Anyone know how to overclock PC stuff?

**uberpubert69** · May 24, 2014

I know this isn't exactly GameEx related, but it kinda is because I'm trying to overclock my CPU so my emulators run a bit better like dolphin and pcsx2. I have a BIOS thats made for it, I just don't have a clue on what anything really means lol. I got this easytune program my motherboard came with but it screws me over big time when I use it. My CPU apparently automatically overclocks to 4.2 but whenever I'm monitoring it it says 3.8. and if possible I'd like to overclock my GPU as well. I understand if none of you know how to do this stuff lol.

Heres my specs:

CPU: AMD A10 5800K 3.8GHz (4.2GHz Turbo) Quad Core
RAM: Wintec One 8GB DDR3 1600Mhz
GPU: XFX Radeon HD 7750 2GB DDR3

**DazzleHP** · May 24, 2014

I haven't owned an AMD CPU for quite a few years, but there are many guides around the net on how to do things for your particular board. Your BIOS might (likely will have) have a safety feature to throttle your CPU if it gets too hot enabled. Any kind of overclock can dramatically increase your temps which i will give you some general tips/words of warning.

Firstly, before you do any alterations you should benchmark/stress test your system with default settings. You should have a system monitor app running the whole time so you can take note of/keep an eye on your temps, fan speeds and the like. A popular one is MSI Afterburner, though in all honesty i can't remember if it shows CPU temp which is a very important stat to know when overclocking! If it doesn't show your CPU temp (it most certainly shows your GPU temp which you should also keep a very focused eye on) then i've always found that CPUID delivers here.

To stress test your hardware, you'll need some benchmarking software. These softwares will push certain parts of your hardware (CPU, GPU, RAM) and give you detailed statistics for you to compare when you make any changes. There are many many of these programs out there so here is a small selection, and here is another.

If your system is hitting high temps under default settings then i wouldn't even consider any overclocking till you get some better cooling. The mistake newbies often make is that they read on a forum that some guy with the same CPU got theirs to run @4.5GHz, get all excited and go put theirs straight to the same level! DON'T do that! You could outright fry your bits. :wacko: Everyone's system is completely different and should be treated as such. That guy who got his to 4.5 probably had an expensive cooling system - not 2x stock case fans!

You should always go steady, upping settings by small increments. Benchmarking while keeping a close eye on everything, do it for a while to make sure your hardware doesn't start flipping out, then do another small increment. Overclocking, if you want to do it safely, is a slow process. If you rush any of it you're likely to be making a "desperate plea thread" asking if anyone has the magic skills to revive a dead CPU

Goog luck! And be patient

**uberpubert69** · May 24, 2014

I haven't owned an AMD CPU for quite a few years, but there are many guides around the net on how to do things for your particular board. Your BIOS might (likely will have) have a safety feature to throttle your CPU if it gets too hot enabled. Any kind of overclock can dramatically increase your temps which i will give you some general tips/words of warning.
Firstly, before you do any alterations you should benchmark/stress test your system with default settings. You should have a system monitor app running the whole time so you can take note of/keep an eye on your temps, fan speeds and the like. A popular one is MSI Afterburner, though in all honesty i can't remember if it shows CPU temp which is a very important stat to know when overclocking! If it doesn't show your CPU temp (it most certainly shows your GPU temp which you should also keep a very focused eye on) then i've always found that CPUID delivers here.
To stress test your hardware, you'll need some benchmarking software. These softwares will push certain parts of your hardware (CPU, GPU, RAM) and give you detailed statistics for you to compare when you make any changes. There are many many of these programs out there so here is a small selection, and here is another.
If your system is hitting high temps under default settings then i wouldn't even consider any overclocking till you get some better cooling. The mistake newbies often make is that they read on a forum that some guy with the same CPU got theirs to run @4.5GHz, get all excited and go put theirs straight to the same level! DON'T do that! You could outright fry your bits. Everyone's system is completely different and should be treated as such. That guy who got his to 4.5 probably had an expensive cooling system - not 2x stock case fans!
You should always go steady, upping settings by small increments. Benchmarking while keeping a close eye on everything, do it for a while to make sure your hardware doesn't start flipping out, then do another small increment. Overclocking, if you want to do it safely, is a slow process. If you rush any of it you're likely to be making a "desperate plea thread" asking if anyone has the magic skills to revive a dead CPU
Goog luck! And be patient

Yeah I know about the heating issue that arises with overclocking. But I'm not trying to overclock it much, like I said my CPU is supposed to be safe at 4.2 GHz I wouldn't need much more than that. I'm kinda more interested in overclocking my GPU. I tried that msi afterburn program and if I remember right, that program didn't work well for me either. Gonna try the 3DMark 11. I am planning on buying a new heatsink/fan for my CPU pretty soon.

