• Competitor rules

    Please remember that any mention of competitors, hinting at competitors or offering to provide details of competitors will result in an account suspension. The full rules can be found under the 'Terms and Rules' link in the bottom right corner of your screen. Just don't mention competitors in any way, shape or form and you'll be OK.

*** AMD "Zen" thread (inc AM4/APU discussion) ***

Overclocking:

  • AMD R7 1800X 4041MHz 100MHz x 40.5
  • AMD R7 1700X 3991MHz 100MHz x 40
  • AMD R7 1700 4091MHz 100MHz x 41
AMD's overclocking guidance suggests that the majority of processors should reach a 4.2GHz overclock. I am not sure if that is by disabling SMT or parking cores to get a higher overall clock speed. The R7 1800X already has a factory boost clock speed of up to 4.1GHz using XFR to improve performance in less intense workloads, so that is my starting point for all three of these processors. There are a couple ways to get the most out of AMD's Ryzen R7 processors and it, of course, starts with keeping them cool. Using a good, solid cooling package will allow you to get the most performance possible out of the Summit Ridge silicon. To start, AMD's guidance on voltage is that 1.35v to 1.45v is the area where a good, long term overclock should be sustainable. Although at the top end of that voltage range we get the warning that using voltages on the high end may come with the consequence of reduced longevity. Same story with each processor we see. Working with the Gigabyte X370 Gaming, I found that each of these three processors ended up in the same general ballpark as far as maximum clock speed is concerned. The only one that came close to the 4.2GHz "majority" clock speed was, surprisingly, the 65W TDP R7 1700!

Method One for overclocking is by using AMD's Ryzen Master Overclocking Tool. This tool is specifically built to allow the end user to tweak the core clock speed via multiplier of base clock speed. One can adjust the voltage, tweak the memory settings, or use one of the four preset profiles for a one stop overclock. If you go this route, you will need to apply your settings and the computer will reboot to load your new settings. I found it pretty seamless and easily delivered a 4GHz overclock on the R7 1800X and R7 1700 with nothing more than hitting the #4 profile and applying the preset. What I noticed was that the memory speed was set much lower than the 2933MHz memory speed I was running. Even so, you get a good lift in all core performance by using this method. AMD's tool works and is easy to use. I did like the fact that it had a temperature reading that looked much more realistic than we saw with the last generation FX offerings.


Next in line was the Gigabyte OC Tool, supplied as part of the software package with the X370-Gaming 5 Aorus motherboard. I found this tool worked just as well as AMD's tool with better data reporting. This tool was flexible as well, but did not require a reboot to get the settings applied. Using this tool, I was able to quickly find the limits of the cores pretty quickly. A failed overclock resulted in a quick black screen as your notification of a failed overclock. This came about without a lock up that normally precedes a shutdown. No big deal, as this worked quicker for me! Put the cores under load and see if the screen goes dark. I can work with that!

Last in line, of course, is manually tuning the overclock via the BIOS. I only used this method after getting grounded on what the chips would handle and used the BIOS to fine tune the clock speeds. I found the BIOS on the board less than granular, but it contained a fair amount of flexibility without a lot of options. Until I test the other two boards I have, I found that the 100MHz base clock was not maintained on this board, so the applied overclock resulted in a clock speed shortfall regardless of the applied multiplier. Even so, I was able to push each of the chips right to or past 4GHz.

The R7 1800X gave up the ghost at an applied 4050MHz using just shy of 1.45v to the core with the load line calibration set to extreme. The R7 1700X was the first surprise, as it would only hit an applied 4GHz regardless of the voltage used. I even pushed the voltage to 1.5v but it was a 4Ghz only processor. The big surprise was that the least expensive processor, the R7 1700, was the best overclocker in the group. It is the lowest TDP chip of the group and it responded with a stable applied 4.1GHz using 1.425v with the load line calibration set to high.

While these chips fell a little short of the 4.2GHz average overclocks, I will put them through their paces again here soon on another board. The 4GHz all core overclocks deliver significant performance improvements in every case, from content creation to heavy workloads.

From Overclockers club site is having problems.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/amd_ryzen_7_1800x_1700x_1700/4.htm

1700 looks good :)
 
No difference between 1800x and 1700 it appears when it comes to clocking, so people buying the 1800x are paying for nothing really if they know how to overclock.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom