INTRODUCTION

OFFICIAL LIBRARY

So many users are searching around the net these days looking for advice on how to overclock their
new systems but dont know where to start. To help everyone out, I decided a how-to guide was in
order. Searching around forums can be confusing and intimidating. There are so many people willing
to give advice, but who can you trust? Its hard to know, and Ive seen many users sent on wild goose
chases because they are following advice that doesnt solve or even address their specific problem.
Ive also seen too much trial and error overclocking, unless you get lucky it tends to be far too
time consuming a frustrating. What Ive attempted to do is create a very simple three step guide
for overclocking Clarkdale based CPUs. If you want to continue searching out other opinions, please
consider each suggestion with caution. Some will undoubtedly be great, some will not.

DISCLAIMER
I am not responsible for any bad things that happen to you or your computer as a result of
you following this guide, nor is techreaction.net. My goal is for this guide to be a safe
overclocking guideline, but the burden for damaged hardware lies on the user performing the
overclock! Overclocking can damage hardware and in most cases will void your warranties.

PREREQUISITES
In the prior version of this guide, I requested that you have some basic knowledge of your
motherboards BIOS. While I have not addressed every motherboard on the market, I have included
details for the top enthusiast brands. But as before, please do not be afraid to get into your BIOS
and have a look around, if you are ever concerned that you may have changed a setting
erroneously, you can always load defaults, and start over. Most boards have a CMOS reset button
on them now-a-days, if not check your user manual for the location of the CMOS reset
jumperplease ensure you know the location before getting started.
This guide is independent of your cooling system. Whether you are using the stock Intel cooler or if
youre pushing to the extreme with phase change cooling, the basic steps remain the same. One
thing that is far too common are mistakes mounting your cooling system, specifically the application
of the thermal interface material (TIM). If you dont have much experience mounting cooling
apparatus, please refer to this excellent guide from Arctic Silver.

METHODOLOGY
Determining methods for finding a stable overclock are highly controversial, everyone has their own
definition of a stable system, but when I refer to stable in this guide, I am referring to the
stability of your selected stability test. So for a power user or gamer who wants a reliable system
that wont ever crash due to an overclock pushed too far, youd need to test with a program that will
load all of the cores and threads applicable to your CPU, OCCT and IntelBurnTest are two popular
choices. OCCT uses the same algorithm as Prime95 but has a more friendly interface. IntelBurnTest
uses the Intel linpak binaries to stress the system and also has an easy to use interface. In this guide
I may use testing that is insufficient in your opinion. It is only a guideline and if you feel more testing
is necessary for your system, by all means feel free.

So with that in mind, we will attempt to isolate each portion of the system and overclock one step at
a time. This may seem time consuming at first glance, but rest assured this will potentially save
you hours of troubleshooting and frustration. So go slow, and follow each step very carefully.

BIOS FAMILIARIZATION
If youve found my guide online, my guess is youre looking for more than a basic overclock. If youre
not, and all youd like is something simple, please redirect your attention to your motherboard
manufacturers website and download the latest overclocking utility. For basic 10-20% overclocking,
they work pretty well. There is Gigabyte EasyTune6, Asus TurboV EVO, MSI Control Center,
and eVGA eleet. This guide is written to take it to the next level, for THAT we need to do the
overclocking from the BIOS.
Speaking of which, before we begin, please check your motherboard manufacturers website for the
latest version of your BIOS. Usually enthusiast level boards will have BIOS engineers tweaking them
for months or years to improve overclocking support. Unless you have a reason to stay with your
current BIOS, Id update to the newest version.
If you dont know how to access the BIOS, please refer to your motherboards owners manual for
instruction. While youre there, find out how to clear CMOS. As I mentioned in the introduction to
this guide, its important you know how to properly clear CMOS before we begin.
Secondly, the first thing to do after powering up the new system is to enter the BIOS and find the
hardware monitor area and verify the CPU temperature is reasonable based on your cooling. If not,
please power down the system and verify the mounting of your cooling apparatus (refer to the guide
linked in the prerequisites section.
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GOALS
The variety of users reading this guide is vast, and each users goal will be unique and specific to
his/her needs. It would be impossible for me to address every users specific needs. But Ive
attempted to be as broad, yet specific as possible. My goal is to assist the maximum number of users
as possible, despite your specific needs.
Based on user feedback from the previous version of this guide, I decided to better address
overclocking with power features enabled. The easy answer was to follow the old guide and then
attempt to enable your power features afterward, but that rarely worked when approaching the limits
of a given system.
Just as before, if you want to maximize your overclock, you should disable all the power saving
features in the BIOS as detailed in step 1. However, if youre after a more moderate overclock, and
youd like to save power (especially while your system sits idle) you can leave those setting
enabled. Just follow the guide as written (Ive added tips for you along the way) to find your best
settings. While your potential overclock will be more limited, the benefit will likely be worth it to many
of you.

