Help with i7 3820

[nsymis]

Good evening , i have been a frequent visitor for quite a few years now but it is the first time i actively need some help.To the point then:

i recently purchased an asus x79 pro along with the i7 and i noticed that at stock the vcore was at 1.294 volts (cpu-z) which i am i sure is quite high
(note the cpu-z screens in Anand's 3820 review).

So, am i missing something? What would be a "good" voltage for stock and for about 4.2 Ghz

 

[mikeymikec]

I assume the 1.294v reading is supposedly at stock frequencies? If so I might try resetting the BIOS.

I wonder whether the Turbo Boost type stuff might engage while in the BIOS. Where are you getting that reading?

 

[hunkeelin]

lol dont' worry. just go and manually set it to 1.2. I have the same thing i set it to 1.2 oc to 4.0 np. the mobo just seem to give more voltage.

 

[nsymis]

Thanks a lot for your interest.

yes right out of the box (with the most recent bios ) , the reading was both from the asus ai suite sensor and the cpu-z while i has running a quick cinebench just to load it.

So i must re-flash the bios? or should i try to offset the voltage by a negative number in the bios?

everything is running fine ( i ran ansys for 1 day for my thesis ) but i am concerned since the cpu has to last until iv-e and the motherboard a lot longer.

edit: hunkeelin i might just do that but isnt using an offset mode better for longevity ?no static voltage etc?..

 

[hunkeelin]

I did not use offset, i just set it manually for 1.2v. But offset is better so u can do that.

 

[Edrick]

I do not like setting my vCore manually.

I also found that my MB (Gigabyte UD3) set the vCore rather high. So I used the offset of -0.50v to get my vCore down to the 1.23v range at full load @ 4Ghz.

Also, anything under 1.3v is perfectly safe for these CPUs. If you can get 4.2Ghz under 1.25v, then you are in very good shape.

 

[nsymis]

good to see i'm not the only one (in a way ).

following your suggestions i managed to get my cpu stable at 4.016 ghz @ 1.216 volts will try for lower soon. However i had to offset by -.100 to get there.

Much appreciated ,again.

btw im getting a q-code 80 reading on the debug LED . any ideas?

 

[Edrick]

following your suggestions i managed to get my cpu stable at 4.016 ghz @ 1.216 volts will try for lower soon. However i had to offset by -.100 to get there.

There is no real need to go lower than what you have now. What you are running now is actually good. The problem you will run into with too low of an offset is that is also affects your voltage when idle, so it can drop very low (0.70v) which may cause your system to crash when idle. I know I ran into this issue with my 2500K before.

I don't suggest going lower than a -0.100 offset. I use an offset of -0.050 to reach my 1.23v. I could get it slightly lower, but there is no need. My system is stable and my temps are mid 20's idle and low 50's at full load LinX.

 

[nsymis]

I have to agree .I feel much better with my current settings .
Thx for your input. Overall it,s a great cpu and i dont regret going with in one bit.
For the software i use its more than twice as fast as my old 955 b.e which translates in 1 day vs 2 days etc.( the oc does help)

for any1 that might be interested i also have a second profile now : 4.1 Ghz @ 1.22 volts just for some reference ( tested with IBT*15 @ very high )

edit: despite the fairly large negative offset idle vcore is like 0.944 what you said made me want to mention it , just in case.

 

[Stevie-c]

oh nice that's the same borad and cpu I have, nice pick! and if you use watercooling you can go to 1.4v no problem I use a multiplier of 37x and a base clock of 127.4mhz for about 4.8ghz very stable.

 

[Stevie-c]

There is no real need to go lower than what you have now. What you are running now is actually good. The problem you will run into with too low of an offset is that is also affects your voltage when idle, so it can drop very low (0.70v) which may cause your system to crash when idle. I know I ran into this issue with my 2500K before.

I don't suggest going lower than a -0.100 offset. I use an offset of -0.050 to reach my 1.23v. I could get it slightly lower, but there is no need. My system is stable and my temps are mid 20's idle and low 50's at full load LinX.

really lets say if one was watercooling and had 1.4v 37x 127.4mhz base clock should I just have it not throttle at all or is a little good for 24/7 operation?

 

[Yuriman]

Do you have the option of "additional turbo voltage" ? As I understand it, it's basically offset voltage that's only applied while the chip is in turbo frequencies (loaded).