[SOLVED] i7 9700K higher vcore voltage needed to reach stable OC

[juandre.viv]

Hi guys I am very new at overclocking, in fact this is the very first time I am trying it out.

So to start off. I have an i7-9700K with an Asrock z390 Extreme4 mobo and 16GB Corsair vengeance LPX DDR4-2400 RAM.

I'm having a lot of trouble reaching 5 and even 4.8GHz without going over 1.35v VCore. While the rest of the world seems to be getting 5GHz with about 1.3v.

So I've got my CPU stable at 4.9GHz but with a voltage of 1.424v. Now as I understand this is not at all in the safe zone and definitely not near the 1.3v on 5GHz. See my full BIOS settings in the pictures below.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1-VSynyq6Chrb3y5anmyWs0z9CNcfp0J7
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1QeLwTnFoOdRaQ5am6-OxF4Phm-9EgfKZ
https://drive.google.com/open?id=19LzqLy_gZjmvpPUOp9yKUQVzvhgiuma2
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_jSEvT7lEF5hEhRcOATn-oR1qE29PlMl
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1da_0ZSM7bOoT251mI-1PuUWzUJ4hWEyF
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1KZwLkzXq56NABBHWQfBxu7O-pGEf7CoS
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1HHTOElupB1JWimxmhrANEsNGQiLbyHEm
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1nv_wH8dfwA4cnLHskH6dcBe2x7_oPNqw

As I said I am very new to overclocking and please point out where I have made mistakes.

Then I have another issue where my BIOS FIXED VCORE setting of 1.370v is higher on CPU-Z and HWMonitor as you can see in the pictures. When I set everything to stock/Auto my VCORE wil even so something crazy like 2.5v. (I am running out of time to write this so I will show tests later today showing these voltages.)

Lastly when I set an AVX Offset of any level other than auto I get a blue screen. See attached pictures.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1JagY7zRUkkYv_pj0YYGp2VgpxVW8Ju4m
https://drive.google.com/open?id=18R8jbe1LZkE7Ay3m91-emjgYGQUx98D1

This happens when I run Cinebench.

My Monitoring software and stress testing software are
HWMonitor
CPU-Z
Cinebench
Prime95 26.6
RealBench

If anyone can help me rectify this issue or explain to me at least why my vcore is so high I would greatly appreciate it.

 

[terry4536]

The processor that you purchased is the result of the CPU binning process. The are sorted by performance criteria. And in that performance criteria, there are sub average overclocking processors to excellent overclocking processors. That is what is called the Silicon lottery.

So don't worry about what others are overclocking to. Just get the best overclock possible with an acceptable Vcore.

Section 8 discusses the maximum acceptable voltage for your processor. It is 1.4 V for the ninth generation Intel processors.

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-1800828/intel-temperature-guide.html

 

[terry4536]

Here is the overclocking section on the I7-9700K review.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/intel-core-i7-9700k-9th-gen-cpu,5876-2.html

When they had AVX at -3, they topped out at 4.8 GHz. So try AVX at -2 or leave it on Auto.

According to Silicon Lottery's latest statistics, 28% of Core i7-9700Ks the company tested can reach 5.1 GHz or greater (though it only uses a -2 AVX offset and a higher 1.362V Vcore setting). As of 10/28/18, Silicon Lottery reports that all Core i7-9700Ks it tested can maintain 4.9 GHz or greater. Expect similar results from your sample, provided you score a nice chip.

 

[terry4536]

So I've got my CPU stable at 4.9GHz but with a voltage of 1.424v.

That is a little too high. The Vcore should be less than 1.4 V. Higher than that could reduce the lifetime of the processor.

Since you are new to overclocking, try using the auto-overclock in your BIOS. And then write down the settings for future reference.

Then watch some overclocking videos on the I7-9700K.

Here is one example.

https://forums.guru3d.com/threads/i7-9700k-overclock.424066/

Here is an overclocking guide for the I7-9700K.
https://www.reddit.com/r/intel/comments/9qvb2y/my_9700k_aint_boosting_to_49ghz/e8c2fcb/?st=jnnlbfy6&sh=c77f4c38

 

[juandre.viv]

So basically I am not so lucky when it came to the silicone lottery. Also I should rather go for 4.8GHz or even lower as long as I am below 1.4v. I get that thanks.

