Gigabyte Offset Voltage

[burnhamjs]

I just finished an overclock of an i5 6600k, 4.6 GHz, Vcore 1.290V (BIOS) / 1.284 (CPU-Z). I'll list my settings I used DURING OC'ing below. I passed OCCT-LINPACK and OCCT CPU-Large, but when I ran OCCT CPU-Small my temps climbed above 80-degrees. I ended up needing to use the "Relax OC" under the advanced memory settings which brought the temps down 10-degrees. Not sure what "Relax OC" does because BIOS is still showing the same DRAM voltages and timings from the XMP Profile 1. This allowed me to complete all tests for 3 hours and keep temps below 80.

So now it's time to use an offset or adaptive voltage. [Note - this is a Gigabyte MOBO]. I set the CPU Voltage to "NORMAL" (in place of the 1.290V manual voltage) then set a DVID of +0.000V. Everything seemed to run just as it did when I have the manual voltage set. Check.

Questions
A) Next I enabled Turbo, EIST, and all C-states but voltage stays at 1.284V (CPU-Z) and Freq 4600GHz regardless if the system is idle or under load. Why doesn't the voltage or freq drop at idle?

B) I tried different values for DVID but all minus values caused a crash (even -0.005v) and the plus DVID just put me above the 1.284 I needed to remain stable. Does anybody know how to make offset or adaptive voltage work on the Gigabyte boards?


Setting used during OC'ing:

----For the CPU:
[1]-CPU VCore at 1.290 V,
[2]-CPU Core Ratio at 46,
[3]-Uncore Ratio at 45,
[4]-FCLK Frequency For Early Power 1000 MHz
[5]-CPU VCore Loadline Calibration (LLC) on High
[6]-Internal Graphics Disabled

-----For the memory:
[7]-Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.) on "Profile 1"
[8]-Memory Enhancement Settings to "Relax OC"

-----Advanced CPU Settings [Energy Savers]
[10] Intel Turbo Boost Technology DISABLED
[11] CPU EIST DISABLED
[12] CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E) DISABLED
[13] C3 State Support DISABLED
[14] C6/C7 State Support DISABLED
[12] C8 State Support DISABLED
[13] Package C-State Limit AUTO

PC Specs:
MOBO: Gigabyte Z170 Gaming 3 (F6 BIOS)
CPU: i5 6600k
CPU Cooler: EVO 212
RAM: 16GB Corsair Vengeance DDR4 3000MHz
GPU: Gigabyte GTX960OC 2GB

 

[philipew]

It was difficult to get it to go into the "Auto" mode (3 attempts), then it took several more shutdown/restart sessions to get the "Normal" to stick. From there I never got Windows to complete its run. It would stop on the blue window (black background), with or without a few turning dots underneath, then freeze. On other attempts it would write under the blue window: "PREPARING AUTOMATIC REPAIR" (no turning dots) then feeze. It never got any further than that.. I must have tried a good dozen times. In the end I was afraid to cause problems in Windows (corruption, etc.). But after the last trial, when I restarted with my saved OC settings, it came back as before. There must be something in my settings. They are also more extensive than yours. I might publish them later so that you can have a look. Maybe I should simplify them then.... ;-).

Wow - yea, I didn't have those kind of issues. I have never had any issues going between a manual Vcore and AUTO Vcore. What BIOS are you running?

 

[burnhamjs]

Well, you gave it a try 🙂

For others that may be following you can adjust DVID (offset) in 0.005V increments. I am currently using a -0.010 offset which provides a Vcore as reported in CPU-Z of 1.296 under load, however, I plan on trying 1 -0.020 offset to get to my ideal 1.286 Vcore. Just haven’t had a chance to try it yet as I need time to run the stability test after I make the change.

So as to the benefits of using an adaptive or offset voltage – that is up to the individual user. I do agree that just because a higher voltage is provided at idle then is necessary doesn’t mean you are necessarily drawing more power, as the current requirement would be lower (P=IxE). I would note that I do not see any downside of using an offset voltage other then the frustration of getting it to implement in the Gigabyte BIOS.

Personally I like Vcore and Freq to drop at idle and am happy that I was able to get it to implement on my system. As philipew points out, the actual energy saving is likely negligible – but this isn’t something I am interested in analyzing.

