[SOLVED] i7 3820 overclock on sabertooth x79 unstable. Need help!

[Flyingsparrow101]

Hello! I applied an overclock of 4.6GHz on my i7 3820 using a guide I found online(links to guides below) however occasionally I have been having issues with stability. This would happen in the middle of gaming where the game would freeze and a BSOD with the error "Stop:Clock_watchdog_timeout" would appear. I find it strange as the system would pass Intel Burn test on High no problem, however still, it keeps crashing in game every once in a while. I shall attach screenshots of my Bios configurations for this overclock and hopefully someone can help me figure out what's wrong. I've tried different guides and they seemed to be even more unstable.

Here are my specs:

OS: Windows 10 Pro

CPU: Intel Core i7 3820 @3.6GHz stock Overclocked to 4625Mhz

CPU cooler: Corsair H80

Motherboard: Asus x79 Sabertooth

RAM: Kingston HyperX KHX1600C9D3/4GX 16GB(4x4) DDR3 1600Mhz

Storage: Samsung 960 Evo 1TB SSD

GPU: EVGA GTX 1070 Ti FTW2

PSU: EVGA 750G3 750w

Here are the screenshots of my BIOS overclock settings:

Screenshot 1: BCLK set to 125 and Memory now at 1666MHz

Screenshot 2: Memory Timings

Screenshot 3: CPU LLC set to extreme

Screenshot 4:

Screenshot 5: VCORE voltage set to 1.32v

Screenshot 6

Screenshot 7

Screenshot 8

Screenshot 9

Link1 guide
Link2 guide

I hope these screenshots will suffice. There are some settings that are not present in my BIOS or at least I didn't see them no matter how hard I looked these are Vcore Loadline Calibration, PWM Phase Control and Vcore Voltage Response. Also the guide in the first link recommends turning off Intel turbo boost. I had to keep mine on because otherwise the maximum frequency was stuck on 4500MHz at 125 BCLK as shown in screenshot 8 and 9. Please do not hesitate to ask for any additional information. Any help will be much appreciated!

 

[SgtScream]

Intel burn test is garbage. Use prime 95 for stressing. Your chip needs more voltage because it's not stable. Just try not to go over it's max voltage otherwise you'll burn up the chip.

 

[SgtScream]

Also try just adjusting the multiplier and leave the base clock on it's default setting.

 

[SgtScream]

Also you're going to incinerate that cpu cooler as it's WAY too under powered for a processor like that.

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

I agree on the cooler and is the reason I wasn't inclined to up the voltage any further from 1.32 as my CPU was already hitting 80+ degrees! I'll also switch to Prime 95. Thanks for the tips, I'll make changes and get back with the results.

 

[SgtScream]

Ok - If you can't go any higher with the voltage, you'll have to lower the multiplier to reach stability

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

So I've tried setting the same frequency but this time using the mutliplier. I can't get the 4.6GHz overclock because my CPU's multiplier caps at 44x. The way I see it it's either I settle 4.4GHz using the multiplier with lower voltages as I can't up the volts anymore with my current CPU cooler anyway. I'll attach a screenshot of what it looks like in my bios. What do you think about my options?

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

Here it is:

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

Ok - If you can't go any higher with the voltage, you'll have to lower the multiplier to reach stability

I'll try this in the meantime and see how it works

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

Ok...so I've applied a 4.4GHz overclock to my CPU...I'll leave it for a few hours on Prime 95 and see how it goes

 

[SgtScream]

Make sure to keep an eye on your temps.

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

sure will do I haven't started the test yet but I will post back with the results when done.

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

So I've settled for 4.3GHz @ 1.23v, it's stable and the temps are in the mid seventies at the highest even stopped crashing in gaming. I'm not too sure about that VCORE voltage as it also runs great at default voltage which is around 1.22v maybe it's because I used the multiplier this time for my overclock? Because I'm certain it won't even post if I used the BCLK for the same overclock. What do you think?

 

[SgtScream]

So I've settled for 4.3GHz @ 1.23v, it's stable and the temps are in the mid seventies at the highest even stopped crashing in gaming. I'm not too sure about that VCORE voltage as it also runs great at default voltage which is around 1.22v maybe it's because I used the multiplier this time for my overclock? Because I'm certain it won't even post if I used the BCLK for the same overclock. What do you think?

I'm surprised that cpu cooler can adequately cool that processor stock under full load. Base clock shouldn't really ever be used in overclocking unless your motherboard does not have the ability to change the multiplier setting. Every processor and motherboard is different so whatever voltage you determine is stable, that falls below max voltage and ensuring it is manual so it can't fluctuate is fine.

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

Hehe yeah I actually thought the h80 was a great cooler and was surprised that my processor could hit 80+ degrees with it on a minor overclock. I'm definitely thinking of an upgrade soon maybe noctua nh-d15 as I hear those coolers are quite good plus I wont ever have to worry about the possibility of a leak in the future.

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

As for the overclock I agree with you and will stick to the current setup as it's the most stable it's ever been even though the frequency is a bit lower than I'd wanted

 

[SgtScream]

Yeah def. When you upgrade the cpu cooler, you can run more voltage which will allow you to increase the multiplier.

 

[Flyingsparrow101]

I'll keep that in mind and thanks for the help, much appreciated!