TERMINOLOGY
Id like to start off by writing briefly about the BIOS and more specifically, differences in terminology
between the different manufacturers. Obviously there are too many motherboards on the market to
show you every single one in this guide. But looking at boards from the four top manufactures, we
should be able to better identify specific terminologies used by each.
Below Ive created a table comparing the terminology used by the four major enthusiast motherboard
manufacturers.

A comparison of BIOS terminology used by four top manufacturers

***A brief note about Asus. Asus makes multipliers a little more confusing in this guide because
the BIOS doesnt show the ratios at all, they only show the speed of the item based on the bclock
set. This requires a little additional math on your part while using this guide. Please be aware of this
difference as you progress***
Throughout this guide, Ill be referring to the terminology used by Gigabyte because it is most
familiar to me. This top section is to be used for reference so that you know what Im referring
to you when your BIOS options dont match my instructions.

UNDERSTANDING TOTAL SYSTEM PERFORMANCE

Before we go into how we overclock these CPUs let us look at what determines how fast your whole
system will run. CPU frequency is very important. However, there are many other factors that play
into your total system performance. All of your primary BIOS overclocking revolves around the Base
Clock or bclock and clock ratios. The base clocks default speed for all P55/H55/H57 based systems
is 133MHz. Typically we shoot for overclocks in the range of 200MHz bclock.doing that has a major
effect on a number of things

A map of the Clarkfield dice

CPU frequency = bclock x CPU clock ratio

The CPU speed is the primary concern for day to day and very noticeable performance gains can be
attained by overclocking the CPU. Looking at the picture above, the CPU speed refers to the actual
speed that the chip on the right operates at.

QPI frequency = bclock x QPI clock ratio

Actually on the Clarkdale processor, the two pieces of silicon are linked by the MCP interface, the
confusing part about that in our motherboards BIOSs and in CPU-Z, is that the MCP link as
erroneously referred to as a Quick Path Interface or QPI. But rest assured, the QPI settings listed
in your BIOS refers to the MCP interconnect between the two chips on your processor. The
misnaming continues due to the fact that another chip shares this platform with Clarkdale..the
Lynnfield based quad core CPUs.they used QPI and they were here first!
So what about it? Well, EVERYTHING.everything in your system has to communicate with the
CPU via this link, even the memory. If youre familiar with LGA775 based systems, they worked in a
very similar fashion except the chip on the left in the image above was located on the motherboard,
and was called the Northbridge and had to communicate with the CPU via the front side bus or
FSB. Well, just as in those LGA775 based systems where increasing FSB frequency had a major
impact on performance, the same rule applies here. So maximizing the MCP frequency is very
important. From this point forward, I will refer to the MCP link speed as the QPI freq to avoid
confusion while working in your BIOS and/or CPU-Z.

Memory frequency = bclock x System Memory Multiplier (SPD)

Memory is shown in the BIOS as a multiplier of 6, 8, 10, etc This represents the multiplier to reach
the DDR speed. So, a stock 133MHz bclock with the multiplier of 8 would result in a memory speed
of DDR3-1066.

