Overclocking

[The Bard]

Howdy peeps. I got a new PC about eight months ago with an i5 2500k, and overclocked it to 4.5ghz. Ran fine for a while, but somewhere along the line about a month ago, it reset itself to 3.3ghz. Now, every time I set it to a higher clock speed (which, believe me, is necessary to get the most out of my 7870), after a couple of days of it running just fine, I turn it on to a boot loop.

Essentially what happens is it makes a sound as if its going to start up for a couple of seconds (nothing happens on screen) and then boots down again, and this repeats infinitely unless I unplug it from the back. I've had to reset the thing from CMOS a couple of times.

So what's wrong with the damn thing? I'm thinking there might be something in the BIOS settings that I didn't quite get right when I OC'd it. Or maybe it's the PSU itself (a 700W Xigmatic).

Any suggestions?

[Sheikah]

Originally Posted by The Bard

Howdy peeps. I got a new PC about eight months ago with an i5 2500k, and overclocked it to 4.5ghz. Ran fine for a while, but somewhere along the line about a month ago, it reset itself to 3.3ghz. Now, every time I set it to a higher clock speed (which, believe me, is necessary to get the most out of my 7870), after a couple of days of it running just fine, I turn it on to a boot loop.

Essentially what happens is it makes a sound as if its going to start up for a couple of seconds (nothing happens on screen) and then boots down again, and this repeats infinitely unless I unplug it from the back. I've had to reset the thing from CMOS a couple of times.

So what's wrong with the damn thing? I'm thinking there might be something in the BIOS settings that I didn't quite get right when I OC'd it. Or maybe it's the PSU itself (a 700W Xigmatic).

Any suggestions?

Hey, I recently got a pretty similar setup about a week ago (i5 ivy, 7850 twin frozr) and overclocked it so might be able to help.

Did you try update your BIOS? Sometimes updated versions may be better at handling overclocking. You could also try search your exact motherboard model plus the term overclocking and see what settings people tend to use, that's what I did for my Asrock Z77 Extreme4.

Important thing to check would be PSU cooler - if it's possible to boot after doing a milder overclock, run Prime95 and see whether your processor is pushing 85C+.

Maybe also check nothing came loose in your case (or cables). Seems to be the most common cause for things, I scratched my head for a while after setting my PC up before realising my GPU wasn't slotted all the way down. Power supply leads like to slip out now and again if I move my PC about too vigorously because I made my wires pretty taut to avoid clutter.

One thing that tends to happen while not running anything intensive is that the clock speed reverts to something low to lower power consumption. Prime95 would show you that anyhow by pushing your PC so you'll see your actual current clock rate.

I should imagine a 700W PSU should be fine (same as me), but yeah I have never heard of that brand. Although surely an overclock does not consume too much more power? If it works with a base clock processor then that's odd.

[The Bard]

Yeah, my BIOS is the latest version, and I just did voltage and temperature checks while running a stress test. Cores 2 and 3 were running at around 81 degrees max on full load which isn't good. I assume that's the problem since Load Line Calibration's been enabled and that's probably what's telling the PC not to boot until I flash the BIOS.

What kind of cooling equipment do you have for your CPU? Cause all I've got is a Thermaltake Frio cooling fan. Pretty hefty, but probably not enough considering the temperatures I'm getting.

[Sheikah]

Hmm that fan should be sufficient, I have the CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Evo which is fairly similar in performance to yours. Your temperatures shouldn't really be that high for a 4.5GHz clock on a 2500K, although 81C is still passable. The Noctua NH-D14 is supposed to be a big step up in terms of fan cooling but it is a huge beast, probably best to check dimensions of it with your case before purchasing.

Check you haven't upped voltage too much when overclocking your processor, that can cause serious overheating. Also you can change LLC from 1 to 5, so perhaps you're on the best setting.

[The Bard]

Originally Posted by Sheikah

Hmm that fan should be sufficient, I have the CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Evo which is fairly similar in performance to yours. Your temperatures shouldn't really be that high for a 4.5GHz clock on a 2500K, although 81C is still passable. The Noctua NH-D14 is supposed to be a big step up in terms of fan cooling but it is a huge beast, probably best to check dimensions of it with your case before purchasing.

