Question Overclocking cpu and XMP

gkurup125

Commendable
Mar 9, 2019
9
0
1,510
Hey all,
I was wondering how to overclock my cpu and ram at the sametime . Everytime i use one of the xmp profiles in the bios and manully overclock the cpu using cpu core ratio setting in the bios, my pc will crash. Is there any specific settings that i need to use in order to overclock my ram and cpu? I need to oc my ram because it only shows up as 2400mhz instead of 3200.


My specs are:
Intel Core I5-9600K
NVIDIA RTX 2070 Armor OC 8GB
Dell Gamaing Monitor (1920×1080) @ 144hz Asus Prime z390-a
Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 16GB - 16GB (2×8GB) DDR4-3200MHZ
 
Hi gkurup :)

Please list which MB you are using so I can determine best Bios settings.
Also you will have to manually configure your SPD Timings and Voltage as 3200MHz is OC RAM and not the JDEC standard. What this means is that during Post it will initially default to 2400MHz and XMP profiles do not work.
 
That's technically overclocking, but setting memory to the XMP profile isn't really what we consider "overclocking" of memory. It is, but it isn't. It should easily be able to handle the XMP profile settings HOWEVER, if you are going to overclock your CPU you need to go through AND complete that entire process BEFORE you ever change your memory from the default SPD settings, whether that is 2133mhz or 2400mhz or 2600mhz, by default. That is so that you will know if any problems are a result of the CPU overclock or the memory configuration. DO the CPU, validate the overclock to make sure it is both thermally compliant AND stable. After, when you know the CPU configuration is rock solid, THEN worry about the memory.

Read both of these:

*Basic CPU overclocking tutorial

*Resolving memory problems and setting up XMP/DOCP/AMP profiles



And then use Google search to find any information specific to your chipset which is not covered, as those are general guides.

When it comes to validating your overclock, this is the quick and dirty version.

Quick and dirty overview of overclocking/stability validation procedure.

Set CPU multiplier and voltage at desired settings in BIOS. Do not use presets or automatic utilities. These will overcompensate on core and other voltages. It is much better to configure most core settings manually, and leave anything left over on auto until a later point in time if wish to come back and tweak settings such as cache (Uncore) frequency, System agent voltage, VCCIO (Internal memory controller) and memory speeds or timings (RAM) AFTER the CPU overclock is fully stable.

Save bios settings (As a new BIOS profile if your bios supports multiple profiles) and exit bios.

Boot into the Windows desktop environment. Download and install Prime95 version 26.6.

Download and install either HWinfo or CoreTemp.

Open HWinfo and run "Sensors only" or open CoreTemp.

Run Prime95 (ONLY version 26.6) and choose the "Small FFT test option". Run this for 15 minutes while monitoring your core/package temperatures to verify that you do not exceed the thermal specifications of your CPU.

(This should be considered to be 80°C for most generations of Intel processor and for current Ryzen CPUs. For older AMD FX and Phenom series, you should use a thermal monitor that has options for "Distance to TJmax" and you want to NOT see distance to TJmax drop below 10°C distance to TJmax. Anything that is MORE than 10°C distance to TJmax is within the allowed thermal envelope.)

If your CPU passes the thermal compliance test, move on to stability.

Download and install Realbench. Run Realbench and choose the Stress test option. Choose a value from the available memory (RAM) options that is equal to approximately half of your installed memory capacity. If you have 16GB, choose 8GB. If you have 8GB, choose 4GB, etc. Click start and allow the stability test to run for 8 hours. Do not plan to use the system for ANYTHING else while it is running. It will run realistic AVX and handbrake workloads and if it passes 8 hours of testing it is probably about as stable as you can reasonably expect.

If you wish to check stability further you can run 12-24 hours of Prime95 Blend mode or Small FFT.

You do not need to simultaneously run HWinfo or CoreTemp while running Realbench as you should have already performed the thermal compliance test PLUS Realbench will show current CPU temperatures while it is running.

If you run the additional stability test using Prime95 Blend/Small FFT modes for 12-24 hours, you will WANT to also run HWinfo alongside it. Monitor HWinfo periodically to verify that no cores/threads are showing less than 100% usage. If it is, then that worker has errored out and the test should be stopped.

If you find there are errors on ANY of the stability tests including Realbench or Prime95, or any other stress testing utility, you need to make a change in the bios. This could be either dropping the multiplier to a lower factor or increasing the voltage while leaving the multiplier the same. If you change voltage or multiplier at ANY time, you need to start over again at the beginning and verify thermal compliance again.