DDR The other part that can be quite confusing for users who are not familiar with DDR technology
is the difference between the memory clock speed and the memorys DDR speed. For instance,
DDR3-1600 actually runs at 800MHz, its just that DDR (or dual data rate) technology allows the
memory to process twice per clock cycle. Back when we switched technologies from SDRAM to DDR
for the first time, the manufacturers started saying DDR-400 when it ran at 200MHz because it was
better marketing to sell their memory over the older SDRAM technology. This is why CPU-Z shows
800MHz for your DDR3-1600, or 1000MHz for your DDR3-2000.
Memory speed and bandwidth can have a huge effect in some applications, and negligible impact on
others. But overall, top shelf memory is one of the worse items you can spend your money on from
a value perspective. Faster CPUs and GPUs will give you much more performance for your hard
earned cash.

iGPU frequency = (set iGPU freq) x (set bclock freq) / 133

In the BIOS of most motherboards, the iGPU frequency setting is based on the default bclock
frequency. This means that an iGPU frequency that is set at 900MHz in the BIOS, will only actually
be 900MHz if the bclock frequency is set to 133MHz, if the bclock frequency was raised by 25% to
166MHz, the actual iGPU frequency would also go up by 25% or 1125MHz. This is a relatively simple
concept to understand, except that YOU have to do the calculation, because the BIOS only report the
set frequency, not the actual frequency.
As time goes on and the BIOSs get better, support for overclocking with these systems will get
better. Already it appears that Asus have additional support in some of their BIOS revisions which
make this equation and extra math unnecessary. But I have not had any hand-on experience with it,
youll have to aces the situation based on your BIOS options.
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IMPORTANT VOLTAGES WHEN OVERCLOCKING

There a few important voltages which you will need to manipulate while overclocking, below are the
main ones. Not every motherboard BIOS is identical, but all enthusiast level motherboards should
provide control of the voltages as shown below.
CPU Vcore Directly related to the CPU frequency. As you increase the CPU frequency you would
need incrementally increase the v-core as well. Everyone continues to ask what is safe, and Ill
continue my previous suggestion that a safe voltage for you system should be determined by your
LOADED CPU core temperatures. So, while you are stress testing, monitor your CPU core
temperatures with Real Temp and if the temperature is under control, you can SAFELY increase the
voltage. So, the next logical question is what is a safe temperature, and Intel says 105C is the
maximum safe temperature, and thats what I go by.
Nothing Ive ever used my computer for come close to generating heat like IntelBurnTest configured
to use all threads. Because it generates so much heat, it has become my favorite stress testing
application. As long as I can keep my CPU cores below 100C while running IntelBurnTest, then for
me thats safe. If you are more conservative/cautious than me thats perfectly OK. IntelBurnTest at
default will only spawn one thread for each physical core, so if you have HyperThreading support
enabled on your CPU, please manual select the number of threads in the drop-down box
corresponding to your CPUs thread count.
From this point forward I will use the

terminology IntelBurnTest (maximum) to remind you to manually configure the thread count if your
CPU has HyperThreading enabled.
QPI/VTT voltage This controls the voltage being supplied to the MCP link, the memory controller,
and the PCIe controller. It will have a direct impact primarily on the bclock frequency, the IMC, and
the MCP (QPI) link frequency. I do not recommend exceeding 1.4V.
DRAM voltage This is directly related to your RAM modules and increases will allow increase in
MEM speeds. There has been a lot of debate as to the limitation 1.65V limitation Intel has
published. For quite a while users have been running much higher DRAM voltage without ill
effect. The justification has always been that the default VTT is 1.15V and the DRAM voltage has to
stay within 0.5V of the VTT. I have always played by that rule, although many power users have
questioned whether its needed or not. In any case, 1.4V seems to be more than enough for most
Clarkdale based systems, and even abiding by the rule would allow for up to 1.85V DRAM, which
should be plenty for most memory modules on the market these days.
Whether or not its necessary Im not going to debate here, but its an easy rule to follow, and its
stood the test of time that you can safely run your DRAM voltage up to VTT +0.5V

iGPU voltage
This is only important for users who are utilizing the iGPU in their Clarkdale CPU. If you have a
discrete (PCIe) graphics card, you can skip past this section.
The iGPU voltage can be useful when overclocking the iGPU itself (see the last portion of the guide
for more details). I would recommend that you do not exceed 1.4V for the iGPU voltage.