Then..

What would be the reason why my VCORE is higher than what I set it in the BIOS? Is this the LLC setting kicking in?

Also I still don't know why my computer crashes when I set an AVX OFFSET? Shouldn't this help in stability?

 

[terry4536]

So basically I am not so lucky when it came to the silicone lottery. Also I should rather go for 4.8GHz or even lower as long as I am below 1.4v. I get that thanks.

Then..

What would be the reason why my VCORE is higher than what I set it in the BIOS? Is this the LLC setting kicking in?

Also I still don't know why my computer crashes when I set an AVX OFFSET? Shouldn't this help in stability?

If you have it in voltage offset mode, depending how you have it set it can do that.

For now leave every thing on Auto, and do a more basic overclock.

The AVX offset is a setting that can be used to make the overclocked processor run a little cooler (if that is a problem). It is normally set at -2 .

 

[terry4536]

Once you are more familiar with overclocking, give it a try again.

 

[juandre.viv]

If you have it in voltage offset mode, depending how you have it set it can do that.

For now leave every thing on Auto, and do a more basic overclock.

The AVX offset is a setting that can be used to make the overclocked processor run a little cooler (if that is a problem). It is normally set at -2 .

I get that but as stated in the pictures my FIXED voltage is set to 1.370v in the BIOS but in both HWMonitor and CPU-Z the VCORE goes up to max 1.424v when under load. (Which we have established is a voltage that becomes unsafe.)

I suspect this is due to the LLC setting because if I set it to LLC level 1 the vcore goes up even more.

Thanks alot for all the information. I will be sure to try your suggestion when I get back home after work today.

 

[juandre.viv]

So I got back home and loaded the default settings and this is what happens when everything is set to AUTO by default in my BIOS. Only thing I changed was the X.M.P. Profile. Ran Cinebench twice just to make sure the figures I am getting are correct.

In the BIOS this is the Auto settings "Prediction" written in Yellow
The target CPU sits at 4900MHz
Cache 4300MHz
BCLK Speed 100.0000MHz
Target AVX2 speed 4900MHz
Target Memory speed 2400MHz

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1BgOA2KaYuZoPsNF_isuZVi012yjCEeG8

I've been running my PC like this for about a month now so I know it is stable while gaming + recording but struggling to keep a low temp (85-90C) with my Corsair H115i v2 AiO. Since everything is auto or default when flashing the BIOS the VCore shouldn't be 1.440 at stock right? Does this mean if I didn't start looking at overclocking I could possibly have messed up my CPU's lifetime without even knowing about it, thinking it was at stock?

 

[terry4536]

The try going into the BIOS and reset the BIOS to the defaults and then exit saving your changes.

Then boot back into the BIOS, and enable XMP so you can select your memory profile. Then manually set the Vcore to 1.35 V, and leave everything else to auto. Then exit saving your changes. See how that works for you. After rebooting check the operating and boost frequencies with CPU-Z. Then run your stress test to see if it is stable. Then either increase or decrease the Vcore but stop at 1.4 V. And then check for stability again.

 

[terry4536]

I'm not surprised that the Corsair H115i isn't handling the heat well, you will probably need to upgrade that (perhaps the H150I).

Overclocking
We tapped Corsair's H115i v2 to test our Core i5-9600K, which gave us enough headroom to run at 5 GHz with 1.36V Vcore and Auto Load Line Calibration settings. An AVX offset wasn't needed; our sample maintained ~80°C during AVX workloads. The temperature only reached ~64°C during non-AVX workloads.

And that was with the I5-9600K, not it's bigger brother.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/intel-core-i5-9600k-coffee-lake-cpu,5922-2.html

 

[juandre.viv]

The try going into the BIOS and reset the BIOS to the defaults and then exit saving your changes.

