Can someone please explain the process of "Overclocking a PC"???

Question

In general terms what does it mean and what is the step by step process?

Answer 1

Everyone's making this sound much more ominous than it really is. In general terms, here's a little history....

When Intel began making its processors, they designed one chip that would run at several different speeds. All of these chips were identical, but marketed at different speeds and different prices (faster = more expensive). Computer hobbiests realized the difference and would manually adjust their motherboards to set the processing speed at its fastest setting. One of the most famous processors this was done with was Intel's first Celeron A 300Mhz processor. It was capable (in most cases) of being clocked to 450Mhz - a 50% increase!

As processor technology changed, so did Intel's process of "locking" their processors to prevent overclocking - it was, after all, cutting into the bottom line. AMD actually took advantage of this by making processors that would overclock much easier than Intel processors and gained a lot of loyalty from computer enthusiests early on because of it. I imagine as AMD grows, they will eventually make it more difficult.

Today, there are so many different types of processors that run at so many different speeds on so many different platforms, it's more of an art to find the perfect combination of processor and motherboard that allows for the best performance. But motherboard manufacturers still make boards designed specifically for overclocking and have safety mechanisms built in to prevent you from completely destroying your system - most notably, the BIOS will usually revert back to a "fail safe" setting if it fails to POST the processor. Generally, it is very difficult to "burn up" a processor by overclocking. Keep in mind, though, your processor will be running fast and therefor creating more heat - make sure you compensate by using a larger heatsink and fan. HOWEVER, if you begin adjusting the processor's voltage settings, that is a different story! This is where you can cause damage to the processor. Although adjusting the voltage can improve stability on an overclocked processor, the slight performance gain on the higher end is not worth the potential risk. And yes, overclocking will void your warranty, but that's only if you tell them you fried your processor by overclocking it.

So how do you do it? You won't be able to on a "store bought" system - Dell, HP, Compaq, etc. The only effective overclocking you can do is on a homemade system. Go into the BIOS and you should have settings available to either Auto Detect your CPU Speed or Manually adjust it. Select "Manual" or "User Defined" and move the settings up increments. The two settings you will adjust are the Front Side Bus (sometimes called "External Clock") and the Multiplier (FSB Multiplier, Click Multiplier, etc.). The FSB is the base frequency for the portion of the computer the processor is plugged into. The multiplier adjusts a chip on the motherboard to multiply the FSB for the processor. For example, I have a AMD Athlon 2600+ processor. By default, my processor sets the FSB to 166Mhz and the Multiplier to 11.5 which equals 1909Mhz (or 1.9Ghz), the "speed" of my computer. By adjusting these two variables, I can increase - or decrease - the speed of the processor. For example, I adjust the FSB to 174 and leave the Multiplier at 11.5, making the processor speed 2.0Ghz - a modest increase. Save the settings and reboot. If the system can register the new setting, the BIOS (mine is overclock friendly) then saves the settings. If it can't register the processor properly, the BIOS will revert to the default of 166Mhz X 11.5. Keep rebooting the system, checking for stability, and adjusting the numbers slowly. Remember, you can LOWER the FSB, too, allowing you to drastically increase the Multiplier to get to the same frequency range. For example, lowering the FSB to 133 and increasing the Multiplier to 15, you get a processor speed of 1.995Ghz, still in the range above. This allows for fine tuning of the numbers.

As your processor speed reaches its limits, you will begin to see some crazy activity on the computer. This means the processor is unstable and cannot effectively run at the given speed. Adjust the variables above to lower the speed slightly until the system is stable again.

In my scenario, I have a AMD Athlon 2600+ on an Abit AN7 motherboard. The highest I can get it to clock to is 2.06Ghz (179Mhz X 11.5) - a 160Mhz increase. Not much.

A little Googling will give you more information on overclocking and information on what motherboard/processor combinations work best.

