Need help with z77-ds3h Mobo

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throttleboi

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So without thinking i went and bought this mobo from amazon after looking at gigabyte's website and now i realized gigabyte misleads you about this board and i'm trying to find a way around this issue. Looking to overclock i purchased the i5-3570k and when i put it all together i realized there's no vcore control. I called gigabyte about this and they said it auto adjusts under load which i looked and there is evidence of this. My issue is this: when at stock 3.4 ghz vcore sits at 0.860 now at 4.1 it sits at 0.965 and under load thanks to the offset that i cant control it hits only a mere 1.005 which according to most oc guides is actually below what it should be. sometimes i'm unstable but if i clock down then bring it up that fixes that. Like now at 4.1 Ghz i leave it cause if i go 4.2 it will be unstable then i will have to clock down to 3.9 before i can get to 4.1 and i can just go there i have to work my way there. I'm wondering if there is any way around this?
 
it should be noted i have revision 1.1 and i'm not sure if i can use the older bios from revision 1.0 if so i would do that lol let me know
 
I have the same board and while certainly not a high-end enthusiast's board, not sure I would call it for the entry level user either. That is, I don't consider myself an entry-level overclocker. When I first got into OCing a couple decades ago, it involved studying schematics then moving and re-soldering jumpers on the motherboard! Frankly, I find the BIOS menu options to change voltages and timings a bit boring today. That's why I like the options provided by Gigabyte with this board. I can use the turbo mode to push my i7 3770 (not the k version) to 4.2GHz and keep my temps well below 60° with OEM cooler with no problems (though I have it down to 3.9Ghz to keep temps around 35°). But, I'm a old-timer electronics technician so my background is a bit different from most computer enthusiasts today. So if I want more speed, I prefer to just buy it.

I definitely would say Gigabyte did not mislead you about it's OC capabilities. I am afraid it is a matter of insufficient homework and research before buying. When researching motherboards, I tell folks to download the user manuals and see what the preset vs automatic vs manual options provided allow.

The fact is, this board does provide some decent OC options that provide a good balance in speed and stability, while keeping heat under control. Unfortunately you didn't tell us anything about your temps when pushing your system and that may be a big part of your stability issue. Did you buy a Retail boxed CPU that came with an OEM cooler? If so, are you using the stock OEM cooler on the CPU, or did you void the warranty (yes, that's a fact) by using an aftermarket cooler? Or did you buy an OEM CPU that did not come with an OEM cooler? In either case, what cooler are you using and did you ensure a proper layer of TIM (thermal interface material)? Please note the last line in my sig.

I do agree with Wrench concerning your choice of CPU. It is a great CPU - no doubt! But as noted through his link and here heat management with extreme OCing can be an issue.
 
Digerati said:
I have the same board and while certainly not a high-end enthusiast's board, not sure I would call it for the entry level user either. That is, I don't consider myself an entry-level overclocker. When I first got into OCing a couple decades ago, it involved studying schematics then moving and re-soldering jumpers on the motherboard! Frankly, I find the BIOS menu options to change voltages and timings a bit boring today. That's why I like the options provided by Gigabyte with this board. I can use the turbo mode to push my i7 3770 (not the k version) to 4.2GHz and keep my temps well below 60° with OEM cooler with no problems (though I have it down to 3.9Ghz to keep temps around 35°). But, I'm a old-timer electronics technician so my background is a bit different from most computer enthusiasts today. So if I want more speed, I prefer to just buy it.

I definitely would say Gigabyte did not mislead you about it's OC capabilities. I am afraid it is a matter of insufficient homework and research before buying. When researching motherboards, I tell folks to download the user manuals and see what the preset vs automatic vs manual options provided allow.

The fact is, this board does provide some decent OC options that provide a good balance in speed and stability, while keeping heat under control. Unfortunately you didn't tell us anything about your temps when pushing your system and that may be a big part of your stability issue. Did you buy a Retail boxed CPU that came with an OEM cooler? If so, are you using the stock OEM cooler on the CPU, or did you void the warranty (yes, that's a fact) by using an aftermarket cooler? Or did you buy an OEM CPU that did not come with an OEM cooler? In either case, what cooler are you using and did you ensure a proper layer of TIM (thermal interface material)? Please note the last line in my sig.

I do agree with Wrench concerning your choice of CPU. It is a great CPU - no doubt! But as noted through his link and here heat management with extreme OCing can be an issue.
Click to expand...

