7800X3D optimization

[Voxman]

I've upgraded my system last month and have been playing the game in VR  with good results, but I think I can get better performance with a little more overclocking optimizing.  I've noticed quite a bit of time dilation and what seems like slow motion when quite a few A/C are spawning when using Patrick Wilson's mission generator.

 

What I'm looking for is a good guide to OC this CPU.  I've had experience with Intel CPUs for at least 20+ years, but this AMD system seems a little bit more challenging.

 

Can anyone recommend a good step by step guide for overclocking and optimizing this particular CPU?  I've searched the web and watched a few videos, but I still think that the process by some folks seem inconsistent.  Also the nomenclature to some BIOS settings seem confusing.

 

Here's my system specs

 

CPU- AMD 7800X3D

MOBO - Gigabyte X670 GAMING X AX V2

Memory - Gskill  DDR5-6000  32G (running XMP setting 3000Mhz).

GPU - Zotac GeForce RTX 3080Ti

[LLv34_Flanker]

S!

 

The X3D processors are not overclockable in a traditional way. With undervolting You get better thermals and thus increased boost times. I did this on the 5800X3D and did not lose performance, but got consistent performance. There are quite a few quides out there regarding undervolting. Usual offset value is -15 to -30 depending on your silicon quality. Also remember the usual stuff aka disabling features on mobo you do not use, like serial port, on board audio if using external solution etc. You find guides for various mobo manufacturers, linking one example here: 

 

 

[354thFG_Drewm3i-VR]

You can get a bit more performance, but it is dubious you'll make time dilation go away.

[Aapje]

@Voxman

 

The X3D CPUs are thermal-limited, because the 3D-cache that is stacked on top is more sensitive to high temperatures.

 

So the only way to make it faster is to have it generate less heat at a certain clock-speed, by undervolting it, so it can boost higher while keeping the temps in check.

 

Quote

I've had experience with Intel CPUs for at least 20+ years, but this AMD system seems a little bit more challenging.

 

Things have actually been changing for both CPUs and GPUs, where they do much more dynamic boosting than in the past, so it's more about getting it faster within the thermal budget or TDP budget.

 

And in many cases they are clocked above the efficiency optimum much more than chips were in the past, so there is less headroom in the first place. So a lot of people focus more on undervolting and reducing heat output, rather than trying to overclock. The days are gone were you could get huge gains from overclocking.

[ICDP]

On 3/19/2024 at 8:30 PM, Aapje said:

@Voxman

 

The X3D CPUs are thermal-limited, because the 3D-cache that is stacked on top is more sensitive to high temperatures.

 

So the only way to make it faster is to have it generate less heat at a certain clock-speed, by undervolting it, so it can boost higher while keeping the temps in check.

 

 

Things have actually been changing for both CPUs and GPUs, where they do much more dynamic boosting than in the past, so it's more about getting it faster within the thermal budget or TDP budget.

 

And in many cases they are clocked above the efficiency optimum much more than chips were in the past, so there is less headroom in the first place. So a lot of people focus more on undervolting and reducing heat output, rather than trying to overclock. The days are gone were you could get huge gains from overclocking.

 

What you say is mostly accurate especially with the X3D CPUs.  They max boost on their own but thermal limits means they don't maintain those boosts for long.  So PBO with a negative voltage offset allows the CPU to boost slightly higher for longer.

 

As for getting huge gains from overclocking, it is still possible... though rarer.  My 7900 XT (and the AMD 7x00 range in general) can give an overclock of 10% - 15% extra FPS with a combination of undervolting and increasing the power limits.  My RTX 4080 on the other hand has no more than 4% headroom even with an undervolt.

Edited March 24, 2024 by ICDP

[Aapje]

The 7000-cards are a bit special in that they seem to have a lot of leakage at higher voltages, so undervolting can give relatively big gain. AMD's plan was for them to run at 3+Ghz with a higher voltage, but due to the voltage leakage they were never able to do this.

[LLv34_Flanker]

S!

 

I run a full AMD system with 5800X3D undervolted with other BIOS tweaks as well. The 6950XT is also undervolted, which dropped thermals and power usage quite a bit. Every game runs extremely well despite this. Less heat = more boos and power without throttling.