Can't adjust CPU Multiplier in BIOS (changes won't save)

Has no one else heard of something like this happening? I don't seem to be able to "underclock" the chip either, so it isn't an instability thing or an overheating thing, I don't think...

Did you try changing some other settings, like say Boot order or something? If even those settings don't get saved, then there maybe a problem with the mobo. Switch off the comp, remove the CMOS battery. Wait for 5 minutes, and put the battery back. See if that helps.

Did you bother reading the motherboard manual. There could be a setting somewhere to enable overclocking, maybe even a jumper setting to be made physically on the mobo. See some youtube video's of your motherboard, may show you what your looking for .

All the best  

I have changed other settings in the BIOS and they all save properly. Its only when it comes to the OC aspect that stuff isn't working. I'm concerned that one of the components isn't functioning properly.

On this mobo, you can hit the "OC Genie" button right on the board, which is supposed to automatically overclock this CPU to 4.2GHz, but it doesn't change anything either. (Its supposed to have the same functionality as changing to "OC Genie Mode" in the BIOS). At the same time, when I do a single-threaded stress test on my CPU using Prime 95, the CPU only goes up to a frequency of 3.6GHz, rather than the "TurboBoost" speed of 3.8GHz.

So I don't know what the hell the problem is.

If there are people who are familiar with the MSI z68A-GD65 (G3), I'd appreciate some input. I don't know if the BIOS needed to be updated or something.... I was under the impression that this mobo should permit overclocking for this these chips out of the box.

Maybe my mobo is defective in some way.... I don't know.

Does anyone know what I'm talking about here? I can't be the only person on earth who's ever had this problem, can I?

I'm just using the stock cooler, as of now. But I haven't gotten any errors of any kind. When I use the one-button option in the BIOS and activate the "OC Genie Mode" overclock, the voltage changes, and the chip reads a slightly hotter temperature, (maybe around 50C), but the Multiplier stays the same, and I can't change it.

I figured out what the problem was. Thanks anyway.

What was the problem? Maybe the answer will be helpful for someone in the future.

CORRECTION:

The problem was not fixed. Here's what's been going on:

I cleared the CMOS, and removed the battery. (I didn't change it as I didn't have a spare). It didn't fix the problem.

What I've learned is that I AM able to overclock the CPU if I use the "MSI Control Center" while in Windows. And it will save the settings UNTIL the computer is restarted or goes into Sleep Mode/Hibernation. Then it resets to stock. The "O.C. Genie" button on the mobo (which automatically overclocks the CPU to 4.2ghz) also works. As it is a physical button on the mobo, it does not reset when the computer resets. But with the button turned on, I have no ability to change any of the OC parameters such as the voltage.

SO, I think I can at least rule out broken hardware, but I am still not able to save settings for OC'ing from BIOS or from the Control Center. It just will not store it.

Other changes that are made in BIOS (boot order, enabling/disabling options) will all stick. So I don't know if the battery on the mobo is the problem.

Do I need to update my BIOS possibly? (I really don't like having to do that...) I have seen on other forums that people have had issues similar to this, but I can't get a firm grasp on what the fix is.

I would appreciate it if I could get any help from someone who knows what the heck I'm talking about.  

Evidently the problem lies in the motherboard. First thing to do is to update the BIOS.

Battery has nothing to with it. You can run the pc without it. It sustains power to timing chip and BIOS only when the PC is unplugged from electricity. When it's turned off and power cable is plugged in battery is not used.

Something nutty happened. (What else is new?). I updated the BIOS on my mobo using MSI's "Live Update" software, so I wouldn't screw anything up. And it worked. It updated my BIOS. I went into the BIOS and tried to change the multiplier, and it seemed to work! And when I went into Windows, it seemed to stick.

But then, I restarted the computer again to fine-tune some of the other settings in the BIOS, but as soon as the PC restarted, a message came up regarding "MSI Multi BIOS" and it started Flashing something. When the computer restarted, I checked to see what it had done, and it had re-installed the old BIOS.

I don't understand why that would have happened. I never told it to switch back. And why would it switch itself back to an older version anyway?

Evidently, my board has Dual BIOS. When I went into the BIOS a second time to tinker with some settings, the BIOS froze for a few moments. This caused the mobo to revert back to the original BIOS version.

Now I know that a BIOS update fixes the original problem. But the NEW problem is: I don't know what to do about the fact that my motherboard isn't capable of flashing the updated BIOS without glitching. I'm concerned I'm gonna end up breaking the thing.

Don't worry, it has a backup bios in case something goes wrong.

Speaking of which, there is this feature called Dual BIOS LED. According to manual, it is located next to second PCI-E x16 slot. Is it blinking? Is it blinking after flashing the bios to newer version and entering it a second time (when it reverts to old bios)?

Yes, I saw the Dual BIOS LED. It didn't blink immediately after the BIOS update, but shortly afterwards (after the BIOS seemed to freeze for a few moments). When the computer was restarted again, and the BIOS had been reverted back to its original version, the light stopped blinking.

Now, I don't know if that means that my "secondary BIOS" fixed the problem automatically and flashed over the corrupted update, or if its permanently ruined and I'm running on the secondary BIOS. Like, if I were to try to flash the BIOS again, do I run the risk of bricking the mobo because my backup BIOS is already unusable? Or are both BIOSes in working order to give me protection in case I screw up again?

It looks like the primary BIOS is damaged and it cannot be written (at least some parts of its memory). Contact MSI for support. I think you have to RMA your mainboard, because it's clearly a motherboard hardware problem.