Overclock Overview - Overlord Computer Tempest X270OC User Manual

OVERCLOCK OVERVIEW
The Overclock Overview is meant as a tutorial for anyone new to the 1440 at 120hz scene. First, we need to start from
the beginning (always a good place to start) and ensure everyone understands that currently there is not a 27 inch
1440 IPS panel designed to run at a 120hz refresh rate. All current 1440 IPS panels are rated and warran ed from their
respec ve manufacturers at a 60hz refresh rate. However, many, if not all, 1440 IPS panels can be "overclocked." That
is to say have their internal refresh rates bumped up from the base rate of 60hz to some higher number. How much a
par cular IPS panel can be overclocked comes down to the panel's printed circuit board (PCB) design. By and large,
most IPS panels can only be overclocked to 65‐67hz before showing colored lines, going all black, or exhibi ng some
other strange picture. If you see these things while a emp ng to raise your panel's refresh rate ‐ stop. Not because you
are going to damage your display, but mainly because there are no special tweaks or mings that can be applied to get
you to a higher refresh rate.
The Tempest X270OC is a 27 inch 1440 IPS display that is similar in every respect to every other 27 inch 1440 IPS display
out there ‐ except in one important regard: The PCBs used. Our OC model is your standard display out of the box set to
run at a refresh rate of 60hz. However, the PCB design will allow users to push the refresh rate past the usual 65‐67hz
roadblock on up to 120hz (and some mes beyond although diminishing returns kick in very quickly past 120hz.) Several
factors come into play when a emp ng to reach the refresh rate of the Gods. First and foremost is your graphics card.
Here the adage ‐ "MOAR POWA!" ‐ holds true. To get past 96hz you need some serious graphics processing power. In
addi on, you need as much copper between your monster graphics card and the display. We recommend going with a
high quality 24AWG DVI cable like those offered by Overlord. The overclock process for those willing to hit a nice num‐
ber like 96hz is pre y straigh orward and hi ng the 120hz mark on the nose can take some tweaking of your graphics
card mings. Guides are available on the Overlord's store and forum.
Let's take a moment to discuss graphics cards here since they are the second most important piece of the 120hz equa‐
on (behind the monitor, duh.) Currently (as of this wri ng August 2012), Nvidia and AMD have implemented an across
‐the‐board pixel clock limita on for all of their graphics cards. Without boring you with why pixel clocks are important
to overclocking your display, or even what a pixel clock is, suffice it to say that by thro ling back pixel clocks on their
graphics cards it makes it impossible to just set a rate and go. Luckily a work around has been created and we have
posted a video on how to properly overclock your Tempest. However, it is important to note that we here at Overlord
cannot and do not guarantee that your monitor will hit a par cular rate. Too many factors come into play when trying
to OC a Tempest (your rig, your drivers, your ability to modify mings, your cables, your ap tude, your shoe size, etc.)
The final piece of the puzzle is really to answer the ques on many ask: Why even overclock your display at all? There
are two main reasons you would want a higher refresh rate out of an IPS display. The first reason to try for a higher re‐
fresh rate is smoothness. The higher you can get the rate to be the smoother everything you do on the screen will
seem. The second reason to try for a higher refresh rate is frames per second or FPS rates in games. All gamers can
a est to the fact that the higher the FPS the more visually appealing a game is, the more responsive a game feels, and
the more headshot camper kills you can achieve per round (you know who you are.)
However, since the ability to overclock your monitor is so dependent on your current graphics card many people may
not see much benefit in trying to hit 96hz (if you don't have the latest and greatest card) since your rig will be unable to
achieve 96FPS. Not to men on the fact that your current rig may wheeze like a 30‐year old smoker at a chimney sweep
conven on in downtown Beijing during summer me if you try anything but mid‐graphics se ngs at 1440. Why? Can
you say 3.7 MILLION pixels? That is how many pixels your graphics card must push with a 27 inch 1440 display. Please
keep your rig ego in check when a emp ng to play BF3 at ultra se ngs with a GTS250 ‐ that dog won't hunt. Of
course, if you have the latest and greatest ‐ then go for the refresh rate of the Gods and laugh all the way to kill nirvana
as you get banned from server a er server as a "cheater."
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