What is the limitation?
What is the limitation?
I assembled my initial machine 5 days ago using an MSI Z97 PC Mate and an I5 4690K processor, paired with the Hyper 212 Evo cooling. My expectations were around 4.4 to 4.5 watts, but I’m currently achieving about 4.2 at roughly 1.3 and 4.3 near 1.35. What’s the cause? Could it be insufficient power phases or simply a bad silicon draw? I’m only using around 58 watts at 4.2 and about 63 at 4.3. I’m still using integrated graphics until March. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
I believe the standard chip was drawn in the bin lottery.
The key constraint is the amount of vcore needed to operate a specific multiplier.
4.2 @1.30 vcore seems to be the optimal setting.
Higher numbers are mentioned, but only by players with golden chips.
Those who have dogs remain quiet.
Typically, it comes down to the location and type of fab unit that produced your I5 CPU. Additionally, the quality of the silicone substrate during the building-up, shaping, and etching stages plays a significant role. If you notice rapid heat buildup, especially with voltage fluctuations, and you’re confident your system has a reliable air cooler and a solid motherboard, then the answer lies in the specific fab facility and the silicone wafer batch or quality used.
You could potentially squeeze out a bit more performance, but as turkey3_scratch mentioned, it's a budget build so results won't be huge. Honestly, a 4.3GHz to 4.5GHz clock speed offers only around a 4% to 5% improvement, which isn't much. You might also face constraints from the VRMs or a modest CPU, but other factors could play a role too.
I believe the standard chip was drawn in the bin lottery.
The key constraint is the amount of vcore needed to operate a specific multiplier.
4.2 @1.30 vcore seems to be the optimal setting.
Higher numbers are mentioned, but only by players with golden chips.
Those who have dogs remain quiet.
I believe you picked up a regular chip in the bin lottery. The key point is how much vcore is needed to run a specific multiplier. At 4.2 Ghz, 1.30 vcore seems to be sufficient. Higher numbers are mentioned by people with golden chips, but those who have dogs remain quiet. After researching my setup, I found 1.14 volts at 4.2 Ghz and 1.33 at the same frequency, suggesting my chip is decent. Still, I’m unsure if it’s the chip or the motherboard, as opinions seem divided.