Should I Overclock My CPU or GPU For Gaming And How To?

[kaardiisand]

There are my PC specs

OS : Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Memory : Kingston SSD 240GB // Toshiba HDD 3TB
Graphics Card : GeForce® GTX 1080 G1 Gaming 8G
Processor : Intel® Core™ i7-8700K up to 4.70 GHz
RAM : Vengeance® LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 DRAM 3000MHz
Cooling System : NZXT Kraken X52 Water Cooling Fan
Power Supply : Seasonic FOCUS Plus 650W Gold
MotherBoard : Asus ROG Strix H370-F Gaming
Case : Kolink Observatory RGB Midi-Tower, Tempered Glass - White Window
Monitor : Alienware AW2518HF 24.5" FreeSync Gaming Monitor, 1920 x 1080, 240 Hz, 1ms
Mouse : Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum
Mousepad : Razer Goliathus Mobile Stealth Edition Black
Keyboard : Corsair K68 RGB LED - Cherry MX Red Switches (+ Noise Dampeners)
Headset : Kingston HyperX Cloud II

I want to play Hunt Showdown on high settings and get 100+ FPS, but Right now I have to settle for around 80. Ideal FPS Would be 240. Can I even reach that in medium or high even when overclocked?

 

[ElectrO_90]

Nice specs, but your monitor isn't compatible fully with your GPU
As for overclocking, you won't get much more than 10% from an overclock of the GPU, if you can OC it safely.

 

[vMax]

You have a very good setup and very similar to mine... The GPU will overclock and using MSI afterburner for the overclock will makes things a lot easier. There are a lot of guides as to how to overclock the GPU with MSI Afterburner and it is recognised as one of the best for overclocking tools for your GPU regardless of the brand you have...

Sadly, with the Asus H370-F motherboard you will not be able to overclock the 8700K. That requires a Z370 motherboard. The 8700K will happily hit 5Ghz but 4.9GHz definitely for a 24/7 overclock as you have a very good cooler but the motherboard needs to be Z370.

 

[vMax]

One other thing on your motherboard. Your RAM is stuck at a max speed of 2667 as the H370-F will not allow overclocked memory like your DDR4 3000..It will run it but at the slower speed...To be honest, not that much of a difference if it is running at 2667MHz...

I would also say it is worth overclocking the GPU as it might just push the frames higher and closer to where you want it. The Gigabyte is a good 1080 and overclocked should add a bit more..

 

[geofelt]

Perhaps a moot point.
The H370 chipset will not let you overclock the 8700K.
You have left some 30% cpu performance on the table by not using a Z370 based motherboard and overclocking as the K processor was designed to do.
FWIW:
as of 3/22/2018
What % of I7-8700k chips can oc
at a aggressive vcore near 1.4 or so and delidded
4.9 99%
5.0 88%
5.1 54%
5.2 22%

That said, the 8700K is still a beast at stock.

On the graphics side, consider that
graphics card vendors bin their chips and use the better ones in factory overclocked versions
that they can sell for more. You may be able to OC more, but then again, perhaps not.
They try to differentiate by adding cosmetics and fancy coolers which also sell for more.
I do think you get fair value from a modest factory overclocked card.
If you favor fast action games, give it a shot.
My general advice is if you need more performance, then buy a higher tier card in the first place.

 

[kaardiisand]

Nice specs, but your monitor isn't compatible fully with your GPU
As for overclocking, you won't get much more than 10% from an overclock of the GPU, if you can OC it safely.

Thank you for answering! What do you mean my monitor isn't fully compatible with my GPU? I don't understand

 

[kaardiisand]

You have a very good setup and very similar to mine... The GPU will overclock and using MSI afterburner for the overclock will makes things a lot easier. There are a lot of guides as to how to overclock the GPU with MSI Afterburner and it is recognised as one of the best for overclocking tools for your GPU regardless of the brand you have...

Sadly, with the Asus H370-F motherboard you will not be able to overclock the 8700K. That requires a Z370 motherboard. The 8700K will happily hit 5Ghz but 4.9GHz definitely for a 24/7 overclock as you have a very good cooler but the motherboard needs to be Z370.

That's unfortunate. I guess I should have done more research before buying this motherboard :T Thank you for the answer!

 

[kaardiisand]

Perhaps a moot point.
The H370 chipset will not let you overclock the 8700K.
You have left some 30% cpu performance on the table by not using a Z370 based motherboard and overclocking as the K processor was designed to do.
FWIW:
as of 3/22/2018
What % of I7-8700k chips can oc
at a aggressive vcore near 1.4 or so and delidded
4.9 99%
5.0 88%
5.1 54%
5.2 22%

That said, the 8700K is still a beast at stock.

On the graphics side, consider that
graphics card vendors bin their chips and use the better ones in factory overclocked versions
that they can sell for more. You may be able to OC more, but then again, perhaps not.
They try to differentiate by adding cosmetics and fancy coolers which also sell for more.
I do think you get fair value from a modest factory overclocked card.
If you favor fast action games, give it a shot.
My general advice is if you need more performance, then buy a higher tier card in the first place.

So what you are sayings is that I should be fine without overclocking, but I am also not letting my CPU perform at its most? Do I need to change my motherboard?

 

[ElectrO_90]

yes, your motherboard is slowing your computer down.
But how much is it slowing down, depends on if you are going to OC the CPU
If you are not, then it's not going to change anything.

 

[dontlistentome]

So what you are sayings is that I should be fine without overclocking, but I am also not letting my CPU perform at its most? Do I need to change my motherboard?

A different way of looking it is this: Does this computer perform well, does it meet your needs? If so, then you don't need to worry about the CPU performing at 'its most'.

As for overclocking, consider this a learning experience. Ask questions BEFORE you buy anything. Don't buy anything unless you have done your research. If you pick a certain CPU for overclocking, proper research will tell you what requirements, if any, you face when choosing other components.

If/when you do overclock, start small and work your way up. Test as you go. Don't jump in with the maximum overclock everyone else says they get. It's best to work your way towards that in smaller increments.

 

[vMax]

Perhaps a moot point.
The H370 chipset will not let you overclock the 8700K.
You have left some 30% cpu performance on the table by not using a Z370 based motherboard and overclocking as the K processor was designed to do.
FWIW:
as of 3/22/2018
What % of I7-8700k chips can oc
at a aggressive vcore near 1.4 or so and delidded
4.9 99%
5.0 88%
5.1 54%
5.2 22%

That said, the 8700K is still a beast at stock.

On the graphics side, consider that
graphics card vendors bin their chips and use the better ones in factory overclocked versions
that they can sell for more. You may be able to OC more, but then again, perhaps not.
They try to differentiate by adding cosmetics and fancy coolers which also sell for more.
I do think you get fair value from a modest factory overclocked card.
If you favor fast action games, give it a shot.
My general advice is if you need more performance, then buy a higher tier card in the first place.

So what you are sayings is that I should be fine without overclocking, but I am also not letting my CPU perform at its most? Do I need to change my motherboard?

Bottom line the Z370 motherboard will allow you to take full advantage of the powerful 8700K that you have. The 8700K is exceptional when overclocked and allows for overclocks to 5GHz and beyond with suitable cooling...Also the overclock even to something like 4.8GHZ or even 4.9GHz all core is easily achieved...I have 4.9GHz and it does make a difference, especially in gaming..not huge but still more than good and does help.

Finally, moving to Z370 will allow you to upgrade in the future to the new 9th Gen Intel CPU's like the 9600K, 9800K and 9900K scheduled for launch in October.

If you can afford the upgrade, then yes, move to Z370....The 8700K will make use of it.