"Stable" overclock, issues
"Stable" overclock, issues
Hello,
I recently increased the clock speed of my i5-4690K and am working on achieving stability. I tested AIDA64 for 10 minutes at 4.5GHz, 1.25V and everything worked perfectly. When I tried playing CSGO, the system froze and crashed almost immediately. This only occurred with games not using the source engine, while others ran smoothly, except for Starbound (with its server).
I also experimented with 1.35V and turned off c-states, but the problem persisted. Additionally, my PC experienced difficulties during cold starts after overclocking to 4.5GHz; it didn’t boot at all, required clearing the CMOS, restoring my profile, and then restarting. This was due to the RAM boot option being set to auto, which I corrected and now has no issues with cold boots.
I discovered my motherboard is a tier4 PSU (Thermaltake Smart series SE 530W). I then tried OCCT, which caused crashes at both 4.5GHz and 4.4GHz. I adjusted the settings to 4.2GHz with a CPU offset of +0.2V, and managed to run an automatic 1-minute test without any crashes.
I’ve read that voltage readings can be unreliable (e.g., -12V appearing as ~6V), which seems unusual. Could you confirm whether these results are acceptable or if there’s something else I should consider?
Reference: http://imgur.com/a/ch7C8
System details:
Gigabyte Z97X-SLI Rev 1.2 Bios ver F9
i5-4690K
Crucial Tactical Ballistix LP, XMP2, 2133MHz, (10-9-10-24), 1.5V (Tested and stable, overclocked)
Asus GTX-560TI DirectCUII Top 1GB 1.0375V (Tested and stable)
Crucial MX200 SSD, Firmware MU03
Seagate ST500LM000, Firmware SM16
On the charts, I notice the CPU temperature keeps increasing after the test finishes. What cooler do you have? How effective is your case ventilation? If you take off the case covers, does it make a difference? A Vcore of 1.30 seems to be the limit you're aiming for. It's possible you have just an average chip, so a max of around 4.2 might be your upper bound. People with golden chips often talk about higher overclocks, but those with dog chips tend to stay quiet. I see your RAM is already overclocked. I’d keep it at stock voltage; the extra RAM voltage needed for an overclock could reduce the CPU’s headroom. Haswell performance isn’t much affected by RAM speed. Read this: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7364/memor...on-haswell
run OCCT for stress testing, 5 minutes per test
It took 2 minutes and then a BSOD occurred.
These are the last 3 BSODs I encountered: Zippy
your overclock isn't stable; consider lowering the multiplier or increasing the voltage; try 4.4 ghz, 4.3 ghz, etc.
FPSUsername : azca :
run OCCT for stress testing, 5 minute on each test
It ran 2min and then BSOD occurred.
These are the last 3 BSOD I've seen: Zippy
On the charts, I notice the CPU temperature continues to increase after the test ends. What cooler are you using? How effective is your case ventilation? Removing the case covers might help. A Vcore of 1.30 is sufficient for your needs. It seems you likely have an average chip, so a maximum of around 4.2 might be your limit. People with golden chips often report higher overclocking, but those with dog chips tend to stay quiet. I see your RAM is already overclocked. I’d stick with stock speeds for now. The increased voltage needed for a RAM overclock could reduce the headroom for CPU overclocking. Haswell performance isn’t too sensitive to RAM speed.
Read this: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7364/memor...on-haswell
My setup includes the Bequiet SilentBase800 case and a Noctua NH-D14 cooler. Fan speeds are normal, and I use low-noise adapters.
Front fan speed around 600 RPM, back fan around 900 RPM, CPU fan at ~900 RPM.
I opened the front panel for better airflow; the GPU is quite loud (still no good replacement found).
Aida64 reported a max of 76°C with the case closed during CPU testing, running at 4.5GHz and 1.25V. This shouldn’t be a problem.
I plan to test with stock RAM speeds, XMP1 and XMP2 tomorrow.
azca :
your overclock isn't stable; consider lowering the multiplier or increasing the voltage. Try 4.4 ghz, 4.3 ghz, etc.
FPSUsername :
azca :
performed OCCT stress test for 5 minutes per run
each test lasted only 2 minutes before BSOD occurred
last three BSODs were: Zippy
note: cache is running at 3.9GHz, ring voltage 1.05V with +0.1 offset
i had mentioned earlier 4.2GHz at 1.3V (1.1V with +0.2 offset)
azca :
adjust to 4Ghz will boost it to 4.4Ghz.
Should I increase all cores to 4.4, or focus on core 0,1, 4.3 on core 2 and 4.2 on core 3?
PS: I’m curious about swapping my GPU for a more efficient one like the 970. Would that stabilize CPU overclocking? I have a 530W PSU with 80+ bronze certification.
This GPU isn’t really overclockable properly—I’ve managed 1GHz on core with 1.15V, which is better than many benchmarks that hit 1GHz at 1.075V. My GPU runs at 1.0625V by default, and I tweaked the BIOS to 1.0375V, giving rock solid stability.