**tthurman** · May 25, 2014

Make your cooler really pay off buy getting the best thermal interface material. I've sworn by Artic Silver 5 for years, and it's still better than some of the cheap stuff that comes pre-packaged with the heatsinks, but there are better ones than AS5 on the market now, and perhaps most importantly, ones that don't take repeated on off cycles to set, and achieve optimal conductivity. I continue to use it only because it is laying around, accuried from numerous buids I've done over the years for myself and others. It's amazing how much "stuff" you can accumulate!

The ArticSilver ArtiClean is for real, and I highly recommend it. 90% and abve rubbing alcohol works well too, but I believe the ArtiClean works a bit better.

**stigzler** · May 25, 2014

I delved into these dark arts few months ago, uber - exactly same thing as you - trying to get PC to handle PCSX2 and Dolphin.

However, mine was on an intel chip and not an AMD, so don;t know much about OCing AMDS.

I'm imagining it's the same process, though.

In the end, best results were not from software approaches to OC, but from slowly raising values in the bios (raise > benchmark > raise upon success)

your best bet is overclockers.net/org or whatever it is. Good search, cos large differences between approaches for different chips. Key things to consider: FSB; Multiplier; Voltage.

Oh.. and temperature

**tthurman** · May 25, 2014

Something else, I notice you mentioned Easytune, so I'm guessing you have a Gigabyte board. If so, did you check for a newer version on Gigabyte's website. The version included on the disk is often out dated by the time the board is installed.

What do you mean by BIOS that's made for it, is this a third party BIOS, or are you simply implying that your motherboard was designed with overclocking in mind?

Have you the most current Gigabyte BIOS already installed for your motherboard? If not, I would recommend you update that first, then grab the latest easytune, if you haven't already. The last time I used easytune it had a quickboost tuning page that had three automatic overclock options, the first being a marginal overclock up to the last which was an aggressive overclock.

<edit> I'm guessing a later revision of EasyTune may have added support for more memory manufacturers and/or specific tweak fixes. As Dazzle and Stigzler touched on, everyone's hardware is a bit different, even when it's the same, and some minor voltage tweaking one way or the other is often the key to a successful overclock. I worked with some friends on overclocking, and notice that some seem to overclock with little effort, while others take a lot more effort with little return.

**uberpubert69** · May 26, 2014

Something else, I notice you mentioned Easytune, so I'm guessing you have a Gigabyte board. If so, did you check for a newer version on Gigabyte's website. The version included on the disk is often out dated by the time the board is installed.
What do you mean by BIOS that's made for it, is this a third party BIOS, or are you simply implying that your motherboard was designed with overclocking in mind?
Have you the most current Gigabyte BIOS already installed for your motherboard? If not, I would recommend you update that first, then grab the latest easytune, if you haven't already. The last time I used easytune it had a quickboost tuning page that had three automatic overclock options, the first being a marginal overclock up to the last which was an aggressive overclock.
<edit> I'm guessing a later revision of EasyTune may have added support for more memory manufacturers and/or specific tweak fixes. As Dazzle and Stigzler touched on, everyone's hardware is a bit different, even when it's the same, and some minor voltage tweaking one way or the other is often the key to a successful overclock. I worked with some friends on overclocking, and notice that some seem to overclock with little effort, while others take a lot more effort with little return.

Well, my motherboard is a GIGABYTE F2A85XM-D3H and I say the BIOS is made for overclocking because its got a "3D BIOS" option that has a much more friendly UI to a general user. It also has an Advanced mode for more fine tuning. Yeah Easytune was installed via disc but I went to GIGABYTE's website and grabbed the latest version there and it still messes up my computer when I restart. But I did find something interesting.

I have an APU which is just a CPU+GPU combo. The GPU is a Radeon HD 7660D. I also have a Radeon HD 7750 graphics card installed. I am able to run both of them via "Dual Graphics" (Same thing as SLI for NVIDIA). This has given me a decent little boost in performance.Also, My RAM is underclocked for some reason (says 1600Mhz on the box but they're running at 1300Mhz.) My RAM also has giant heatsinks attached to them so that should aid a little bit in keeping temps down when overclocking.