 

[philipew]

Well, you gave it a try 🙂

For others that may be following you can adjust DVID (offset) in 0.005V increments. I am currently using a -0.010 offset which provides a Vcore as reported in CPU-Z of 1.296 under load, however, I plan on trying 1 -0.020 offset to get to my ideal 1.286 Vcore. Just haven’t had a chance to try it yet as I need time to run the stability test after I make the change.

So as to the benefits of using an adaptive or offset voltage – that is up to the individual user. I do agree that just because a higher voltage is provided at idle then is necessary doesn’t mean you are necessarily drawing more power, as the current requirement would be lower (P=IxE). I would note that I do not see any downside of using an offset voltage other then the frustration of getting it to implement in the Gigabyte BIOS.

Personally I like Vcore and Freq to drop at idle and am happy that I was able to get it to implement on my system. As philipew points out, the actual energy saving is likely negligible – but this isn’t something I am interested in analyzing.

I agree with your point of view, and if it were as easy for me to obtain it, I would certainly keep it. As I mentioned earlier, "everything counts". What I left out is to mention that when I finally decided to reload my stable saved profile, it displayed again its "PREPARING AUTOMATIC REPAIR" but this time didn't freeze on it and did actually a fair bit of work for a while....er... presumably "repairing" something "automatically". Then after "grinding to a halt", it displayed an all-grey screen with no information whatsoever.

After leaving it like that for another length of time (and a suspenseful wait for "something"... "anything" to happen), I decided to shut down and restart. Past a few moments of a well-deserved trepidation, it cranked up to its usual booting sequence, letting me release a puff of (compressed) CO2 and starting to breathe again with a sigh of relief. It was definitely time for a (long....) sip of that cool Martini I had just discovered at the edge of my desk (my wife is so nice).

Here are my current, and ultra stable, BIOS settings for i5 6600K on Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI:
[1] - CPU Core Ratio: 46
[2] - FCLK Frequency For Early Power: 1 GHz
[3] - Uncore Ratio: 46
[4] - CPU Flex Override: Disabled
[5] - Intel Turbo Boost Technology: Disabled
[6] - CPU Enhanced Halt (C1E): Disabled
[7] - C3 State Support: Disabled
[8] - C6/C7 State Support: Disabled
[9] - C8 State Support: Disabled
[10]-CPU Thermal Monitor: Enabled
[11]-CPU EIST Function: Enabled
[12]-Voltage Optimization: Enabled
[13]-Residency State Registration (RSR): Disabled
[14]-Hardware Prefetcher: Enabled
[15]-Adjacent Cache Line Prefetch: Enabled
[16]-Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.): Profile 1
[17]-System Memory Multiplier: 32
[18]-Memory Enhancement Settings: Relax OC
[19]-Channel Interleaving: Enabled
[20]-Rank Interleaving: Enabled
[21]-CAS Latency: 15
[22]-tRCD: 17
[23]-tRP: 17
[24]-tRAS: 28
[25]-Command Rate (tCMD): 1
[26]-CPU VCore Loadline Calibration (LLC): High
[27]-CPU VCore: 1.355V
[28]-CPU VCCIO: Normal
[29]-CPU System Agent Voltage: Normal
[30]-PCH Core: Normal
[31]-DRAM Voltage (CH A/B): 1.36 V
[32]-Internal Graphics: Disabled

I finally succeeded in setting VCore to "Normal" with a DVID offset of + 0.080 but that gives me VCore of 1.320 V, +0.085 gives me 1.322 V, and +0.090 gives me 1.392 V. I need 1.344 V, so I can't get it. It seems that it can go up to 1.344 V with +0.085 offset but it is too slow to react (coming from VCore of 0.876 V) causing the workers of Prime 95 to go red (stop) very soon after starting.

As a result, my observations about the offset are (in my case at least):
a) It does not allow a precise setting of VCore which results in higher voltages than necessary (due to the shifty nature of VID), and
b) Even if it can get me enough VCore voltage to be stable, the transition from idle to load Vcore voltage is too slow (due to the insufficient speed with which it adds the offset to DVID to produce VCore).

So, for me, the benefits do not outweigh the downside of using DVID offset, and therefore I stick to my current settings as listed above with VCore set at 1.355 V in the BIOS.

