Why does my 3.4 GHz CPU run > 4GHz ?

[rasmasyean]

I have this thing.

Intel Core i7-2600 Sandy Bridge Quad-Core 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W BX80623I72600 Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2000
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=19-115-071

In my Asus AI Suite II "Monitor", it says the "CPU Frequency" pushes 4GHz+, 103.0 x 40.
Is that what is meant by "3.8 GHz"? Is it rounded to some nearest binary number or something?

 

[ShadyHamster]

Are you running it on a z68 or z77 motherboard with xmp enabled?

 

[rasmasyean]

It's this motherboard.

ASUS P8P67 (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131705

Is it under some sort of automatic overclock by the motherboard manufacturer?

 

[ShadyHamster]

I'm not sure about sandy bridge, but the multiplier on my locked 3570 was able to go all the way up to 42x giving it an effective oc of 4.2ghz.
Have you changed anything in the bios or ran the auto ocing tool, either through the bios or ai suite?

You could always load optimized defaults if you don't want the oc anymore.

 

[13thmonkey]

possibly boost, possibly an auto OC, it's well within what that CPU can do, nothing to be at all concerned about.

 

[rasmasyean]

Maybe I ran something a while ago and didn't realize what it was, I don't really remember.
But it says in the Bios:

Target CPU Turbo-Mode Speed: 4326MHz


I came across this because recently I was encoding some videos and it would come up with a "Temperature > 72 degrees" message. And to drop that temperature, I lowered the "Processor State" settings to 99% in the "Power Options" when I did this encoding task.
But then I opened up the case and cleaned the heat sink with a toothpick and it only goes to like 69-71 degrees now when encoding. That seems to still be very close to the "72 degree warning threshold".

 

[13thmonkey]

72 is fine, i'd be concerned at 85+ on a regular basis. These guys were very much on top of sandybridge when it came out, explanation about 5-6 posts down: http://www.overclock.net/t/1178307/is-the-i7-2600k-max-temp-really-72-6c/0_100

You're probably on the stock heat sink, a cheap upgrade could easily get rid of any concerns.

The size of the boost that you get is based on temp, so if it is happy boosting enough to get you to 72, then I would not be concerned, if it rises more it'll slow down, and start throttling at 95.

 

[rasmasyean]

OK, I'm confused. I found that there is a i7-2600K. Mine is non-K.
I thought non-K processors were locked. How does it get "auto" overclocked to 4.3 GHz?