Request assistance with adjusting the CPU voltage settings for MSi 450 + 3700x.
Request assistance with adjusting the CPU voltage settings for MSi 450 + 3700x.
I just finished assembling my initial AMD build and everything went well, but the CPU voltages are fluctuating a lot. I’m looking for some guidance to stabilize it. It’s mainly used for all-use tasks, video rendering, and Photoshop—no gaming. The system runs MSI B450I Gaming Plus AC (ITX), with a Ryzen 3700X, 2x16GB Corsair 3200MHz RAM, and a Noctua NH-L9A-AM4 cooler.
I noticed the BIOS was outdated—almost like a 2009 version instead of the 2019 update. After flashing to the latest (7A40vAB), it still didn’t fix the issue. I found out it was caused by memory limits on my motherboard, and newer compatibility forced them to revert from Click 5 BIOS to an older Click GSE Lite version. That makes sense. Running stock with XMP enabled would have let RAM run at full 3200MHz, which seemed fine before.
However, in MSI Afterburner I saw the temperatures swinging a lot even when CPU load was minimal. Using CPU-Z confirmed the voltage readings were inconsistent—ranging from 0.25V to 1.41V. When I put some stress with Cinebench R20, it spiked to around 1.44V @ 4300MHz for a few seconds, then dropped to 1.29V @ 4000MHz, reaching a final score of 4770. The temps jumped from about 74°C to 84°C. This was very unstable, especially since the cooler is small and the case is ITX.
Is there a way to cap the voltage at something like 1.2V? In BIOS under Overclocking it shows: CPU Core Voltage: 1.472V, CPU NB/SoC Voltage: 1097V. If I try to change it, the options are limited—Override Mode, CPU Offset, etc. The available settings don’t seem sufficient for a stable run.
Honestly, just set your CPU to stock and let it handle the voltages, clock speeds, and all the details for you. If you lower the voltage manually, performance will drop. Locking the clock speed manually reduces performance unless you're using specific workloads. The temperature changes naturally—it's built that way. It includes a boost feature that boosts performance at cooler temps until it overheats and slows down. For extra speed, you can overclock your infinity fabric and memory, with detailed instructions available. Your CPU voltages are fine at the default setting.
Thanks for the response. It seems the main clock isn't adjustable, even if you tried. The Click GSE Lite BIOS appears to have restrictions, and the CPU and fan speeds are fixed and can't be modified.
I agreed and reached out to MSI support to try managing the power, since it's too loud when idle but should remain quiet. Their response will be shared here if anyone else faces the same problem.
Check the board. I suggest Asus Rog B450-I Gaming as a top choice for replacement. The best ITX option you can afford. Comes with built-in Blue Tooth and Wi-Fi. Features vibrant color effects. Fully unlocked with packed features like SenseMi Skew and offset. Plus, ROG style.
Yea. You and me .... same idea My gaming PC has an Asus Strix X99 with an i7-6850 which I overclocked no problem. (4.7Mhz stable, 4.3Mhz for daily use) I only went for the MSI as the ASUS B450 boards were trashed in the Motherboard Tier List thread and MSI recommended instead. Here's the follow-up from MSI Support. I contacted them with the subject " How to control Multiplier and voltage of CPU " explaining that the voltage was all over the place and I looked all through the bios and couldn't see where the options were for me to OC/UC it myself. Their reply was: Thanks for contacting MSI technical support. Regarding your concern, we are sorry, but would you please adjust the options CPU ratio and CPU voltage in BIOS for a try? Like ... yea? So I replied saying that's what I wanted to do and asked them how to do that in the their Lite BIOS as I couldn't see where the settings were. They replied: We are sorry, can you find them in BIOS-->Overclocking? ... 5 minutes later and I had an RMA to Amazon and a new ASUS ROG Strix B450-I Gaming on its way (comes today ..wooo )
I don't like MSI much. They've been known for using low-quality parts, especially on Am2 and AM3 boards—my brother rebuilt the same one three times. Now I own it. Just don't try to modify it yourself...
I received the Asus board today and managed to switch it over in just a few hours. It was functioning smoothly even during the stock setup, running quieter and managing voltages better than the MSI model. After a quick BIOS update, I navigated through the settings and within five minutes it matched my expectations. I set it to 3.6Mhz with 1.1V RAM, auto-voltage at 3200Mhz, delivering 65W maxed out at 21W idle. The Cinibench R20 scored a 4200, which is still 34% faster than my gaming PC's 4.3Ghz i7-6850. I further optimized it by tweaking the CPU and chassis fans to manual settings during another BIOS run. It’s now extremely quiet—especially impressive for an ITX case. It only increases speed when a CPU load is applied, but then it settles down quickly. Really happy with this upgrade! Thanks for your assistance.
In Click BIOS 5, after entering override mode for "Auto," clicking + or - begins modifying the value and shifts control away from "Auto."