Intel Core i5 655K: Overclocking Made Easy… And Affordable!

Overclocking

A processor with an unlocked multiplier is destined for overclocking, and that’s precisely what we did in the tests. The Core i5 655K’s multiplier can be increased beyond its normal value to reach a varying level of speed that would otherwise be restricted by the Base Clock (BCLK, formerly known as the FSB) limitation. You can still raise the BCLK to bump up Core i5 655K’s clockspeed. Combine it with the multiplier value modification, and you’ve just earned yourself a far greater degree of flexibility.

Under default clockspeed, we cooled this processor using a tower-heatpipe heatsink along with the included 1500 RPM, 12 cm fan. During the overclocking session, however, we replaced the fan with a beefier 4400 RPM fan of the same diameter (yes, it sounded like a jet engine, but it cools things better nonetheless). We commenced the overclocking under two different circumstances. First, we increased the clockspeed while leaving the V-core setting unchanged, to see just how far the Core i5 655K could go with its default voltage. Secondly, we did maximum tweaks (including voltage increase) to push the processor’s speed has high as our air-cooling system would allow us to. Both the EIST and Turbo Boost features were disabled to maintain clockspeed consistency during the overclock.