New build with z77 and 3770k

[chocolatejeff]

Hi Forum,

I've been a long time reader of the forums but never made the account but here I am with a new account after just finishing my first high-end build. So, I'm not super experienced in overclocking and would need some help.

*I know I should have provided pictures but bear with me* I have an intel 3770k with noctua's nh-d14 and a gigabyte z77 motherboard. Since I've gone through the trouble of getting a 3770k chip, I wanted to do some overclocking.. this is my first overclock so pardon my noobness.

so, I've decided to let Gigabyte's mono choose the Vcore for my processor while I worry about the multipliers and bclk. (there is an option in the UEFI bios to allow the mono to "auto" select the Vcore accordingly) Reason for this is I don't want to feed my processor a constant high Vcore all the time. (voltage degradation?)

Nevertheless, I've read about the temps issues etc for ivy bridge and I see that very clearly when I tried overclocking. My stress test was Aida64. So, I've managed to reach multiplier 43x & bclk 101.5MHz with base multiplier of 35 (getting a ~4.3GHz max speed). Vcores around 1.12.. My idle temp with this is 26-30C and stressed temps around 60-65C.

So, my question is how high can I over clock this cpu without damaging it? Should I be worried at all if temps are above 70C? Did I install my cooler wrong (not enough paste?)?? I've read about people overclocking to 4.6-4.7GHz, doesn't that destroy the processor?? Should I reinforce the Vcore or let the mobo choose? I also over clocked the GPU core on the processor to 1500Hz. Does that affect the temperatures?

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Master&Puppet]

Yea you can get upto 5ghz with a safe daily use overclock that won't damage the cpu in the noticable future (like you might shorten the life from 15 to 12 years).

most people are clocking 4.5-4.8 at, or a little over, 1.3v.

Temperature is the thing to watch with ivy bridge - try to keep the cores below 80C at load, definitely keep them under 90C.

Have you tried offset overclocking? Sounds like it is perfect for you

http://forum.overclo...ide-and-thread/

As for your GPU - are you sure you are talking about the processor core? Because 1500Mhz is mental and I want your gpu lol. The best gpus are clocking to 1200 or so.

 

[chocolatejeff]

hey thanks for that link to offset overclocking. Its sounds a bit convoluted for me to digest right now but I'll give it a go when I get the chance. I'm hoping to achieve 4.5 GHz with low temps to keep my processor in tip top condition.

The gpu information might be misleading. What I meant to say was the IGP core clock. I increased the clock from 1150MHz? to 1500MHz which could contribute some heat?...

 

[Master&Puppet]

Ah I see, I assumed that you were talking about a graphics card! I can only assume that increasing the mhz on the ipgu would increase heat and increasing the voltage would even more so. How much that affects the overall core temperature I'm not sure. It's a very niche question which I haven't seen any data on. I have however found an article on overclocking the hd4000:

http://semiaccurate.com/2012/04/23/overclocking-intels-hd-4000/

Whilst it doesn't say anything about the effects on temperature it doesn't look like significantly increasing the igpu clock has much effect on gaming fps. So there is a balence to be drawn. Assuming (as common sense tells me) that OCing the ipgu adds heat to the chip then you need to ask youself a question:

"Do I want to sacrifice igpu clock for a higher cpu clock or visa versa?"

That depends on what you have in mind for the cpu and pc on the whole.

Offset voltage is food for thought for now

 

[TheOsTech]

I can tell you what works for me.

Try offset voltage to negative .8

turbo multi x44

load line calibration maxxed

with cpu-z you should get 1.2 vcore under full load with intel burn test.

you may need to play with offset to get a vcore of 1.2 under load

do not exceed 1.35 vcore or set memory voltage higher then 1.6(if your memory allows)

these voltages are very safe for ivy and should not shorten the life span of your cpu or make too much heat.(1.2 vcore, 1.6 mem voltage)

you can go from there. As you decrease the negative vcore offset you increase the vcore so be careful and make sure it is negative .8 or 80 (however it looks on your mb) and not positive.

also remember with offset the higher the multiplyer the more it adds vcore. as long as you don't go past 1.35 vcore you should be safe though I would not run 1.35 24/7 unless you can buy a new cpu in a year or 2 if it dies an early death. I have been able to get 4.6 stable with 1.35 but the temps are high(nh-d14 low fans) and that is too much vcore for my comfort on 24/7

when you get an o/c you like for 24/7 that has passed ibt then check the windows event log once a day for a few weeks to see if any internal parity errors pop up on your cpu. if so bump up the vcore a little.

If you can leave the base clock alone and o/c all with multiplyer. better for stability and long life on your parts.

best of luck to you.

 

[chocolatejeff]

wow, thanks for the loads of information. I have to admit, I'm digesting these information quite slowly, I'm not very good at this overclocking business just yet.

From what I've got out of that link about overclocking the igp, I'm thinking that I should just leave mine alone at stock speeds. I mean I do have a discrete GPU but I'm using the IGP for video transcoding (intel quick sync and virtu mvp). I was hoping for extra performance there but its already quite good where it stands at stock..

