Overclocking in the short term would mean making your computer’s parts run faster than it’s manufactured for by the manufacturer.

By using this method, you can, in theory, save money by buying a cheaper processor, for example overclocking it in order to get the performance of a more expensive processor.

Same for any other component. The important part is to not overdo it, so your system doesn’t crash, but find out how far you can go.

In this article, we’re gonna talk about memory clocks and CPU multipliers as well as how they are related to each other. 

What is exactly overclocking?

Let’s put it this way. Overclock is making your processor and its memory to run at a higher speed than it was made for. Each processor has its speed rating and you can increase it by performing overclocking. 

For example, Ryzen 5 3600 has a base clock of 3.6GHz, so the definition of overclocking is putting it above that frequency speed. It can be overclocked up to 4.2GHz by changing the clock speed and the voltages, stated by the manufacturer. 

Nowadays, processors are manufactured in a very quality way, so the displayed rated speeds might not be true, which means that you can overclock your processor even higher than the stated 4.2GHz for this certain processor. 

Misconceptions

Before we continue any further, there is one very important thing to note before performing any overclocking with your processor. And that is that overclocking voids the warranty of your CPU, including your motherboard and your RAM. 

So if you’re about to do something like this, make sure that you’re okay with either damaging your components or losing the warranty for them.

Does overclocking require liquid cooling or some high-end air coolers?

Sure, that can be true if you’re really overclocking your processor as much as it can be possibly overclocked. But overclocking it just a bit, around 0.1 to 0.2 GHz is very easily done even with the processor’s stock cooler. Keep in mind that a custom CPU cooler can extend your CPU’s life if you’re keeping it overclocked.

Do the same components have the same overclocking capabilities?

Not necessarily. Every component is different, even though it is the same processor, it doesn’t mean you can overclock it as much as the other one. Each CPU has its own maximal performance and you have to push them to the limits by yourself to be able to discover how far can yours go. It all comes to natural variation in the process of manufacturing. 

How to overclock?

It is certainly not possible to write a guide for every individual because every CPU is different and every motherboard and different BIOS options, so what we will do is write out the basics of overclocking and based on those, you can figure out by yourself how to do the work.

First off, you have to make sure that you have proper cooling. You’re either using the stock cooler that has been provided with the processor, an air cooler or a water-cooled cooler.

Your goal is to have a good enough cooler to handle the extra heat that your processor is going to produce because it’s getting overclocked. That extra can mean anything in the range of 1 to 40 degrees celsius. Usually, it’s around 15-20 degrees celsius. 

You also need a lot of free space in your PC’s case so the air can flow around and your CPU doesn’t get even hotter than it already could. It is really important because no cooler will help you if there won’t be any airflow. 

You should only consider water cooling if you’re planning on heavy overclocking, which is not what most people do because it can also be dangerous and ruin your CPU. 

After you think you’re good to go, it is time to go to BIOS and change your settings – overclock the CPU. You’re going to increase your clock rate and your voltage. Increase it by a little amount. Let’s say 10 percent, then save it and reboot your PC. After that run a benchmark to stress test your overclocked CPU. 

During the test open a temperature monitoring program and keep the track of your temperatures to not be too much. In a general rule, it should not go over 85 degrees but that depends from processor to processor. 

If the benchmark goes all good then increase a bit more and try again, until you find that sweet spot where it crashes the benchmark and then you return it to the previous setting.

Just don’t increase your processor’s speed by a large amount in one go. Go slowly and find that sweet spot. 

Overclocking information

If you are interested in overclocking, you should do research and find more information about overclocking. There are forums where people post their experiences with their own setups, so you should look up the results for overclocking with your exact processor, motherboard, and RAM.

If you want to overclock your laptop, be sure to know that it’s a bad idea, because there’s not enough airflow to be able to do that. The only thing that will happen is your CPU will overheat and the whole system can shut down.

There are also apps for phone overclocking but we wouldn’t recommend them either because you can only hurt your battery life and potentially overheat and damage your phone components. 

Is Turbo-boost safe?

Turbo-boost has its limits but the main purpose of it is increasing the clock speeds of your processor in a 100 percent safe way by not going over the speeds that the processor is manufactured for. It is also safe to do it on laptop CPUs unlike the regular overclocking because of the possible CPU overheating issues. Just make sure you monitor your temperatures if you decide to give Turbo-boost a go.

Conclusion

Overclocking is a method for increasing the performance of your computer’s components above their rated speeds displayed by the manufacturer. 

Overclocking can give an average boost of around 10 percent in performance but there’s a lot of consideration to be done before deciding on performing such a thing. It is important to be aware of the risks behind it and that the results of overclocking may vary due to different individual components. 

Individuals who want to take the risk can get some great performance boost and have the same performance as if they owned a more expensive component. 

Before doing any overclocking, it is strongly recommended to do your research so you know what you’re getting into. Research about results that include your components including CPU, motherboard, and RAM. Good luck.