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Overclocking Guide

Pimarchy includes an optional overclocking feature designed for the Raspberry Pi 5.

Performance Modes

During the installation (bash install.sh), you will be presented with three performance options:

1. Governor Only (g)

This is the safest mode. It sets the CPU governor to performance, which keeps the CPU at its default maximum clock (2.4 GHz) and prevents it from scaling down. This results in a more responsive desktop experience. - No reboot required. - Safe for all units.

2. Overclock (o)

This mode sets the CPU clock to 2.6 GHz (up from the default 2.4 GHz). - Requires Active Cooling: You MUST have an official Raspberry Pi Active Cooler or a comparable cooling solution. - Requires a Reboot: Changes are written to /boot/firmware/config.txt. - Adds arm_freq=2600 to your system configuration.

3. Skip (N)

Leaves the system settings unchanged.

Manual Overclocking

If you want to manually tune your Pi 5, you can edit /boot/firmware/config.txt.

Proceed with Caution

Overclocking beyond 2.6 GHz or increasing voltage (over_voltage_delta) can void your warranty and may cause permanent damage if not properly cooled.

# Edit /boot/firmware/config.txt
arm_freq=2600
over_voltage_delta=50000

Verifying Speed

After rebooting, you can check your current CPU speed with: 

watch -n 1 vcgencmd measure_clock arm

To check if your Pi is throttling due to temperature: 

vcgencmd get_throttled
A value of 0x0 means no throttling is occurring.