Hey guys. Recently, I got to OC my GPU (MSI GTX 980 Ti Gaming), and I went slow and increasing the core speed in +10 increments (haven't touched the memory yet), so far I'm stuck where core +115 (1469 MHz) is my most stable speed (low I know), and when I try to move it by +5 or more it causes a driver crash. Now all of this I'm doing is done at stock voltage, and I've heard that it's possible to go higher with overclocking by maxing out the core voltage. I do that (maxes at 87 mV) and then try the +120 offset only for it to crash again. I'm wondering but shouldn't the increase in voltage give a little more stability, as I have noticed the voltage bump when monitoring but the heat too ? If anyone is curious my ASIC is 77.5% , I'm on stock cooling (Twin Frozr) and stock BIOS. Thanks.
Hmmm not sure but maybe you've found your max OC with low voltage (because of high ASIC). Did you consider flashing a different vBIOS? You might want to check on the 980Ti Owner's Thread here: https://forums.guru3d.com/threads/980-ti-owners-thread.399607/ Afaik 1500MHz isn't a bad overclock for a 980Ti tbh.
Congratulations if you've managed to reach a high OC without touching the voltage. You now have lower temps and noise than the rest of us Like fantaskarsef said, it could be due to your high ASIC. Others with low ASIC probably have to add voltage to reach your clocks, something you don't need to. All GPUs have a max anyway. Have you tried running your GPU fans at 100% and then trying that OC? And also add the voltage you wanted?
Thanks for the replies guys, but what I wanted to say is that I wanted to go higher than +115 by raising the voltage, but the thing is it won't let me for whatever reason. I set the core voltage slider to the max and only notice increase in voltage and temps without any stability (still crashing at +120). Also +115 is only 1469 MHz so I fear I won't be able to hit 1500
A number of things can prevent higher. Power, voltage and temperature. The silicon might be close to its limit anyway. Use MSI Afterburner graphs (or GPUz) to monitor which limits come into force. They are voltage, power and temp. Note that temp can be a problem without exceeding the set limit. The faster you go, the lower the max temp it will accept without becoming unstable. Unfortunately higher voltage increases max temp but can also raise the max temp limit a bit too. But there are diminishing returns and then it get worse the higher the voltage unless power limits kick in. You might need better cooling. You can increase the max voltage and power limits with a different cards BIOS, modded BIOS or modding your BIOS. You can reduce temps with higher fan speed but some cards get noisy. I fitted an Accelero Xtreme cooler to mine to make it dead quiet and improve max clock at the same time.
What Mufflore said. Check your "limits" with Afterburner, there you will quickly see what limit is hit (marked as "1" above the graphs) and that's where you need to work. If no limits are hit it's probably the overclock itself that's showing the chips limit, at some point you'd need more voltage than the BIOS lets you push for the next boost bin. If it's something else like temp target or power target that's hit you see where the limiting factors are (higher fan RPM, new TIM, better aftermarket cooler for temp). If the power or voltage limits are hit, there's little you can do after maxing the sliders until your OC is unstable, and eventually, flash a new BIOS (which brings it's own challanges).
Hi there Similar frequency or OC I have run on my Titan X SC 1469MHz which has been my max on air,which I run mostly for rendering as with that frequency temperatures has been pretty good but under water I have run 1500-1517MHz as max Voltage bump should stabilise OC but sometimes too much voltage can only cause high temperatures etc You can try replacing thermal pads or TIM if this does help with better OC... Better cooling can help with lot lower temperatures like in my case on Titan X SC where I run EK Waterblock abd my temps has been in 32-36°C Hope this helps Thanks, Jura
With my 980 (EVGA) I know Afterburner voltage does not go any higher than 34mV no matter if it's set to 87mV or not Needed a modded BIOS to get any higher voltage from it
Damn, I was stable with +115 at core on stress tests without voltage increase, but now when I game it reduced me to +100. Just goes to show high ASIC doesn't mean anything.
Sometimes the max OC even depends on what games you play, and usually gaming is better for testing an overclock than any benchmarks (especially if you OC CPU, RAM, and GPU / vRAM all at once). Did you monitor your usages and limits in AB?
I only use benchmarks/stress tests as a guide. Some games need lower clocks and the longer you game the more likely you will have to reduce them.
Yes, the GPU usually is used 99%, the power draw sometimes crosses 100%, but it's usually at 90-95%, fan speed at 100% once the temps hit 75-80C , CPU, VRAM and RAM are all dependent on the game.
Maybe the temperature above 70°C is the issue here? If you do it with the fans already at 100% I suspect you're limited by the temperature. I know that this sounds stupid, but you don't by chance have the option to improve your cooling further? Like ramping up case fans etc. to see if a few °C less on the GPU actually let you boost just a few MHz more? Also, can you maybe post the graphs of Afterburner somehow (screenshots) with the limits on there? I'm talking about temp limit, voltage limit, and power limit specifically when gaming at your maximum (current) boost?
Any how as I read this...apparently you just went max voltage? The voltage increases in steps of ~12.5mv. If you leave everything at default, an increase just your voltage by 13mv, you should see your clocks increase by one bin under load. What I suggest you try, going back to your highest stable core clock on stock voltage, then see if increasing the voltage 13mv, gives you another bin increase in clock speed. Also, temps are important. You start throttling as low as in the 60C range.
Well throttling in this case doesn't mean you drop to 800MHz but that you can't push the last boost bin(s) you desire. Mind you, 75-80°C isn't exactly low for a GPU temperature either.
Maxwell does not scale well with overvoltage, in fact some can be negatively affected depending on their leakage. Should stick to a max of 1.23~, past that really isn't worth it.
