Should I Overclock...my system?

[knightfarley]

I am considering overclocking my gaming rig after reading numerous posts here. But, I am unsure as to where to start! First of all, will I see a considerable performance boost when I am gaming? Also, I know that the memory that is loaded multiplier is posting at 13x and rates out 1333 MHz but the MHz on the packing says 1600 MHz and I am only posting 1333 MHz and I know the mobo is unlocked. Furthermore, the CPU temp stays around 40-45c. Where do I start? I am not asking anyone to tell me how to do but rather point me into right direction to sticky!!




System specs:

Sapphire Radeon HD 7850 2G DDR5 PCIE 3.0
Cosair GS 700
Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad Core
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing
Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H-MVP mATX LGA 1155
Corsair Vengeance 4GB (2x 4GB) DDR3-1600
Crucial m4 256GB 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s
Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5\\\" 7200 RPM
Seagate Barracuda 3x(1TB 3.5\\\" 7200 RPM)
Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower
Asus BC-12B1ST-BLK/B/AS Blue-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer
IO Crest 2 Port SATA III PCI-Express x1 Card
ASUS XONAR DG Headphone Amp & PCI 5.1 Audio Card
WD 1 TB external drive

 

[chromic]

fps improvement depends on the game

 

[knightfarley]

Black Ops II...COD...etc

 

[full_out]

I would start by setting your RAM to 1600 in BIOS, because that's what it should be running at. Then I would go and overclock your video card with MSI Afterburner. After squeezing all you can out of your card, go to CPU.

 

[knightfarley]

I found a Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H Ivy Bridge i5 3570K Overclocking Tutorial + UEFI Demo on You Tube which answered my question...............about OC the CPU. However, in doing so I have another question regarding over clocking can I OC a video card such as the 1 have and is there an advantage in doing so?

 

[full_out]

With my 5850s I overclocked them and saw huge gains. With yours being a 7850 I would assume you would get a good overclock out of it. And the advantage of overclocking it would be better FPS.

 

[knightfarley]

I would start by setting your RAM to 1600 in BIOS, because that's what it should be running at. Then I would go and overclock your video card with MSI Afterburner. After squeezing all you can out of your card, go to CPU.

Ok, after I change the RAM setting to 1600 in Bios....and then run MSI Afterburn. The tutorial is for a similar mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H-LGA 1155. I have a Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H-MVP mATX LGA 1155. Will the setting be the same?

 

[full_out]

MSI Afterburner is for overclocking your video card and setting the fan profile for it. The setting on the motherboard don't influence it.
But I would assume the setting would be the same, or very similar between the two motherboards.

If you are overclocking your video card with MSI Afterburner it is pretty simple. Before raising any voltage, raise up the core clock and test with a game you play. If it is stable, keep raising it and testing it until it fails. Then bump up the voltage a bit. I think the highest you will want to go with voltage is around 1.25, but I would double check to make sure. After you get your core clock maxed out, start bumping up the memory clock the same way. It just takes patience but once you max it out, it will be worth your time.

 

[neon neophyte]

if you are asking, the answer is always yes

you did buy a k processor for a reason didnt you

 

[kiezz]

maybe sapphire trixx https://www.sapphireselectclub.com/ssc/TriXX/TriXX.aspx would be better to use with the sapphire card or hen again maybe not

 

[RetiredChief]

I'd first do the ram - it's simple, Just go into BIOS, select XMP then profile 1.
Test stability with Prime95. If needed (should NOT) you can bump ram voltage up from 1.500 to 1.575 - DO NOT go above 1.575 as it will void cpu warranty.
NOTE monitor temps as this loads the cpu up. While monitoring temps make sure your + 12 V does not drop more than 0.3 V and is above 11.6 V (spec is 11.4V).

MSI is better as it allows for changing votage and obtaining a higher GPU OC, But CCC did have a overclocking page that would bump speed/test/bump speed and test....
This might then be a good starting point with MSI
I use Furmark to test GPU stability - This time monitor your GPU temps. and again same applies to+12 V rail.

