Overclocking Intel's Core i7 920 Processor

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2008-12-29T11:46:31Z

With the introduction of the new Intel Core i7 processor architecture, the company affectionately known as "Chipzilla" has once again topped itself in terms of performance. Intel planted a gift in the Core i7 launch in the form of the Core i7 920. This is Intel's entry level Core i7 processor which runs at a stock speed of 2.66 GHz, not too far off from the high-end Core i7 965 Extreme model which runs at 3.2 GHz. While the high-end Core i7 965 sells for over $1,000, the Core i7 920 sells for a more palatable $300, considering the performance that this chip is capable of with a little elbow grease. In terms of their base technology, the Core i7 965 and 920 are the same chip--they simply run at different frequencies. While overclocking the Core i7 is a bit different compared to previous generation Core 2 processors, most of the same principles apply to these new systems.

We grabbed a new Core i7 920 processor off a retail shelf and decided to see how far we could clock it up. We want to give potential buyers an idea of what overclocking with the Core i7 is like, along with how much performance could be gained, how to deal with heat, and how power consumption comes into play. Come on by the site and take a look...

Overclocking Intel's Core i7 920 Processor

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mlauzon
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2008-12-29T12:33:48Z

Are there any plans on doing an article on OC'ing a Core i7 965...as this is the processor I got; and have never OC'ed anything before?!

marco c
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Administration

2008-12-29T12:46:13Z

Well, we overclocked the 965 in our launch article to just over 4GHz. With the 965, overclocking is much easier, as you can just raise the multiplier as high as your system will allow, and then fine tune by adjusting the base clock.

peti1212
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2008-12-29T13:22:11Z

Oh nice, I though that the new Core i7's weren't so good at overclocking. This prooves my thoughs wrong. Nice article.

bob_on_the_cob
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Advanced Member

2008-12-29T13:45:29Z

Looks like some nice clocks. Just such a high cost of entry right now. $300 for a mobo and $300 for the CPU. Plus I'll need another stick of ram to make real use of the new platform.

mlauzon
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Member

2008-12-29T18:28:18Z

Marco C wrote:
Well, we overclocked the 965 in our launch article to just over 4GHz. With the 965, overclocking is much easier, as you can just raise the multiplier as high as your system will allow, and then fine tune by adjusting the base clock.

Do you have a link to that article?

marco c
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Administration

2008-12-30T09:17:58Z

Here you go:

http://hothardware.com/Articles/Intel-Core-i7-Processors-Nehalem-and-X58-Have-Arrived

mlauzon
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Member

2008-12-30T09:27:46Z

Marco C wrote:
Here you go:
http://hothardware.com/Articles/Intel-Core-i7-Processors-Nehalem-and-X58-Have-Arrived

What I should have asked, was are you going to do an article about OC'ing -- with instructions on how to to OC the Core i7 series -- for people who have never done any type of OC'ing before?!

ice_73
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2008-12-30T14:17:38Z

i think i fell in love with intel....

Catalina588
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2008-12-30T15:15:09Z

#10

I agree we need an article on tweaking the Core i7 965. Since the i7 is a new overclocking platform, where else but Hot Hardware would you like us non-experts to go to come up to speed?

Marco C., your team does this every day. I don't. How about some help?

Catalina588
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Member

2008-12-30T15:48:33Z

#11

Casual overclockers of Core i7 using the Intel DX58SO motherboard should check out the new auto-tuning capabilities in the Intel Desktop Control Center (beta) at http://preview.tinyurl.com/7wgvzo Even if you don't want to add voltage, there is a path to optimizing the Core i7 at spec voltage. Beta, but worth the aggravation.

- PSK

mlauzon
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Member

2008-12-30T19:10:19Z

#12

Catalina588 wrote:
Casual overclockers of Core i7 using the Intel DX58SO motherboard should check out the new auto-tuning capabilities in the Intel Desktop Control Center (beta) at http://preview.tinyurl.com/7wgvzo Even if you don't want to add voltage, there is a path to optimizing the Core i7 at spec voltage. Beta, but worth the aggravation.
- PSK

The above article does me no good, as I've got an Asus Rampage II Extreme mobo, with a Core i7 965, G.Skill Pi Black 6GB DDR3-1600 PC3-12800 8-8-8-21

TheScavenger
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Member

2009-01-20T12:46:02Z

#13

That is a very well written and intuitive article. It should be a required read for all novice i7 overclockers. Great job Chris!

Josh

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