Getting a stable overclock

[Jono123499]

I just wanted to clear a few things up when it comes to overclocking, seeing as i will be getting an i7 3770k and an asus sabertooth z77 soon with a corsair h80 or h100.

I have never owned my own desktop so i thought 4.2 or 4.3 will be a good, stable starting point. I looked into it and what i learnt was that on an Asus mobo, people were doing 43x100.0 with 1.25 to 1.325v to achieve 4.3ghz. However ive seen some people overclock in a much more complicated manor than changing to a 43 x multiplier and upping the voltage. So i was wondering; if anyone is running an i7 3770k at that kind of speed with an asus mobo, could you please give me some advice.

1. What kind of multipliers should i use, will 43 x 100 do.
2. What kind of voltages offer best mix of stability and temperatures
3. Is there any settings i need to change except these (i don't want to OC the memory as 1600mhz is fine and its just another thing to go wrong).

I probably seem like a real idiot but everyones got to start somewhere :/

 

[Novuake]

Right lve this sort of post...

1. NO DOT touch your FSB, keep it at 100, just increase multiplier and voltage.
2. You need to follow a process to find the best voltage for your specific chip. The best voltage varies from chip to chip, even if theya re the same model. For example my CPU is stable at 4.7GHz with 1.32v
3. There are a few things you need to do to get the process going. See below simplified process and link(the link is more for experienced OCers)

http://www.thinkcomputers.org/intel-ivy-bridge-overclocking-guide/

OK there is a guide, its not really for beginners, so it boils down to...

1. Disable all power saving adn turbo boost features and pick a load calibration, 1 being very stiff and one voltage constantly, 2 being a little more relax(easier to achieve stability), i prefer level 2.
2. Set voltage to fixed at first and drop it to 0.9v. (easier than fixed)
3. Boot into windows and run prime 95 or similar stresstest to test for stability for atleast half an hour. This will give you an idea of how sensitive your specific CPU is to voltage change.
4. Increase your voltage to 1.2v and multiplyer to 4.2GHz. Test thoroughly for an hour. Keep a close eye on temps with real temp or HWmonitor.

 

[Jono123499]

Thanks for the responce, i will definately refer back to this once i can afford to buy all the parts and get my PC setup, it'll definately be better than my laptop i7 at 2.2ghz

 

[Novuake]

lol yes it will.

May i ask and suggest a few more things?

1. Will you be gaming with this build or what?
2. What graphics card have you chosen?
3. Post your build on the forum so we can help you out. Mostly an I7 is overkill, the extra $100 is better spent on a more powerful graphics card.
4. Closed loop water cooling is not truly worth it unless you REALLY want portability, they are very overpriced for the performance you get.
Read this : http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/h100i-elc240-seidon-240m-lq320,3380.html

Top notch air cooling competes equally with CLCs and cost much less. Get a Noctua in that review or Thermalright Silver Arrow SB-E extreme.

 

[Novuake]

One more thing : To go above 4.2GHz.

Increase Multiplier one at a time testing for half an hour between each bump. When stability is lost, add 0.05v and try again.

Repeat process until you reach your desired OC or unacceptable temps(drop one clock and/or Voltage) and viola you have your OC...

Just follow the process and you can OC with ease.

 

[wdmfiber]

Don't vary from your first sentence. You have good taste and those are great products.

The Noctua NH-D14 is a big old tank of a cooler. It would totally defeat the purpose of a cosmetically pleasing board like the sabertooth, plus the weight of it could damage your board (as mentioned in that article).

A high OC is likely to be limited by the cheap tim used on Ivy Bridge processors anyway. However 4.2 GHz is reasonable, maybe even a bit conservative.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXs0I5kuoX4

 

[Novuake]

Don't vary from your first sentence. You have good taste and those are great products.

The Noctua NH-D14 is a big old tank of a cooler. It would totally defeat the purpose of a cosmetically pleasing board like the sabertooth, plus the weight of it could damage your board (as mentioned in that article).

A high OC is likely to be limited by the cheap tim used on Ivy Bridge processors anyway. However 4.2 GHz is reasonable, maybe even a bit conservative.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXs0I5kuoX4

I agree mostly. But with that reasoning he may as well get a Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO.

I own an H80 myself, and I am not satisfied in the least. Just though I would bring that to his attention.

Please note I am note critisizing you in the least.

 

[Jono123499]

I agree mostly. But with that reasoning he may as well get a Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO.

I own an H80 myself, and I am not satisfied in the least. Just though I would bring that to his attention.

Please note I am note critisizing you in the least.

I will be gaming yes. The gpu will be a gtx 680 4gb. I will also possibly get a cheap gpu for video, web browsing etc on a 2nd monitor. If you want full specs i can provide them, and btw i thought a h100 because i don't know a lot about CPU cooling, but from what i could tell, the h100 will keep the cpu cool at any sensible OC, which gives me room to tinker and increase later on.

