Firstly, I know you guys want to know why am I writing this?
I usually steer away from public platforms especially when it comes to guides or knowledge articles. I am just plain lazy to join in and contribute, sorry!
But I think this is needed now especially when some of you (young Indian overclockers) are ready to take that next step and think it's all easy.
Now don't get me wrong- it is easy if you do it the right way.
I may not be an authority on this topic but then again I speak with personal record of '0' (ZERO) dead boards when I am overclocking with DICE or LN2.
As I did mention on my not so happening FB note, having fun is the main motive and not just blindly chasing after some record. So here are some things you need to know and not do OR be prepared to be at best scratching your head looking at a dead/fried motherboard or processor.
1. This is the most common one- to think that like them (top overclockers), you will be ok and nothing will go wrong.
Well, WRONG!!
Especially if you have a history of not being patient/careful enough to a job that always requires a very sincere effort from your side. Please do not get too comfortable for your own sake. Always prepare for every session with all the required precautions.
2. Not reading enough and not learning the basics of insulating techniques used by other more famous overclockers than you.
Just aping them blindly without full knowledge of the right techniques/procedures will ensure you may have a dead board very soon. There may be few/many guides/articles on overclocking, insulation techniques, etc. But there is no substitute to putting in the effort to go through the myriads of threads/posts related to individual overclocking endeavors where finer things may be discussed. Their success/failure has so much more to teach than we would like to discover on our own.
About insulating- Vaseline (applied properly and not just dabbed on), artists eraser / moldable eraser and, in addition to either of those, lots of paper napkins are your best friends when doing sub-zero overclocking.
e.g. An unaware user might kill a super high-end board, mostly due to negligence, carelessness and/or incompetence- something that only he will know. Whatever the circumstances OR the urgency to get a run done, this is not what is expected of an “overclockerâ€, for which there can be no excuses and it is only the “overclockerâ€, who is to be blamed for his gross negligence.
3. Running unnecessarily high Voltages- the ultimate solution to all your OCing limits
You may like overvolting as a quick fix but that is so not true.
At times, it does fix things for us. But from what I have observed, it ruins things quicker than fixing it even when you are sub-zero. I usually prefer to go step by step, starting with low volts depending on processor (quad/hexa core OR dual-core). But that's just me…
Honestly I have seen enough of high volts and even crazier speeds as I have been lucky to bench with my good friends from the far east region. But what is important for you to know is that those sessions never resulted in any dead processor(s) or dead RAM(s) or dead board(s).
Again this is something you learn as you go on testing processor(s). But still, like the point above you have to keep an eye out for what’s safe voltage for a particular chip and what speeds are considered "good" with what voltages.
A very funny example to this may be -
Someone using 1.8X volts to clock a certain speed under DICE/LN2.
I was overclocking a month and half later and still managed to OC higher with fairly lesser volts (1.62v) using same spec processor (with -102* C CB) and a GIGABYTE H55-UD3H board
Hope you get what I mean here. Running high volts to impress others and achieving average or below average clocks will easily get you to be noticed by the critic in me. So beware
4. Not cleaning up/drying the hardware after the sub-zero session
Any frost/ice formed during the sub zero session needs to be removed carefully. In addition to the excessive insulation (wet tissues/paper napkins, moldable eraser around CPU socket area). The board, especially PWM area and CPU socket area, needs to be dried well even if you may have coated it with a plastic spray. This is to ensure no moisture is left behind and you are safe for you next session provided if you've not killed the board yet!
5, Not being realistic about goals to be achieved and personal achievements
Lets face it, everyone likes to be famous instantaneously. So do not do overclocking for the wrong reasons (just to get famous) but do it to keep educating yourself and others but to also keep pushing personal boundaries. A time will come when you wont have to shout from rooftops to proclaim your achievements, if you are really good. One more thing, just being able to boot up at certain frequency OR being able to hit certain frequency in windows is of no value unless it is stable enough to complete one of the already established benchmarks. Hitting high clocks is good but doesn't equate to having benched at that speed.
So my young pupils, please take note!!
6. Making up reasons/excuses for not competing
Personally I think, you should be ready to grab every opportunity to compete that comes your way. Do not be dissuaded by the thought that others may have better hardware and hence better results OR
the fear of being ridiculed for not being among the top performers. Every competition that you come across is a great opportunity to improve yourself. So you should participate wholeheartedly without worrying about the outcome. The prizes awarded at competition should only be your secondary motivation; your primary motivation should always be being better and more competitive than you are presently.
Example - recently conducted GOOC 2010 India Qualifiers. Many probable participants stayed away thinking/assuming the few who competed with LN2 cooling will comfortably win. While some others stayed away for the fear of being ridiculed OR for the fear of losing face in front of others due to non-performance. There is no bigger loser than the one who wants to be an competitive/professional overclocker but even fails to compete when the opportunity presents itself.
I am repeating myself again. But....
RESPECT can not be DEMANDED with one or two good overclocks. It can only be Earned/Gained by being truthful about ones own capabilities and RESPECTING every fellow overclocker around you - junior or senior!