Here is a picture of the fan layout (well, this is Western Australia where I can get 32 C ambient temp., and still 28 C at 22:00):
https://postimg.org/image/keiubi0pp/

 

[dlerium]

I finally succeeded in setting VCore to "Normal" with a DVID offset of + 0.080 but that gives me VCore of 1.320 V, +0.085 gives me 1.322 V, and +0.090 gives me 1.392 V. I need 1.344 V, so I can't get it. It seems that it can go up to 1.344 V with +0.085 offset but it is too slow to react (coming from VCore of 0.876 V) causing the workers of Prime 95 to go red (stop) very soon after starting.

As a result, my observations about the offset are (in my case at least):
a) It does not allow a precise setting of VCore which results in higher voltages than necessary (due to the shifty nature of VID), and
b) Even if it can get me enough VCore voltage to be stable, the transition from idle to load Vcore voltage is too slow (due to the insufficient speed with which it adds the offset to DVID to produce VCore).

So, for me, the benefits do not outweigh the downside of using DVID offset, and therefore I stick to my current settings as listed above with VCore set at 1.355 V in the BIOS.

Here is a picture of the fan layout (well, this is Western Australia where I can get 32 C ambient temp., and still 28 C at 22:00):
https://postimg.org/image/keiubi0pp/

Did you ever solve the whole Normal+DVID issue? It sounds like a pain to even dial in to the correct peak voltage you want.

Also can I ask why you have EIST on but Cstates disabled?

 

[philipew]

I finally succeeded in setting VCore to "Normal" with a DVID offset of + 0.080 but that gives me VCore of 1.320 V, +0.085 gives me 1.322 V, and +0.090 gives me 1.392 V. I need 1.344 V, so I can't get it. It seems that it can go up to 1.344 V with +0.085 offset but it is too slow to react (coming from VCore of 0.876 V) causing the workers of Prime 95 to go red (stop) very soon after starting.

As a result, my observations about the offset are (in my case at least):
a) It does not allow a precise setting of VCore which results in higher voltages than necessary (due to the shifty nature of VID), and
b) Even if it can get me enough VCore voltage to be stable, the transition from idle to load Vcore voltage is too slow (due to the insufficient speed with which it adds the offset to DVID to produce VCore).

So, for me, the benefits do not outweigh the downside of using DVID offset, and therefore I stick to my current settings as listed above with VCore set at 1.355 V in the BIOS.

Here is a picture of the fan layout (well, this is Western Australia where I can get 32 C ambient temp., and still 28 C at 22:00):
https://postimg.org/image/keiubi0pp/

Did you ever solve the whole Normal+DVID issue? It sounds like a pain to even dial in to the correct peak voltage you want.

Also can I ask why you have EIST on but Cstates disabled?

EIST dramatically reduces the clock speed at idle (to around merely 800 MHz) which is very good for temps. The c-states can introduce some instability. They are usually off while overclocking but I have them back on as a normal setup - it doesn't seem to make any difference.

The only settings I personally applied mnaully in the BIOS of my INTEL i5 6600K are for "Optimised 4.6 GHz" (VERY STABLE):
---- For the CPU:

[1]- CPU Core Ratio: 46 = 4600 (Bclk 100)
[2]- CPU Base Clock (Bclk): 100 - 128 MHz
[3]- FCLK Frequency For Early Power: 1 GHz (x10)
[4]- Uncore Ratio: 46 = 4600 (Bclk 100)
[5]- CPU Flex Override: Disabled <--- 1/4
[6]- Intel Turbo Boost Technology: Disabled <--- 2/4
[7]- CPU Thermal Monitor: Enabled <----------- 1/7
[8]- CPU EIST Function: Enabled <----------- 2/7
[9]- Voltage Optimization: Enabled <----------- 3/7
[10]-Residency State Registration (RSR): Disabled <--- 3/4
[11]-Hardware Prefetcher: Enabled <----------- 4/7
[12]-Adjacent Cache Line Prefetch: Enabled <----------- 5/7
[13]-Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.): Profile 1
[14]-System Memory Multiplier: 32 = 3200
[15]-Memory Enhancement Settings: Relax OC
[16]-Channel Interleaving: Enabled <----------- 6/7
[17]-Rank Interleaving: Enabled <----------- 7/7
[18]-CAS Latency: 15
[19]-tRCD: 17
[20]-tRP: 17
[21]-tRAS: 28
[22]-Command Rate (tCMD): 1
[23]-CPU VCore Loadline Calibration LLC: High
[24]-CPU VCore: 1.355 V
[25]-CPU VCCIO: Normal <-------
[26]-CPU System Agent Voltage: Normal <-------
[27]-PCH Core: Normal <-------
[28]-DRAM Voltage (CH A/B): 1.300 V
[29]-Internal Graphics: Disabled <--- 4/4

