Hello everyone, I just want to share my experiences with my overclocking adventure on a few FX chips, and I’m also curious about your stable overclock results.
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I believe it’s important to see other chip results to establish a baseline for your overclocking adventure. I won’t be providing a guide on how to overclock an FX chip, as there are plenty available, but I’d like to mention Tech Yes City because he provides an excellent baseline ([https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZPy6xMhtso&t=1659s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZPy6xMhtso&t=1659s)).
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I personally enjoy having my clock speeds and voltages lower when I’m not using my PC. Instead of disabling all features on my motherboard(C states and Cool&Quite Features), as recommended everywhere, my goal was not the highest overclock, but rather a 24/7 PC capable of playing PUBG.
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All the results I’m sharing below represent rock-solid stable overclocks, tested with various static loads over extended periods, and used daily for at least a month, 24/7.
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PS about voltages: All voltages mentioned below are real voltages, not BIOS settings. They are regulated in BIOS settings with load line calibrations, offset voltages, etc. However, I’m meticulous about my voltages, and I don’t tolerate more than 0.01v changes before, during, and after loads. My setup is adjusted accordingly.
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First FX System (2018):
CPU: AMD FX4300
Cooler: Snowman X4 with 1x12cm Snowman white fan
Thermal paste: GD900
Ram: Kingston HyperX Beast 8GB\*2 DDR3 (KHX18C10AT3K2)
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P rev2.1
GPU: ASUS ROG Strix RX470 4GB
PSU: 500W (Unknown Brand, 350W on 12V rail)
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Now, you may wonder why I purchased such a system in 2018. The simple answer is the price. The stock FX4300 wasn’t sufficient for my needs, so drawing on my past experiences with other Intel chips, I began overclocking it, and boy, that chip did everything I asked for! 😮
I discovered that I achieved better benchmark results at 4.77 GHz instead of 4.8 GHz, so I decided to stick with my CPU at 4.77 GHz. Additionally, through some experimentation, I found that 1750 MHz was the sweet spot for the timings on my GPU memory, resulting in improved performance instead of 1920 MHz. Consequently, the final configuration looked like this:
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Results:
CPU: FX 4300 @ 4.774 GHz | 1.45V | Max temp on static load 49°C; in-game 45°C
Mobo: 217MHz Base clock | 22x for CPU | 2604 MHz NB 1.3V | 2604 MHz HT
Ram: KHX18C10AT3K2 @ 1953 MHz | 1.64V
GPU: RX470 @ 1320 MHz | Mem 1750 MHz | Stock voltage
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After a few years (2022) and some updates, unfortunately, I couldn’t achieve a stable 66 fps in PUBG. I was considering an FX6350, but then I stumbled upon a dirt-cheap FX8150 and decided to go for it. I wasn’t sure about the condition of this chip; I assumed it might not have been treated kindly. Upon trying it out, I realized that my motherboard was the limiting factor (unable to maintain stable CPU voltage), and my subpar PSU wasn’t helping either.
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Even with stock BIOS settings, my setup crashed under certain static loads. Although I didn’t experience any issues with regular usage, I couldn’t shake off the awareness that my system might crash at any moment.
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PS: Thankfully, it never happened (thanks to God). As an engineer involved in rendering work, this uncertainty was not a good feeling. Determined to find a stable configuration, here are the results.
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FX8150 Upgrade (2022):
CPU: AMD FX8150
Cooler: Snowman X4 with 1x12cm Snowman white fan
Thermal paste: GD900
Ram: Kingston HyperX Beast 8GB\*2 DDR3 (KHX18C10AT3K2)
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P rev2.1
GPU: ASUS ROG Strix RX470 4GB
PSU: 500W (Unknown Brand, 350W on 12V rail)
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Results:
CPU: FX 8150 @ 4.070 GHz | 1.368Vmin 1.416Vmax | Max temp on static load 59°C; in-game 50°C
Mobo: 220MHz Base clock | 18.5x for CPU | 2420 MHz NB 1.3V | 2420 MHz HT
Ram: KHX18C10AT3K2 @ 1980 MHz | 1.65V
GPU: RX470 @ 1320 MHz | Mem 1750 MHz | Stock voltage
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After a while, a lightbulb moment enlightened my mind, and I thought, ‘If I cannot overclock my CPU, maybe some RAM timings and frequency adjustments will help.’ Unfortunately, even without touching the RAM voltage (the RAM’s stock voltage was 1.65V), both of my RAM sticks stopped working simultaneously.
