Hello everyone, I am Xiaoyueyue. A few days ago, we published two articles about Raspberry Pi 4: “The New Raspberry Pi 4 – The Most Powerful Raspberry Pi Ever!” and “Raspberry Pi 4, Redefining the Gold Standard of Single Board Computers”. Today, let’s talk about overclocking the Raspberry Pi 4.
As with previous generations, the CPU and GPU of Raspberry Pi 4 can be overclocked. The overclocking process only requires a simple edit of a configuration file, making it accessible even for non-professionals. There’s practically no barrier to entry. And don’t worry if you set the core voltage too high and damage it, the great Xiaoyueyue will provide warranty, ha ha ha ha ha.
Before starting overclocking, there are some important things you need to know. First, you need a reliable high-quality power supply, preferably a professional switching power supply module. Second, you should install a heatsink with a fan to prevent overheating or triggering automatic underclocking. Third, take a look at the warranty conditions:
Very Important – Warranty Conditions
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You can adjust the core voltage through software, the option is called over_voltage. You set the core voltage above the safe level to overclock, for example, greater than 0.15V. In this case, if damage occurs, you can seek warranty from Xiaoyueyue.
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Some hardcore players are ready with external power supplies and force feeding a voltage exceeding the safe level to the core. Xiaoyueyue needs to remind you that if the Raspberry Pi 4 burns in this case, it won’t be covered by warranty.
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There is an option in the software adjustments called force_turbo, which forces the CPU to always run at maximum speed. Although this feature sounds enticing, if you enable it and burn the Raspberry Pi 4 while overclocking, it won’t be covered by warranty.
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Extreme operations such as liquid nitrogen overclocking, distilled water overclocking, or opening the case for overclocking are not covered by warranty.
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Key Point – Only overclocking under certain conditions is covered by warranty
For overclocking Raspberry Pi 4, it is recommended to use NOOBS instead of traditional Raspbian. Raspberry Pi 4 overclocks by editing the configuration file config.txt in the /boot directory. If you configure it too aggressively, the traditional Raspbian system may fail to boot.
However, the NOOBS system is much more flexible; you can enter NOOBS recovery mode by holding the SHIFT key during boot, and then edit the configuration file in the /boot directory back to its original state.
Warranty-Permissible Overclocking Methods:
First, overclock the CPU. Find the config.txt file in the /boot directory. Add the following two lines at the end of the file:
over_voltage=2
arm_freq=1750
The above settings mean the following: The first setting over_voltage=2 increases the core voltage by about 0.05V; raising core voltage during overclocking is common sense, otherwise, it cannot be stable at a higher frequency. Xiaoyueyue recommends over_voltage=3 or 4 to achieve a higher success rate of overclocking. The second setting arm_freq=1750 sets the maximum frequency of the processor to 1.75GHz.
You can also set over_voltage and arm_freq a bit higher; if it fails to boot, just revert it back. This setting complies with the software requirements for Raspberry Pi usage, so it normally won’t damage the Raspberry Pi, and under these conditions, even if it gets damaged, it can still be covered by warranty. The value of over_voltage should not exceed 6 under normal circumstances, which corresponds to a core voltage of 0.15V.
GPU consumes more power, so the core voltage should be raised a bit during overclocking; over_voltage=2 is absolutely insufficient for GPU overclocking. You can first set over_voltage=6, then gradually lower it to find the stable minimum voltage. GPU overclocking is equally simple; just add one line at the end of the config.txt file:
gpu_freq=600
The above line means the maximum frequency of the GPU is 600MHz, which is a 20% increase over the default value of 500MHz.
Extreme Overclocking Methods Not Covered by Warranty:
If force_turbo is not enabled, over_voltage cannot exceed 6. For those wealthy players who don’t need warranty, you can add a line force_turbo=1, and then you can set over_voltage=7 or 8, or even higher. Cooling with kerosene, distilled water, or liquid nitrogen is up to you.
Of course, damage occurring under these circumstances is not covered by warranty.
Results of Normal Overclocking
For non-wealthy players, even just overclocking the CPU to 1.75GHz and the GPU to 600MHz can significantly enhance performance. Below are the Linpack test results, primarily testing CPU performance, with a performance increase of about 20% after overclocking.
For GPU, you can test with OpenArena; below are the results. After increasing the GPU frequency by 20%, the results improved by about 16%.
Conclusion
Overclocking the Raspberry Pi 4 is very simple; you can spend the same amount of money and gain a bit of extra performance without affecting the warranty. Xiaoyueyue encourages everyone to overclock, as normal overclocking is covered by warranty, so feel free to play around.
References
This article is translated by Xinpanzhou, unauthorized reproduction will be pursued! The original English links are as follows:
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/raspberry-pi-4-b,6193.html
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/raspberry-pi-4-b-overclocking,6188.html
Image source: Internet
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