First timer thinking of trying over clocking

tcfreer · 20 Aug 2014 at 10:22

Ok so I finally now have my new PC built

Core parts in term sof OCing I think are

Motherboard - Gigabyte z97 D3h
CPU - I5 4690k
Cooler - Coolermaster Nepton 140xl
PSU - CM 650 (need to ammend my signiture) modular one

Rest is as below

SO I've read the guide above and read some of the other information but I'm a little nervous about trying these things

Currently according to Speccy it runs really cool - 23 degrees no load, and 45-51 degrees under full gaming load (well World of Tanks rofl)

My only issue part is my current graphics card (76 degrees on gaming normally - not sure if i can do anything with this?)

Can I get some advice on prgrammes I ned to down load etc?

Luke_Bowman · 20 Aug 2014 at 10:46

Nvidia cards automatically dwonclock at 80degrees so I'd leave that stock.
However that is very low temps for your cpu due to the good cooler.

Look at some online guides and set a speed you want to reach, stress test the cpu with an appropriate program like Prime95 or IntelBurnTest to make sure it's stable

tcfreer · 20 Aug 2014 at 11:16

Ok - any odeas what a good goal speed is?

Thinking maybe 4.2?

Terrabytez · 20 Aug 2014 at 11:47

The way I overclocked was to go in small increments until I couldn't get any higher.
For example, my FX-6300 is at 4.4GHz with a +0.1V increase. I was able to get 3.9GHz no v increase, but to get to 4 and have both Intel Burn Test and Prime95 say it was stable, I had to add +0.025V. It takes time but if you go about it slowly, check temps and only add voltage if you need to, you will have a successful overclock.
One thing I can't stress enough is to keep stress testing until you are 100% sure it is stable. A friend of mine thought he knew about overclocking and straight off the bat took his 8320 to 4.7GHz with a +0.125V increase and ruined his CPU because he didn't make sure it was stable and just went straight into a game of BF4, in which his system just shut off. I recommend using Prime95 and Intel Burn Test to stress test the CPU, IBT will do a 10 run test and Prime95, I usually leave running for 30 mins.

As for the GPU, unless you need to overclock it, I really wouldn't recommend it. Mine was giving me a lot of issues with stability etc which after getting a blue screen a few times in the space of an hour, I gave up. A good way of measuring temps is to download GPUTemp and a utility such as EVGA Precision X or MSI Afterburner. With these, you can also set a custom fan curve to keep the card as cool as possible.
Hope I was of some help.

tcfreer · 20 Aug 2014 at 12:48

Brill advice thanks very much guys

I have MSI afterburner already as I wanted to double check speccys figures.

I don;t want to OC the GPU as I intened to swap it out in a few months once I ahve saved up enough money for a new card (little bit brassic after buying the rest of the machine)

I'll download Prime95 and the Intel Burn Test tonight then and start looking this weekend slowly, see what happens.

I like that it runs really nice a cold now and I don't want to upset the temps to much