Overclocking improves CPU and graphics card performance; But do you know what exactly overclocking is, how it is done, what are its advantages and disadvantages?
overclock Or Overclocking (Overclocking) in order to increase the speed of the CPU or graphics card or RAM more than the speed designed for these hardwares, as well as increasing the amount of calculations being performed by the CPU and graphics card per second. The main purpose of doing this is to enhance the performance of the aforementioned hardware.
More overclocking for Boost CPU performance And the graphics card is done; But overclocking other computer parts is also possible. If we want to define overclocking a little more specifically, we should say that it means increasing Clock rate (Clock rate) is a hardware that makes Overclocked hardware Perform more calculations per second than in its standard mode
Of course overclocking A piece of hardware causes its temperature to exceed normal and expected temperatures during operation. Of course, overclocking enhances the performance of overclocked hardware significantly; But on the other hand, the overclocked part needs special care, and to cool it, you must use a powerful system whose cooling power is more than the power of the common cooling systems used to reduce the temperature of the working hardware in standard mode.
What is overclocking?
CPUs are designed and manufactured in factories to operate at the specified maximum speed, and if you cool them with the help of a proper cooling system, the CPU will do its work with proper performance and without any problems.
Fortunately, as we said, it is possible to increase the maximum speed set for the CPU. You can speed up the CPU by giving it a higher clock rate or multiplying it BIOS power Computer, make this part do more calculations per second. Naturally, increasing the speed of the CPU also increases the speed of the computer.
To what extent is overclocking possible?
Although CPU overclock It is possible; But doing this is not possible for some processors; Because the manufacturers of many motherboards prevent the user from changing their values and overclocking them by locking their products. This is also true for some Intel processors; Of course, on the other hand, when designing some other Intel processorsThere is no limit to overclocking them.
These processors are good options for users who are eager to boost their computer performance. In the model of this category of Intel processors, the letter K or X is used (eg Core i9-10900K CPU). Overclocking done AMD Ryzen CPUs It is also possible; In general about overclocking AMD CPUs We must say that the newer these processors are, the more suitable they are for this task.
If you intend to prepare the most powerful Gaming system you have the possible and we want you to use liquid cooling system to cool it, you can enjoy the maximum possible power of the system by overclocking its CPU and graphics card; Of course, if you intend to overclock your system’s CPU and graphics card, you must get hardware that can be overclocked; Because it is not possible to overclock normal hardware or you can overclock them in a completely limited way.
Why is overclocking necessary?
Naturally, every user is interested in a fast computer, and overclocking can help make your computer faster; Of course, on the other hand, with the evolution of CPUs and graphic cards and the design and construction of fast and powerful new generations of these hardware, the need to overclock them has decreased and some CPUs and graphic cards do not need to be overclocked at all.
At the same time, with the faster central processors and graphics, the difference between overclocked hardware and normal hardware is no longer visible; You should also pay attention to the fact that even if you overclock your CPU and graphics card, but for example for computer memory instead of memory SSD from memory HDD use, again your computer will not be very fast; Because the speed of HDD memories is much lower than their SSD counterparts.
Today, HDD memories are almost only used for storing and archiving files, and high-speed SSD memories of the new generation are used to install and run operating systems and software (especially games).
Gamers who are interested in taking advantage of the maximum possible power of their system to run games completely smoothly and without lag and delay at high resolution, are quite eager to overclock their system’s CPU and graphics card; Of course, we should not forget that even if the modern CPU of the system achieves a very good performance after overclocking and can work at the maximum possible speed, overclocking the graphics card, which plays a much more important role in the overall performance of gaming devices, does not work miracles and causes Its performance is not improved to the expected level.
Of course, if we want to be realistic, we must say that overclocking the CPU also has a small effect on improving the performance of the gaming system, and you should not expect an amazing boost in its performance after overclocking! Of course, the effect of overclocking on boosting CPU performance depends on the type of system and the game being played with the system.
How to overclock
Each CPU has a different structure and the BIOS options of each motherboard are also different. For this reason, it is not possible to provide a general instruction and guide for overclocking different devices; But the general principles of doing this are as follows:
Ensuring the appropriateness of the cooling system
CPUs with a cooling system consisting of heat sink (a piece on top of the CPU designed to absorb heat) and a fan are provided. This conventional cooling system is designed to reduce CPU temperature during normal operation and standard speed.