A more in depth but general guide that is still intended for beginners or those who have had a small amount of experience overclocking can be found here:


*CPU overclocking guide for beginners
 

gkurup125

Commendable
Mar 9, 2019
9
0
1,510
Hi gkurup :)

Please list which MB you are using so I can determine best Bios settings.
Also you will have to manually configure your SPD Timings and Voltage as 3200MHz is OC RAM and not the JDEC standard. What this means is that during Post it will initially default to 2400MHz and XMP profiles do not work.

Oh ok ! Good to know
I am using the asus prime z390-a
 

gkurup125

Commendable
Mar 9, 2019
9
0
1,510
That's technically overclocking, but setting memory to the XMP profile isn't really what we consider "overclocking" of memory. It is, but it isn't. It should easily be able to handle the XMP profile settings HOWEVER, if you are going to overclock your CPU you need to go through AND complete that entire process BEFORE you ever change your memory from the default SPD settings, whether that is 2133mhz or 2400mhz or 2600mhz, by default. That is so that you will know if any problems are a result of the CPU overclock or the memory configuration. DO the CPU, validate the overclock to make sure it is both thermally compliant AND stable. After, when you know the CPU configuration is rock solid, THEN worry about the memory.

Read both of these:

*Basic CPU overclocking tutorial

*Resolving memory problems and setting up XMP/DOCP/AMP profiles



And then use Google search to find any information specific to your chipset which is not covered, as those are general guides.

When it comes to validating your overclock, this is the quick and dirty version.

Quick and dirty overview of overclocking/stability validation procedure.

Set CPU multiplier and voltage at desired settings in BIOS. Do not use presets or automatic utilities. These will overcompensate on core and other voltages. It is much better to configure most core settings manually, and leave anything left over on auto until a later point in time if wish to come back and tweak settings such as cache (Uncore) frequency, System agent voltage, VCCIO (Internal memory controller) and memory speeds or timings (RAM) AFTER the CPU overclock is fully stable.

Save bios settings (As a new BIOS profile if your bios supports multiple profiles) and exit bios.

Boot into the Windows desktop environment. Download and install Prime95 version 26.6.

Download and install either HWinfo or CoreTemp.

Open HWinfo and run "Sensors only" or open CoreTemp.

Run Prime95 (ONLY version 26.6) and choose the "Small FFT test option". Run this for 15 minutes while monitoring your core/package temperatures to verify that you do not exceed the thermal specifications of your CPU.

(This should be considered to be 80°C for most generations of Intel processor and for current Ryzen CPUs. For older AMD FX and Phenom series, you should use a thermal monitor that has options for "Distance to TJmax" and you want to NOT see distance to TJmax drop below 10°C distance to TJmax. Anything that is MORE than 10°C distance to TJmax is within the allowed thermal envelope.)

If your CPU passes the thermal compliance test, move on to stability.

Download and install Realbench. Run Realbench and choose the Stress test option. Choose a value from the available memory (RAM) options that is equal to approximately half of your installed memory capacity. If you have 16GB, choose 8GB. If you have 8GB, choose 4GB, etc. Click start and allow the stability test to run for 8 hours. Do not plan to use the system for ANYTHING else while it is running. It will run realistic AVX and handbrake workloads and if it passes 8 hours of testing it is probably about as stable as you can reasonably expect.

If you wish to check stability further you can run 12-24 hours of Prime95 Blend mode or Small FFT.

You do not need to simultaneously run HWinfo or CoreTemp while running Realbench as you should have already performed the thermal compliance test PLUS Realbench will show current CPU temperatures while it is running.

If you run the additional stability test using Prime95 Blend/Small FFT modes for 12-24 hours, you will WANT to also run HWinfo alongside it. Monitor HWinfo periodically to verify that no cores/threads are showing less than 100% usage. If it is, then that worker has errored out and the test should be stopped.

If you find there are errors on ANY of the stability tests including Realbench or Prime95, or any other stress testing utility, you need to make a change in the bios. This could be either dropping the multiplier to a lower factor or increasing the voltage while leaving the multiplier the same. If you change voltage or multiplier at ANY time, you need to start over again at the beginning and verify thermal compliance again.

A more in depth but general guide that is still intended for beginners or those who have had a small amount of experience overclocking can be found here:


*CPU overclocking guide for beginners

Awesome guide ! Thank you!