Solving BSOD Memory Issues Following Overclocking
Solving BSOD Memory Issues Following Overclocking
I increased my i5-7600k to 4.8GHz at 1.3 volts without any issues. The system ran smoothly throughout, maintaining good temperatures. I spent time watching videos and doing regular tasks. Under stress testing with CPU-Z, I played several games for hours. The issue began when I started playing Escape From Tarkov, which caused three crashes.
The initial error message was “attempted to execute non executable memory.” The second message wasn’t clear, but the third indicated a “page fault in nonpaged area.” Most of the information pointed toward RAM problems. Since Tarkov requires significant RAM, I expected some room for errors.
I had XMP enabled, but didn’t adjust any RAM settings manually during the overclock. My CPU knowledge is limited—just basic voltage and temperature settings. If RAM-related issues arise, I’m unsure where to begin.
If things go wrong, I’ll revert to using game boost for my auto-overclock, hoping to gain a bit more performance. I’ll share photos of my BIOS settings later.
Here’s the link: https://imgur.com/a/v9QA7u8
View: https://imgur.com/a/v9QA7u8
I also have mismatched brand and capacity RAM. It’s not ideal, but I’ve only experienced one blue screen during normal use over the past two years, except for that last overclock attempt.
I shared my experience on Reddit and received one suggestion: replace the 4GB sticks. I’d rather settle for near-perfect stability at a lower overclock than risk losing 8GB of RAM.
Underclock the RAM, raise its voltage to 1.4-1.5, and turn off features like XMP or anything that tightens the RAM's performance. Check if the game crashes persist after these changes. If it does, it might be a game issue rather than an overclocking problem. I wouldn't suggest auto-overclocking because it can raise voltage too high. If your temperatures are within limits, you could try pushing 7600k to 5ghz as long as it stays under 85°C, but I don't recommend it.
Mismatched memory increases the challenge for the memory controller. Even with identical first-tier timings, variations in second, third, and tertiary tiers/voltages can occur. Stability is only assured when memory sets are matched and sold together by manufacturers. Different batches might have minor differences that affect performance under higher loads. Pushing the system further reduces these chances of stability. It’s advisable to revert to more conservative settings and verify stability again.
I went back to the lower overclock with game boost and used it for hours without issues. However, when I started the Escape From Tarkov launcher, my computer crashed immediately. The error displayed was “kernel security check failure.” Many online sources now point to a RAM issue. After running the memory diagnostic, everything showed zero errors. (This advice came from someone who believed the game was responsible too.) Could it really be the game causing the problem? Since this was my first crash after the last major update, it feels like a strange coincidence.
Underclock the RAM, raise its voltage to 1.4-1.5, and turn off features like XMP or anything that tightens the RAM's performance. Check if escaping from Tarkov still causes crashes; if so, it’s likely a game issue. I wouldn’t suggest auto-overclocking because it raises voltage too much, but if your temperatures are normal, pushing 7600k to 5GHz is possible as long as it stays under 85°C. However, I don’t recommend it.
I crashed in another game and received an error suggesting a possible driver issue after reviewing device manager updates the previous night. Now I completely reinstalled Windows and have played several hours without any crashes. It might have been a bad idea, but it seems to be improving. Plus, I installed it on my SSD, which I had been delaying for some time.