Pardon my lack of knowledge but, how would I set my offset voltage to - 0.8? I also don't understand what load line calibration is... some simpler explaination would truly help, thanks!

I have my memory voltage set to 1.2 (as the packaging on my memory recommended) it is a dual channel 2X4GB Patriot G2 Series 1600MHz DDR3 RAM... I'm not sure if I would set it to 1.6v, it could damage my RAM but I'm not experienced in this.

I agree, passing a high vcore and high temperature conditions are not ideal for the life of the cpu component. I don't need a very high performing processor all the time, just occasionally when I'm doing serious computational work; and, that is exactly what I love about this processor. You can leave the "safe" base clock alone while tweaking the maximum performance. Its great!

Thanks for those tips, I'll try them out later on! Cheers

 

[airdeano]

I have my memory voltage set to 1.2 (as the packaging on my memory recommended) it is a dual channel 2X4GB Patriot G2 Series 1600MHz DDR3 RAM... I'm not sure if I would set it to 1.6v, it could damage my RAM but I'm not experienced in this.

1.2v? huh? if they are the p/n PGD38G1600ELK, the voltage is 1.65 usually the average voltage is 1.5v on

1600 memory modules. low voltage ive seen is 1.35v, but 1.2? thats too undervolted. ive taken voltage to

1.8v (not recommeneded) and they have lived long and fruitful lives. doubt you'd miss .5MHz overclock..

airdeano

 

[chocolatejeff]

1.2v? huh? if they are the p/n PGD38G1600ELK, the voltage is 1.65 usually the average voltage is 1.5v on

1600 memory modules. low voltage ive seen is 1.35v, but 1.2? thats too undervolted. ive taken voltage to

1.8v (not recommeneded) and they have lived long and fruitful lives. doubt you'd miss .5MHz overclock..

airdeano

Oh god, you're right! I'm changing that right now... hmm could this be the reason for my recent crashes? ( I've got three BSODs this past few days).. it makes sense.. I feel so silly, thanks for the info airdeano

 

[Master&Puppet]

Yea it could well be. Good spot airdeano.

 

[chocolatejeff]

Hmm, ok so I realized my memory has something called XMP which I've decided to use now instead. It sets the values for latency and voltage automatically as the advertised specs. Hopefully, that'd be good for my setup.

My build is still a little wonky and I need some advice. As I mentioned briefly before, my setup has been getting some random BSOD. I really, have no idea what the problem could be. I stress tested the system via Aida64 for 30 minutes with no problems. Played some games, viewed some videos, edit some pictures all without problems. Yet, occasionally the computer just... dies.

I do have intel smart response (SSD caching) and intel smart connect (automatic internet updates when the computer is in sleep mode) running. It all sounds pretty intelligent but I suspect these to be the culprit to the computer's recent failures. Does anyone have experiences with these new technologies? I really hope it isn't a motherboard issue.

 

[TheOsTech]

using the xmp profile is a great start. try getting stability before moving to overclocking. so for maximum stability start in your bios and load the optimized default. after that load the xmp profile. that alone should make your platform very stable. run it for a week or two under that configuration to ensure you have full stability. in the mean time learn all you can about oc/ing. pay special attention to load line calibration and offset voltage.

If your ssd allows use it as a boot drive rather then intel smart response. add only the programs on it you need quick disk access for.

If you find after optimized defaults you still have stability issues try a slight bump on the xmp voltage updating your bios and ssd firmware and lastly reinstalling windows to get a fresh slate to work off. if all your stability issues are a thing of the past reread the posts here and try your hand at ocing again.

edit* if your xpm voltage is 1.6 or higher skip the voltage bump

 

[airdeano]

i'd try getting the system stable and usable before adding extras like SRT and cacheing

plus background appz. they tend to falsely scramble a rather stable clock, due to a driver

loading event rather than a processor error. and i feel that is a lot of errors in overclocking

as peeps tend to pick it up after loading all their appz and dont realize it can possibly be

a driver/app error more so than the stability of the processor.

airdeano

 

[chocolatejeff]

Well, not to downplay some very good advice but I did try getting my system as stable as it could before adding those extras I mentioned. I did a CPU test, a GPU test, and a Memory Diagnostic Test on stock settings and everything seemed well. But perhaps I wasn't thorough enough, I'm not sure.

Been thinking, about the caching and SSD. Reinstalling the whole system on the SSD would mean I have to start the installation over and its going to be such a pain. I think I'm going to try avoiding that for now, unless there are ways to getting out of this whole "intel caching" mess without the pain of re-installing everything.

I absolutely agree with airdeano, I honestly believe the system is quite stable, everything did seem fine even after the minor overclocks. The processor is great and I'm loving it, but the drivers for this new intel technology may not yet be up to speed which I blame for my recent BSODs but without any evidence yet... I guess I could disable it and observe the stability of the system for the few coming days.. I'll go try that.