Just a caution on IB or SB CPUs, do NOT go above 1.4 V - 1.5+ voids warranty. IB is a little more finiky than SB.
Again check stability with Prime95 - SAME Caution.

Added: while at it, Verify SSD is properly set-up. Run AS SSD (DO NOT need to run the Benchmark). when you open/run AS SSD just look in the upper left, want to verify:
Driver - should be iastor (or simular) = OK. mahci will alo show OK, but is slower than Intel's driver. DO NOT want to see pcide = "BAD"
Alignment - should also show a green "OK"
Either one of the above can slow your SSD down if incorrect.

 

[neon neophyte]

i do not suggest overclocking system ram.

ram is tempermental, the gains are extremely marginal and ivy has a pretty weak memory controller, highly sensitive to voltage increases.

number one killer of ivys and sandys are dead memory controllers from using over 1.5v

 

[full_out]

maybe sapphire trixx https://www.sapphireselectclub.com/ssc/TriXX/TriXX.aspx would be better to use with the sapphire card or hen again maybe not

I ran Sapphire Trixx with my 5850's and I didn't like it at all. MSI Afterburner seemed to do a much better job.

 

[neon neophyte]

trixx is pretty buggy, it does allow or higher overclocks though

at least with my 6950

i think u can tweak AB to go over 950mhz (on my 6950) though

 

[full_out]

Ya, you have to go into a config file or something to remove the limit.

 

[full_out]

Here is what you have to do to go above 950:

"To enable the unofficial overclocking in this version it is necessary to edit the MSIAfterburner.cfg file located in the installation directory of AfterBurner (typically Program Files (x86) MSI Afterburner):


You need to alter the following:
Seek UnofficialOverclockingEULA field and add following text:
I confirm that I am aware of unofficial overclocking limitations and fully understand that MSI will not provide me any support on it
Set UnofficialOverclockingMode to 1 to keep PowerPlay active (may not work on old ASICs), 2 to traditionally disable PowerPlay or to 0 to temporary disable unofficial overclocking path
Using the unofficial overclock method opens up more freedom in terms of voltages and clock ranges, it however also can open a can of worms in terms of stability or weird issues."

 

[RetiredChief]

neon neophyte
He has DDR3-1600 and IB, so 1600 is not considered OC as it is the default speed.
For SB the default was DDR3-1333 so For SB running DDR3-1600 at 1600 even at 1.500 was considerd OCed RAM and voided warranty.
On Ram Voltage, Intel's spec says that you can go up to 1.575 V for the ram for either SB or IB.

A little history, as many of us upgraded to SB when it first came out (th i5-2500K being the most popular).
AT that time DDR3-1600 was lsted as the "sweet spot" fo SB and was very popular; However at that time the ONLY DDR3-1600 was 1.65 volt (exception was the Ripjaw line @ 1.60 volt - I bought 24 gigs DDR3-1600 CL7, 8 gigs for My i5-2500k and 8 gigs for my i5-750, all 24 gigs are still in use today.
About 6 Months downstream - Low and behold Intel comes out and stated that any ram that was over 1333 (even at 1.5V) voided their warranty an started to offer a "OVERCLOCKING" warranty ($25 for i5-2500K). In addition to the "speed" they also emphasised the 1.575 max for Ram.

For the i5-2500K Not bad because you could RMA the CPU even if you went to 1.6 V for vcore, or 1.70 KV for ram KV for LOL)

Old quote
If your chip randomly dies, it’s replaced under the standard warranty. If it dies because you ran 1.75v through it and forgot to refill your dry ice pot, you get a free replacement. The plan’s price varies depending on your CPU: i5-2500K protection is $20, the i7-2600K/2700K is $25, and the i7-3930/3970X series is $35. The plans will be available from resellers or can be purchased directly from Intel; customers must choose to buy the plan within one year of the original CPU purchase.
End quote

Could not find on intel - wonder if they discontinued this???