SAMPLE OVERCLOCKING GOALS TO USE AS A

REFERENCE
I keep going back and forth with this guide trying to make it easy to read for everyone, and yet still
relevant to anyones personal goal. Sometimes as Im typing away, I feel like Im over explaining
things over and over and that itll cause more confusion than clarity. So, for clarity, as you read the
guide, Ill be referring to the following thee sample goals and hopefully thatll allow my explanations
to be a little more concise.
1. 1. Sample #1 Easy/budget OC Intel Core i3 530, DDR3-1066 CAS7
1. Bclock freq goal = 180MHz
2. CPU freq goal = 3960MHz
3. Memory speed goal = DDR3-1080 ( MCP @ 3960MHz)
***This OC should be possible with the stock Intel cooler and minimal voltage increases***
1. 2. Sample #2 Moderate/midrange OC Intel Core i3 530, DDR3-1600 CAS8
1. Bclock freq goal = 200MHz
2. CPU freq goal = 4400MHz
3. Memory speed goal = DDR3-1600 (MCP @ 4400MHz)
***This OC will require high end air cooling at a minimum and moderate voltage increases***
1. 3. Sample #3 Hardcore/high end OC Intel Core i3 550, DDR3-2000 CAS9

1. Bclock freq goal = 200MHz

2. CPU freq goal = 4800MHz
3. Memory speed goal = DDR3-2000 (MCP @ 4400MHz)
***This OC may require water cooling or better and moderate to high voltage increases***

STEP 1) MAXIMIZE BCLOCK FREQUENCY

I would start by entering the BIOS and select load optimized defaults, then save and exit. After the
reboot, go back into the BIOS and turn off the start-up slash screen, so that you can view your
systems post behavior. Also, feel free to disable any integrated peripherals that will not be used
(i.e. NICs, extra PATA/SATA controllers, legacy devices, etc.). All other overclocking settings you
can leave on auto for now.
If you are looking for your maximum overclock, and youre not concerned with power consumption,
disable all power saving features. These include, but are not limited to; EIST, C1E, and all other Cstates.

Isolate the bclock from the CPU

First you need to isolate the bclock, because all other major devices derive their frequencies from the
bclock, its the logical starting point. In order to isolate the bclock from the other components, the first
thing you need to do is manually force a low clock ratio for the CPU.

Sample #1, #2, and #3 set the CPU clock ratio to x14

Isolate the bclock from the memory

Just like the CPU, the memory receives its clock from the bclock via a clock ratio, in this case the
default is x4 (1334=533MHz or DDR3-1066). This is expressed in the BIOS as 2:8. For now, we
want to drop that down a bit.

Sample #1, #2, and #3 set the memory ratio to 2:6

In all sample system, the IMC is the limiting factor, and we dont want to push it up yet, that is the
reason for all three to be set at 2:6 for this step, dont worry it wont be there for long.

Isolate the bclock from the iGPU

If you are using an H55 or H57 based motherboard and the iGPU is enabled, please pay close
attention to this section. If you are using a P55 based motherboard or if you are using a discrete
(PCIe) graphics card, you can skip past this section.
For now, its important to isolate the iGPU from our overclocking process. So you need to do some
reverse math based on your bclock overclocking goal. Take 100,000 and divide it by your bclock
goal, this will give you the value you should set the iGPU freq at in the BIOS, for example:

Sample #1 (100,000/180=555) set the iGPU freq to 555MHz

Sample #2 (100,000/200=500) set the iGPU freq to 500MHz
Sample #3 (100,000/200=500) set the iGPU freq to 500MHz

The reason for this is that when we increase the bclock (assuming youre able to reach your goal)
your iGPU will be approximately at its default frequency of 733MHz. This prevents it from becoming
a hidden limiting factor during the process of overclocking the bclock.

bclock voltages
For this step, there is really only one voltage adjustment to play with; VTT.
Proper VTT voltage tuning is crucial for achieving high bclock stability. Default QPI/VTT is 1.15V and
to reach 200MHz bclock youll likely need to increase this to at least 1.2V, many CPUs will require
1.3V or more. The only way to know is to follow the instructions here and find out.
For all three sample systems, start by setting the QPI/VTT voltage to 1.2V.