I'm using boxed i5-3570k with corsair h60 aio wc and i dont doubt it is a good motherboard. Its really comes down to the ivy bridge class and i believe they dont take voltages well but to get them stable you have to pump them as for that mobo i believe that the offset is what has me unstable which is why it is a great idea to have vcore adjustable that way if it is the offset i can at least raise the vcore so that it would be getting a bit more towards what it should normally receive. For instance i watch my vcore sit between 0.715 and 0.965 under idle and load and thats good for other cpu's but i dont think thats enough because i get random crashing meaning this thing is probably being undervolted and i have more than enough power and Wrench97 that article mentions that as well yes. sometimes cant even get past logging or sometimes barely make it to bios. but as of now i am looking at ga-z77-d3h which may do the trick hopefully and i'm looking to set a fixed voltage which may suck for powconsumption and energy saving but i'm not worried about it. its funny i am back on the h77-ds3h for now till tuesday but this thing is even a bit more balanced than the z77 counterpart i think once i pushed it up to 42 which it should have been able to handle i must have made it try to adjust to something it didn't want to but i will be happy to just set my own lol
 
On the upside sticking with gigabytes keeps my mac os x mavericks and windows 8.1 pro functional so i dont have to reinstall just add the new drivers.
 
sometimes cant even get past logging or sometimes barely make it to bios
Click to expand...
That would suggest to me you need to back it off a bit.

Also, concerning your alternative cooling solution, besides voiding the warranty (which I suspect is not a concern for you - but I mention it because it is important folks know the consequences), it is important to note motherboard designers cluster other heat sensitive and heat generating devices around the CPU socket, not just for shorter bus distances, but so they too can take advantage of the down and out flow of air created by the "expected" OEM cooler. So it is critical adapters of alternative cooling solutions compensate for that by ensuring case cooling is providing an adequate supply and flow of cool air through the case as other components besides the CPU can affect stability if overheated as well.
 
Digerati said:
sometimes cant even get past logging or sometimes barely make it to bios
Click to expand...
That would suggest to me you need to back it off a bit.

Also, concerning your alternative cooling solution, besides voiding the warranty (which I suspect is not a concern for you - but I mention it because it is important folks know the consequences), it is important to note motherboard designers cluster other heat sensitive and heat generating devices around the CPU socket, not just for shorter bus distances, but so they too can take advantage of the down and out flow of air created by the "expected" OEM cooler. So it is critical adapters of alternative cooling solutions compensate for that by ensuring case cooling is providing an adequate supply and flow of cool air through the case as other components besides the CPU can affect stability if overheated as well.
Click to expand...

Very good point though i'm not sure i believe i did it right but for your opinion i ask i have 2 fans blowing out the back and two fans blowing in which one has the radiator attached to the lc for the cpu but its aio but the air seems to be moving great ambient sits at 27 degrees and sometimes my fourth core hits 21 degrees but the rest hit around 25 to 28 is this a good setup for when my new mobo comes or will i need stronger coolers? the new mobo goes higher than where i'm trying to go i'm looking for 4.5 or 4.6 GHz for my oc if say my voltage can be undervolted to 1.185 would that be sufficient cooling or do you think i should get better coolers?

oh and the crashing is at stock too i ditched that mobo and pulled out the h77-ds3h to use till i get my new one. should be tuesday or monday.
 
but for your opinion i ask i have 2 fans blowing out the back and two fans blowing in which one has the radiator attached to the lc for the cpu but its aio but the air seems to be moving great ambient sits at 27 degrees and sometimes my fourth core hits 21 degrees but the rest hit around 25 to 28 is this a good setup for when my new mobo comes or will i need stronger coolers?
Click to expand...
It is not the CPU temps I worry about when using alternative cooling solutions, but other devices. Unfortunately, motherboard makers don't put sensors everywhere, but you can normally check the chipset which is often labeled as "system".

I don't like CPU temps to hit and sit above 60°C. That is not a damaging temp, but is getting near where stability can be a factor. Peaking at 62°C is not likely a problem. Staying above 60°C can be. Temps in the 20s are outstanding.
 
i will definitely look into better cooling because with my dual power supply setup i worry about the wires blocking airflow
 
Cable management is critical. But before adding more fans, see if you can route or tie back your cables so they minimize impacting air flow.
 
wish the adapter that links them together would provide a cable or 2 to run to the other stuff like the gtx 660 and hard drives that would eliminate some of the mess
 
Well, good cable management is also a function of the case. A wide case will allow you to run cables behind the motherboard, totally out of the way of air flow.

And while I am not a fan (no pun intended) of modular power supplies, they do allow you to remove completely any cables you don't use.
 
indeed i have the nvidia elite 334 tower which has not much in way of with i believe its just a mid tower some but i think i have a solution just need shoestring and duct tape. i strapped the second power supply to the top lol the line comes in through a pci slot above the gpu.
 
Yeah, that case, while nice, with support for just 2 120mm fans is not really suited for heavy duty overclocking.
 

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