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Overclocking... is it Really worth it?

CMQuickfireTK

Entry posted by CMQuickfireTK

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If you ask me, not really.

 

It's more of an epeen boost than anything imo.

 

Now, don't get me wrong, There are some benefits of Overclocking, but the increases vary quite a bit, and often times not enough to be worth it.

 

Before I jump in, I have 2 overclocked machines. an Intel core i5 2500k @ 4.6 GHz and an AMD 960T @ 4 Ghz. Do I need them overclocked? no I do not, I just choose to give them an overclock.

 

To start, These overclocks might be impressive... but they were not at all easy to get. It took A LONG TIME to get my 2500k stable at 4.6, under linux ofc. It definitely would have been easier to do under Windows... but that's not how I roll. Either way, the voltage I had to use was a wopping 1.375, and if my Cooler wasn't good enough, it would still be at stock.

 

My 960T, that is currently @ 4 GHz also running linux. It has a big potential of being a stable 6-core, and I could spend all of my time to get it stable. But It might not happen because It's already pretty snappy as a 4-core at it's current speed, only when it becomes compelling I'll do it.

 

Generally, it is not exactly a good idea to overclock under Linux ( or any *nix now that I think about it ), since linux and other *nixes are more sensitive to overclocks than a Windows machine would be.

 

Back in my Windows days, I had my 2500k Overclocked to 4.1 Ghz, and to be very honest, I saw little to no difference between that and stock. Then again I had a crappy board for it back then as well lol.

 

Well either way, Even though I do overclock, I don't exactly "Enjoy it" so much as I just simply do it. With that in mind, I have been speculating that for my next machine, I'll get either a locked i7 or an e3 xeon because they would be enough for my usage. And quite frankly, I love to have an excuse to make a new machine every couple of years lol. AMD is not out of the question, but at this point, I don't see them as a possibility.

 

Sorry for the extensive ... opinion, but I just thought I would share my opinion, thank you for reading.

 

happy clacking!

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MLPForums Phanact

You got a pretty bad CPU if it takes 1.375V for 4.6GHz.

 

I had that CPU to start with and I got a stable 4.5Ghz at 1.25V. My 3570K runs at 4.5GHz at the moment at 1.23V.

 

I assume the reason it took you so long to get stable was probably due to Vdroop issues or just a badly binned chip. I also don't see how the operating system could in anyway affect the stability of a GPU or CPU overclock. If you've done a bad overclock, it's not gonna be stable in windows, Linux or any other operating system. Hell, if you're overclock is terrible then your PC won't even get past POST.

 

Overclocking is a good thing if you know what you're doing. Those that don't should just not overclock or get a professional to do it for them.

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CMQuickfireTK

You got a pretty bad CPU if it takes 1.375V for 4.6GHz. I had that CPU to start with and I got a stable 4.5Ghz at 1.25V. My 3570K runs at 4.5GHz at the moment at 1.23V. I assume the reason it took you so long to get stable was probably due to Vdroop issues or just a badly binned chip. I also don't see how the operating system could in anyway affect the stability of a GPU or CPU overclock. If you've done a bad overclock, it's not gonna be stable in windows, Linux or any other operating system. Hell, if you're overclock is terrible then your PC won't even get past POST. Overclocking is a good thing if you know what you're doing. Those that don't should just not overclock or get a professional to do it for them.

 

eeeyeah, I kinda realized this ever since I started to OC it.

 

And of course you don't see how the OS can affect the stability of a CPU or GPU, you haven't OCed under linux, have you?

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MLPForums Phanact

I have OC'ed under Linux, Windows and Mac OS X (Hackintosh) and I found that all OS's were stable no matter what as long as the OC was stable on one of them.

 

If you're Overclocking through software in the OS itself then that's just poor practice. If you overclock in BIOS then it should not matter what OS you use as the OC will be unstable across them all.

 

Take a GPU for example, if you overclock the core to 1320Mhz using MSI Afterburner on Windows and it isn't stable, it will also not be stable at that clock under any other OS. It's a hardware limitation, the chip is just of a lower quality and it is irrelevant of the operating system.

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CMQuickfireTK

I have OC'ed under Linux, Windows and Mac OS X (Hackintosh) and I found that all OS's were stable no matter what as long as the OC was stable on one of them. If you're Overclocking through software in the OS itself then that's just poor practice. If you overclock in BIOS then it should not matter what OS you use as the OC will be unstable across them all. Take a GPU for example, if you overclock the core to 1320Mhz using MSI Afterburner on Windows and it isn't stable, it will also not be stable at that clock under any other OS. It's a hardware limitation, the chip is just of a lower quality and it is irrelevant of the operating system.

 

Ah alright. I was unaware, sorry for making an assumption. And ofc overclocking through software is poor practice, I do it on my bios and my bios only. Idk though, maybe I'm just not really impressed with overclocking, despite doing it. lol

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MLPForums Phanact

Don't apologise (: We all make mistakes, evidently you have some knowledge of Overclocking which is good. I've seen lots my friends try to overclock their CPU's through software and I just love hearing about how they fry their systems.

 

I'm quite impressed by overclocking as long as it is done correctly. It's all about increasing in incremental steps. A lot of first time overclockers go to the extreme and then work their way down to stability but it is much safer and better to work your way up to the lowest point of instability to find your highest OC.

 

I find GPU overclocking to be something that is a MUST whilst CPU overclocking is just because I can. My GTX 770 sits at 1320Mhz core and 7600Mhz memory which gives me an insanely high performance boost over stock clocks.

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Evilshy

After years of subpar computers, I always start at the minimum settings for everything and then increment up until it stops being stable/playable/etc. Then knock it back down a bit and decided if it's even worth it.

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