Answer 2

Evolution is hard evidence that Christ was God in the flesh. In the beginning is stated twice in the ancient writings known as the Bible to account for NURTURAL SELECTION, a process that separates man from the lower animals. The parable of the seeds is about nurtural selection. The beast that rose out of the sea is ME. Once I admitted it, that I was a carbon based lifeform (atomic number 666) I realized I fit the description of the King of Kings according to the Bible, AND the Chosen One according to the Dead Sea Scrolls. Deja vu. Some things never change. Woe to the scribes (teachers) and pharisees (preachers) I've never met a meek human in my half century of existance. Not one. This means I never met a Christian. I look forward to the day. McCain helped me put one of the last pieces of the puzzle into place when he called Obama a celebrity. All politicians are. And everybody else is Paris Hilton wanna bes. The yellow pages is filled with people that want fame and fortune. When all the superficialities are swept away, there are only two religions (strategies to cope in a harsh environment) and they are tyranny and socialism. America was the true socialists during the cold war, they let Christ in the country. That's why America won. But the struggle has morphed. It is now me against all grownups. The Obamanation is a living thing with millions of heads (King Customer) and the earth is a living thing with one head, me. The earth speaks like I do, by blowing wind. In 1977 weather patterns were coherently altered in Tampa, Florida. A mob mentality went down during a rain of water at the 6-3-77 Led Zepellin show. A rain of fire will do the same. My hope is that the grownups can see it and change their ways so the youngsters don't have to see it. I don't need a Bible to tell me that those that destroy the earth will be destroyed, it just confirms the obvious. Ghosts evolve also. All John couey types (murderous child molesters) were once perfect little angels until an adult oriented society told them the boogie monster was not real and the fountain of youth was not to be found in Florida. Well, the boogie monstrer is real. He is my big brother. He left earth on 6-3-74. His rage has been building against John Couey types since then and it is now unquenchable. He was a 22 year old angry white male with a mutation on the MC1R gene that gave him an extra sensitivity to pain and flaming red hair and beard. He also had a lazy eye. Spread the word, John couey types for their own good need to jump off the Skyway Bridge, because in my brother's realm there is no human rights or death. Dr. Edmund Roache wrote about me and never met me. I told him I was the one. He said that's what a lot of red haired folks say. I told him about evolution in the Bible and he said it made no sense to him. No sense????? I saw a beast come out of the earth and bring fire out of the sky 2,000 years BEFORE THE FACT!!!!!! It was not cave bears.

Answer 3

Overclocking a pc is (well, it used to be) the simple process of changing the frequency of the CPU (clock speed) to increase performance. There is one major benefit and one major drawback to overclocking:

Benefit: Super fast performance!

Drawback: Overworking your CPU can kill it FAST!

If you're not familiar with overclocking a CPU or GPU, I wouldn't recommend doing it unless you don't mind shelling out the dough for a new computer.

Overclocking used to be simple (anyone remember the 'pencil trick'?), but it's not so simple with proprietary machines anymore (HP, Gateway, Dell, etc). If your mulitplier is locked, chances are you won't be able to overclock.

Remember, overclocking means that you are pushing your CPU to it's physical limits in order to increase performance. While you will see a (potentially) major increase in speed and performance, you are also getting the risk of causing your system to become highly unstable which usually leads to unusable.

Answer 4

Overclocking is the practice of running the components of a pc above their rated specifications to gain additional performance.

It is not something that can be explained quickly or easily, nor is it at all wise to attempt such things without researching the subject first. You will most likely void the warranty on your computer, as well as possibly damage or destroy it.

There are plenty of guides to overclocking on the net, just google it...

Again, make sure you understand what you are doing before you try it...

Answer 5

Over clocking comes from how fast the processer works. Just like anything there is a middle of the road for use. This will be the number that the system clock is set to. when you over clock a processor it causes it to work faster, any normal end user will not see a physical difference in cloock speed.

Answer 6

It is the process of trying to get more speed than your CPU chip is specified to handle based on manufacturer's maximum ratings.

The process is simple, you change the clock frequency on the motherboard (jumpers or bios) and viola.

HOWEVER, you must have a way to cool the CPU, be it a powerful fan or water cooling system, because the chip will run hotter and exceed the temperature specs WILL destroy the chip.

Answer 7

overclocking a PC means that you are speeding up the speed of the processor. This improves the speed of your computer. This can be done using software (do a google search for "overclocking software"). Just make sure you don't speed up the processor to much, because if you make it go much faster than it was supposed to go, you can do permanent damage to your computer.

Answer 8

overclocking is speeding up the pc. you can overclock almost anything. mainly you can do through various programs, but i think even through some BIOS. NOTE: it voids any warranty. i think with most graphics cards you can change clock speeds through the drivers. its best not to overclock anything without really good cooling on the computer.

Answer 9

overclocking is a term for pc geek when they try to make the speed of the processor exeed the manufacturer suggestion...

for example u buy a AMD 2400+ and u can overclocking to 2600+ or more. it depends ur stabilization of ur computer and cooling system

for amature i advice dont do it because u can coz ur processor overburn

Answer 10

Check the link im giveing you ... it will tell you everything you want to know and answer any question you could ever come up with :o) This should totally help you out ;o)