Overclock losing stability
Overclock losing stability
Please see the rig in my sig Sorry for the long post, I'm really trying to keep this as short as possible, please bear with me as it is a TALE. So I have been learning to overclock and at first it was working great but the performance keeps degrading pretty quickly. All I know is it has something to do with the voltage. At first I was using Asus' eztuning wizard in the BIOS, but that proved unstable as the voltage was far too low, (basically they just make sure it will boot) the problems at that point were that games would stutter badly once every dozen seconds or so (sound and audio stop for about.25-.5 seconds) but the system as a whole was pretty stable. But then I got much helpful advice and started doing it the right way. I had the "CPU SVID" support on as well (even though it says it is recommended off for overclocking, but I never really saw or looked at it), but I just kept increasing the multiplier, doing tests for about an hour or so (LinX twice, Prime95 Small FFT's for about 10min, Asus RealBench for 30min) play a couple games for a few minutes each to make sure it wasn't stuttering, rinse repeat, until I got to 4.7GHz, and then I starting failing tests off the bat. I assumed it was temp since I was hitting like 87C during stress tests so I put it back to 4.6GHz and called it a day. I also posted about that online, was told it was not temp it was voltage, and decided to give 4.7GHz another crack. I then set my voltage to 1.35V (based on an Asus overclocking guide for my board family)(found SVID support and turned it OFF, also noticed I could no longer see my CPU voltage in CPU-z) fired it up and viola, it worked, passed all tests, and was even stable for gaming. However the next day (I also leave my computer on always) I noticed there was some stuttering, even though it was kind of minor, and my system was a little wonky (WoW kept crashing, g-sync/v-sync wasn't working, fps drops all over the place). During a WoW raid I also noticed that my CPU was performing EXACTLY THE SAME as without any OC at all. I then got so frustrated I removed the CPU overclock entirely and reset the entire BIOS back to default EXCEPT the RAM OC which I kept at 3200MHz. Anyways I decided to give one more shot since I was low FPS again and apparently I had gotten used to the 15-20fps increase I was getting with the overclock. I set voltage back to 1.35v, set my multiplier to 4.7GHz, left SVID ON, fired everything up. boom. 100% stable, nothing crashing, everything working right, gaming performance fantastic. Saw voltage was rock solid at 1.376V in CPU-z. Next day, computer once again on all night in idle mode. Voltage was all over the place and way lower than what it was at the day before. like 1.29-1.34v, not even close. Set the voltage to 1.375v in the BIOS, and that is now where I am at. Games are micro stuttering every few minutes, just video very minor, performance dips and fps drops at heavy CPU usage times. (moreso than usual). Im at the end of my rope here. Do I just need to turn off my computer when I am not using it? That seems like the safest option. Or am I just missing a setting somewhere? Does that 0.001v make that much of a difference?? (1.375 vs. 1.376) I just really don't know what I should do here. I've been mostly playing Fallout 4 and WoW but I play BF1 to test the system as well which usually just produces the results more frequently than FO4. WoW's optimization is just trash so it tells me if there is stuttering within the first minute of being on if the CPU is stable or not, since it is constantly using a single core at 80-90%. Some stats. I really don't know what all I am doing. I have almost every settings set to auto which is part of my problem but I have no idea what I need to tweak. There are about 4 other voltage settings or so and I am afraid to mess with them. Ai OC tuner: Manual Asus Multicore enhancement- Manual CPU BCLK- 100MHz CPU core ratio limit- 47 CPU SVID Support- Auto CPU core/cache current limit max.- Auto Min. CPU cache ratio- Auto Max. CPU cache ratio- Auto CPU core/cache voltage- Manual CPU core voltage override- 1.375 DRAM voltage- Auto CPU VCCIO voltage- Auto CPU system agent voltage- Auto CPU Graphics voltage- Auto PCH Core voltage- Auto CPU Standby voltage- Auto (I can get actual numbers when I get home, this is going off memory and a video of the BIOS options) (I DID NOT set the adaptive/offset mode as Asus suggested in their guide, as I have no idea what the point is) Prime 95 Small FFT test temps: 93C Max LinX test temps: 89C Max Asus RealBench temps: 81C Max Gaming temps: Spikes up to 65C, between 45-55C normally, as low as 24C at idle. Ambient temp: ~21C Using these guides: https://rog.asus.com/articles/guides/gui...i-extreme/ NOTE: I am not a fan of testing the system for 24hours and such. There's no way I can do that. I work 7 days a week (at least a couple hours a day, and I am absolutely terrified that something will go wrong while I am not there, and I will fry my $4,000 rig. I am also not a fan of cooking my CPU at UNGODLY temps for that long. Gaming temps get nowhere NEAR stress test temps and I am trying to preserve as much of the life of the CPU as possible, as I fully intend to upgrade to 8th Gen when it comes out and I want to sell the 6700k. If I need to do a certain stability test for 24 hours I may do it once but there is no way I am willing to do more than that!