FIRST OVERCLOCK!
Go back into the BIOS and set the CPU, QPI (set to x44 for all sample systems), and memory
multipliers, go to the voltages section and adjust your your QPI/VTT voltage. Then restart your
machine and go back into the BIOS, if your system fails to post, start a new thread in the forums and
ask for some specific help. Please be sure to include as many details as possible when posting in
the forums, and post a picture of the specific problem if possible.
After youve restarted your system with your manually configured voltages and returned to the BIOS,
adjust the bclock speed from 133MHz to 150MHz. Then save and exit and allow the system to
reboot. This time, allow the system to boot fully into the operating system.

Testing for highest stable bclock frequency

Once the operating system has fully loaded, start up RealTemp. RealTemp should always be running
while checking for stability of an overclocked system to ensure you do not overheat your
CPU. RealTemp shows your CPUs core temperatures real-time. Now start up CPU-Z, this utility will
allow you to ensure that your overclocked settings have been properly applied, and that you are
running at your desired speed. Check both the CPU tab for the expected CPU frequency, and check
the memory tab to ensure your memory and uncore are both running at the appropriate speed. At
this point the sample systems should each show up in CPU-Z with the following speeds.

Sample #1 CPU = 2100MHz, QPI = 3300MHz, memory = 450MHz

Sample #2 CPU = 2100MHz, QPI = 3300MHz, memory = 450MHz
Sample #3 CPU = 2100MHz, QPI = 3300MHz, memory = 450MHz

***Note***, if you have SpeedStep (EIST) enabled, the CPU speed will fluctuate in CPU-Z when the
load changes, please verify values given above WHILE RUNNING YOUR STRESS TEST.
Now start up your selected test program, for example OCCT (mix) or IntelBurnTest (maximum). Run
the test for just a short amount of time, I usually try to run 3 loops with IntelBurnTest (maximum). Then
reboot the system and return to the BIOS.
1. If the test ran without error, raise the bclock by 10MHz, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.
2. If the test failed, raise the QPI/VTT voltage by 0.025V, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.

Continue to repeat this testing following the two procedures above, until you meet one of the following
three criteria:

You reach the same bclock speed you identified in step one and successfully pass your
stability test.
You reach your maximum safe QPI/VTT voltage (as identified above)
Raising the QPI/VTT voltage is ineffective in stabilizing the system.

* Note there is a phenomena known as bclock holes that may create confusion and frustration
during this process. But if you appear to have found your limit at a much lower speed than anticipated,
please consider trying a step or two higher before continuing on. A bclock hole causes system
instability within particular bclock ranges, and going past them may allow you to regain stability.

Fine tuning
After you have met one of the criteria above, you should have a rough idea of your bclock limit, now
its time to get a little more fine-tuned. So, revert back to the highest speed THAT PASSED the stress
test. Then continue the same procedure as before, but instead of 10MHz bclock changes, shift to
2MHz changes until you meet one of the three criteria again. Also, ensure you check my note about
bclock holes above, the same concept can be applied to this fine tuning step as well.
After you have found your highest stable speed to within 2MHz accuracy, lower the bclock by 2MHz
and run your test again. This time let the test run for a full hour. If it passes the
test - Congratulations! you have found your highest reasonably stable bclock frequency. If it does
not pass, drop the bclock 2MHz and attempt the full hour long test again, continue to lower the bclock
in 2MHz increments until the one hour test will pass.
For the purpose of this guide, Im going to assume you met the goal as provided in one of the 3
sample systems listed above.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