I completely dropped the Normal+DVID question... as you said, a real pain in the lower rear rump, and not worth the dubious result anyway. It is NOT recommended anywhere, mostly NOT even mentioned in any of the official overclocking articles and guides I have found on the internet, like from Tweaktown, Reddit, etc. It's not even mentioned by Gigabyte themselves! A real dud IMO.

 

[dlerium]

I finally succeeded in setting VCore to "Normal" with a DVID offset of + 0.080 but that gives me VCore of 1.320 V, +0.085 gives me 1.322 V, and +0.090 gives me 1.392 V. I need 1.344 V, so I can't get it. It seems that it can go up to 1.344 V with +0.085 offset but it is too slow to react (coming from VCore of 0.876 V) causing the workers of Prime 95 to go red (stop) very soon after starting.

As a result, my observations about the offset are (in my case at least):
a) It does not allow a precise setting of VCore which results in higher voltages than necessary (due to the shifty nature of VID), and
b) Even if it can get me enough VCore voltage to be stable, the transition from idle to load Vcore voltage is too slow (due to the insufficient speed with which it adds the offset to DVID to produce VCore).

So, for me, the benefits do not outweigh the downside of using DVID offset, and therefore I stick to my current settings as listed above with VCore set at 1.355 V in the BIOS.

Here is a picture of the fan layout (well, this is Western Australia where I can get 32 C ambient temp., and still 28 C at 22:00):
https://postimg.org/image/keiubi0pp/

Did you ever solve the whole Normal+DVID issue? It sounds like a pain to even dial in to the correct peak voltage you want.

Also can I ask why you have EIST on but Cstates disabled?

EIST dramatically reduces the clock speed at idle (to around merely 800 MHz) which is very good for temps. The c-states can introduce some instability. They are usually off while overclocking but I have them back on as a normal setup - it doesn't seem to make any difference.

-SNIP-

I completely dropped the Normal+DVID question... as you said, a real pain in the lower rear rump, and not worth the dubious result anyway. It is NOT recommended anywhere, mostly NOT even mentioned in any of the official overclocking articles and guides I have found on the internet, like from Tweaktown, Reddit, etc. It's not even mentioned by Gigabyte themselves! A real dud IMO.

BTW just to give you some feedback on my experiences with the Z270X-Gaming K7:

1. The Normal+DVID seems to be just an offset mode. There's zero explanation but after enough bugging people on forums and discussions I seem to believe it's just the equivalent of Offset Mode as called by other mobo manufacturers. Gigabyte deserves a huge thumbs down for not explaining this one at all. Meanwhile go look at ASUS' website and they thoroughly explain all their voltage modes. Not to mention its further clarified by their support on forums and in Youtube Videos.

2. The Normal+DVID is a bit finnicky though. I've noticed that with LLC on High or Turbo, the load voltage ends up being HIGHER than the idle voltage (0.05 or so for High and 0.08 for Turbo). This is different than when using Manual Vcore mode where I notice the Vdroop is 0.010 for auto, 0.010 for standard, 0.02 for High and ~0 for Turbo. But when Vdroop is NEGATIVE that it shoots your load voltage higher than you set in BIOS, that's just a huge issue IMO.

All I want to do is be able to at least use voltage Offset mode and minimize Vdroop. On Manual Vcore mode the LLC works great, but I suspect the BIOS engineers fatfingered something when doing LLC on Normal+DVID mode.

