Overclocking advice?

[Thorax_the_Impaler]

Hello everyone! And thanks in advance for your answers.


Overclocking has always caught my attention, and I've decided I'd like to get into it. Being that I have never even attempted it, I was wondering where I should start? My initial thinking was to practice on a test PC of some sort, something I could afford to lose. But, I know very little about overclocking and I hoping some experienced overclockers could give me some advice. So guys, where should I start? And thanks again for your time and answers!

 

[PP Mguire]

All sarcasm and dickish commenting aside:
Google

You can find some serious guides and Youtube videos by simply Googling for the setup you want to overclock.

For some basics:
CPU and motherboard have to support multiplier or FSB raising
Motherboard has to have sufficient power phases to handle the extra load
Motherboard has to support voltage increase to CPU core for stability
RAM divider or speed manipulator has to be present for any FSB overclocking
Power supply has to be decent (a given)
Cooling has to be above stock to be safe.

By motherboard supporting overclocking, the bios has to have options available to raise FSB or CPU multiplier (for supporting CPUs), and voltage adjustment at the minimum.

It's really not hard at all. Raise a few numbers and stress test to check for stability and make sure temps don't get too high. The only hard part about OCing is memorizing CPU size for voltage limits, where you might meet a wall, max temps for each chip, and how to know what volts to raise to achieve stability.

 

[Thorax_the_Impaler]

All sarcasm and dickish commenting aside:
Google

You can find some serious guides and Youtube videos by simply Googling for the setup you want to overclock.

For some basics:
CPU and motherboard have to support multiplier or FSB raising
Motherboard has to have sufficient power phases to handle the extra load
Motherboard has to support voltage increase to CPU core for stability
RAM divider or speed manipulator has to be present for any FSB overclocking
Power supply has to be decent (a given)
Cooling has to be above stock to be safe.

By motherboard supporting overclocking, the bios has to have options available to raise FSB or CPU multiplier (for supporting CPUs), and voltage adjustment at the minimum.

It's really not hard at all. Raise a few numbers and stress test to check for stability and make sure temps don't get too high. The only hard part about OCing is memorizing CPU size for voltage limits, where you might meet a wall, max temps for each chip, and how to know what volts to raise to achieve stability.

I don't suppose you could create a rule of thumb for each individual setup? Like raise the clock X high and up the voltage by Y? Or is it more a gamble of odds since nothing in life is ever that easy? Lol

 

[PP Mguire]

That's the thing, each individual setup will have its own tolerances due to every hardware setup being different. Even two completely identical setups down to the cables can OC differently. It's up to the overclocker to figure this out.

 

[Thorax_the_Impaler]

That's the thing, each individual setup will have its own tolerances due to every hardware setup being different. Even two completely identical setups down to the cables can OC differently. It's up to the overclocker to figure this out.

Sounds like fun to me; I kinda figured that would be the case.

 

[Ben Derhover]

Thorax some chips are unlocked...... others are not. Intel has their method of over clocking and so does AMD. If you plan to overclock....... you should take some time familiarizing yourself with ins and outs.