STEP 2) OPTIMIZE MEMORY FREQUENCY

System Memory Ratios
The next step is to find the limit of your memory. In order to do this, we need to prepare you to meet
your memory overclocking goal. Start off this step be entering the BIOS and setting the bclock
frequency back to 150MHz. Because we have already been through the range of bclocks from
150MHz to 200MHz (or whatever YOU reached), we already know that the bclock will be stable with
these settings. So that effectively allows you to go back through the same range again, changing
only the variable of memory, so that youll KNOW that that any instability is memory related.
To do that you need to change your System Memory Multiplier (SPD) to a ratio that will allow you
to push the blcock back up to your goal, without exceeding the memorys rated speed. Also, manually
configure the memory timings according to the manufacturers specifications. There will probably be
many sub-timings in your BIOS that you could change, but only change the timings specified by the
manufacturer, the others leave on auto.

Lets look at the sample systems for an example, for those systems you would configure the System
Memory Multiplier (SPD) as follows.

Sample #1 set the System Memory Multiplier (SPD) to 6

Sample #2 set the System Memory Multiplier (SPD) to 8
Sample #3 set the System Memory Multiplier (SPD) to 10

For the sample system #1, the goal is 180MHz bclock, the multiplier is 8, and the memory is rated at
DDR3-1066. If we were successful in reaching the 180MHz bclock goal, the memory would be at
1806 = DDR3-1080. This is about an 1% OC and within the 10% I recommend limiting yourself to
for this step.
For the sample system #2, the goal is 200MHz bclock, the multiplier is 8, and the memory is rated at
DDR3-1600. If we were successful in reaching the 200MHz bclock goal, the memory would be at
2008 = DDR3-1600. This is the memorys rated speed and within the 10% I recommend limiting
yourself to for this step.
For the sample system #3, the goal is 200MHz bclock, the multiplier is 10, and the memory is rated
at DDR3-2000. If we were successful in reaching the 200MHz bclock goal, the memory would be at
20010 = DDR3-2000. This is the memorys rated speed and within the 10% I recommend limiting
yourself to for this step.
In the same way, set your multiplier according to your goal, so as to prevent more than a 10%
overclock on your memory. As a generalization, memory rated at lower speeds typically has more
overclocking potential than higher rated memory. My suggestion for now is to focus on getting
the IMC overclocked to the memorys rated speed (cause remember, the IMC is only rated to run at
DDR3-1066).
Instead of overclocking memory, I place a higher value on tightening up timings. Take sample
#2 from above, it has DDR3-2000 CAS9 memory. Youll get better day-to-day performance out of
that memory by tightening the timings down to CAS8 level, as opposed to overclocking the speed to
DDR3-2100..not only that, but tightening the timings is almost always easier than increasing the
speed. Again, Im not going to get into detail here because tangible differences on a daily system will
not exist.

DRAM voltages
There are two voltages we need to focus on in this section, the QPI/VTT voltage youve already
become familiar with, and the DRAM voltage itself. QPI/VTT is already high enough to support your
bclock and uncore goals, but as we push up the speed of the IMC (which is also part of the uncore),
the QPI/VTT voltage may need a bit more. This is especially true if you are running with all 4 memory
slots populated, or if youre using newer 4GB DIMMs, these configurations can put a lot of added
stress on the IMC and require extra QPI/VTT voltage to retain stability. For all three sample systems,
set the DRAM voltage manually to 1.65V (or 1.66V if 1.65V is not possible).

Testing for highest stable memory frequency

Now start up your selected test program, for example OCCT (RAM) or IntelBurnTest (maximum). Run
the test for just a short amount of time, I usually try to run 3 loops with IntelBurnTest (maximum). Then
reboot the system and return to the BIOS.
1. If the test ran without error, raise the bclock by 10MHz, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.

2. If the test failed, raise the QPI/VTT voltage by 0.0125V, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.
Continue to repeat this testing following the two procedures above, until you meet one of the following
three criteria:

You reach the same bclock speed you identified in step one and successfully pass your
stability test.
You reach your maximum safe QPI/VTT voltage (as identified above)
Raising the QPI/VTT voltage is ineffective in stabilizing the system.