Thank you for reading! :cool2:
I usually steer away from public platforms especially when it comes to guides or knowledge articles. I am just plain lazy to join in and contribute, sorry!
But I think this is needed now especially when some of you (young Indian overclockers) are ready to take that next step and think it's all easy.
Now don't get me wrong- it is easy if you do it the right way.
I may not be an authority on this topic but then again I speak with personal record of '0' (ZERO) dead boards when I am overclocking with DICE or LN2.
As I did mention on my not so happening FB note, having fun is the main motive and not just blindly chasing after some record. So here are some things you need to know and not do OR be prepared to be at best scratching your head looking at a dead/fried motherboard or processor.
1. This is the most common one- to think that like them (top overclockers), you will be ok and nothing will go wrong.
Well, WRONG!!
Especially if you have a history of not being patient/careful enough to a job that always requires a very sincere effort from your side. Please do not get too comfortable for your own sake. Always prepare for every session with all the required precautions.
2. Not reading enough and not learning the basics of insulating techniques used by other more famous overclockers than you.
Just aping them blindly without full knowledge of the right techniques/procedures will ensure you may have a dead board very soon. There may be few/many guides/articles on overclocking, insulation techniques, etc. But there is no substitute to putting in the effort to go through the myriads of threads/posts related to individual overclocking endeavors where finer things may be discussed. Their success/failure has so much more to teach than we would like to discover on our own.
About insulating- Vaseline (applied properly and not just dabbed on), artists eraser / moldable eraser and, in addition to either of those, lots of paper napkins are your best friends when doing sub-zero overclocking.
e.g. An unaware user might kill a super high-end board, mostly due to negligence, carelessness and/or incompetence- something that only he will know. Whatever the circumstances OR the urgency to get a run done, this is not what is expected of an “overclockerâ€, for which there can be no excuses and it is only the “overclockerâ€, who is to be blamed for his gross negligence.
3. Running unnecessarily high Voltages- the ultimate solution to all your OCing limits
You may like overvolting as a quick fix but that is so not true.
At times, it does fix things for us. But from what I have observed, it ruins things quicker than fixing it even when you are sub-zero. I usually prefer to go step by step, starting with low volts depending on processor (quad/hexa core OR dual-core). But that's just me…
Honestly I have seen enough of high volts and even crazier speeds as I have been lucky to bench with my good friends from the far east region. But what is important for you to know is that those sessions never resulted in any dead processor(s) or dead RAM(s) or dead board(s).
Again this is something you learn as you go on testing processor(s). But still, like the point above you have to keep an eye out for what’s safe voltage for a particular chip and what speeds are considered "good" with what voltages.
A very funny example to this may be -
Someone using 1.8X volts to clock a certain speed under DICE/LN2.
I was overclocking a month and half later and still managed to OC higher with fairly lesser volts (1.62v) using same spec processor (with -102* C CB) and a GIGABYTE H55-UD3H board
Hope you get what I mean here. Running high volts to impress others and achieving average or below average clocks will easily get you to be noticed by the critic in me. So beware
4. Not cleaning up/drying the hardware after the sub-zero session
Any frost/ice formed during the sub zero session needs to be removed carefully. In addition to the excessive insulation (wet tissues/paper napkins, moldable eraser around CPU socket area). The board, especially PWM area and CPU socket area, needs to be dried well even if you may have coated it with a plastic spray. This is to ensure no moisture is left behind and you are safe for you next session provided if you've not killed the board yet!
5, Not being realistic about goals to be achieved and personal achievements
Lets face it, everyone likes to be famous instantaneously. So do not do overclocking for the wrong reasons (just to get famous) but do it to keep educating yourself and others but to also keep pushing personal boundaries. A time will come when you wont have to shout from rooftops to proclaim your achievements, if you are really good. One more thing, just being able to boot up at certain frequency OR being able to hit certain frequency in windows is of no value unless it is stable enough to complete one of the already established benchmarks. Hitting high clocks is good but doesn't equate to having benched at that speed.
So my young pupils, please take note!!
6. Making up reasons/excuses for not competing
Personally I think, you should be ready to grab every opportunity to compete that comes your way. Do not be dissuaded by the thought that others may have better hardware and hence better results OR
the fear of being ridiculed for not being among the top performers. Every competition that you come across is a great opportunity to improve yourself. So you should participate wholeheartedly without worrying about the outcome. The prizes awarded at competition should only be your secondary motivation; your primary motivation should always be being better and more competitive than you are presently.
Example - recently conducted GOOC 2010 India Qualifiers. Many probable participants stayed away thinking/assuming the few who competed with LN2 cooling will comfortably win. While some others stayed away for the fear of being ridiculed OR for the fear of losing face in front of others due to non-performance. There is no bigger loser than the one who wants to be an competitive/professional overclocker but even fails to compete when the opportunity presents itself.
I am repeating myself again. But....
RESPECT can not be DEMANDED with one or two good overclocks. It can only be Earned/Gained by being truthful about ones own capabilities and RESPECTING every fellow overclocker around you - junior or senior!
Thank you for reading! :cool2:
