First time OCing

[Ramor]

So I've been doing some reading on OCing my processor and I'd like to OC it about 5-10% (not enough to have to dick around with voltages is my main goal, not to mention I only have stock cooling atm). Anything I should be careful to avoid or things to do?

I've got Prime 95 for a stress test as well as CPU-Z to get some readings on my processor/GPU etc... under a fairly stressful load once I actually do this, but I just want to make sure that there's nothing else I should be doing before I try OCing it a wee bit.

Computer:
i5-750 (was told they're fairly good for OCing)
GTX-260
4gigs of ram (some corsair thing, I don't plan on touching my RAM unless I end up OCing more in the future with some aftermarket cooling unless it will need some voltage changes for 5-10%?)

I know that the VID for my processor is 0.6500V-1.4000V (according to intel.com) but where do I find my specific processors baseline VID? I've heard that even the same chips can vary on what their base voltage requirements are for stable operation but I don't know where to find what my particular chips base VID is, not that I plan to change it I'm just curious is all.

Thanks for any help/suggestions you can offer

edit: nvm found the baseline voltage for my particular card, it's at around 0.85V, is that good for future (more intense) OCing? My boss said he runs about 4.0GHz at like 1.35 volts or so and said that the more room I have to work with (in terms of max voltage rating versus my baseline, in this case about 0.55V difference) is better, true or no?

[shiarua]

What motherboard and power supply? Also, need to know the specific model of the RAM

[Ramor]

P7P55-M mobo
ram: F3-12800CL9-2GBRL (2x2GB 800MHz UDIMM DDR3, running in single-channel at the moment but when I crack my case open to clean it and make sure there's good airflow I'll be moving them to dual-channel)
also, 750W PSU although I think there may be a 1000W one at work I can snag if needed

[Amastacia]

With a first gen i5 or i7 the main over clocking mechanism is increasing BCLK, which is the base clock source used to determine the rest of the frequencies on die (via multipliers).

Small steps, especially for a first-timer, are a good thing. You will be able to go a lot further than 5-10% if you want, but lots of small increments and testing are your best friends.

Make a small increase to your BCLK, boot into Windows, and run Prime95 blend. You will be able to tell within 10-15 mins if you have major instability (BSOD = not remotely stable, Prime95 rounding errors = nearly stable).

If you've made a significant change to BCLK, and it runs 10-15 mins without error, and temps are safe (you want your Prime95 temps under about 75C, and ideally 65C, though 75 is safe), you can move on to further testing. Further testing can be another small BCLK increase, or, if you're happy with where you are and/or you are getting uncomfortable with temps going higher, do a longer stabile test. Best thing to do is 8-12 hours (e.g. run overnight) of constant blend tests.

Small FFTs can generate more heat, but the Core iX architecture will not accurately stability test. You need to bring in the memory subsystem to make sure the whole die (including memory controller) is stable.

In general, lower default VID means a better chip sample, though it's not definitive. You don't want steady-state operation above 1.4-1.45V (which you won't be able to do on stock cooling anyway). The less voltage you need to hit stock clocks, the more headroom you have to over clock with. That said, lower VID is not a guarantee of a better chip for overclocking, and there's no guarantee it will support higher BCLKs with less voltage.

[Ramor]

I don't know what BCLK is (or rather I didn't until I googled it 20 seconds ago) but it appears that it's a feature that only exists on i7s and not i5s, also I was told to change the FSB for my first bit of OCing rather than anything else? Like I said I just want to make sure I don't change the wrong thing and fry some shit in this computer, I can afford some aftermarket cooling but that would be about it (i.e. not a whole new computer )

[lathia]

http://www.clunk.org.uk/forums/overclocking/

Where I went to OC my i7 months ago.

[shiarua]

Read this. Pretty identical to your motherboard (the one they use) so should be the same approach at OC'ing your cpu/ram

http://www.legionhardware.com/articl...g_guide,1.html

[Dmitry]

Definitely get a better cooler than the stock one if you OC. I have the same processor, and it idled around 60C or so (been a while, might be a little high) stock speed and stock cooler. I have it clocked at 3.2 or 3.4 on stock voltage with an aftermarket cooler and it idles around 30C and from what I remember doesn't get very hot while under load. I think it got up to around 40C when I was doing some video encoding and running some games for a while, so it was near 100% for a good while and still didn't get too hot.

[Ramor]

So I finally got some spare time (and a little bit o' cash) and I got an aftermarket cooler for around 30~ and another case fan and tossed them all in there.

OCed to about 3.3~ right now idles at around 50C (I think my house being like a million degrees today may have something to do with that) but under full load after 30 or so minutes it only went up to about 60C top and stayed there (prime blend for 30 minutes anyway).

Overall pretty awesome, may try doing some voltage tweaks in a bit but for now I think I'll enjoy the success of my computer running OCed and stable.

Thanks for all the help guys