Interleaving: Enabled
[21]-CAS Latency: 15
[22]-tRCD: 17
[23]-tRP: 17
[24]-tRAS: 28
[25]-Command Rate (tCMD): 1
[26]-CPU VCore Loadline Calibration (LLC): High
[27]-CPU VCore: 1.355V
[28]-CPU VCCIO: Normal
[29]-CPU System Agent Voltage: Normal
[30]-PCH Core: Normal
[31]-DRAM Voltage (CH A/B): 1.360 V
[32]-Internal Graphics: Disabled

And why should that be stable with his hardware? what are the temps to look out for? what are the tests for stability? Is that too much voltage on his hardware.

Good question. Trust me, if I had been using anything like a Closed Loop Liquid Nitrogen (cryogenic LN2) Cooling System, even without custom-built vacuum insulated lines, I believe I would have mentioned it... well... at least in passing ;-).

My post is only a set of stable parameters relating to the relevant chip, and given as an example to get constructive ideas, or a starting point from which to test and experiment. If it can be of further help, here are a few more details.

The hardware on which this set of parameters is stable is basic, using a discounted SSD OS Drive, a budget single 120 mm fan CPU cooler with 16 GB of RAM on 4 sticks and two (2) GPUs running in SLI mode which puts an additional load on the CPU. The chip's overall performance is nothing special (pretty average even). The case is basic and the PSU is not all that powerful. The fans are standard retail 1 x 92, 3 x 120 and 7 x 140 mm from ThermalTake, Corsair, Noctua (the smallest one), and IDcooling (very cheap).

The temps (CPU Package temp), at 22 C ambient, are rather low (max. 75 C with Prime95 (free) "Heat" test for 30 min. and 55 C max. after playing BF4 for over 2 hours), and Prime95 (latest version) on the "Blend" test was invariably fully stable for 24 hours non-stop. GPUs were tested with FaceWorks (free), Valley (free) and Heaven (free) as they are also both heavily overclocked (both generating a fair bit of heat in the case (below the CPU) with around 150 W each). CPU Package Temps are around 28 C at idle. Temps are as per CPUID HWMonitor (free).

Perhaps start with 46/45 (46/46 increases temp slightly), and only one (1) graphics card (any type) and all other parameters set manually in the BIOS (keep away from "Auto") just as listed above (except for the memory as it depends a lot on what you are using) with VCore set at 1.355 V.

If the voltage (VCore = 1.355 V) and/or temps (Package temp) are not a problem, simply try to lower CPU VCore closer to 1.300 V (1.345, 1.34, 1.335, 1.33...this needs testing). If on the contrary the rig is not stable with VCore = 1.355 V and/or stays with temps above 85 C (under 22 C ambient) in heavy heat testing like with Prime95, small FFTs - test 1 (it is the temp. that ultimately determines the overclocking limit), then set the two multipliers (CPU / Uncore or. Cache) to, say 45 / 44 (100 MHz lower won't make much of a difference) and restart testing from there. That should do it. Having the Uncore freq. a few hundred megahertz lower than Core freq. (e.g. 45/40) also helps with temps. without really affecting performance. It may be good especially while trying to find that "sweet spot" we are all after.

The hardware:

1. Case Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 Black Mid Tower w/Side Panel Window
2. PSU Corsair RM650x 650W 80PLUS Gold Modular
3. Motherboard Gigabyte Z170XP SLI LGA1151 DDR4 ATX
4. CPU Intel Core i5 6600K Skylake-S 3.5 GHz - 6 MB
5. Memory (16G) 2 x Kingston 8GB Kit (2 x 4GB) DDR4 HyperX Fury C14 2133MHz
6. Graphics (8G) 2 x MSI GeForce GTX970 Gaming 4GB PEAK GDDR5 (SLI) 2 x DVI HDMI
7. CPU Cooler Cooler Master Hyper 212 X
8. OS Windows 10 Home OEM 64 bit (on DVD)
9. OS Drive Samsung 850 EVO Series 2.5" 7mm 250GB SSD
10. Optical Drive ASUS DRW-24D5MT 24x Black SATA DVD Writer OEM
11. USB Ports ORICO USB3.0 - 4 Port PCIe Expansion Card
12. Cooling (1) Corsair AF140 140mm Quiet Edition Blue LED
13. Cooling (2) 3 x Thermaltake Riing 140mm (2 x Red + 1 x Blue) LED SP
14. Cooling (3) Corsair SP120 120mm SP Edition Red LED
15. Cooling (4) Noctua NF-B9 92mm Redux Ed. PWM Cooling Fan
16. Cooling (5) Corsair ML140 140mm Mag-Lev Fan SP (Twin Pack)
17. Cooling (6) ID-COOLING Big Airflow 140mm PWM
18. Cooling (7) ID-COOLING 120MM Slim PWM