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So, I acquired a new set of 8GB\*2 Kingston KF1600C10D3 modules, and my new stable overclock configuration looked something like this:
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RAM Changes:
CPU: AMD FX8150
Cooler: Snowman X4 with 1x12cm Snowman white fan
Thermal paste: GD900
Ram: Kingston HyperX Fury 8GB\*2 DDR3 (KF1600C10D3)
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P rev2.1
GPU: ASUS ROG Strix RX470 4GB
PSU: 500W (Unknown Brand, 350W on 12V rail)
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Results After New Ram:
CPU: FX 8150 @ 4.070 GHz | 1.368Vmin 1.416Vmax | Max temp on static load 59°C; in-game 50°C
Mobo: 220MHz Base clock | 18.5x for CPU | 2420 MHz NB 1.3V | 2420 MHz HT
Ram: KF1600C10D3 @ 1760 MHz | 1.5V
GPU: RX470 @ 1320 MHz | Mem 1750 MHz | Stock voltage
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Then, this setup served as my workhorse for almost one year. Two months ago, I came across another fantastic deal for a CPU and motherboard. Now, my current build is listed below
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Current System (FX8350, 2023):
CPU: FX8350
Cooler: Snowman X4 with 1x12cm Snowman white fan
Thermal paste: GD900
Ram: Kingston HyperX Fury 8GB\*2 DDR3 (KF1600C10D3)
Mobo: M5A99X Evo R2.0
GPU: ASUS ROG Strix RX470 4GB
PSU: 450W Thermaltake (396W on 12V Rail)
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Results:
CPU: FX 8350 @ 4.7 GHz | 1.416V | Max temp on static load 65°C (no throttling); in-game 55°C
Mobo: 200MHz Base clock | 23.5x for CPU | 2600 MHz NB 1.2V | 2600 MHz HT
Ram: KF1600C10D3 @ 2140 MHz | 1.5V
GPU: RX470 @ 1410 MHz 1.150V | Mem 1750 MHz
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I’m pleasantly surprised by how well this chip overclocks. Achieving 4.7 GHz with only 1.416V is impressive, and it stabilized within three days, a significant improvement compared to a week with the previous board.
I didn’t push the CPU further due to temperature concerns, but I recently bought MX4 thermal paste and have a spare tower cooler (Zalman CNPS 11x). I gave up on the CNPS 11x because it’s louder, and the Snowman provided enough cooling until the 8350 upgrade.
In conclusion, these are my adventures and rock-solid stable overclock results with all of my FX chips. I hope they inspire you and provide baseline knowledge for comparison. If you have a workhorse PC needs and already have an FX CPU and DDR3 system, it might serve you well for a few more years. If you don’t have one in hand already, please check local prices, as these systems seem overpriced online. I am sure they are not worth these prices; they are selling at such prices because nowadays they seem like fetish toys for overclockers who want to reach absurd frequencies, as FX still allows them.
Now, some questions for you:
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1)Do you think I have a golden chip (FX8350)? What were your voltages with FX8350 @ 4.7 GHz?
2)Any ideas on why my old RAMs gave up with just frequency and timing adjustments? Have you experienced something similar?
3)Any experiences with the Zalman CNPS 11x? Does it perform better than the Snowman in terms of cooling?
4) What PSU do you suggest at this moment if I want to go further overclocking? My motherboard cannot calculate CPU wattage properly, so I cannot confidently say my CPU draws 120W-130W right now, but that is my estimation. My GPU draws 110W with the maximum overclock