3. Just to give you some investigation into EIST and C-States, most of your power savings comes from having your CPU not at full load. Testing at 4.5 GHz with C-States and EIST on versus on I got 71W vs 76W at idle. This is compared to load wattage over 150W. I have not tried separating C-States and EIST as you have mentioned, but thank you for telling me why you left C-States off. I would've always thought that people either had both on or off depending on their desire for power savings.

4. Oh and what you mentioned about having to shut down the computer fully for some settings to stick? I've noticed that too. Just hitting Save in UEFI and letting it reboot is not enough.

These 4 issues alone are enough to make me want to return this motherboard. It's EXTREMELY frustrating.

 

[philipew]

I finally succeeded in setting VCore to "Normal" with a DVID offset of + 0.080 but that gives me VCore of 1.320 V, +0.085 gives me 1.322 V, and +0.090 gives me 1.392 V. I need 1.344 V, so I can't get it. It seems that it can go up to 1.344 V with +0.085 offset but it is too slow to react (coming from VCore of 0.876 V) causing the workers of Prime 95 to go red (stop) very soon after starting.

As a result, my observations about the offset are (in my case at least):
a) It does not allow a precise setting of VCore which results in higher voltages than necessary (due to the shifty nature of VID), and
b) Even if it can get me enough VCore voltage to be stable, the transition from idle to load Vcore voltage is too slow (due to the insufficient speed with which it adds the offset to DVID to produce VCore).

So, for me, the benefits do not outweigh the downside of using DVID offset, and therefore I stick to my current settings as listed above with VCore set at 1.355 V in the BIOS.

Here is a picture of the fan layout (well, this is Western Australia where I can get 32 C ambient temp., and still 28 C at 22:00):
https://postimg.org/image/keiubi0pp/

Did you ever solve the whole Normal+DVID issue? It sounds like a pain to even dial in to the correct peak voltage you want.

Also can I ask why you have EIST on but Cstates disabled?

EIST dramatically reduces the clock speed at idle (to around merely 800 MHz) which is very good for temps. The c-states can introduce some instability. They are usually off while overclocking but I have them back on as a normal setup - it doesn't seem to make any difference.

-SNIP-

I completely dropped the Normal+DVID question... as you said, a real pain in the lower rear rump, and not worth the dubious result anyway. It is NOT recommended anywhere, mostly NOT even mentioned in any of the official overclocking articles and guides I have found on the internet, like from Tweaktown, Reddit, etc. It's not even mentioned by Gigabyte themselves! A real dud IMO.

BTW just to give you some feedback on my experiences with the Z270X-Gaming K7:

1. The Normal+DVID seems to be just an offset mode. There's zero explanation but after enough bugging people on forums and discussions I seem to believe it's just the equivalent of Offset Mode as called by other mobo manufacturers. Gigabyte deserves a huge thumbs down for not explaining this one at all. Meanwhile go look at ASUS' website and they thoroughly explain all their voltage modes. Not to mention its further clarified by their support on forums and in Youtube Videos.

2. The Normal+DVID is a bit finnicky though. I've noticed that with LLC on High or Turbo, the load voltage ends up being HIGHER than the idle voltage (0.05 or so for High and 0.08 for Turbo). This is different than when using Manual Vcore mode where I notice the Vdroop is 0.010 for auto, 0.010 for standard, 0.02 for High and ~0 for Turbo. But when Vdroop is NEGATIVE that it shoots your load voltage higher than you set in BIOS, that's just a huge issue IMO.

All I want to do is be able to at least use voltage Offset mode and minimize Vdroop. On Manual Vcore mode the LLC works great, but I suspect the BIOS engineers fatfingered something when doing LLC on Normal+DVID mode.

3. Just to give you some investigation into EIST and C-States, most of your power savings comes from having your CPU not at full load. Testing at 4.5 GHz with C-States and EIST on versus on I got 71W vs 76W at idle. This is compared to load wattage over 150W. I have not tried separating C-States and EIST as you have mentioned, but thank you for telling me why you left C-States off. I would've always thought that people either had both on or off depending on their desire for power savings.

4. Oh and what you mentioned about having to shut down the computer fully for some settings to stick? I've noticed that too. Just hitting Save in UEFI and letting it reboot is not enough.

These 4 issues alone are enough to make me want to return this motherboard. It's EXTREMELY frustrating.

I like your analysis. It is thorough and well researched ;-).