If you want to overclock the CPU, you need to use a more powerful cooling system for it; Because naturally, increasing the speed of this part and also increasing the amount of calculations being performed by it every second, leads to an increase in its temperature more than usual; Therefore, to reduce its temperature, you should either use an additional cooling system in addition to the system supplied with it, or you should think about using a completely powerful cooling system, such as a liquid cooling system.
If you want to use a cooling system with a fan, you must use a more powerful heatsink than the factory CPU heatsink, which has a better performance in removing heat from its surface, and in addition to such a heatsink, you must use a more powerful fan than the factory CPU fan. also use it so that it has a better ability to remove hot air from its surroundings.
At the same time, you should use a large case so that free air flow can be created around the CPU; Therefore, if your computer case is not big enough, you should definitely consider changing it. Creating a continuous air flow plays an important role in reducing the temperature of the working CPU, and using an efficient heat sink and fan is not enough to deal with the increase in temperature of this part.
Using a liquid cooling system with water
Some people use a liquid cooling system to keep their overclocked hardware running as high as possible; Of course, liquid cooling systems are more expensive than fan-based systems. In the liquid cooling system with water, water is pumped into the case with several pipes, and after absorbing the heat created inside the case, it is pumped again to the radiators of the system, and these radiators transfer the heat of the water to the space outside the case.
BIOS overclocking
To do this, you need to go to your computer’s BIOS, clock rate and CPU voltage (or just increase the CPU voltage) a little. After doing this, to make sure the performance of this part is stable, to simulate putting a lot of pressure on the CPU and monitor the temperature of the working system to make sure the cooling system is working properly, you should use benchmark test tools such as Prime 95. ) use.
If the system performance is stable, slightly increase the clock rate and CPU voltage again and run the benchmark test again to make sure your system performance is stable again. Continue increasing the CPU clock rate or voltage until the system performance becomes unstable or the CPU temperature rises too much. If this happens, restore the overclock rate or CPU voltage to the last level at which system performance was stable.
Disadvantages of overclocking
Overclocking the CPU or graphics card in most cases will invalidate its warranty, in addition, during the article, we mentioned several times the excessive increase in the temperature of the CPU and graphics card during its operation after overclocking them. If you overclock these two pieces of hardware more than usual and don’t use the proper cooling system for them, naturally the temperature of the CPU chip or graphics card will increase too much, which will lead to serious and permanent damage.
The instability of overclocked hardware performance in most cases is also another common and invisible problem of overclocking; Because the instability of CPU performance causes system errors and automatic system resets; But during the operation of CPUs and graphics cards in standard mode, we rarely see their performance becoming unstable.
Some CPUs and graphics cards have better compatibility with overclocking and have more tolerance against it, which makes them maintain more stable performance. Meanwhile, the performance of a CPU or graphics card may be stable at a certain speed; But other hardware does not show stable performance at the same speed. It’s even possible for two CPUs or graphics cards of the same model to perform differently after overclocking under exactly the same conditions.
Overclocking smartphones is also possible and there are many applications for overclocking rooted Android phones (such as overclock your phone: boost y); Of course, in case of using such applications and overclocking the phones, the temperature of the phones will increase too much and their battery life will decrease; Therefore, it is not very wise to use such applications
It should be noted that you should avoid overclocking the CPU and graphics card of slim laptops that have little free space around their hardware; Because in such devices, the air flow is not created well, and as a result, if the temperature of the CPU and graphics card increases more than the usual amount expected in thin laptops, the created temperature is not well transferred to the outside.
Fortunately, many websites and forums have been created to provide information on various overclocking related topics.
Frequently asked questions about overclocking
Overclocking is done with the aim of increasing the speed of the CPU or graphics card, more than the maximum speed considered for them, and also increasing the amount of calculations being performed by these two pieces of hardware per second, in order to strengthen their performance.
Only some powerful hardware is compatible with overclocking and can tolerate the additional load imposed by doing so; It is not possible to overclock common and common hardware such as common and common CPUs and graphics cards.
If you want to overclock your CPU or graphics card, you must use overclock-compatible hardware. It is also necessary to use a powerful cooling system to deal with the increase in temperature of overclocked hardware while working, as well as to use a large case to create proper air flow around these hardware.
