Overclocking CPU with stock cooler, worth buying new CPU Cooler?

EricPCNoob

Honorable
Apr 6, 2012
54
0
10,640
Hello! I built a new machine about 2 weeks ago. It works flawlessly! I have steam running and all of my programs back. So, I was wondering about overclocking, how far can I push a i5 3570k with the stock cooler? I want to overclock as much as possible while maintaining a decent CPU temperature. I want to try a 4.0ghz overclock, can that run cool? Also, is it worth the investment to buy good air cooled CPU cooler?

System Specs-
CASE- ThermalTake v3 Black Edition (One case fan. Will get more)*
MOBO- ASRock z77 Extreme 4*
CPU- i5 3570k w/ no overclock*
GPU- GTX 550ti (Going to buy a new GPU when nVidia 700 series is out)
PSU- 500w Piece O' Crap (Going to update with GPU)
RAM- 8gb 1333mhz DDR3
HDD- Seagate 1tb 7200 RPM hdd

*I just upgraded in my new build

How far can I overclock my CPU? I also want to overclock my ram to 1600mhz +, is that safe?

Is it worth it to buy a new CPU Cooler? If I do, which one can I get, and what will be the OC that I could achieve while running cool? Also, If I buy a new case fans, will it improve my computers temperature? I am going to get at least one more, so should I just get as many as my case/ motherboard can handle? If I do put in more fans, will I need a new PSU?

Thank you so much. Please help me out!
 
Solution
Yes more case fans will increase air flow and allow for more effective cooling in some/most cases. It is also good to keep an "even" air flow with intake and exhaust.

You can download programs to see what your current CPU temperatures are while idle and during gaming or load. Programs like Coretemp, realtemp, speedfan, etc. Also Prime95 to stress/torture test your CPU to really see how effective your cooler is under full load (but unrealistic for just a basic user).

I would get a better cooler especially if you plan to OC. Something like the Hyper 212+ Evo is good enough for a small/moderate overclock. Or something bigger like a closed loop liquid cooling system like the Corsair H-series works for higher overclocks (depending on...

drg889

Distinguished
Feb 4, 2010
101
0
18,710
Yes more case fans will increase air flow and allow for more effective cooling in some/most cases. It is also good to keep an "even" air flow with intake and exhaust.

You can download programs to see what your current CPU temperatures are while idle and during gaming or load. Programs like Coretemp, realtemp, speedfan, etc. Also Prime95 to stress/torture test your CPU to really see how effective your cooler is under full load (but unrealistic for just a basic user).

I would get a better cooler especially if you plan to OC. Something like the Hyper 212+ Evo is good enough for a small/moderate overclock. Or something bigger like a closed loop liquid cooling system like the Corsair H-series works for higher overclocks (depending on which one you get, my H50 is very similar to my old hyper 212+, just a tad better).
 
Solution

drg889

Distinguished
Feb 4, 2010
101
0
18,710
No problem. There are a lot of "Closed loop" water cooling systems that don't have a high risk of leaking as some people would expect. If it comes down to it, you can put silicon or a sealant around some of the tubing to make sure nothing leaks. These work really well under load, at least so far in my experience.

Air coolers still work much better than stock, the Hyper 212+ evo will probably be able to get you to that 4.0Ghz mark, or close. I previously used the Hyper 212+ (non-evo) with just 1 fan on it, and had my i7-920 OC'd to 3.5ghz from stock 2.66. It was stable, but load temps would go in the 80C's, so i brought it down to 3.0 and temps dropped to 70C max.
 
With the Evo you should be able to get close to 4.5GHz. Not all cpus are equal - if you get get a stable OC with the lowest possible core voltage it will run cooler. Always test & monitor your OC and do it in a methodical manor - small increases above 4.2GHz.
-Bruce