Have a look here for the fans: https://postimg.org/image/8d0q9fv63/
================================================================================
Here is a revision
I noticed that I could push my CPU Core frequency from 4.6 GHz to 4.608 GHz (with Bclk = 128 MHz) without increasing VCore (no longer stable at 4610 MHz on VCore of 1.355 V for my chip), therefore without increasing temp. However, Uncore must be limited to 3968 MHz for stability (anything higher is not stable on my own system), and the idle frequency of the CPU goes from 800 MHz to 1024 MHz although my CPU usually spends very little time below 1024 MHz anyway. So it has no impact on temp. Note that for the memory, 128 x 25 = 3200 exactly (this is important).

These settings give me up to 6 points more on the Cinebench R15 benchmark test and really "for jam" as VCore is unchanged. It is also stable (I tested on Prime95) with Fclk at x10 (1280 MHz) but I prefer to leave it low, although that could potentially provide additional (very slight) performance as shown in tests here: http://www.tweaktown.com/guides/7481/tweaktowns-ultimate-intel-skylake-overclocking-guide/index4.html

Another advantage of a higher Bclk value, in this case of 128 MHz, that I also observed is the resulting CPU (Core) clock frequency while running (e.g. 4.598, 4.599, 4.600, 4.601) does not fluctuate as often (i.e. is more stable). The slightest fluctuation in Bclk frequency, e.g. 99.5, 100, 100.5, 100.2... GHz is multiplied by 46, if the multiplier is 46. As a higher Bclk value of 128 MHz reduces the multiplier from 46 to 36, the effect of the fluctuation of Bclk also seems to be less amplified (geared) which leads to a more stable resulting Core frequency, in this case centered around 4.608 GHz (128 x 36). And a more stable Core freq. works in favour of a more stable system altogether, with more consistent performance over time.

Summary
-----------
The only settings I personally applied manually in the BIOS of my INTEL i5 6600K are:

[1] - CPU Core Ratio:------> 46 = 4600 (Bclk 100) 36 = 4608 (Bclk 128)
[2] - CPU Base Clock (Bclk):------> 100 - 128 MHz
[3] - FCLK Frequency For Early Power:------> 1 GHz (x10) (Bclk 100) Normal (x8) (Bclk 128) <-------
[4] - Uncore Ratio:------> 46 = 4600 (Bclk 100) 31 = 3968 (Bclk 128)
[5] - CPU Flex Override:------> Disabled <--- 1/8
[6] - Intel Turbo Boost Technology:------> Disabled <--- 2/8
[7] - CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E):------> Disabled <--- 3/8
[8] - C3 State Support:------> Disabled <--- 4/8
[9 ]- C6/C7 State Support:------> Disabled <--- 5/8
[10]-C8 State Support:------> Disabled <--- 6/8
[11]-CPU Thermal Monitor:------> Enabled <----------- 1/7
[12]-CPU EIST Function:------> Enabled <----------- 2/7
[13]-Voltage Optimization:------> Enabled <----------- 3/7
[14]-Residency State Registration (RSR):------> Disabled <--- 7/8
[15]-Hardware Prefetcher:------> Enabled <----------- 4/7
[16]-Adjacent Cache Line Prefetch:------> Enabled <----------- 5/7
[17]-Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.):------> Profile 1
[18]-System Memory Multiplier:------> 32 = 3200 (Bclk 100) 25 = 3200 (Bclk 128)
[19]-Memory Enhancement Settings:------> Relax OC
[20]-Channel Interleaving:------> Enabled <----------- 6/7
[21]-Rank Interleaving:------> Enabled <----------- 7/7
[22]-CAS Latency:------> 15
[23]-tRCD:------> 17
[24]-tRP:------> 17
[25]-tRAS:------> 28
[26]-Command Rate (tCMD):------> 1
[27]-CPU VCore Loadline Calibration (LLC):------> High
[28]-CPU VCore:------> 1.355 V
[29]-CPU VCCIO:------> Normal <-------
[30]-CPU System Agent Voltage:------> Normal <-------
[31]-PCH Core:------> Normal <-------
[32]-DRAM Voltage (CH A/B):------> 1.360 V
[33]-Internal Graphics:------> Disabled <--- 8/8
================================================================================
Note that even at 4.6 GHz, using an Uncore multiplier of 39 instead of 46 (like the Core) is better for temp. (-5 C) and only very (very) slightly affects performance (hard to detect even).

