Hi allFirstly apologies if this is posted in the wrong forum.I will shortly be receiving a new PC specifically to run FSX and the much anticipated NGX see the spec shown below for further info.The system will have an Intel® Core™i7-2600 Quad Core (3.40GHz) which I believe I could safely overclock and as such I have three questions.1 - Is there actually any need for me to do any overclocking - ie would I see any substantial improvement in performance.2 - By overclocking do I substantially increase the risk of something failing.3 - Is overclocking straightforward for a non expert to achieve.I appreciate that performance is subjective and risk is relative but just wondered what others thought.Regards RogerRoger McNeill-----------------------System SpecificationsCOOLERMASTER SILEO 500 QUIET MID TOWER CASE Processor (CPU) Intel® Core™i7-2600 Quad Core (3.40GHz, 8MB Cache) + HD Graphics Motherboard ASUS® P8P67 (NEW REV 3.0): USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, CrossFireX™ Memory (RAM) 8GB SAMSUNG DDR3 DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB) Graphics Card 1.5GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 580 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - DX® 11, 3D Vision Ready 1st Hard Disk 500GB SERIAL ATA 3-Gb/s HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (7,200rpm) 2nd Hard Disk 500GB SERIAL ATA 3-Gb/s HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (7,200rpm) 3rd Hard Disk 120GB OCZ VERTEX 2 SERIES SSD, SATA 3 Gb/s (upto 285MB/sR | 275MB/sW) 4th Hard Disk 1TB SERIAL ATA 3-Gb/s HARD DRIVE WITH 16MB CACHE (7,200rpm)RAID 0 (STRIPED VOLUME - 2 x same size & model HDD / SSD) (£9) 1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM 2nd DVD/BLU-RAY Drive 4x BLU-RAY ROM DRIVE, 16x DVD ROM (£35) Power Supply CORSAIR 850W TX SERIES (TX850) 80+ ULTRA QUIET PSU (£99) Processor Cooling SUPER QUIET 22dBA TRIPLE COPPER HEATPIPE CPU COOLER (£19) Sound Card ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD) Network Facilities ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs -------------------

1 - Is there actually any need for me to do any overclocking - ie would I see any substantial improvement in performance.2 - By overclocking do I substantially increase the risk of something failing.3 - Is overclocking straightforward for a non expert to achieve.

Roger, (1) there is always need :-). you could run your system easily with 1 additional ghz. if you had a choice between 3.4 and 4.4ghz, which one do you think is faster and which one would you pick? you get the point.I said 'could' though since you mention the 2600 without a k, so not the 2600k. the k series are the easily overclockable because unlocked cpus. my 2500k runs at 4.5ghz with no hassles and just 2 changes in the bios. but I am not so sure how your 2600 (w/o k) may behave here. (2) usually not if you remain in the boundaries of safe operation, which is essentially the cpu temperature and voltage. some other know more about this than me.(3) I'd say yes if you ever entered a bios and have an enthusiast motherboard which easily lets you access the overclocking parts. and the necessary hardware, especially if it comes to adequate cooling. again, other can elaborate better on this topic but I managed to o/c mine thanks to my k-cpu and my great asus mobo. EDIT: I just see you have an asus p8p67 and so you should be safe here. maybe a bios upgrade would make sense though.

Make sure the cpu is the 2500k or 2600k. The non "k" versions can't really be overclocked. As for your questions:1. No need per se, but you can gain a good deal of performance.2.not too much. Look for a guide online. I can post a link to the one I used when I get home.3. Yes! The new Sandy Bridge chips are great for overclocking, and the process really isn't too difficult.

Like the others have said make sure that you have a 'k' preprocessor.Over-clocking with SB processors has never been easier, provided that you get the K.Unless you really want to be limited in your OC you definitely need a good CPU cooler. Also you may consider getting the i5-2500k if you can't afford the extra dough for the k version of the 2600. Once overclocked there isn't much difference between.Also make sure that your CPU has the ability to manual adjust vcore or cpu voltage. I got stung by this, luckily I was able to return mine.CheersCameron Stewart - Baker

Here is a good place to start http://www.clunk.org...-beginners.html I have mine clocked at 4.5 with plenty more to go. CPU at idle is 35 degrees, tops out at 55c when flying. The SB runs very cool. If you follow that link above, there is a little utillity you can download called RealTemp, and gives you accurate tempertures. . Good luck.

Overclocked I5 2500K >>>>>>> Overclocked I7 2600, so if you can, change that as already advised

Thanks everyone - advice much appreciatedanyone know how do I create a signature for my posts.Regards Roger