# Overclocking for large orchestral and hybrid projects?



## Taj Mikel (Oct 14, 2018)

Hi, everyone! 

I am looking to upgrade my computer soon, and I was wondering about overclocking and how much it might improve performance in large orchestral and hybrid trailer type projects. 

My dream is to run large sessions with multiple active VSTs and production plugins operating simultaneously. Ideally, I would like to do as much mixing while composing as possible and combine the two workflows.

To what extent would overclocking assist with this? 

I am looking at a system with the following specs, 

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor 
CPU Cooler: Corsair - H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler 
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard 
Memory: G.Skill - FORTIS 64GB (4 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory 
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive 
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive 
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive 
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive 
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive 
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive 
Storage: Samsung - 960 EVO 1TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive 
Video Card: Asus - GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB Dual Video Card 
Case: Fractal Design - Define XL R2 (Black Pearl) ATX Full Tower Case 
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply 
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Pro OEM 64-bit 


Would it do me well to go for products designed for overclocking? I am also considering doubling the RAM and going for a CPU that can support 128gb. 

Thanks for any help or insight, and lord God if you see any holes in my expressed intention and the system specs above please let me know!!! :D


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## EvilDragon (Oct 15, 2018)

The faster your cores are, the more they can calculate before you start getting audio dropouts. So yes, it can help. 8700K can comfortably work at around 5 GHz with the right settings and good cooling. Yes, do it. 

I would suggest springing for HyperX memory if you can, and 2666 MHz, not 2133. Yes, more expensive, but...


I would also go for 1 TB SSDs instead of 500 GB ones. And definitely a beefier PSU, something like 750 W.


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## Guy Rowland (Oct 15, 2018)

...also check that the motherboard can support that many drives simultaneously. Often / usually in the small print using an M.2 could disable a couple of sata ports. Following Mario's SSD advice would also solve that problem though 

(Surprised to see a recommendation for higher specced RAM though. Every piece of advice I've ever seen for DAW use says the RAM speed makes essentially zero difference for our purposes).


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## Damarus (Oct 15, 2018)

2 really good points already mentioned above! But make sure you're getting and 8700K vs the 8700. The 'K' denotes 'unlocked', allowing for overclocking. Not sure if that was a typo for your setup. 

Also, I would opt for larger SSD's rather than more of them. Already mentioned above, you'll have limited SATA ports.

That setup will do what you want easily.


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## EvilDragon (Oct 15, 2018)

Guy Rowland said:


> Every piece of advice I've ever seen for DAW use says the RAM speed makes essentially zero difference for our purposes



True. But when overclocking it can make a difference!


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## Pictus (Oct 15, 2018)

Taj Mikel said:


> Hi, everyone!



Hi, to complement the good tips already mentioned:



> CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor


For audio stuff the slowest core may set the system pace.
I other words, the slowest core may hinder the faster ones.
Keeping all the cores at the same speed is golden.
To overclock you need the i7-8700*K* version, with proper cooling
you can easy set all cores to 4.7GHz without any hassle, from 4.8Ghz
it may starts to produce too much heat, but each chip is different...



> CPU Cooler: Corsair - H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler


The Corsair H115i Pro is more silent and got a more durable pump.




> Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard


OK



> Memory: G.Skill - FORTIS 64GB (4 x 16GB) DDR4-2133 Memory


What Evildragon said.



> Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
> Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
> Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
> Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
> ...


There is no vantage in using lots of small SSDs, else for RAID 0 and it will creates
other implications, a bigger SSD is usually faster and have longer lifespan(TBW).
https://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/minisite/ssd/support/warranty/





> Storage: Samsung - 960 EVO 1TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive


The Samsung 970 EVO is +- the same price, but faster and longer lifespan.

Maybe a HD(Seagate BarraCuda PRO) for backup?
With a Icy Dock Duoswap MB971SP-B


My "default" audio setup would be:
1 NVMe SSD for boot/programs
1 Big SSD SATA for the data/samples
1 HD for backup in the DOCK.



> Video Card: Asus - GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB Dual Video Card


For audio stuff I prefer AMD GPUs like RX 550/560+ series as
they have less problems with latency and less bloated driver.
https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7060297



> Case: Fractal Design - Define XL R2 (Black Pearl) ATX Full Tower Case


I guess it is OK.



> Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply


To get the proper PSU
https://outervision.com/power-supply-calculator



> Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Pro OEM 64-bit


OK

BTW, I would wait for the Intel Core i9-9900K or Core i7-9700K + something like PRIME-Z390-A


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## EvilDragon (Oct 15, 2018)

Pictus said:


> I guess it is OK.



Fractal cases are awesome, not "I guess OK"!  I have the exact same case and it is just... brilliant. Additional soundproofing they build into them really helps.


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## Kony (Oct 16, 2018)

EvilDragon said:


> Fractal cases are awesome, not "I guess OK"!  I have the exact same case and it is just... brilliant. Additional soundproofing they build into them really helps.


I got the exact same case for a new build last year after reading your recommendation on another thread and have to agree with you 

EDIT: Just checked mine and it's the R5! I could have sworn you recommended the R5 last year. Still an amazing case - I got the window side panel version though because I have tinnitus so noise doesn't worry me that much and I like to watch


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## Guy Rowland (Oct 16, 2018)

Yeah, the R5 is great. 2 easily removable SSD slots on the back of the mobo too, on the R4 you have to remove the mobo to do that.


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## Mornats (Oct 16, 2018)

+1 for Fractal Design cases. Cool and quiet.


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## EvilDragon (Oct 16, 2018)

Kony said:


> I could have sworn you recommended the R5 last year.



Nope, I have R2 XL


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## Kony (Oct 16, 2018)

EvilDragon said:


> Nope, I have R2 XL


I must have made the mistake of seeing a 2 and thought it was a 5 ... an easy mistake to make, right? A happy accident anyway, as the R5 is definitely better than the R2 (just kidding!)


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## Pictus (Oct 16, 2018)

EvilDragon said:


> Fractal cases are awesome, not "I guess OK"!  I have the exact same case and it is just... brilliant. Additional soundproofing they build into them really helps.



I mean the model not the brand, it may not have the feature you are looking for.


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