What OS to use in bootcamp & overclocking

[Koudspeel]

Dear MacRumors users,

I'm about to buy the new iMac 27" late 2012 version. I'll be going all-in on this one:

- 3,4-GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
- 768 GB SSD
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680MX with 2 GB GDDR5
- 8 GB 1600-MHz DDR3 SDRAM (I'll be buying 32GB later on myself)

Now my question is: I'll be running bootcamp on this machine what would you guys suggest using for OS to gain optimal FPS in games in Windows? Would I be better off using Windows 8 x64 or should I stick with Windows 7 x64?

Also I've read about overclocking the CPU and GPU. Is that really necesaary? Will I gain a lot of FPS in games? If yes, is there any good guide that explains how to overclock it step by step (what programs to use, where to download etc) I'm a total newb when it comes to overclocking hardware and I don't wanna destroy my iMac ofcourse.

I've seen some benchmark video's and want my iMac really to run every game on maximum settings and native resolution. But I don't know if I have to overclock to achieve that.

Also something that I couldn't find: If I would overclock my iMac in the Windows environment and shut down the system and boot back into OS X will the machine still be overclocked?

Thank you for your time and sorry about my weak English, I'm a Dutchie

- Koudspeel

 

[saturnotaku]

I've seen some benchmark video's and want my iMac really to run every game on maximum settings and native resolution.

Then you should have purchased a Windows desktop because the Mac's hardware is going to limit you, and no amount of overclocking is going to help.

 

[Koudspeel]

Yeah but gaming isn't the only thing that I'll be doing on the machine. I've got a Macbook Air at the moment that I use with OS X no Windows. I use PS and various other programs that require some power. But the Air just doesn't cut it really.

I'm not too keen on still owning a Windows PC next to Mac. So I want this Mac to be able to perform with good games aswell.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[saturnotaku]

I'm not too keen on still owning a Windows PC next to Mac. So I want this Mac to be able to perform with good games aswell.

Then you'll have to temper your expectations. The iMac pairs a decent desktop CPU with a fairly high-end mobile GPU. You should see pretty good performance at 1080p resolution, but it's not realistic to expect your hardware to drive games at maximum details at the system's native resolution.

 

[Wardenski]

No need to overclock cPU IMO. Games get no-where close to challenging that i7.

 

[Koudspeel]

Then you'll have to temper your expectations. The iMac pairs a decent desktop CPU with a fairly high-end mobile GPU. You should see pretty good performance at 1080p resolution, but it's not realistic to expect your hardware to drive games at maximum details at the system's native resolution.

No need to overclock cPU IMO. Games get no-where close to challenging that i7.

Thanks for the replies. So basically I don't have to overclock per se but ultra settings on native resolution might not work for every game. Okay noted.

Then I'm still not sure if I should install Windows 7 x64 keep it at that, or buy a Windows 8 x64 upgrade.

Also, if I WOULD overclock (not saying that I would per se) in Windows will the CPU and GPU also run faster when starting up in OS X? Or will the CPU and GPU only run faster once Windows is loaded?

 

[saturnotaku]

The CPU is locked down by the EFI/firmware, so there's no overclocking there. You similarly cannot overclock the GPU in OS X, but it might be possible with a 3rd-party utility such as MSI Afterburner in Windows.