**tthurman** · May 26, 2014

Yep, got an APU on my laptop, works great. That's cool that you can run that in a cross fire type setting, didn't know that was possible!

It is not unusual for your memory to be clocked lower than advertised, I've got some Patriot memory that does the same thing, but works as advertised when manually set to the supported speed. This is typically done to ensure compatibility.

You can go into your BIOS and manually set the memory frequency to 1600, and while your in there verify your timings are correct.

I believe your memory is 9-9-9-24, and that your voltage is properly set to 1.5 volts (these values are supplied to the motherboard by the memory, and should be already correct)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161452

You "may" have to relax these settings when you go to overclocking, or they could work fine At standard clocking though, there is no reason you would not want to run them full out.

**tthurman** · May 26, 2014

Ah 3D BIOS is Gigabytes name for UEFI. I've never been involved in any type of overclocking in UEFI, I would think it would be much more straight forward though. It's unfortunate the EasyTune isn't working better for you. Perhaps after you set the frequency on the memory to 1600, it may be worth another go.

**uberpubert69** · May 26, 2014

Yep, got an APU on my laptop, works great. That's cool that you can run that in a cross fire type setting, didn't know that was possible!
It is not unusual for your memory to be clocked lower than advertised, I've got some Patriot memory that does the same thing, but works as advertised when manually set to the supported speed. This is typically done to ensure compatibility.
You can go into your BIOS and manually set the memory frequency to 1600, and while your in there verify your timings are correct.
I believe your memory is 9-9-9-24, and that your voltage is properly set to 1.5 volts (these values are supplied to the motherboard by the memory, and should be already correct)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820161452
You "may" have to relax these settings when you go to overclocking, or they could work fine At standard clocking though, there is no reason you would not want to run them full out.

Yeah, I don't know why but when you look online about the subject, most people say it cannot be done but I'm doing it right now and it doesn't look crappy like how this one site said it did. Something about gaps between frames. Thats exactly the RAM I got. CPU-Z tells me my RAM is 9-9-10-24. Would that be alright? I don't know what values make it 1600 to be honest lol. There's also a setting in the bios that affects the RAM's multiplier or something. Its set to 13.3 atm. That setting I can understand and know what it does but idk squat about tRAS tRCD or none of that lol.

**tthurman** · May 26, 2014

That is what it is setting the frequency to in AUTO, as the SPD on the memory is providing this information to the motherboard. There is no harm in bumping it to the advertised speed.

You can toggle through AUTO to Manual (or similar) and adjust to the multiple to get to 1600.

I would rely on the memory, but it could be you have a revision that is 10 instead of 9. In reality, you'll probably never be able to tell the difference. If you still have the RAM documentation, and it clearly indicates 9-9-9-24, then that's what I would do. Any problems revert back to 10.

Check the below links for info/description. Knowing the value to input is all you really need to know. If the BIOS is asking for something you don't have a value for, probably best to let the memory SPD handle it (which is what you're doing now). You can still change the multiplier to get the higher frequency.

http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/serial-presence-detect-SPD

http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/64

**uberpubert69** · May 26, 2014

That is what it is setting the frequency to in AUTO, as the SPD on the memory is providing this information to the motherboard. There is no harm in bumping it to the advertised speed.
You can toggle through AUTO to Manual (or similar) and adjust to the multiple to get to 1600.
I would rely on the memory, but it could be you have a revision that is 10 instead of 9. In reality, you'll probably never be able to tell the difference. If you still have the RAM documentation, and it clearly indicates 9-9-9-24, then that's what I would do. Any problems revert back to 10.
Check the below links for info/description. Knowing the value to input is all you really need to know. If the BIOS is asking for something you don't have a value for, probably best to let the memory SPD handle it (which is what you're doing now). You can still change the multiplier to get the higher frequency.
http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/serial-presence-detect-SPD
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/64

Leaving everything alone and just messing with the frequency makes my PC not boot up and I have to set the multiplier back to 13.33. My BIOS says that everything is running at 9-9-9-24 btw. Someone on another forum told me the values to get 1866Mhz or something like that running, but it wasn't stable in the long run.

