Overclocking i5 2500k past 4.5GHZ using a Hyper 212 EVO
Overclocking i5 2500k past 4.5GHZ using a Hyper 212 EVO
I have been running my 2500k on P8Z68V at approximately 4.5GHZ with a Hyper 212 EVO. Here are the BIOS tweak snapshots when using 4.5GHZ.
https://imgur.com/a/Tvsqr1x
It idles around 41-43C at 1.6GHZ, but during P95 tests at 4.5GHZ for six hours without problems, I recorded temperatures between 75-77°C on average.
During stress testing the CPU, voltages rose to 1.360V from the base of 1.336, even though I set the voltage to 1.3500V. The temperature and voltage readings varied depending on the application—GPUZ, HW Monitor, Temps Sensor, or Voltage Sensor.
My questions:
Why do these things happen despite setting the voltage to 1.3500V? If this is based on the Speedstep Option I enabled in the BIOS, which value should I trust? Are voltages around 1.368V safe for regular use?
https://imgur.com/a/xo9kVqu
Additionally, when I increase the multiplier from 45 to 46 or 47 while keeping the voltage constant, I encounter BSOD during P95 tests.
My advice:
Should I consider raising the voltage to 1.375 and then increasing the multiplier to 47 or 48? Could these settings harm the CPU or motherboard? Should I avoid this approach? Are these voltages within a safe range for everyday operation?
Your feedback is very much appreciated and will be extremely useful.
TIA
The voltage gap is mainly due to LLC overcompensating.
I wouldn’t attempt to push voltage higher or clock faster.
That’s a solid overclock—you’ve probably reached the limit where temperature and voltage gains don’t justify the tiny performance boost.
These high voltages are suitable for an i5-2500k, but I recommend keeping them between 1.25 and 1.3 volts to protect the processor. Others on OCN have noticed their systems failing at higher voltages, even though some achieved strong performance. This variation in results is why we compare numbers across BIOS settings and hardware monitors. I rely on HWMonitor because it closely matches the BIOS configuration. You might also try Intel's XTU to adjust the voltage levels.
Thank you for the reply.
I should consider adjusting the Load Line Calibration.
Yes, these temperatures come from synthetic burn tests and can be reached even with video encoding, rendering, or high CPU usage games.
I previously experienced a nearly 3-minute difference in rendering speed (for 1.8G MP4) after an overclock, using only a single core.
This suggests a noticeable real-world impact.
When the CPU runs normally in TurboBoost mode, I observed frequencies around 1.2900–1.3000 and decided to try 1.350 with different multipliers. It has stabilized at 1.35V for about a month.
Other users suggest 1.4V or 1.425V may be safe. Please share your thoughts.
On behalf of Tom's Moderator Team, welcome aboard!
•
What is your ambient (room) temperature?
•
Which version of Prime95 and which Torture Test?
If it's version 26.6 then that's fine, but if it's the latest version 29.8 then you need to disable all AVX test selections. Your 2500K has AVX Instruction Sets, so if Prime95 is allowed to run AVX code then your Core temperatures will be unrealistically high. The Small FFTs test is a steady-state 100% TDP workload. When run without AVX, this is how Intel validates TDP and Thermal Specifications.
GPU-Z and Hardware Monitor are not the most accurate utilities, so I would disregard those values. Instead, use Core Temp for basic monitoring and HWiNFO for very detailed monitoring. Both are frequently updated and are known to be accurate.
The Vcore you set in BIOS differs from Windows due to Load Line Calibration (LLC). When adjust LLC, only a steady-state 100% workload should be used so as to minimize voltage fluctuations.
The goal for adjusting LLC is to match as closely as possible (but not overshoot) the Vcore you set in BIOS to the Vcore you monitor in Windows during a steady-state 100% workload. Intel intends for there to be at least some small amount of "Vdroop" between BIOS and 100% workload for processor longevity. A slight undershoot is specified, but any overshoot is not recommended.
Concerning Vcore, 1.375 is about as high as you should push a 2nd generation 32 nanometer processor, such as your 2500K. No two processors are identical; each is unique in voltage tolerance, thermal behavior and overclocking potential, which is often referred to as the "silicon lottery".
•
Overclocking is always limited by two factors; voltage and temperature.
Each Microarchitecture has a “Maximum Recommended Vcore”. For example, it’s important to point out that 22 nanometer 3rd and 4th Generation processors will
not
tolerate the higher Core voltages of other Microarchitectures.
Here's the Maximum Recommended Vcore per Microarchitecture from 14 to 65 nanometers since 2006:
We know that over time, excessive voltage and heat damages electronics, so when using manual Vcore settings in BIOS, excessive Core voltage and Core temperature can cause accelerated "
Electromigration
". Processors have multiple layers of hundreds of millions of microscopic
nanometer
scale components. Electromigration erodes fragile circuit pathways and transistor junctions which results in the
degradation
of overclock stability, and thus performance.
Although your initial overclock may be stable, degradation doesn't appear until later, when increasingly frequent blue-screen crashes indicate a progressive loss of stability. The more excessive the levels of voltage and heat and the longer they're sustained determines how long until transistor degradation destabilizes your overclock. Decreasing overclock and Vcore may temporarily restore stability and slow the rate of degradation.
Extreme
overvolting can cause degradation in minutes, but a sensible overclock remains stable for years.
Each Microarchitecture also has a "
Degradation Curve
". As a rule, CPUs are more susceptible to electromigration and degradation with each Die-shrink. However, the exception to the rule is Intel's 14 nanometer Microarchitecture, where advances in
FinFET
transistor technology have improved voltage tolerance.
Here's how the Degradation Curves correspond to Maximum Recommended Vcore for 22 nanometer 3rd and 4th Generation, which differs from 14 nanometer 5th through 10th Generation:
Degradation Curves are relative to the term “
Vt
(
Voltage threshold
)
Shift
” which is expressed in millivolts (mv). Users can not monitor Vt Shift. With respect to overclocking and overvolting, Vt Shift basically represents the potential for
permanent
loss of normal transistor performance. Excessively high Core voltage drives excessively high Power consumption and Core temperatures, all of which contribute to gradual Vt Shift over time. Core voltages that impose high Vt Shift values are
not
recommended.
Your 2nd generation 32 nanometer 2500K has a similar degradation curve which differs slightly from the 14 nanometer curve shown on the above graph.
To achieve the highest overclock, keep in mind that for your final 100 MHz increase, a corresponding increase in Core voltage of about 50 millivolts (0.050) is needed to maintain stability. If 65 millivolts (0.065) or more is needed for the next stable 100 MHz increase, it means you're attempting to overclock your processor beyond its capability. This also means that since you're at 4.5GHz, 4.6 might not be achievable, and anything higher would be out of reach.
Here's the nominal operating range for Core temperature:
Core temperatures above
85
°C are not recommended
.
Core temperatures below
80
°C are ideal
.
Core temperatures increase and decrease with ambient temperature
, for which the International Standard for "normal" is 22°C or 72°F.
With high-end cooling you might reach your Maximum Recommended Vcore limit before you reach the ideal Core temperature limit at
80
°C. With low-end cooling you’ll reach
80
°C before your Vcore limit. Regardless, whichever overclocking limit you reach first is where you should stop.
Remember to keep overclocking in perspective. For example, the difference between 4.5 and 4.6 GHz is less than 2.3%, which has no noticeable impact on overall system performance. It simply isn’t worth pushing your processor beyond recommended Core voltage and Core temperature limits just to squeeze out another 100 MHz.
You might want to read this:
Intel Temperature Guide
Once again, welcome aboard!
CT