Gigabyte Open Overclocking Competition 2009

While most computer enthusiasts overclock their systems to get increased performance from their components, there are a select few that push the limits of hardware to another level for the entertainment factor alone. Instead of just trying to get higher frame rates for gaming or better throughput for other types of workloads, these extreme enthusiasts run a series of benchmarks to see who can achieve the highest score or finish with the fastest time. Professional overclockers throughout North America often participate in ongoing competitions online to see how fast they can run their processors and graphics cards for bragging rights and geek glory. In this world, operating voltages are raised to insane levels and stability means being able to submit results before the system crashes. You can think of it as PC drag racing in a sense. And for the same reasons that drag racing draws spectators, extreme overclocking has steadily grown in popularity through the years. Some manufacturers are even designing parts made specifically for this exclusive crowd. Whether it be processors, motherboard, memory, power supplies, or video cards, the extreme enthusiast scene is evolving.

For the second year in a row, Pacific Palms Resort in the City of Industry, California was host to the Gigabyte Open Overclocking Championship North American Final. On Saturday April 25th, 2009, Gigabyte flew in the best of the best among the extreme overclocking scene to find out who would represent North America in the World Championships being held in Taipei, Taiwan on June 3rd.   

North American Regional Contestants - The few, the proud, the Uber-Geek Elite...

Obviously, there was no shortage of sponsors or prizes. Landing first place at this event gets you thousands of dollars worth of hardware along with a trip to Taiwan. Let's take a closer look at the overclockers that came out to compete in this event.