**tthurman** · May 27, 2014

Hmmm, 1866 is the max memory frequency your board supports, and that's overclocked. If it booted and ran at all then it seems odd that it wouldn't at a lesser speed, especially one that is stock for the memory (1600).

What values did they give you?

**uberpubert69** · May 27, 2014

I just might not have had the proper voltage before. Last time i had it set to 1.6v but this time I did 1.65v. Not much of a difference but my PC hasn't given me errors since I changed it to 1866 (just went back to that old forum post and overclocked my RAM again.) The quote is exactly this "1866@ 11-11-11-28-2N @1.6V" btw I never figured out what the 2N stood for. So if thats something important let me know lol

**uberpubert69** · May 27, 2014

Kinda worried now, CPUZ is telling me that my NB Frequency is 2246Mhz with the 11-11-11-28 config. I reinstalled EasyTune 6 (the AMD version) and after doing a level 2 boost I'm running at 4.12GHz. Though my PC crashed the first reboot of those changes. But its working now, I'll test more.

**tthurman** · May 27, 2014

I wasn't familiar with "2N", but a quick search shows it's just another command rate value. with older ram this was commonly 1T, with the higher end stuff, 2T with generic. What he has had you do is loosen your timings to acheive the overclock, and you boosting the voltage .5 over what he recommended has apparetnly made it stable. Some of what I am reading indicates the APU's are RAM hungry, and whomever is guiding you through this apparently knows this, and has given you insite as to how they got it working.

I'm guessing, but I bet you could get it to run at 1600 by playing with the voltage too, but that would result in a lower clock, and it seems you got what you want.

EasyTune by AMD? You mean the one that came with the board? I believe EasyTune has clocked your memory higher than what the poster suggested. Take a peak in the settings.

You're probably okay, but if you got any concerns with cooling, keep a close eye on it. If you're still on stock cooling, I would still consider a good aftermarket cooler. I've had good luck with ThermalRight, but this is on a Intel platform, and there are lots of other good ones out there, some with a lot more bang for the buck than others. Seems you've found a good place for AMD support, I'm sure they have some cooler recs.

I'm curious if this overclock yielded the results you were going for, please let us know!

**uberpubert69** · May 27, 2014

I wasn't familiar with "2N", but a quick search shows it's just another command rate value. with older ram this was commonly 1T, with the higher end stuff, 2T with generic. What he has had you do is loosen your timings to acheive the overclock, and you boosting the voltage .5 over what he recommended has apparetnly made it stable. Some of what I am reading indicates the APU's are RAM hungry, and whomever is guiding you through this apparently knows this, and has given you insite as to how they got it working.
I'm guessing, but I bet you could get it to run at 1600 by playing with the voltage too, but that would result in a lower clock, and it seems you got what you want.
EasyTune by AMD? You mean the one that came with the board? I believe EasyTune has clocked your memory higher than what the poster suggested. Take a peak in the settings.
You're probably okay, but if you got any concerns with cooling, keep a close eye on it. If you're still on stock cooling, I would still consider a good aftermarket cooler. I've had good luck with ThermalRight, but this is on a Intel platform, and there are lots of other good ones out there, some with a lot more bang for the buck than others. Seems you've found a good place for AMD support, I'm sure they have some cooler recs.
I'm curious if this overclock yielded the results you were going for, please let us know!

On Gigabyes utility download section there are multiple versions of EasyTune, one for Intel Mobos and one for AMD and a regular one and also one for 1 specific mobo. I'm getting confused as hell with all this stuff lol. My BIOS is now telling me that I'm running my RAM at 1600 with the same values, but cpuz is still telling me 2246. I'm confident that I can change it back to 1866, pretty sure its something I did in easytune. I had to move my CPU OC to 4.0GHz am gonna stress test it right quick.

**uberpubert69** · May 27, 2014

On Gigabyes utility download section there are multiple versions of EasyTune, one for Intel Mobos and one for AMD and a regular one and also one for 1 specific mobo. I'm getting confused as hell with all this stuff lol. My BIOS is now telling me that I'm running my RAM at 1600 with the same values, but cpuz is still telling me 2246. I'm confident that I can change it back to 1866, pretty sure its something I did in easytune. I had to move my CPU OC to 4.0GHz am gonna stress test it right quick.

Ended up being the BCLK that messed with my RAM easy tune changed the BCLK. I can't get a stable CPU overclock which is bull because my APU is advertised to have a 4.2GHz Turbo setting but I only ever run at 3.8GHz.