Yeah, but I'm just happy its balanced.. I could have even lived with 4.5GHz and no Memory OC, as long as it was stable and running better than stock. Stock speeds are just too low on these poorly optimized games. (FO4 is optimized but not for over 60Hz and not for 21:9, having to mess with a lot of code to get it to run that way, not exactly ideal. Running it stock I would never drop under 60, but I need that 21:9 and its locked at 25 on my monitor lol, so I HAVE to unlock it which introduces a whole host of physics issues, which I am sure is straining my CPU. BF1 runs perfectly fine and dandy at stock lol, GPU usage almost never drops under 100% if I have the frames uncapped)
Anyways here are my numbers. I apologize for the crappy...
It would be useful to share your specifications and consistently overclock via the BIOS.
Sorry, I see now. I don’t know your level of experience in overclocking, so please don’t be offended. Reset your BIOS settings and start fresh. Begin by slowly increasing the CPU multiplier until the system starts to behave erratically. Then bring it back down until stability returns. This is your maximum OC with the default voltage. Next, gradually raise the voltage until instability reappears. Increase the CPU voltage carefully until you reach a stable point. Test using a reliable tool like Prime95 or OCTC. Sorry if this seems basic, but that’s how I’ve always done it.
I understand now. I don’t know your experience with overclocking, so please don’t take it personally. Reset your BIOS settings and try again. Start by slowly adjusting the CPU multiplier until the system starts acting unstable. Then bring it back down until it stabilizes. This is your maximum overclock with the default voltage. Gradually increase the multiplier again until instability returns. Raise the CPU voltage slowly until you reach stability. Test using a trusted tool like Prime95 or OCCT. Sorry if this sounds simple, but that’s how I’ve always done it.
Yes, I’ve tried this before. However, there’s an external voltage regulator affecting the power supply, pushing the voltage well above the 1.2V “base” needed for my 6700K. Based on what I’ve learned so far, most older CPUs have a steady voltage, while mine fluctuates. I think if no one has better advice, I’ll switch to adaptive mode and set the offset to 1.38V to see how it performs. Also, unfortunately... the voltage control on Skylake CPUs or my board is quite different from previous generations. I never experienced crashes or BSODs as mentioned in the beginner’s guide, even when the voltage was set way too low (like 1.35V for 4.7GHz). In fact, I’m not sure how much of a difference a 0.001V makes.
Moreover, I have no clear explanation for why my CPU stayed stable at 1.35V but crashed at 1.345V or 1.355V, yet remained perfectly stable at 1.376V. Why is 1.375V problematic when 1.376V works fine? I’m not sure what impact even a tiny voltage change has. Going further, I can’t monitor or adjust the voltage when CPU SVID is disabled, because that disables readings in CPU-Z. I can check with Asus AI Suite, but its readings always differ from what CPU-Z shows.
This situation is making me feel a bit out of my depth, and I’m really worried about damaging my CPU or motherboard by going overboard. I don’t have another $700 to replace them right now. But I can’t tolerate the stock performance on my two favorite games—FO4 doesn’t run smoothly at 100Hz with 3440x1440 resolution, and even with an OC, it drops to around 45fps on stock settings. WoW is similar; single-core performance is severely limited by the CPU under stock conditions, dropping below 50 in raids. With a stable OC, it’s closer to 70. This clearly shows how much of a difference matters.
you definitely seem to have a good grasp of things. your computer adjusts the cpu voltage even when it's set to manual in bios, right? if that's the case, you're really puzzling me.
You seem to handle things well, don’t you think? Your PC adjusts the CPU voltage even when set to manual in BIOS? If that’s the case, you’re puzzling me. There are several regulators at play. Turning on CPU SVID support (which enables external voltage regulation) displays my voltage in CPU-z, but it fluctuates between 1.29 and 1.34. However, when I enable it again, it stays at 1.376V without changing. That’s why I’m confused. I didn’t adjust any settings between the two readings, yet they’re so different. After disabling SVID support, I can no longer see my voltage on CPU-z, so I’m guessing it hasn’t changed, but I have no confirmation because I can’t view it. I might just need to follow the Asus manual closely.
When returning to stock settings, what is your RAM clocked at? You pointed out that leaving the RAM OC is concerning for me. XMP is a fixed OC for your RAM, but heavily overclocking the CPU can impact RAM clock stability or the reverse. I would reset and OC your core first as you've been doing, then test with stock RAM speeds.
When you return to stock settings, what speed does your RAM run at? You said leaving the RAM OC is worrying. XMP is a fixed setting for your RAM, but you're heavily overclocking the CPU, which can affect RAM clock stability or the other way around. I recommend resetting and overclocking your core first, then testing with stock RAM speeds. The only change I made to the RAM was the target frequency, which matches its rated speed of 3200MHz. The base is 2133MHz, so it's running at default clock speeds. The voltages are still set to auto, and XMP is manual, so it shouldn't be causing issues.