Overclock

Twitch0815

@Drakaen391
I run
#Overclock Settings
arm_freq=1400 (Try 1350 if 1400 does not work)
over_voltage=6
temp_limit=80
core_freq=500

#GPU Based
h264_freq=333
avoid_pwm_pll=1
gpu_mem=450
v3d_freq=500
#Ram Overclock
sdram_freq=588
sdram_schmoo=0x02000020
over_voltage_sdram_p=6
over_voltage_sdram_i=4
over_voltage_sdram_c=4
#Sound Fix
hdmi_drive=2

As a default on my pi'3s and ill play with some force_turbo and overvoltage above that when the situation calls for it.

ashmck73

I personally haven't overclocked my Pi3 - haven't really seen a need to as nothing has lagged or slowed down so far.
Admittedly I don't use any emulators for systems past the mid 90's so no PSX or later - so I'm guessing overclocking isn't really needed for that.

Ecks

Id like to know if certain Mame games performs better when the Pi is overclocked to 1.35GHz because i would if Spider-Man would play out more stable.

Darksavior

I'm using the pi3 example from https://github.com/RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup/wiki/Overclocking

I still get slowdowns in lr-snes9x, though. ~50fps with areas that have transparencies.

Ecks

@darksavior Ok but what is your Pi really clocked at right now?

Darksavior

@ecks total_mem=1024 arm_freq=1300 gpu_freq=500 core_freq=500 sdram_freq=500 sdram_schmoo=0x02000020 over_voltage=2 sdram_over_voltage=2

I haven't experimented much because I have gotten the temp icon with these settings. I'll get a flirc case in the future.

Ecks

@darksavior Well it was said with a case with a fan would be better also if you have thermal paste laying around i would remove the thermal tape like thing on the heatsinks (if you are using them) and slap on some thermal paste instead since it helps with cooling it better.

A Former User

Heres what I recently tried on my system...

First port of call:

arm_freq=1000
gpu_freq=480
core_freq=480
sdram_freq=480
sdram_schmoo=0x02000020
over_voltage=2
sdram_over_voltage=2
v3d_freq=510
temp_limit=85

If stable try (I would recommend a 5.1v 2.5a offical power supply at this point and a fan):

arm_freq=1200
gpu_freq=500
core_freq=500
sdram_freq=500
sdram_schmoo=0x02000020
over_voltage=2
sdram_over_voltage=2
v3d_freq=520
temp_limit=85

Experimental!!! (would advise not to try unless you know what you're doing):

arm_freq=1400
gpu_freq=520
core_freq=520
sdram_freq=520
sdram_schmoo=0x02000020
over_voltage=3
sdram_over_voltage=3
v3d_freq=525
temp_limit=85

EDIT: It's worth pointing out I have no clue what I'm doing

Ecks

@kilopie I am using a Pi 3 so my stock clocks are 1.2GHz already and i am using a 5v 2.5a power supply already.

Ecks

I got to ask cause i just bought this case today and want to know if a fan that small would be enough to cool down the Pi so i could overclock it.

TMNTturtlguy

@ecks It will be fine, might be a little loud! I run a .15 fan with my overclock and it stays nice and cool. I tried a .3 and it was incredibly loud. you will have no issues with the fan at .2

Ecks

@tmntturtlguy Ok but if i overclock it to lets say 1.35GHz would it stay around 60°C?
Because my goal is having it cool enough even in a closed off area.

TMNTturtlguy

@ecks I have no clue! It is really pi dependent along with the rooms ambient temp and humidity. The fan will only cool so much, you could blow a huge fan on it and there is diminishing returns. The pi will generate a lot of heat and you are trying to move it away by using heat sinks to pull the heat off the board and the fans to blow that heat away. If you run without any overclock and watch your temp while playing some mame games or even SNES i bet you are over 60C right now. I would suggest the fan will keep you in the mid 60's while running a 1350 and playing an N64 game, but that is just a guess.

Also - if you are this concerned about overclocking, maybe you shouldn't do it. I have no idea what you can and can't afford, but raspberry pi's are fairly cheap in comparison to other computers and gaming machines. I would suggest you look into moving all your games to run off of USB and then install your setup on a small 8gb or 16gb SD card. That way if you corrupt an SD card you are only out a small and cheap SD card to replace it. If you fry your PI, it isn't that expensive to buy a new one. Make sure you back up your build, so if and when your pi fails, you can simply write your image to a small sd card, plug your usb stick in and pick back up where you left off.

Again, I know that not everyone has means to readily replace a raspberry pi, if that is the case, I wouldn't risk it for the performance boost.

Ecks

@tmntturtlguy Right now i get about roughly 68°C - 71°C with just the heat sink alone and that is playing a SNES game when i would play a playstation game it would be around 75°C and i know if i was to overclock now i would be close or even at 80°C which for Pi standards isn't really that good.
Also when i said around 60°C i mean between 60-70 really and i also tested it out with an old slim PS3 cooler (which is very noisy) and i get when playing games on that 51°C in average but also that cooler has 2 fans as well which is why i am hoping to get something that seems alright you know.

Ecks

@tmntturtlguy Just got my new case with the mini fan and this is my results for the Pi at stock
alt text
Tested it out with PSX games (Grandia, Parasite Eve, The Legend of Dragoon and Chrono Cross) and i had it running for 20 min.

Here is the temps of the Pi running at 1.3GHz overclocked with using the same games because with those games i find with the cinematic's to work out the Pi a little more.

alt text

I know if i run this for a good hour of playing i might end up hitting 60°C and also my room temp right now cause of the humidity is 29°C.

GreenHawk84

So what exactly are the benefits of Overclocking? I have a Pi3 and I play Genesis, SNES, NES, Neo-Geo, and Arcade titles from the 80s and 90s. I use FBAlpha mostly for arcade.

Ecks

@greenhawk84 Overclocking helps with certain games like some N64 games works better when you would overclock your Pi to lets say 1.35 GHz.
Also you would need good enough cooling if you plan on going to 1.35/1.4 GHz.

GreenHawk84

@Ecks cool, I don't use N64 but I was wondering if OC would even benefit what I play it for.

Ecks

@greenhawk84 I think maybe for one or two SNES only it would benefit from it but for NES and Neo Geo those run perfect already and for Arcade games which i tried out 2 games that was laggy and thought overclocking would fix it didn't.

Taftus

I have mine at 1450 so far on cpu.