**tthurman** · May 27, 2014

That's a bummer

**uberpubert69** · June 2, 2014

Would my Power Supply have a big impact on wether or not I can overclock and how much I can overclock? I forgot to mention I had a really outdated power supply. I just bought a new one today and installed it and can already tell my PC is running smoother internally.My new one is a Corsair CX750M 750 Watt, 80 Plus Bronze rating.

**Draco1962** · June 3, 2014

If underpowered for the CPU and all other components, it can have an impact most definitely. I recommend using one of the many online power supply calculators such as this one to help determine what is best for your rig. However, likely you have more than enough with a 750 W PSU.

**uberpubert69** · June 3, 2014

If underpowered for the CPU and all other components, it can have an impact most definitely. I recommend using one of the many online power supply calculators such as this one to help determine what is best for your rig. However, likely you have more than enough with a 750 W PSU.

Thanks for the link, the site said 300W was recommended so I definitely should be alright with 750W

**RIP-Felix** · June 16, 2014

If your hell bent on overclocking this thing I suggest keeping a log (pen and paper) of your stable clocks and refer back to it over the next few months to establish a reliably stable OC. Also, disable turbo and cool'n quiet as they will prevent you from getting a max clock. I recommend Prime95, HW monitor, CPUZ and heaven benchmark. As for thermal paste I recommend Arctic MX4 over Arctic silver. It conducts heat faster, is electrically nonconductive, and lasts for 8 years without need for reapplication. I pull open all my PS3s and replace the paste with this.

Your power supply is overkill. I have a 300W packed full of crap and there is no issue at all with this APU. You can save some money on PSU, I've never had issues skimping (within reason) on one yet, 750W should serve all your needs well into the future though.

Here is some info you'll find critical: Don't exceed these limits. They're taken directly from AMDs product details for the A10-5800K.

A10-5800K Thermal specification = 74 celcius

A10-5800K Voltage specification = 1.475V

Overclocking AMD tutorial (windows):

Back up your computer (an image is easy). Back up your working UEFI settings too, so you can quickly load it again, if it lets you that is. Mine does (ASrock).
Download a set of overclocking tools. I suggest the following: Prime95 ( Multi core CPU/Memory torture test.) Heaven Benchmark,3D mark, or other system benchmarking software for more real world stress testing. HWmonitor (To record high CPU temperatures, fan speeds, motherboard temps, Graphics temp, and etc.) CPUID (General/specific CPU information, clock, multiplier, Core voltage, Memory speed, etc.)

Begin an Overclocking Log (pen and Paper), writing down CPU core voltage, multiplier, clock speeds, and memory speeds for each round of overclocks. Record the results (EG: stable, unstable, buggy, etc) for each clock so that you can refer back to a stable clock when you hit a limit.
Restart your computer

Enter UEFI/BIOS, disable "Turob Core Technology" and "Cool'n Quiet Technology". Leave everything else on auto or default.

Increase CPU multiplier by one increment. Save and exit/restart.

If the computer fails to load windows continue to step 9.

Once in windows, load HWmonitor, Windows Task Manager (Display the performance tab), and CPUID. Arrange them so you can see them on the screen while Prime95 is running, then run Prime95 torture test for at least 5 minuets.

Look for signs of instability while the torture test is running: Artifacts include unusual screen flickers, polygons, lines, or lack of video. Watch the task manager performance tab for any core dropouts. If the clock is unstable a BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death) may occur. If there is any sign of instability stop the torture test and restart the computer. In case of a BSOD your computer will do this automatically to protect itself from damage.

Make sure you are operating within the specifications of your CPU. Use HWmonitor to record the Highest temperature achieved during stress testing and benchmarking. If it exceeds the thermal specification of your CPU you need a better cooling solution. Use CPUID to readout the actual Core Voltage being supplied to your CPU under stress, be sure not to exceed its Voltage Specification.

If there are no signs of instability and you are operating within CPU specifications you can restart and repeat steps 3-8. If there are signs of instability continue to step 9.

You have hit a limit! If your temps are exceeding the CPU specification continue to step 11. If you continue overclocking you risk damaging the CPU. If the temps are fine but you have general instability or BSOD try increasing the CPU Core voltage by one increment, save and exit/restart, and repeat steps 5-9 until stability is achieved. Save and exit/restart.

