Overclocking and results (Long)

[1701E]

Since we all love a good hardware discussion, I figured I'd test out how much Overclocking and Unlocking can help a system. Mostly cause I was bored, but also to give anyone who's hesitant some references and ideas on whether it might be worth dabbling in an Overclock! 
Note that the images are far too large to embed them as I uploaded them to a non photo-hosting website (enjin.com) and they did not auto-resize, thus all being 1680x1050. Instead I will simply link to them.

Disclaimer; I, nor AMD, ATI, Nvidia, Intel, or other manufacturer is responsible for any damage or issues caused by Over-clocking or Unlocking. The user takes all responsibility for any damages done and understands the risks involved and is to proceed at their own discretion only.

Now that aside, the system I am testing this on;

Motherboard: ASUS M4A88T-M LE AM3
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 BE 3.2GHz / Phenom II X4 B55 3.2GHz
CPU Cooler: Corsair H80 Liquid Cooling
RAM: G.Skill 4GB (2x 2GB) DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel
GPU: Sapphire Radeon 7970 OC with Boost
HDD: Western Digital Black 1TB SATA 6.0GB/s
PSU: SeaSonic Gold X750 750W


What it will be tested at by default; "Dual Stock"
Stock 7970 @ Clock 950 / Memory 1425 / Power 0 / Voltage 1175
Stock Phenom X2 @ 3200MHz / Multi 16x / HT Ref 200 / Voltage 1.4v / NB Vid 1.2v

What it will be tested at with Over-clock; "Dual OC"
Overclocked 7970 @ Clock 1225 / Memory 1500 / Power 20 / Voltage 1287
Overclocked Phenom X2 @ 3857MHz / Multi 19x / HT Ref 203 / Voltage 1.5357v / NB Vid 1.225v

What it will be tested at with an Unlocked CPU; "Quad Stock"
Stock 7970 @ Clock 950 / Memory 1425 / Power 0 / Voltage 1175
Unlocked Phenom X4 @ 3200MHz / Multi 16x / HT Ref 200 / Voltage 1.4v / NB Vid 1.2v

What it will be tested at with an Unlocked CPU and Overclock; "Quad OC"
Overclocked 7970 @ Clock 1225 / Memory 1500 / Power 20 / Voltage 1287
Unlocked/Overclocked Phenom X4 @ 3857MHz / Multi 19x / HT Ref 203 / Voltage 1.5357v / NB Vid 1.225v

I used all the same settings in Overclock vs Stock in the Quad vs Dual aspects. This is to give a fair comparison as the Dual can overclock a little more than the Quad can.
For anyone unaware; The "Unlocked" is turning select AMD CPUs from Dual/Tri core to a Tri/Quad core with the right Motherboard (most these days) by 'unlocking' or turning on Cores that have been shut off by AMD. It is not guaranteed to work or be stable and falls under the same disclaimer as above.


On to the testing!
I used the following for testing; Aces High, Hitman Absolution, Metro 2033, 3D Mark11

First I'll use 3D Mark11;

Settings;
Performance Level

Stock Dual - scores;
P4731
Graphics Score - 8291
Physics Score - 2045
Combined Score - 2103

Dual OC - scores;
P5608
Graphics Score - 10210
Physics Score - 2369
Combined Score - 2408

Quad Stock - scores;
P6467
Graphics Score - 8344
Physics Score - 3876
Combined Score - 3842

Quad OC - scores;
P7742
Graphics Score - 10,308
Physics Score - 4482
Combined Score - 4360

Using 3D Mark11 alone it can be seen how much an overclock helps, and more so how drastically a Quad helps vs Dual core. I can tell the difference between when I start my computer in Dual vs Quad, while not major, it is there. Mind you this is purely a benchmark and can have "questionable" results, plus it isn't the best for what most of us will do, gaming!


So how does it fare in Metro 2033? (we'll save AH for last)

Firstly; The Settings;
DirectX11 (Tesselation/DOF) - 1680x1050 - Quality High - MSAA 4x - AF 16x - Frontline Benchmark - Run two (2) times

Results; Min FPS / Max FPS / Average FPS
Dual Stock - 6.39 / 134.73 / 34.00
Dual OC - 2.82 / 164.12 / 39.00
Quad Stock - 7.12 / 92.64 / 48.50
Quad OC - 4.78 / 101.55 / 53.00

So while there were some inconsistencies in terms of Max/Min due to the way the Benchmark runs (counts the first/last few seconds where FPS goes whack), the average FPS saw a small jump with an OC and more so on the Quad Core.

So how about Hitman Absolution?

Settings;
1680x1050 - Quality High - MSAA 4x - AF 8x - Hitman Benchmark tool - Run one (1) time

Results; Min FPS / Max FPS / Average FPS
Dual Stock - 8.43 / 33.07 / 21.32
Dual OC - 19.42 / 34.95 / 25.87
Quad Stock - 27.18 / 68.09 / 39.58
Quad OC - 28.25 / 110.68 / 45.45

Same as Metro really, small bump with OC, nice ol' bump with Quad.

So, what about our beloved Aces High?
Well we already know AMD for the most part is limited to a single core in Aces High (less I missed a memo!), but we'll see how things change, or don't, anyways!
As AH has no built-in Benchmark this is done by starting in the Tower, 2x 360 views, Take-off, Climb to and kill B-24 (set ablaze), 2x fast-low passes on field, strafe T-34, land.
Always the same map, field, plane, circling planes, tanks on ground, etc. Used FRAPS Benchmarking tool.

Settings;
1680x1050 - 2048 Tex - Max AA - 4K Shadows - Second-to-Last notch Env Map - Bump Map Cloud/Terrain - No shadows on other

Results; Min FPS / Max FPS / Average FPS
Dual Stock - 0 / 68 / 41.77
Dual OC - 3 / 76 / 51.25
Quad Stock - 0 / 68 / 43.32
Quad OC - 4 / 81 / 49.40

So while it shows a small jump from Dual to Quad that was more likely due to testing not being 100% identical. However the Overclocking did help the FPS enough to give that little extra boost, in particular in Dual Core it seems (again, could be testing being slightly off).


Overall it can be seen an Overclock can certainly help FPS, and running a Quad of equal caliber can help drastically in some cases. So if anyone around has wondered if it was worth trying their hand at learning how to overclock, this is a small reference guide to show it can be. Mind you, EVERY system will be different, always get help if you are unsure!

If anyone else has done similar tests, such as with Intel or other GPUs, feel free to show how much it helps, or doesn't! It's always nice to see just how worth-while parts are through multiple sources.