My road to 4.7 GHz is as follows:

Volt:-----1.344 -- [+12mV] -- 1.356 -- [+12mV] -- 1.368 -- [+12mV] -- 1.380 -- [+12mV] -- 1.392 -- [+12mV] -- 1.404
GHz:-----4.600------------------4.620------------------4.640-------------------4.660------------------4.680-------------------4.700
Vcore:---1.355------------------------------------------------------[+60 mV]-------------------------------------------------------1.415
If more is needed, please let me know ;-).

You wrote: <<until it's full life is reached or any other technology is invented other than microprocessors>>
You could be in for the long run... as much as a decade... or more. And it may not be all that beneficial to keep using a CPU beyond say 8 years (long), 5 years (average), or 2 years (short). Don't worry, prices are falling continuously, but preferably don't wait for something like "Quantum computing using organic storage" ;-) - just saying.

[dfdji] Have a look at the graphs here: http://www.anandtech.com/show/2404/5 to better understand the effect of the Vdroop and Vboost voltages, and here for more details about LLC (CPU Load Line Calibration): https://www.reddit.com/r/overclocking/comments/28qlv4/guide_load_line_calibration_what_is_it_and_how/

is that for me or the OP philipew? You replied to my post.

It wasn't for you, obviously you know about these voltages ;-).

Listen I have Asus motherboard. For beginner over clockers asus makes your life easy. Go into your bios. In upper right hand corner there is a box that allows the computer to over clock your whole motherboard, cpu itself. Just click to optimal settings and it will overclock up to 15% That all you need anyway and you wont have to worry about 100 other box's to click on or off!

But you won't get anywhere near the performance we get via settings in the BIOS. Racing cars don't have automatic gearboxes either.

The last time used Asus tuner it took my bclk to an unstable level...

Agree with philipew. Gigabyte also has an auto overclock tool as well as pre-defined profiles. I tried them all and recorded results. I was able to get an additional 200MHz with a lower vcore and lower temps by using a manual settings vice the auto or pre-defined profiles.

Agreed, I was more stable and lower voltage manually, and it took seconds, I used the asus result to determine a target multiplier, then set it manually and adjusted the voltage.

Racing cars do have automatic transmissions, so don't be cheeky with me, try a th400 off the top of my head. You don't know everything because if you did you would have known you were wrong!

when was that 1987?

on my 3570k, it ramped the bclk up to 106 and the multiplier to 42 I think, with lots of volts. I ended up at 43-100 with -0.005V from stock.

NO, YOU are wrong because if I "knew everything" (as you wrote) I would be a god (pick one of your choice), and yes, gods do know when they are wrong. But I never claimed to be one. My comment was a general comment (as normal people would understand). I never said that absolutely 100 % of all cars ever made in any of the parallel universes that ever did or will exist do not use an automatic gearbox.

However, as YOU need to be told this more "accurately", then let me tell you officially: "NOT absolutely 100 % of all cars ever made in any of the parallel universes that ever did or will exist do not use an automatic gearbox".

Got it? Happy? ;-) ... that's my man.

[/quotemsg]
The point was made!!