Just as you did in step one, if needed you can follow the same procedure for fine tuning here.
After you have reached your desired goal, be sure to test the overclock with another one hour pass
of your selected stability test to ensure the entire uncore is happy with the current
configuration.
However, I would add one additional stability test at this point,
memtest86+. IntelBurnTest (maximum) and OCCT (RAM) are both very good at identifying IMC and
memory error, but neither is as strenuous testing the memory modules as memtest. Its a good way
to verify that the memory modules are not defective, and will operate without error. Run at least one
pass, or for 1 hour, whichever is greater.
Congratulations! - You now have a relatively stable bclock frequency and memory frequency.

Overclock the Memory?

Im not going to go into detail in overclocking memory in this guide. It can be tricky and time
consuming and with the differences in memory pricing, my advice is to buy RAM rated to run at the
speed you want to run it at. The one exception was with sample #1, in that case we ended up with a
very modest overclock that would be easily attainable, and might even yield a tangible performance
increase.
When you get up into the higher frequencies, memory overclocking becomes a bit futile. Instead of
overclocking memory, I place a higher value on tightening up timings. Take sample #2 from above,
it has DDR3-2000 CAS9 memory. Youll get better performance out of that memory by tightening the
timings down to CAS8 level, as opposed to overclocking the speed to DDR3-2100..not only that,
but tightening the timings is almost always easier than increasing the speed. Again, Im not going to
get into detail here because tangible differences on a daily system will not exist.

STEP 3) STABILIZE CPU FREQUENCY

Almost there
The last step in this guide is often the first step for users who run into problems and then troubleshoot
for days afterward. Leaving it to the last step makes the task much simpler. You now have the
following settings locked in; QPI/VTT voltage, IOH voltage, memory voltage, uncore clock ratio,
memory ratio, and memory timings. That means when we are looking for our highest CPU frequency,
there are only two variables we need to play with: bclock and CPU voltage.
Please start by entering the BIOS and adjust the bclock back down to 150MHz, then adjust the CPU
clock ratio as follows.

Sample #1 set the CPU clock ratio to x22

Sample #2 set the CPU clock ratio to x22
Sample #3 set the CPU clock ratio to x24

Load-line calibration (LLC)

This actually goes by a few different names, but they are all meant as a means to reduce or prevent
v-droop. It does typically ease the overclocking process at the cost of violating Intels design
specs. However, overclocking in its essence violates Intels design specs, so youre not
breaking any new ground with this feature. I highly recommend enabling this feature. High end
Gigabyte motherboards have two settings, select Level 2. For more insight on the theory of LLC,
refer to this excellent explanation at anandtech.com. There was also some real world testing recently;
feel free to check out Bobnovas LLC investigation here.

CPU Vcore
That brings us to the first thing that most users want to play with after powering up their new system
for the first time: CPU voltage, aka Vcore. As you can see, this is actually one of the last things you
should be changing. I would recommend starting at a nice and easy 1.2V. Surprisingly enough,
many users are able to achieve very good overclocks with this modest amount of CPU voltage. I
would be surprised if sample #1 needed any more than that, sample #2 probably need a bit more,
and sample #3 will probably need quite a bit more.

Testing for your highest stable CPU frequency

Once the operating system has fully loaded, start up RealTemp. Now start up CPU-Z and verify that
your overclocked settings have been properly applied, and that you are running at your desired CPU,
bclock, and memory frequencies. Each of the sample systems should look like this.