Repeat steps 3-10 until you hit a limit that no increase in voltage seems to make stable, or a specification limit.

Revert back to your last stable overclock.

Begin final stress testing: Run your Overclocking programs and Prime95 torture test for at least 2-6 hours. Run any thing you can think of that taxes your computer in a variety of real world ways. Run all the benchmarks you have, and play games for hours at a time. All the while recording high temps, checking core voltage, etc. If you exceed any specifications you will need to repeat steps 11-12 again for the stable clock prior to this one.

If you experience any instability now or over the next few months, you can try increasing the core voltage again to see if that clears it up. If not you will need to repeat steps 11-13 again. This is where that Overclocking log will be vital, otherwise you will have forgotten what your previous stable clock is was.

Congratulations you have successfully achieved a stable Overclock
Lastly, their are lots of little tricks to tease more stability out of the clock you want. Search the internet for your CPU and read up on how to hone it in. One of these is relaxing your memory speeds, which is a tradeoff that usually nets a benefit in performance. Certain CPUs communicate with the RAM best at certain speeds (A10-5800K seemed to prefer 1600MHz DDR3. Even though it supports higher speeds, that seemed to be the sweet spot for me.)
AMD CPUs, at least the Phenom and APU series, don't like to OC via the BUS speed. So don't even try, instant BSOD, if you get past BOOT. YMMV

I should Point out that I own the same processor and a radeon 7750 low-profile pcie card. Overclocking this doesn't seem to produce great advance in PCSX2 speed. Some games I just can't play, Like gran turismo 3, but other I can like Kingdom hearts. So even with modern hardware PCSX2 pushes the limits. Give it another couple of years and maybe then it will run smoothly. But don't count on it, NFL blitz on MAME doesn't run smoothly and that was from 1999. Sometimes you have to come back to reality and give up for a while. Good luck, and have fun. Overclocking is kinda perilous at the start but isn't as scary as it used to be. There are lots of redundant features on modern boards that keep you from frying your investment. Still take it slow as you learn the art. Happy Clocking!

**uberpubert69** · June 20, 2014

If your hell bent on overclocking this thing I suggest keeping a log (pen and paper) of your stable clocks and refer back to it over the next few months to establish a reliably stable OC. Also, disable turbo and cool'n quiet as they will prevent you from getting a max clock. I recommend Prime95, HW monitor, CPUZ and heaven benchmark. As for thermal paste I recommend Arctic MX4 over Arctic silver. It conducts heat faster, is electrically nonconductive, and lasts for 8 years without need for reapplication. I pull open all my PS3s and replace the paste with this.
Your power supply is overkill. I have a 300W packed full of crap and there is no issue at all with this APU. You can save some money on PSU, I've never had issues skimping (within reason) on one yet, 750W should serve all your needs well into the future though.
Here is some info you'll find critical: Don't exceed these limits. They're taken directly from AMDs product details for the A10-5800K.
A10-5800K Thermal specification = 74 celcius
A10-5800K Voltage specification = 1.475V
Overclocking AMD tutorial (windows):
Back up your computer (an image is easy). Back up your working UEFI settings too, so you can quickly load it again, if it lets you that is. Mine does (ASrock).
Download a set of overclocking tools. I suggest the following: Prime95 ( Multi core CPU/Memory torture test.) Heaven Benchmark,3D mark, or other system benchmarking software for more real world stress testing. HWmonitor (To record high CPU temperatures, fan speeds, motherboard temps, Graphics temp, and etc.) CPUID (General/specific CPU information, clock, multiplier, Core voltage, Memory speed, etc.)

Begin an Overclocking Log (pen and Paper), writing down CPU core voltage, multiplier, clock speeds, and memory speeds for each round of overclocks. Record the results (EG: stable, unstable, buggy, etc) for each clock so that you can refer back to a stable clock when you hit a limit.
Restart your computer

Enter UEFI/BIOS, disable "Turob Core Technology" and "Cool'n Quiet Technology". Leave everything else on auto or default.

Increase CPU multiplier by one increment. Save and exit/restart.

If the computer fails to load windows continue to step 9.

Once in windows, load HWmonitor, Windows Task Manager (Display the performance tab), and CPUID. Arrange them so you can see them on the screen while Prime95 is running, then run Prime95 torture test for at least 5 minuets.

