I5-2500k OC temps a bit higher than they should be

[Guest]

are my temps a bit high for 4.2GHz OC?

system:
i5-2500k
gigabyte z68x-ud3p-b3
zalman CPU heat sink [newegg was COMPLETELY out of cooler master 212s] running at full speed
6x 2000RPM case fans running at full speed
2x fans for air intake, 4x fans for exhaust
IC Diamond 7 thermal compound [read enough benchmarks to choose this over arctic sliver 5]
cooler master HAF 912 case with middle HDD bay removed for better air flow
room temp about 23C

for measurements ill be showing 2 numbers, the first is core #0 [always the lowest temp] and and the second is core #1 [always the highest]. i use CUID hardware monitor for temps

i know that under 70C is optimum for highest temp, 70-75 is okay, 75-80 probably need to tweak BIOS, over 80 WTF are you using a stock cooler or extreme OC

for idling temps 28-35C [minimum to max core temp] and under is about were i should be and were i was before, but for idle i seem to be running at 35-44C now

games [like crysis, crysis 2, etc] ran at about 46C but now they run at about 54C, not really that bad, but everything seems to be running a bit higher temp-wise then they were at my first few OC attempts.

the highest core temp i have after running prime95 x64 for over 2 hours is 74C and it was running at consistent temps the whole time. no errors or warnings.

i OCed with a p67 reference that OCs at 4.4GHz, since z68 is a little harder to find info on. i adjusted everything based on my stock settings and the 4.4GHz OC guide.

i am new to OCing, this is my first overclockable computer, all the others were from Dell or Apple and as everyone knows, they have locked bios settings. im really glad i waited for sandybridge. really happy with my rig right now

i want to bring my idle temps down and my full load temps down about 5-10 degrees . im not sure but i think the zalman is the weak link here, and it doesn't support dual fans [well maybe it does, but i think it would be better to get a 212 then spend more on it]. damnit, zalman keeps getting auto corrected to salmon DX

BIOS settings:

Advanced Frequency Settings:
CPU clock ratio: 42
BCLK/DMI/PEG frequency: 1005 [1000 stock, OC guide said to set this but its generally understood to leave it alone, doesnt appear to effect temps]
PWM frequency control: auto
CPU over current protection: auto
CPU PLL overvoltage: auto
real-time ratio changes in OS: enabled [disables intel turbo boost and makes it run at 4.2GHz constantly]
C1E, C3/C6, CPU thermal monitor, CPU EIST: all disabled
bi-directional PROCHOT: auto

Advanced Memory settings:
performance enhance: turbo
the rest is set to stock, no timing changes

Advanced Voltage Settings:
multi-steps load-line: level 6
CPU Vcore: 1.355V [stock settings in brackets for now on; 1.345V]
QPI/Vtt voltage: 1.200V [1.050V]
system agent voltage: 1.300V [0.920V]
CPU PLL: auto [1.800V]
DRAM voltage: 1.580V [1.500V]
the rest is unchanged

Power Management:
ACPI suspend type: S3
HPET mode: x64 mode [x32]

since im new to OCing and understand the gist of it id like to learn as much as i can since i dont have years of experience like a good portion of people reading this. tips, help, and suggestions will be much appreciated

 

[Leaps-from-Shadows]

Your voltages are all too high.

CPU voltage shouldn't be anywhere near 1.355v for 4.2GHz. That's actually on the high side for 4.5GHz.

VCCIO/VTT should be 1.05v
VCCSA (system agent) should be 0.925v
DRAM voltage should be 1.500v unless you are trying to overclock it past its specs (trying to run 1600 at 1866 speed, for instance).

Basically, for the average 2500K you should be able to reset the BIOS to defaults, then set the CPU voltage to 1.3-1.35v and the multiplier to 45x, then save and exit to get 4.5GHz overclocked speed. The rest should stay at defaults unless you are trying for a bleeding-edge overclock.

 

[Guest]

i fixed most of the voltages right after this post. the OC guide i used as a reference was extremely misleading. i actually came up with almost the same conclusion and went with the most basic OC at 4.4GHz about 30 minutes after the post. seems my board is running at higher voltages at stock settings then some others. vcore at stock runs at 1.345.

 

[venjhammet]

Try vcore1.25 for 4.2ghz and leave everything else to auto.