Overclocking Nightmare

[aplante22]

So.. Just thought i would share my experience and where I am at with my PC right now.

 

My build:

Mobo - Asus Z170-AR I

CPU - Intel I7 6700K

GPU - Strix 1070 O8G

Memory - G-Skills Trident Z 8g x 2 @ 3200mhz

Cooler - NZXT Kraken x52

SSD - 120g Sandisk

Hard Drive - WD Blue 1T

PSU - EVGA 650 G

Multiple LGB fans in  NZXT S340

Windows 10 64 Bit

 

I have been using this PC for the past year. It has been running great with no major problems. Over the past week I have been researching overclocking and everything about it. Ultimately i decided to give it a try. 

 

I started with my GPU. I got a stable over clock out of it using the ASUS tunning software. Awesome! Games were noticeably better and smoother.

 

NOTE: My memory has been manually set to 3200 since day one and runs at 3200 in Intel Tuning Program.

 

Doing some more research into CPU overclock I said what the hell....lets give it a shot and see if i can gain some "Free" performance. 

 

Went into my BIOS over clocked to 4500hz which seemed low for this CPU based on research of other overclock done with it. Booted up with no issues. Ran well. Decided to go to 4600. Again no problem with some extra voltage..about 1.325v. Next comes major headaches, frustration, no sleep, and regret.

 

Bumped the CPU up to 4700hz. Started up, Windows loads and bamm. Blue screen restart. Okay no big deal, bump my CPU back down to 4600 and that will be my limit. NOPE. I get a second blue screen at 4600. Okay default settings.. it loads.. with a slight issue. My mouse stops clicking about 20 seconds into windows loading. After multiple restarts and BIOS settings to default the problem persists. 

 

Basically the computer turns on, mouse works fine, i type my password in to log onto windows, loads fine, then my mouse works for about 20 seconds and then it no longer clicks. It movesaround fine but i can't click anywhere, left or right.

 

So...i can't find any solutions. 

 

Ultimately I have to restore windows.....Damm.. 

 

So i restore windows and we are back in action.....with a setback of having to install all my software/drivers/programs/games/apps and anything else i use for the lifespan of the computer.

 

Still one issue..... While setting my bios back to the settings i have been running for the past year, i decided to update to the latest version. So i run the update and change my settings. I notice my ram at 2611mz or what ever the standard setting is. Manually change it to 3200, restart, and........no POST.

 

Start back up and check out whats going on in the bios, i notice my ram is set to 3000mhz. Weird. Set it back to 3200, restart, and no POST. What the heck. I leave it at 3000, restart, and it POST's with no issue. Tried this multiple time with two sets of ram with no luck. 

 

So in conclusion, I had a great gaming PC, which i got some greap fps out of an overclocked GPU. Decided to try some CPU overclocking..why...I don't know.. seemed like a win win. Now what i gain from overclocking is a cleaned PC that can only run at 3000mhz ram speed from previously 3200mhz, and Cortona talking to me every time i turn the thing on.

 

Just thought i would share my experience and if anyone has any input or solutions for my ram speed. I don't think I will overclock my CPU again...If it's not broke don't fix it.

 

[Cbfbrolol]

Have you tried running the ram at the xmp profile settings? Maybe the timing on the lower frequency profile, which by the sounds of what you say you are using and have just upped the frequency, differs from the timing on the 3200mhz profile and causing issues. 

[suchamoneypit]

Should have cleared your CMOS when you were having post issues overclocking the CPU, could have solved issues. Usually solves issues for me once I push it too far and get instability. Don't think a windows re-install was necessary but you learn with experience and good job getting it sorted although not as good. Overclocking is worth the performance. I've gotten 35% more performance on my 5820k, 25% more on my 4690k, and around 10-20% more on my Ryzen 1700X, completely free.

[aplante22]

1 hour ago, Cbfbrolol said:

Have you tried running the ram at the xmp profile settings? Maybe the timing on the lower frequency profile, which by the sounds of what you say you are using and have just upped the frequency, differs from the timing on the 3200mhz profile and causing issues. 

i have tried XMP with no luck and same result.

[aplante22]

1 hour ago, suchamoneypit said:

Should have cleared your CMOS when you were having post issues overclocking the CPU, could have solved issues. Usually solves issues for me once I push it too far and get instability. Don't think a windows re-install was necessary but you learn with experience and good job getting it sorted although not as good. Overclocking is worth the performance. I've gotten 35% more performance on my 5820k, 25% more on my 4690k, and around 10-20% more on my Ryzen 1700X, completely free.

100% agree, found a post after the fact describing my issue and doing a CMOS reset should solve it... Mainly I feel like i didn't need the performance i was trying to get. 

 

Now im looking at new MOBO's to run my 4 3200 sticks and maybe better support for overclocking. 

[Cbfbrolol]

13 minutes ago, aplante22 said:

100% agree, found a post after the fact describing my issue and doing a CMOS reset should solve it... Mainly I feel like i didn't need the performance i was trying to get. 

 

Now im looking at new MOBO's to run my 4 3200 sticks and maybe better support for overclocking. 

You deffinately dont need a new motherboard. That board supports up to 3400mhz ram o.c. 

Not the mention its a Z series, which is specifically for overclocking.