Check you haven't upped voltage too much when overclocking your processor, that can cause serious overheating. Also you can change LLC from 1 to 5, so perhaps you're on the best setting.

Yeah they don't get that high at all with something like Battlefield 3 or Crysis 2 (stick to around 61-71 at highest), but when I run the Intel Burn Test, which puts a full 100% load on each of the four cores, the temperatures start getting to 80-85 degrees.

I don't have ordinary vcore settings on my BIOS either, it's something called dynamic vcore, which I think (having done about half an hours worth of searching, and still finding nothing but vagaries) sets the upper maximum range of your voltage, while reducing it when there's less performance demand.

If the system does the boot loop again, I think I'm going to set aside a day and do some proper research, but it's gotten to the point where I've left my case open for easier access to the CMOS reset. Oddly though, I kinda like this aspect of PC gaming...it's sort of a meta-game in itself; get the damn thing to function properly

[Sheikah]

It might be worth trying torture tests in Prime95 if it's less stressful than the Intel test, yet will still probably be higher than anything games will throw at you.
At 4.2GHz my Ivy i5 3570K was getting to the mid 70s which I think is probably ok, so long as it stabilises.

Some motherboards have a Dr Debug or similar, basically an LED with 2 digits that can tell you what is wrong with your system. If you have that (newer mobos often do) it'd be worth checking it when it starts looping.

[joecamera]

You'd want to make sure you get extra or upgraded cooling before overclocking as it will generate a lot more heat.

[Sheikah]

Yeah I should note my case has 4 fans in it on top of the PSU cooler.

[The Bard]

Any advice on what fans would be a good idea to give a look?

[Sheikah]

I bought 2 x Antec Tricool 120mm fans to go with the 2 fans already installed in my Antec three hundred two case (already comes with a 1x 120mm and a 1x 140mm Antec TwoCool exhaust fan). The fans I bought seemed pretty well reviewed and could also be switched between 3 intensities, which is a plus.

I think the case also makes a difference, since I've basically got a mesh grid at the front where I put my two purchased Tricool fans as inward fans to take in air. And I have sort of meshed square openings where fans can be positioned inside the case (see image below) and also positioned where the two pre-installed case fans are. I picked up my case for about £50 and it has a pretty airy design, might help if your case isn't great for air circulation.

[Caris]

I haven't read through all the posts but do you have good quality thermal paste that, no offence but is correctly applied? It makes a high difference.

[Rummy]

I don't understand a single bit of this thread, but I find myself strangely aroused by it.

[MoogleViper]

Originally Posted by Rummy

I don't understand a single bit of this thread, but I find myself strangely aroused by it.

Bitch made his computer run faster than normal, now he's whining about some punk-ass problems.

[Mokong X-C]

Originally Posted by Caris

I haven't read through all the posts but do you have good quality thermal paste that, no offence but is correctly applied? It makes a high difference.

Reading down the thread I was about to say the same thing, it's one small thing that is easily overlooked that can make a world of difference.

Cable management also, again easily over looked but if you got cables all over the place it can seriously hinder airflow.

And has been suggested some extra case fans could come in handy.


Or if you got the extra cash you could think about a liquid cooling system

[Shorty]

Originally Posted by Mokong X-C

Cable management also, again easily over looked but if you got cables all over the place it can seriously hinder airflow.

If you have this problem I can definitely recommend a modular PSU. That way you only have the cables you need and you can get them long/short enough to pin down/tuck away.

[Sheikah]

Yep. Got one myself, pretty cool. Also some cases have an inner chamber with holes to thread cables through, so you effectively don't see much of them.

[The Bard]

Hey @Sheikah! Sorry to bug you again, but I just got around to fixing this problem . Got one of the twocool fans for my exhaust and am about to buy a side mounted fan as well, but I'm too lazy to check for myself whether it should be an intake or an exhaust fan. Any pointers?

[Sheikah]

Intake is usually best for side case fans. Then exhaust at the top/back of your case.

[The Bard]

Sweet. Of course, this will mean that there's only one exhaust fan in the machine excluding the PSU exhaust, but I'll see how it works. Hoping to get the machine 5 degrees cooler at least. Might have to stick the side fan on the outside of the rig