 

[ericjohn004]

To enable your RAM at 1600 do what the above poster has said and enable your XMP profile and select profile 1. Do not manually adjust it to 1600 using the memory multiplier as your timings may not set correctly or as the memory would like it t be set. This is important to do as you want to get your performance up to par. I noticed a good 5% increase in CPU speed benchmarks going from 1600 to 2133. Not a HUGE boost but a solid boost none the less. And I'm sure you'll experience some of that if XMP is enabled.

 

[neon neophyte]

its not the mhz that are the problem, its the volts. i wouldnt run at 1.575 either.

honestly, if anything is going to kill a sandy or ivy its the memory controller. take extra care.

 

[RetiredChief]

While I concur, recommend running at 1.500 is best, Intel has stated anything between 1.425 -> 1.575 is OK.
Many people do not realize that freq is also a factor, Generally as Freq Increases, Impeadance decreases and therfore Current increases.
Since it is I squared R, even though R has decreased the Increase in current i9s squared therefore Power disipated increase.

 

[neon neophyte]

running at 2133mhz here, ill let you know when my sandy dies ;p

 

[RetiredChief]

An my i5-2500k's ddr3-1600 CL7 is @ 1.60 so we can see which dies first - LOL
take care and Enjoy

 

[ericjohn004]

Yeah I'm running at 2133@1.65v on my Ivy and haven't had a problem. That's how my memory runs stock. So IDK about that 1.57 volt thing.

 

[knightfarley]

I'd first do the ram - it's simple, Just go into BIOS, select XMP then profile 1.
Test stability with Prime95. If needed (should NOT) you can bump ram voltage up from 1.500 to 1.575 - DO NOT go above 1.575 as it will void cpu warranty.
NOTE monitor temps as this loads the cpu up. While monitoring temps make sure your + 12 V does not drop more than 0.3 V and is above 11.6 V (spec is 11.4V).

MSI is better as it allows for changing votage and obtaining a higher GPU OC, But CCC did have a overclocking page that would bump speed/test/bump speed and test....
This might then be a good starting point with MSI
I use Furmark to test GPU stability - This time monitor your GPU temps. and again same applies to+12 V rail.

Just a caution on IB or SB CPUs, do NOT go above 1.4 V - 1.5+ voids warranty. IB is a little more finiky than SB.
Again check stability with Prime95 - SAME Caution.

Added: while at it, Verify SSD is properly set-up. Run AS SSD (DO NOT need to run the Benchmark). when you open/run AS SSD just look in the upper left, want to verify:
Driver - should be iastor (or simular) = OK. mahci will alo show OK, but is slower than Intel's driver. DO NOT want to see pcide = "BAD"
Alignment - should also show a green "OK"
Either one of the above can slow your SSD down if incorrect.

I went into the BIOS and tried to change the memory speed from 1333 MHz to 1600 MHz and got a boot error and thus, the system gives me and option to boot from optimizing settings. When I select the latter of the options it reverts back to AUTO and 1333 MHz for advanced memory settings as well as defaults to IDE for memory setting which were set as RAID which corrupted my RAID 5 storage. So I lost all that was stored there (mainly gaming files). Therefore, after reboot I restored the memory settings from IDE to RAID, and then I was prompted to format Drive R as MBR or GRUB. This time I selected MBR and simple volume or should I have selected dynamic? Once that was completed I set the RAID as RAID 0 +1 this time and re-installed the gaming file from clouds on streaming. When I restarted the system I got a system update saying SATA and ATA drivers were update loaded properly. I went back into BIOS and tried to update RAM memory to 1600 MHZ that is listed under tab XPM….still a NO-GO! So I am assuming that I didn’t load something during my initial build incorrectly! Should I dump the CMOS and start over?

Note: This is my very first build ever.....so I am learning on the fly....any and all input is appreciated!!

 

[neon neophyte]

Yeah I'm running at 2133@1.65v on my Ivy and haven't had a problem. That's how my memory runs stock. So IDK about that 1.57 volt thing.

you really might want to pick up some different ram. your system will run with that, but again, the memory controller is the achilles heel on these cpus. they can take a lot of abuse in overclocking but that memory controller is fragile