Is this overclock done?

[Alan_A 1,650]

...or nearly so?

 

Here's where I am after a day of trials:

 

-- De-lidded 3770k running at 4.9 GHz with vCore set at 1.3, and drawing 1.32 max (I'm in offset mode at the moment) in Prime 95, temps in the mid-60's with an occasional spike to 70, XSPC custom water-cooling

 

-- Asus P8Z77V-Pro mobo

 

-- 16 Gb (2 x 8) GSkill Trident RAM @ 2400, 10-12-12-31, set in XMP (yes, I know, overkill for FSX but 64-bit X-Plane 10 might enjoy it.

 

-- Passed OCCT 1-hour test, running well in Prime 95

 

-- All attempts to go to 5.0 GHz result in extreme instability. Temps don't change but lots of BSODs and Prime 95 crashes, even with vCore pushing toward 1.4.

 

 

So... am I there yet? What's worth trying? Maybe going out of offset and just locking in a vCore? Though I have to admit I like the idea of running in turbo mode and letting the voltages go down while the system idles. Will that harm FSX performance?

 

It'd be nice to get to 5.0 but it feels like there's a wall there... and frankly, I don't see where the extra 0.1 GHz is going to make a practical difference in FSX. That's more about bragging rights and the system runs so much more easily at 4.9 that I'm inclined to stay there.

 

Where would you go from here?

[ryanbatc 12,813]

I'd stick at 4.9 and be very happy with that.

[nmerced 94]

I call mine good at 4.8 for the same things you're experiencing.

[Alan_A 1,650]

Thanks - I may have spoken too soon - just got a Windows crash/reboot during an extended Prime 95 run. So I think I'll take it out of turbo/offset and up the voltage just slightly. I've always relied more on OCCT but I might as well try to get all the test scores to line up. Feels like it's close. Will let you know where it lands.

[Great Ozzie 101]

-- Passed OCCT 1-hour test, running well in Prime 95

 

You might want to think twice about using those tests for stress testing the 3770k...

 

See the below video what J.J. Guerrero from ASUS talks about at 3:55 (for the next min or so)

 

[Alan_A 1,650]

You might want to think twice about using those tests for stress testing the 3770k...

 

See the below video...

 

Whoa! News to me <stops OCCT, runs to download AIDA64>...

 

At least I'm operating in the recommended voltage range. Might even fall back to 4.8 on his recommendation, though 4.9 has a nicer ring to it...

 

Thanks for the heads up, and more to follow...

[Great Ozzie 101]

Thanks for the heads up, and more to follow...

 

Welcome Alan...

 

Yeah your volts sound fine as per his recommendation... hopefully something else in the video might help.

 

I've stopped @ 4.8 for now... the ASUS Suite got me there (very quickly) and I am content with it at the moment. If I got into water and was able to chill the radiator I think I would push harder.

[Alan_A 1,650]

Well, it seems the water cooling has gotten me an extra 0.1 GHz... I've read elsewhere that there are problems getting Ivy to 5.0. The issues don't have to do with temperature, it's more about the chip or the motherboard or the two in combination. My temps were fine at 5.0 but I couldn't get the thing stable no matter where I put the voltage.

 

Of course, water cooling has other advantages for me, like low noise, low exhaust temperatures into the room, fewer problems with dust in the case... plus, of course, the enjoyment (well, not always, but sometimes) of building my first custom water cooling loop. Sometimes I think it's the under-the-hood time that appeals to me more than the flying, but that might just be the phase I'm going through at the moment.

 

Am now rolling along in AIDA64, temps in the low- to mid-60's, all turbo options off...

[TechguyMaxC 516]

Man,I run 1.5V for 4.9GHz. If I had your chip I'd be at 5.0 or 5.1 GHz.

[Alan_A 1,650]

Man,I run 1.5V for 4.9GHz. If I had your chip I'd be at 5.0 or 5.1 GHz.

 

The surprising thing is that this particular batch wasn't supposed to have been all that good (I forget the batch number, but it's a recent run from Costa Rica that Microcenter was discounting heavily.

 

I'd be willing to throw 1.5 at it. But the thing is, when I pushed from 4.9 to 5.0, the system became hugely unstable. BSODs, Windows crashes, Prime95 crashes... Like I said, I was getting the voltage up toward 1.4 and it didn't seem to help. Temps were fine - not much different from 4.9 - but the thing just wouldn't settle. So rather than push harder, it began to seem to me that 4.9 was a kind of sweet spot - it just seemed nice to run in the low 1.3V's and have temperatures sitting in the mid-60's and just be 0.1 GHz short of target. Sort of like the pain was telling me something. Unless inspiration really strikes, I'm likely to stay there.

