What's overclocking all about? K vs non-K i5 cpus

[j0ndafr3ak]

Hi there guys,
I've been surfing the net and some questions came up.

I recently bought a GTX780 but now I have to wait some months before buying mb + cpu. I have some unexpected expenses ahead and I want to save as much as I can at the moment..
I've read that an I5 4570 won't bottleneck gtx 780 (a reference one from Gigabyte). to my understanding, "a non-bottlenecked gpu" is a gpu that constantly works at 99-100% of gpu load because the cpu has the power to let it.
Now, being that a non k cpu does not bottleneck a gtx 780, what's the need for a cpu with an unlocked multiplier? What would be the gain, in my case?

I'm going for a mini-itx build. the parts I already have are:
Bitfenix Prodigy Orange
Bitfenix Recon fan controller
2x Specter Pro All Black 140mm fans
2x Specter Pro All Black 120mm fans
Crucial Ballistix Tactical 2x8gb ddr3 1600mhz cl8 LP LV ram
Cooler Master Hyper 412 Slim

plus, my concern is overheating. haswell chips get hot when overclocked, so...

my choice would be for the Asus H87I plus and the i5 4570 then buy a 21:9 monitor (one from either philips or LG - 2560x1080 resolution)

what do you think? with this configuration and going for the remaining parts aforementioned, i think i'll be saving around 100 euro (compared to a z87i deluxe + 4670k... so, if, in my case, overclocking isn't necessary and i can be fine with a non k cpu, what would you suggest?

 

[Suferbus]

Overclocking is not necessary. Only a small percent of enthusiasts overclock, and there are a lot of enthusiasts that play games on non-overclocked cpu's and get awesome results and fps. That processor will be able to handle the GTX 780 with no problem, and I would not worry about any bottlenecking, just as the Gigabyte reference suggested. Overclocking is more a hobby than anything, and yes it can help performance in some situations, but with the set-up you have listed, it will not be needed unless you just have the extra money for the k series cpu and want to mess around with it. As for heat issues, if you stay stock clock and have decent air flow throughout the chassis you will be fine. Only when overclocking a cpu is an aftermarket cpu cooler really necessary, but it is always good to keep the cpu as cool as possible because cooler cpu's perform better. So if you can afford a top-of-the-line Noctua NH-14 Air cooler and have room for it (really need low profile ram to utilize the noctua NH-14) go on and grab one because cooler is better, but not necessary unless overclocking. Have fun and Happy Gaming!!~~~Suferbus

 

[j0ndafr3ak]

Overclocking is not necessary. Only a small percent of enthusiasts overclock, and there are a lot of enthusiasts that play games on non-overclocked cpu's and get awesome results and fps. That processor will be able to handle the GTX 780 with no problem, and I would not worry about any bottlenecking, just as the Gigabyte reference suggested. Overclocking is more a hobby than anything, and yes it can help performance in some situations, but with the set-up you have listed, it will not be needed unless you just have the extra money for the k series cpu and want to mess around with it. As for heat issues, if you stay stock clock and have decent air flow throughout the chassis you will be fine. Only when overclocking a cpu is an aftermarket cpu cooler really necessary, but it is always good to keep the cpu as cool as possible because cooler cpu's perform better. So if you can afford a top-of-the-line Noctua NH-14 Air cooler and have room for it (really need low profile ram to utilize the noctua NH-14) go on and grab one because cooler is better, but not necessary unless overclocking. Have fun and Happy Gaming!!~~~Suferbus

I see. Thanks for your reply. So there isn't such an increase in performance.

What about 2 way sli/crossfire? Would a non k cpu be a bottleneck?

 

[Suferbus]

Overclocking is not necessary. Only a small percent of enthusiasts overclock, and there are a lot of enthusiasts that play games on non-overclocked cpu's and get awesome results and fps. That processor will be able to handle the GTX 780 with no problem, and I would not worry about any bottlenecking, just as the Gigabyte reference suggested. Overclocking is more a hobby than anything, and yes it can help performance in some situations, but with the set-up you have listed, it will not be needed unless you just have the extra money for the k series cpu and want to mess around with it. As for heat issues, if you stay stock clock and have decent air flow throughout the chassis you will be fine. Only when overclocking a cpu is an aftermarket cpu cooler really necessary, but it is always good to keep the cpu as cool as possible because cooler cpu's perform better. So if you can afford a top-of-the-line Noctua NH-14 Air cooler and have room for it (really need low profile ram to utilize the noctua NH-14) go on and grab one because cooler is better, but not necessary unless overclocking. Have fun and Happy Gaming!!~~~Suferbus

I still think you are okay. I just built a pc for a customer with that exact processor, and I have 2 Sapphire 7870 ghz oc edition in crossfire and he loves it. I did not notice any issues with bottlenecking, and the fps in the other games tested was around 120, all others above 60. I'm not sure regarding SLI because I have not built an SLI set up, only single gpus on utilizing that platform, but I can not imagine it bottlenecking since the 2 7870's did not bottle neck. The Core i 5 is right in line with the FX 8150 and I had an FX 8150 running in my last build with no crossfire issues at all. Happy Gaming~~ Suferbus

I see. Thanks for your reply. So there isn't such an increase in performance.

What about 2 way sli/crossfire? Would a non k cpu be a bottleneck?

 

[amuffin]

Overclocking is not necessary. Only a small percent of enthusiasts overclock, and there are a lot of enthusiasts that play games on non-overclocked cpu's and get awesome results and fps. That processor will be able to handle the GTX 780 with no problem, and I would not worry about any bottlenecking, just as the Gigabyte reference suggested. Overclocking is more a hobby than anything, and yes it can help performance in some situations, but with the set-up you have listed, it will not be needed unless you just have the extra money for the k series cpu and want to mess around with it. As for heat issues, if you stay stock clock and have decent air flow throughout the chassis you will be fine. Only when overclocking a cpu is an aftermarket cpu cooler really necessary, but it is always good to keep the cpu as cool as possible because cooler cpu's perform better. So if you can afford a top-of-the-line Noctua NH-14 Air cooler and have room for it (really need low profile ram to utilize the noctua NH-14) go on and grab one because cooler is better, but not necessary unless overclocking. Have fun and Happy Gaming!!~~~Suferbus

I see. Thanks for your reply. So there isn't such an increase in performance.

What about 2 way sli/crossfire? Would a non k cpu be a bottleneck?

Not at this point in time. Pretty much any second gen and above i5 would be good enough.