# Overclocking problems



## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

Well... I may have done it this time.

I felt a little too confident and tried overclocking my system manually in the UEFI bios :whistling:

I set the target CPU clock speed to 4.0 GHz and the RAM clock speed to 2.4 GHz :facepalm:

I then used the ASUS OC tune find the right voltages for this to work. The Machine proceeded to Rev-up the fans several times, but never actually booted or displayed anything on the monitor.

What did I manage to do? :banghead:

System Information:

Fractal Design Arc Mini Black High Performance PC Computer Case w/ USB 3.0 and 3 Fractal Design Silent Fans - Newegg.com

ASUS Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk Black - Newegg.com

Seagate Barracuda ST500DM002 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - Newegg.com

ASUS F2A55-M LK PLUS FM2 AMD A55 (Hudson D2) Micro ATX AMD Motherboard with UEFI BIOS - Newegg.com

SeaSonic S12II 620 Bronze 620W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Newegg.com

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL - Newegg.com

Newegg.com - AMD Athlon X4 750K Trinity 3.4GHz Socket FM2 100W Quad-Core Desktop Processor - Black Edition AD750KWOHJBOX

ASUS HD7770-DC-1GD5-V2 Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card - Newegg.com


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## Johnny1982 (Oct 15, 2010)

Ram clock speed is set too high for PC to boot. I'd remove the CMOS battery for a few minutes to reset the settings. Do you have an aftermarket heatsink and fan?

Overclocking a 3,4Ghz CPU is not really necessary and you see little benefit other than benchmarks. I did mine just as a hobby (3,2ghz CPU @ 4,10ghz)


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

I want to OC the CPU for the same reason you OCed yours. I will try the CMOS reset in the morning (I should have thought to do that immediately). I am using the Cooler Master 212 Evo (with their crummy thermal paste). I will get back to you soon


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## Johnny1982 (Oct 15, 2010)

I used Zalman ZM-STG1 thermal paste that I brushed on the heatsink between the grooves of the direct copper pipes and smoothed off with a credit card then applied a thin layer atop the CPU. I have the CM Hyper 212+ cooler. Mine never goes over 60c.


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

Funny, mine idles at 50 degrees Celcius...

Well that is what HWmonitor says. Bios says 32 degrees


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

No performance benefits will be seen, other than in benchmarks, OC'ing a 3.4GHz CPU.
If you want to OC, get an aftermarket CPU heatsink/fan and stop trying to use the Mobo software. OC'ing should only be done manually.


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

I do have an aftermarket heatsink and fan, and I set the clock speeds manually


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## Johnny1982 (Oct 15, 2010)

jengelhart said:


> Funny, mine idles at 50 degrees Celcius...
> 
> Well that is what HWmonitor says. Bios says 32 degrees


Try using CoreTemp for monitoring temps, that's what I got on now.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

The Bios is commonly the most accurate source for Temps & Voltages.


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

I want to make a point about the whole "Don't overclock, you wont see a benefit! or, Don't do SLI, you wont see a benefit!" sentiment. While it is often true that not much benefit will be seen, and that it is not reasonable, there is something else to consider: If we were all reasonable, and did only things that were necessary, where would the fun in computing be? People OC not because it is useful, but because it is a fun challange. People do quad-SLI Titan builds not because it is useful, but because they CAN!


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

Anyways... CMOS Reset worked! I got the CPU frequency to 4.2 GHz easily. It idles at 55 degrees celcius though. Is that safe?


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

Not if it's accurate. If it idles at 55, then it will likely hit the 70s or higher when stressed. What does system BIOS show?

Run something like Prime95 or a benchmarking program for an hour or two. If the system stays stable and doesn't melt down, you may then count your overclock as valid.


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

Running Prime95 for a few minutes it hit 80 max, which is OK... right?


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

74c is the absolute maximum recommended temperature for 750k with a maximum recommended CPU voltage of 1.55v.

You really need to confirm the accuracy of whatever software you are using to read the temps. Even with a maximum overclock, 55C at idle is entirely too high, especially seeing as you're using the 212EVO (or any decent aftermarket cooler). If the software is accurate, then the cooler is installed incorrectly.

By the way 'a few minutes' of Prime95 tells you little. It needs to run error freefor a several hours before you can say you have a 'good' overclock.


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

Well, I do not know if HW monitor is correct. The problem is that I cannot stress the machine and be in the BIOS at the same time. I am happy to un-OC if need be. What should I do?


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

Did I not go through this with you once before?

Compare the readings from within system BIOS to those from your monitoring application while the PC is idling at the Windows desktop. The two readings should be similar. If not, find a different application.

Once you have your monitoring app calibrated (at idle) with system BIOS, you can be reasonably assured it is accurate at all temps, but if it is in left field at idle, it'll be out of the park when the pc comes under load.


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## jengelhart (Mar 22, 2013)

alright I will do this tomorrow thank you and sorry for not paying closer attention


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## Johnny1982 (Oct 15, 2010)

What I did with my Coretemp to get an accurate reading was to first check bios temps and compare it to Coretemp under idle condition. I had to "adjust offset" in Coretemp by -10 to get the same reading as the Bios. Now mine reads accurately. I agree with your Post #10 and I also overclock because I can and I've seen benefits whilst converting a video file, so it has its perks as well.


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

You may do this with Coretemp; and I believe Speedfan has a calibrate procedure also. HWMonitor has no such option. 

By the way, there should be a fairly accurate monitoring app included in the bundled software package which shipped with the motherboard.


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## Johnny1982 (Oct 15, 2010)

gcavan said:


> By the way, there should be a fairly accurate monitoring app included in the bundled software package which shipped with the motherboard.


Jip, I confirmed idle and load temps with the bundled software too, EasyTune6.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

always have multiple temp monitoring apps but always trust the BIOS over them all.

AMD CPUs generally have a lower max temp than Intel CPUs and remember Tcase is not the max temp. The Max temp is usually 10 degrees or a bit more hotter than the Tcase but it is always wise to never get hotter than the Tcase

For example my i2500k Tcase is 72.2 I have it overclocked to 4.5 my max temp in winter with all the heating on in the house is 69. This is the sort of temp you should aim for with Intels. With AMD I would want mid 60s.


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