Sample #1 CPU = 3300MHz, uncore = 3300MHz, memory = 450MHz

Sample #2 CPU = 3300MHz, uncore = 3300MHz, memory = 600MHz
Sample #3 CPU = 3600MHz, uncore = 3300MHz, memory = 750MHz

***Note***, if you have SpeedStep (EIST) enabled, the CPU speed will fluctuate in CPU-Z and the
load changes, please verify values given above WHILE RUNNING YOUR STRESS STEST.
Now start up your selected test program, for example OCCT (CPU) or IntelBurnTest (maximum). Run
the test for just a short amount of time, I usually try to run 3 loops with IntelBurnTest (maximum). Then
reboot the system and return to the BIOS.
1. If the test ran without error, raise the bclock by 10MHz, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.
2. If the test failed, raise the CPU Vcore voltage by 0.025V, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.
Continue to repeat this testing following the two procedures above, until you meet one of the following
three criteria:

You reach the same bclock speed you identified in step one and successfully pass your
stability test.
You reach your maximum safe Vcore (as identified above), or maximum safe temperature.

Raising the Vcore is ineffective in stabilizing the system.

As you did in step one and two, follow the same procedure for fine tuning with 2MHz increments.

STEP 3.5) IGPU OVERCLOCKING

So, if you are using the iGPU in your processor and would like to gain an extra nudge of performance
from it, consider a mild OC for it. The iGPU in these processors are typically good for 900MHz or
more with modest increases in iGPU voltage.
I like to use the FurMark utility with all default settings except check the fullscreen box. In the default
benchmark mode, the test lasts only one minute and actually puts a pretty decent load on the
GPU. Just keep in mind that the iGPU freq shown in the BIOS is not the actual GPU freq. If you
want the iGPU to run at approximately 900MHz take 120,000 and divide it by your bclock
frequency.this is the value you need to set the iGPU frequency to in the BIOS to achieve 900MHz
actual iGPU speed. Ill use the sample systems for an example.

Sample #1 (120,000/180=667) set the iGPU freq to 667MHz

Sample #2 (120,000/200=600) set the iGPU freq to 600MHz
Sample #3 (120,000/200=600) set the iGPU freq to 600MHz

So, starting where you were at the end of step 3, go into the BIOS and increase the indicated iGPU
freq by 10MHz. Enter Windows and run FurMark.
1. If the test ran without error, raise the bclock by 10MHz, reboot into your OS and run the test
again.
2. If the test failed, raise the iGPU voltage by 0.025V, reboot into your OS and run the test again.
Continue to repeat this testing following the two procedures above, until you meet one of the following
three criteria:

You reach the same iGPU speed listed directly above and successfully pass the FurMark
benchmark test.
You reach your maximum safe iGPU voltage (as discussed above).
Raising the iGPU voltage is ineffective in stabilizing FurMark benchmark test.

As you did in the first three steps, follow the same procedure for fine tuning with 2MHz increments.

Is it stable?
So, once you find your highest CPU frequency by meeting one of the criteria above, and run OCCT
(mix) or IntelBurnTest (maximum) for one hour minimum. Id like to refer to all this testing as
reasonably stability. In my experience, the true test of stability is the regular daily operation of your
system, doing what you intended it to do.
The reason we use testing programs like OCCT or IntelBurnTest is to simulate a worst case
scenario. I have never seen any real world application come close to generating the heat
that IntelBurnTest (maximum) generates. But there are a few that can come close to OCCT, like
folding or crunching for distributed computing projects, encoding high definition videos, or very heavy
multitasking. But even though OCCT or IntelBurnTest stress tests tend to generate more heat, they
do not always find 100% of instabilities. In my opinion, the ultimate test is to use the system!

FINAL WORDS
Well, that about wraps it up. Believe me, there is so much more to overclocking. There are SO
MANY settings you can continue to fiddle with, you may have a million questions at this point about
all of the settings in the BIOS that we never touched. Theyre valid questions, but not meant for this
guide. My goal was for this guide to get you 95% of the way in 5% off the time. Hopefully youre
there! The other settings in your BIOS will be needed to get you to 100%.but if I included those
things in this guide, it would be 3 times as long, and much more complicated.
Please feel free to comment, and post any questions in the Intel section of the techreation
forums. The community is the best resource to continue pushing your system beyond this guide. Post
a new thread with a very detailed description of which part of the guide you are having problems with,
how far your progressed through the steps, and screenshots to help us understand the problem youre
encountering if necessary. We will do our best to help you out with any problems you may encounter!