EVGA Geforce GTX-260 216core - Worth it to OC?

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Punkrulz

[H]ard|Gawd
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Hey guys,

I'm already obtaining a wealth of information regarding OCing my CPU, and I'm also curious about overclocking my video card. I haven't seen too much information regarding that, so I'm curious if you guys can help point me in the right direction. So far the only program I have that allows me to change the Core Clock, Memory Clock, and fan speed is the Precision EVGA app. It is reporting an idle temp of 55c when the fan is @ 40% (auto).

Are there any other applications? What's the process to be done on overclocking?

Thanks!
 
RivaTuner will allow you more control over the overclock, but Precision is an excellent tool for EVGA users.

Overclocking vid cards is simple, drag sliders up a little, test the card with a game or something. If all is well, push it a bit more. Rinse, repeat.

(That is an overly simplified explanation)
 
I'll take a bit more verbose explanation if you have it. :) What sliders do I slide up first, or do I slide them both up at the same time? Do I focus on one or the other? Are there any stress tests besides gaming that would test it out? I think I remember ATI having something like that...
 
Start with the SSC/FTW speeds first then keep uping the core and shaders up till you get artifacts or crashes. I start with the core/shaders linked then once I max that out, I adjust them individually to get the most out of em. After I find that max I go for the memory.

Get Furmark to stress the gpu.
 
tissimo said:
Start with the SSC/FTW speeds first then keep uping the core and shaders up till you get artifacts or crashes. I start with the core/shaders linked then once I max that out, I adjust them individually to get the most out of em. After I find that max I go for the memory.

Get Furmark to stress the gpu.
Click to expand...

+1 For that remark. I do the same.

Also something to check out......if ur up to it is overvolting the gpu.....via rivatuner or soon enough EVGA will release software to do it. But that maybe for specific video cards only from what I hear.
 
I've managed this with my 55nm:

Default clocks:
vantage3ud0.jpg


Overclocked:
vantage5qx8.jpg



This is done without any voltage tweaking.
 
Thanks for the replies guys. Just a few more questions:

1) What are the SSC/FTW Values?
2) By furmark, do you mean futuremark? Or is furmark an actual program?
3) How do I know how many nm my graphics card is?
4) Xeanor, do you hit the "Apply at windows startup" button after specifying your Core / Memory settings?
 
I dont recommend using Furmark, its a great way to burn out components on your gfx card, like the GPU !
Depends if you like that sort of thing :)

I just bought the 55nM EVGA SC version of the card and its an ok clocker at default volts.
Its up to 720/1513/1064, topping out at 62C full load. (60% fan)
I hoped for more but given the low load temps, it must be set to use a lower voltage by default.
Memory speed isnt impressive though, the SSC version at stock hammers it by almost 10% !

I'll be doing the Rivatuner voltmod soon to see what the card can really achieve.
 
Nenu said:
I dont recommend using Furmark, its a great way to burn out components on your gfx card, like the GPU !
Depends if you like that sort of thing :)
Click to expand...

never heard about this... backstory?
 
Still waiting on other opinions of Furmark, I downloaded it but haven't utilized it yet...

And again, what's SSC/FTW? :)
 
dr.stevil said:
never heard about this... backstory?
Click to expand...

Furmark pushes the GPU (and components) a lot harder than anything you will ever achieve while gaming and as such uses more power and generates a lot more heat.
High spot temps are what cause the most damage as they occur where the most heat is generated so they are much higher than the reported average temperature (of the GPU)
These temps can easily exceed the design spec of the silicon.
Overheating the GPU can cause enough damage to reduce its max overclocks and can leave it in a condition where it continually produces more heat than it used to.
If this is bad enough, the card wont run within spec speeds any more.

Others have complained about voltage regulators overheating and some have reported to have suffered damage as a result.

So while if you can get Furmark stable, you are sure not to have any problems gaming, you can damage your card if you dont have good enough cooling/ventilation to cope with the extra heat, and not just the GPU.
A bit like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut!
 
Punkrulz said:
Still waiting on other opinions of Furmark, I downloaded it but haven't utilized it yet...

And again, what's SSC/FTW? :)
Click to expand...

The clue was in my post above yours.
Furmark heats the card up a lot and the SC is a card version, so is the SSC.
 
Oh ok, thank you. :)

I found a guide on the OCing of the card, here's the method I'm going to use:

Up the memory by 18MHz every time, play a game and see how it works. When I reach a point where I have problems, go down a notch. Get that number, reset to default, and do the same for the core clock. When I get both numbers, set to both and I should be good.

The guide did a GTX-260, but theirs was a 192core 65nm version, where as mine is 216core (unknown if 55nm or not). They were able to get it to 694 core / 1285 memory. Not bad!
 
Thats pretty much what I do.
My current mainstay testing app is Crysis 2 benchmark, over 10 runs at a time.
tbh I have found that if it passes 4 runs, it seems to work fine with everything, ymmv.

ps dont forget you can unlink the core/shader clocks.
I managed to get 20MHz higher core speed after doing this.
 
Yeah I was actually going to do it unlinked, at least that's what the clock said... don't bother with the shaders. I don't have Crysis, but I am downloading the demo to see if I can run that. Right now while it's downloading, I'm bouncing back and forth between World of Warcraft as well as Day of Defeat to make sure everything is running nice.

I'm sure there's a possibility that I'm not giving it enough time to see... but hey its a quicker process finding your limit and backing down lol. I'm also constantly observing my temperatures so I don't break anything.
 
Here's a quick question: What version of 3DMark do you need that allows you to see the results in the application and such? I have the basic version and it seems to not allow me to change any settings, and I can only view my results online... not within the program itself.
 
Go for it. I'm seeing what this 216 core version can do in my system. About an hour ago it ran 702/1512/1107 without problems in ATI Tool and the Crysis benchmark. Not sure what the maximum point of stability is, but at these speeds it did reach 75C... and last night it went above 80C (at 80% fan speed, which is unacceptably loud) since my room gets pretty warm, so I'm not going to try pushing it anymore. I don't have an airflow problem since removing the side panel did not improve temperatures at all. I'd love to pop off the heatsink and reapply some new thermal compound myself, but the thing is just so damn big I don't know if I'm up for it.

Actually, the only time I even overclock the card is when I load up Crysis... otherwise everything else doesn't require it at 1680x1050.

Hopefully that new Accelero will be out soon too.
 
Just tried running the Furmark stress test and my screen turned a tan color as soon as the GPU temp hit 78C. Tried a reset but then the screen would only blink. After a cold boot everything seems well again. Either I need to look into an RMA or buy a new power supply.
 
Mr. Bluntman said:
Just tried running the Furmark stress test and my screen turned a tan color as soon as the GPU temp hit 78C. Tried a reset but then the screen would only blink. After a cold boot everything seems well again. Either I need to look into an RMA or buy a new power supply.
Click to expand...

Happens with me as well. I think it's a bug in the FurMark application as never use to do that to me on earlier builds.. even at stock clocks.
 
Mr. Bluntman said:
Just tried running the Furmark stress test and my screen turned a tan color as soon as the GPU temp hit 78C. Tried a reset but then the screen would only blink. After a cold boot everything seems well again. Either I need to look into an RMA or buy a new power supply.
Click to expand...
A new take on Furmark for you.
Well an old take, but in case you dont know...
Its not your average stress test and can damage your card.

If you are thinking of RMA'ing your card after using Furmark, try using the card normally instead of harming it and then complaining.
 
I wasn't complaining. The card has worked fine under normal use and a 1 hour loop of 3DMark06 with no artifacts so I guess all is well.
 
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