Overclocking i5 3570k
Overclocking i5 3570k
Were you checking for stability by running a stress test? Using voltage helps stabilize it. Stuttering doesn’t indicate instability, and I’d likely check temperatures next.
The i5-3570k can operate at 4.3GHz by adjusting just the multiplier, with all other settings kept at their factory defaults.
Enable OC in manual mode, fix all four cores at the 43 multiplier. At this frequency, disable c-states below C-3, keep c-1e/C3 active (not deep sleep), turn on speedstep, cap turbo at 43, and reduce vcore to 1.19v or apply a CPU offset of '-
LLC' between 50-66% (medium to medium-high). Turn off CPU power phases.
Adjust the top two current limits (long and short) to 255, retain the default for the bottom two.
There might be additional options to tweak, but this covers the basics.
Karadjgne :
The i5-3570k should run at 4.3GHz with only changing the multiplier, leaving everything else set at factory optimized default.
Set OC to manual, lock all 4 cores at 43 multiplier. At that speed c-states below C-3 should be disabled, you can leave c-1e/C3 enabled (that's plain sleep not deep sleep), speedstep enabled, set max turbo to 43, drop vcore to 1.19v or set cpu offset to '
-
LLC to 50-66% (medium to med-high), disable cpu power phases. Set the top 2x current limits (long and short) to 255, leave the bottom 2x default.
There may or may not be others to change, but that's a start.
Thanks very much for the suggestions. I changed my settings to correlate to your recommendations and I noticed that I'm still having a bit of issues. If I give it a constant vcore of 1.19v my cpu never downclocks. Always stuck at 4.3ghz. I'm not sure if this is normal behavior? Also, if I put it into offset mode, I still get that stuttering. To early to say it that stuttering is still happening with a fixed vcore. I'm going to take some pictures to share my settings and maybe you can tell me if you spot anything wrong?
Yeah, the main drawback of a fixed OC/vcore is that it doesn't use EIST anymore, but that's not a big problem at idle loads since temperatures still drop significantly due to low CPU usage. With a fixed vcore, you can turn off EIST.
Each CPU reacts a bit differently to changes in OC settings, so you'll need to experiment with the adjustments—perhaps adding an offset or increasing the vcore up to around 1.20v or even lowering it further.
My 3570k works well at a vcore of 1.114v under load, dropping to about 1.108v according to cpu-z, though this should be interpreted carefully depending on the version. Running Asus CPU-Z gives me the vcore, while MSI skin version shows VID, which means slightly different voltages for the CPU.
Karadjgne:
That's the main drawback of a fixed OC/vcore—it doesn't use EIST anymore, but that's not a big problem during idle loads; temperatures still drop significantly because of low CPU usage. With a fixed vcore, you can turn off EIST.
Each CPU behaves a bit differently when adjusting settings at OC, so you'll have to experiment with the parameters. Maybe add an offset or increase the vcore up to 1.20v or even lower it. My 3570k works well at vcore of 1.114v, but under load it drops to 1.108v according to cpu-z, though that should be taken with caution depending on the version.
If I run the Asus CPU-Z, it shows the vcore; if I use the MSI skin version, it gives me VID, which means slightly different voltages for the CPU.
My temperatures are not bad at all. I wasn't sure if it was okay to keep the clock speed high when it doesn't need it. I do notice that in offset mode, the vcore is around 0.9V, and I can only change the sign and the offset amount. I'm wondering if I might not be providing enough voltage...
Huh, your CPU vcore does drop under load? I thought the opposite would happen.
Nope. Vcore is the maximum you define, with offset adjusting the value. The CPU will draw as much as necessary. A high vcore gives more voltage headroom, but it doesn't guarantee actual usage. Adding LLC introduces vdroop (± baseline voltages), defining the acceptable range. If the CPU stays within that range, it runs smoothly; outside it triggers errors like nt_kernal or whea, causing shutdown. Higher vcore reduces the chance of going out of range, but only up to a point before performance drops.