Overclock - what parts to buy?

[Ghost_in_training]

I just got a build request at lvl 16, I'm not given a 3D score to aim for, but they want certain GPU and CPU overclock numbers. I know HOW to overclock, but I have no idea what parts to buy in the first place. Can anyone help?

[BonPadre]

To help you efficiently, we would probably need more details, but :
For CPU, if you have a CPU that meets the MHh request at stock speed, buy it as you will not need to OC it then (also as long as it fulfill the brand requests if there are some)
If not, then buy the closest to the score requested with the less cores as possible, as with more cores, you have a smaller margin of OC due to heat temperatures.

Now for the GPU, make sure the MHz request is NOT over the possible slider limit, aka, max MHz is 2400Mhz (and that's theoretically, as most of the time you cannot push it that far without a BSOD)
Now that's out of the way, if it's anything between 2200Mhz to 2350MHz (or a tad more) go with the ZOTAC GTX 1060 Mini (or the Zotac 1070 mini)
IF you have a brand request for the GPU, best tip is, go try in freebuild.

Also know that there is silicon lottery in game, meaning that if you choose for instance a Zotac GTX 1060 mini, an other one of the same type will be able to OC better or worse, meaning that with any borderline OC, you may want to buy multiple times the same CPU / GPU to be able to maybe have the one that can take the OC requested (+2350MHz on GPU for instance, or +5350MHz on CPU)

Buy a case that can fit AT LEAST 7x 120mm case fans and buy the BEST CFM case fans you can (they matter for cooling all parts), and if you need to OC the CPU and you have unlocked it, make sure you buy a case that can fit the Silverstone HE01 (air cooler) that has the best of all coolers CFM with 171CFM
Avoid AIO coolers, as overall, while they can cool nicely your CPU, they will give you a lesser result in possible cooling than the HE01 + 7x 120mm case fans.

Final tip, make sure you check your temps and power use by running OCCT in INFINITE mode, and check your CPU does not throttle (that would be an automatic 1 star)

That's the best I can do, with as little details as you give, as we don't know your MHz requests for CPU & GPU.

[Ghost_in_training]

Thanks for the help, it makes some sense now!

[PUC_Snakeman]

I recommend taking a peek at my "GPU Overclock Summary" guide, if you want to see how much each GPU family typically overclocks:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1776785087

[Ghost_in_training]

Already got your guide bookmarked ;) My original question was more about "How do you know what parts to buy without using someone else's guide", and now I'm guessing the answer is "trial and error" in freebuild mode. Obviously I wouldn't want to have to ask the forum every time I get an overclock task!

[PUC_Snakeman]

For CPUs, you can generally just purchase a CPU that *already* has a higher base clock than the requested one. But some requests ask for >5000 MHz, and for those requests I use the 8086K with the R6 case and 360 AIO and like 4 QF-140 fans. One time I got a request for 5555 MHz, and that was the only CPU overclock job that I rejected.

For GPUs, it's a bit trickier. Sure if the request is low enough, you can do the same as I recommended for CPUs - just get a GPU that *already* has a higher base clock than the requested one. However, most GPU overclock jobs are higher than the highest base clock. So... That's why I made my guide. And the 1060 is ace, if you don't have an additional 3DMark target. And there are some GPU overclock jobs that are impossible, like asking for 2500 MHz when the max any GPU can do is 2400.

Most of this knowledge was from my own trial and error ... but also logging all my data for the GPUs and sharing it to help others!

Hope this helps! :)