Main specs:
> corsair 600t white case
>corsair 1050w psu
>asus sabertooth z77 motherboard
>palit jetstream nvidia gtx 680 4gb
>2nd cheap gpu (haven't decided what yet)
>16gb 1600mhz corsair vengance RAM
> 4 xigmatek fans (or 2 if the h100 takes up 2)
> i7 3770k
>corsair h100
>samsung 830 128gb ssd
> WD 1TB 7200 rpm hdd
>asus xonar d2x sound card

 

[Novuake]

I will be gaming yes. The gpu will be a gtx 680 4gb. I will also possibly get a cheap gpu for video, web browsing etc on a 2nd monitor. If you want full specs i can provide them, and btw i thought a h100 because i don't know a lot about CPU cooling, but from what i could tell, the h100 will keep the cpu cool at any sensible OC, which gives me room to tinker and increase later on.

Main specs:
> corsair 600t white case
>corsair 1050w psu
>asus sabertooth z77 motherboard
>palit jetstream nvidia gtx 680 4gb
>2nd cheap gpu (haven't decided what yet)
>16gb 1600mhz corsair vengance RAM
> 4 xigmatek fans (or 2 if the h100 takes up 2)
> i7 3770k
>corsair h100
>samsung 830 128gb ssd
> WD 1TB 7200 rpm hdd
>asus xonar d2x sound card

Very nice build, love the Jetstream cards.

If I may make a few suggestions :

1. PSU - Only point I disagree with fully. 1050w is total overkill. A reliable 600w is more than sufficient unless you plan to go for a dual GPU setup later.
2. SSD - If you won't be doing any video editing or other extremely multithreaded apps then the I7 is very much overkill as games can not use more than 4 cores. The only difference between the I5 3570k and I7 is hyperthreading and a little more cache, neither of which has a worthwhile impact on gaming. Surely not worth the added 100Dollars. You can use that money to invest in a bigger, faster SSD(the Samsung 840 pro 256GB for example)
3. GPU - You may want to consider getting an AMD HD7970 GHz Edition, it is the fastest single GPU at the moment and is cheaper than the GTX680. (the Sapphire HD7970 GHz Ed Vapor-X is really good)
4. Dont bother with a second cheap GPU in my opinion, a second screen uses so little resources from your main GPU that it is very negligible.
5. Consider getting the H100i instead of the normal H100. Its considerably better. It also comes with nice quiet SP100 fans.
6. Soundcard : Mostly unnecessary these days, but if you are like me and love to crank it up. Get it. The D2X is great.

 

[wdmfiber]

@Novuake no offense taken
I almost didn't post ...cause I thought you might think I was "cutting up" your post.
Looks like meaningful discussion thou. All the better for Jono to make an informed decision.

 

[Novuake]

@Novuake no offense taken
I almost didn't post ...cause I thought you might think I was "cutting up" your post.
Looks like meaningful discussion thou. All the better for Jono to make an informed decision.

LOL it seems there are not just oversensitive people prowling the internet.

CUDOS tjom!

 

[wdmfiber]

You have seniority and a better profile

The GPU threads are the worst; help me pick a graphics card, nVidia or AMD Radeon?... sure way to start a forum war. lol

 

[Novuake]

You have seniority and a better profile

The GPU threads are the worst; help me pick a graphics card, nVidia or AMD Radeon?... sure way to start a forum war. lol

Ah I see you now you are quite new to us! Hehe will be keeping an eye on you...
Yeah you will see I end up cautioning people against similar wording.
Worst is of course simply "AMD VS Nvidia", that is just asking for trouble.

 

[jurassic512]

Don't listen to these noobs.

If all you want is ~4.2GHz and you never overclocked before, use the overclcoking software with your Sabertooth. Use HW Monitor (google it) and monitor voltages, temps and clocks. When comfortable, use those figures (as well as doing more research online) as a guide when you decide to go manual.

 

[Novuake]

Don't listen to these noobs.

If all you want is ~4.2GHz and you never overclocked before, use the overclcoking software with your Sabertooth. Use HW Monitor (google it) and monitor voltages, temps and clocks. When comfortable, use those figures (as well as doing more research online) as a guide when you decide to go manual.

"Don't listen to these noobs." That is a bold statement???

You do realize I HAVE EXPERIENCE in this right?

Software OCing is never as stable or safe as manual BIOS OCing, you end up using too much power or struggling for stability.

Did you learn nothing from wdmfiber and my conversation?

 

[mlcaouette]

I agree with Novuake on software overclocking, never use it!

That (quoted above statement) was a very bold statement indeed, considering only a "noob" would use software for overclocking.

Just to chime in here from some water cooling experience, I would skip the h100i and new swifty h220 for an XSPC kit. Don't waste your money on the under-performing overpriced CLC's. When true water cooling is so close in price to the h100i you might as well get the real thing.

If you want to learn more head on over to the water cooling sticky found in the top of the overclocking forum.