Then boot back into the BIOS, and enable XMP so you can select your memory profile. Then manually set the Vcore to 1.35 V, and leave everything else to auto. Then exit saving your changes. See how that works for you. After rebooting check the operating and boost frequencies with CPU-Z. Then run your stress test to see if it is stable. Then either increase or decrease the Vcore but stop at 1.4 V. And then check for stability again.

I did this exactly as you suggested but my motherboard doesn't have the "Auto OC" ability like I see on other tutorials using the same mobo and even the manual, which is quite confusing. The option simply just isn't there and I have the latest BIOS update. But I have found a stable 4.9GHz running CineBench R15, RealBench for an hour, Prime95 26.6 running 2 hours (set up like in the video tutorial der8auer that you sent me) and using HWiNFO64.

I don't like the voltage when everything is set to auto so these were the only changes I've made:
Core set to All Core 49
Voltage Fixed to 1.300
LLC level 3 (I got crashes on all other settings unless I up the voltage)
XMP Profile 1
All the other settings was left on auto.

My results were:
Max Temp during all tests were between 75-85C (Ambient temp increased a bit this morning)
Also note I have my H115i set up in push/pull on the front of my case (Phanteks P400S) with stock fans pushing and pulling together and Corsair ML140 PWM Premium fans working together set up in the same temp curves. With 75C - 90% speed and 90C - 100%

The rest I will give exactly as it says in HWiNFO64
Vcore 1.296 V Max 1.216 V Min
Core VID 1.332 V Max (I took the maximum one that was #7) 1.195 V Min (#2)
Core Clock 4.902.4 MHz Max 799.4 MHz Min

I didn't get these low voltages with the same settings last night which I also find strange but still stable playing BF5 on medium - high settings. I did however plug out my PC, made some changes to my fan configuration and put on new thermal paste. After that I went to bed and only plugged my PC in this morning, set-up my fan curves again and then started stress testing and benchmark to check my temps and voltages. Last night with exactly the same settings I got a Vcore voltage of 1.360 V max in CPU-Z and HWiNFO64. This morning after all the testing I realized that my voltages were lower (1.296 V max) and also not picking up when taking load but rather dropping like it should due to LLC settings according to der8auer. (Drops to 1.216 V)

So maybe my PC needed a good rest? I don't know? Just happy that everything is running stable. Will play some games most of the day and render some videos to do "real world testing" and see how it all goes.

I thank you a million times over for your patients and advice. Your links made me understand overclocking a lot better and I can now move forward to learning even more. If any of these voltages seem strange please let me know as it looks fine to me, but then again I am still a total noob with a tiny bit more knowledge thanks to you.

 

[terry4536]

I'm glad I was able to help you out.

There probably is an "auto OC" provision. If you load the Motherboard monitoring/Utility, there is probably a Windows based version. I'm most familiar with Asus motherboard BIOS , but even in just that single brand the UEFI BIOS vary a lot.

But in the BIOS itself they don't refer to it as an "auto OC". It just gives you the option of (usually) three levels in GHz. Their BIOS includes a Menu called "Ai Tweaker". That is where you can set all of the memory and CPU overclocking settings. But Asus has another option and that is in the "EZ Mode" which gives you the option of "EZ tuning". Apparently that is as close to calling it an "auto OC". But you can do something similar in the Ai Tweaker menu.

Personally I don't like the EZ Mode, but it has become better in more recent BIOS.

Here is a guide for an Asus Ryzen Overclock if you are interested what an Asus BIOS looks like.

https://www.anandtech.com/show/12542/overclocking-the-amd-ryzen-apus-guide-results/4

 

[terry4536]

Here is a similar guide for Asrock UEFI BIOS overclocking.

https://www.anandtech.com/show/12542/overclocking-the-amd-ryzen-apus-guide-results/5

On the second screen shot, there is a section called CPU configuration. That is where the are setting the manual core voltage. I assume that if you set the "CPU Frequency and Voltage Change" to Auto instead of Manual that it would give you the option of several CPU BOOST Frequencies. If that is the case, it should be detailed in the "Description" box. It should be discussed in the motherboard manual as well.

You can download the motherboard manual here.

https://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z390%20Extreme4/index.asp#Manual