 

In that spirit - I'm thinking of re-enabling Speedstep and C1E to get it to idle at a lower setting. I gather that some people are doing that, though they don't seem to be the majority, at least that I can tell. What do you think?

 

Oh, update at 9:45 p.m. EST - still running nicely, past 4 hours of AIDA64. So far, so good...

[TechguyMaxC 516]

Ivy Bridge gets very hungry for voltage towards the top end of its overclocking range. I found going from 4.8 to 4.9 on my chip required a full tenth of a volt (.10) increase.

[Alan_A 1,650]

I know this has been debated here before, but... do you find that the gain in FSX performance is worth the extra voltage/heat/wear and tear?

[Paul J 349]

Really a rhetorical question, Alan. It depends on what you want out of the sim, the proc, what alternative there is, your time, life priorities, and how much money you have.

 

All of the i7-9xx series procs have a heat "issue" when pushed - most stopping just shy of 4.5, and starting to get hot. This is comfortable for "not too much" in the way of bad weather, "not too much traffic", low-res clouds, low LOD, that sort of thing. It's not too bad, the frames fluctuate - won't HOLD 30fps when the going gets tough. If you are broke - then there aren't any alternatives, are there? But it was the best you had seen when you did the overclock, so it was worth it.

 

If you have an i7-26- 2700K and a gpu tp match, then life is good. The proc o/c's easily and keeps it's cool, and it will manage all of the above - especially using DX10.

As far as "extra wear and tear" - how does one quantify this? My proc is now 21 months old, at 4.9 gig with scarcely a whimper of pain, and, with a new GPU coming sometime in the next coupla months, I'm expecting it will continue until the next real procs come out. As that happens only once every three-four years, I don't think it will die an early death.

 

The experience and then the pleasure gained with the Core2Duo was worth it, and my wife now uses it. It's still kicking. The experience and pleasure gained from the i7-950 struggling up to 4.48 was very worth pushing that one as far as I could. It gave a good grounding for realizing just how great the 2600K- 2700K procs are. These do everything without even getting a sunburn!

 

It's all hindsight looking back, and a gamble "moving forward"!

 

:lol:

[Fatback 84]

3770 at 4.9? Yeah, I'd say it's done. I had a problem with my H100 cooler so had to bring down my OC to 4.2 until I got the replacement. I was surprised at how well everything ran at 4.2, and even more pleasantly surprised at how well it ran at 4.8 once I got the new H100. Another Ghz will do very little and you're rocking now, or should be, so leave it be. You're good!!!!

[Alan_A 1,650]

Really a rhetorical question, Alan.

 

Well, it could be rhetorical... and I know exactly what you mean, based on past experiences (interestingly, my i7-980x maxxed out at 4.48, and I had exactly the performance and the limitations you describe). But I also had a specific practical question: what kind of performance enhancement can I expect if I try to go from 4.9 to 5.0 or 5.1 ghz on the 3770k? It looks like I'll need a lot more voltage to get there and I'm frankly doubtful that the heat, wear and tear will be worth it. Getting to 4.9 for a fraction of the effort seems like the best place to be. Of course, I suppose I could ramp up and try - a brief run at 1.5 VCore probably won't kill me or the processor. If I get my courage up (or, conversely, lose my judgment), I'll report back... B)

 

3770 at 4.9? Yeah, I'd say it's done. I had a problem with my H100 cooler so had to bring down my OC to 4.2 until I got the replacement. I was surprised at how well everything ran at 4.2, and even more pleasantly surprised at how well it ran at 4.8 once I got the new H100. Another Ghz will do very little and you're rocking now, or should be, so leave it be. You're good!!!!

 

See, that's where I'm coming out. I could be wrong, but it doesn't seem likely to me that the additional 0.1 ghz is going to make that much of a difference.

 

It depends on what you want out of the sim, the proc, what alternative there is, your time, life priorities, and how much money you have.

 

Good insight that actually extends beyond questions about hardware - as I've stated elsewhere, I'm trying to keep the install very lean and simple this time, avoiding, for example, add-ons that include animated blades of grass and hordes of zombies marching around (not that I mean any add-on in particular...) I think it may be possible to bias the sim toward better performance... at least if I can keep my personal demons in check. It's always so easy to cross that line and just add one more airport with one more feature...

 

If I really valued my time, I probably would have bought a system from a custom builder. I've had easy builds in the past but on this one, Murphy's Law caught up to me. It's been a long, drawn-out challenge. I hope to get flying again, maybe, sometime soon...