Look for signs of instability while the torture test is running: Artifacts include unusual screen flickers, polygons, lines, or lack of video. Watch the task manager performance tab for any core dropouts. If the clock is unstable a BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death) may occur. If there is any sign of instability stop the torture test and restart the computer. In case of a BSOD your computer will do this automatically to protect itself from damage.

Make sure you are operating within the specifications of your CPU. Use HWmonitor to record the Highest temperature achieved during stress testing and benchmarking. If it exceeds the thermal specification of your CPU you need a better cooling solution. Use CPUID to readout the actual Core Voltage being supplied to your CPU under stress, be sure not to exceed its Voltage Specification.

If there are no signs of instability and you are operating within CPU specifications you can restart and repeat steps 3-8. If there are signs of instability continue to step 9.

You have hit a limit! If your temps are exceeding the CPU specification continue to step 11. If you continue overclocking you risk damaging the CPU. If the temps are fine but you have general instability or BSOD try increasing the CPU Core voltage by one increment, save and exit/restart, and repeat steps 5-9 until stability is achieved. Save and exit/restart.

Repeat steps 3-10 until you hit a limit that no increase in voltage seems to make stable, or a specification limit.

Revert back to your last stable overclock.

Begin final stress testing: Run your Overclocking programs and Prime95 torture test for at least 2-6 hours. Run any thing you can think of that taxes your computer in a variety of real world ways. Run all the benchmarks you have, and play games for hours at a time. All the while recording high temps, checking core voltage, etc. If you exceed any specifications you will need to repeat steps 11-12 again for the stable clock prior to this one.

If you experience any instability now or over the next few months, you can try increasing the core voltage again to see if that clears it up. If not you will need to repeat steps 11-13 again. This is where that Overclocking log will be vital, otherwise you will have forgotten what your previous stable clock is was.

Congratulations you have successfully achieved a stable Overclock
Lastly, their are lots of little tricks to tease more stability out of the clock you want. Search the internet for your CPU and read up on how to hone it in. One of these is relaxing your memory speeds, which is a tradeoff that usually nets a benefit in performance. Certain CPUs communicate with the RAM best at certain speeds (A10-5800K seemed to prefer 1600MHz DDR3. Even though it supports higher speeds, that seemed to be the sweet spot for me.)
AMD CPUs, at least the Phenom and APU series, don't like to OC via the BUS speed. So don't even try, instant BSOD, if you get past BOOT. YMMV
I should Point out that I own the same processor and a radeon 7750 low-profile pcie card. Overclocking this doesn't seem to produce great advance in PCSX2 speed. Some games I just can't play, Like gran turismo 3, but other I can like Kingdom hearts. So even with modern hardware PCSX2 pushes the limits. Give it another couple of years and maybe then it will run smoothly. But don't count on it, NFL blitz on MAME doesn't run smoothly and that was from 1999. Sometimes you have to come back to reality and give up for a while. Good luck, and have fun. Overclocking is kinda perilous at the start but isn't as scary as it used to be. There are lots of redundant features on modern boards that keep you from frying your investment. Still take it slow as you learn the art. Happy Clocking!

Wow man, you and I have the same rig basically haha. Thanks so much for a in-depth tutorial I'll definitely mess around with this. I might be getting a Nvidia GTX 650 Ti as a hand me down and its barely been used. If I do, I might not even need to bother overclocking lol.

**RIP-Felix** · June 25, 2014

These upper end APU's, and CPUs for that matter, are already overclocked close to their stable OC potential. With the Phenom series I was only able to achieve a 200-600MHz increase before reaching an asymptotic Voltage limit (no amount of increase overcame the instability). Temps were fine.

With this APU I've had temperature problems with any Overclocking; It's a Mini ITX HTPC custom build. I used the best HS that would fit, but still this APU's heat ramp is steep compared to the Phenom series. I'd be interested to hear what the potential is for this little beast, with a cooler able to handle its tantrums. But honestly, for emulation I think you will see the best results from the graphics card your talking about. You could try overclocking the APU's graphics, but you'll have to search the interweb because I'm green on that front. Also, I'm not sure it would still be possible to use the crossfire feature (forgot what it's called) if you do OC the graphics. I thought I read somewhere that the feature only worked with certain programs/games able to take advantage of it. Frankly, I think a dedicated card is the best solution for graphics anyway, if your install permits..

Anyone know how to overclock PC stuff?

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