AMD - How To Overclock The Official Way Using Afterburner + Step By Step Overclocking Guide + Comple

[LtMatt]

Struggling here...

On stock voltage 1135/1200 got a driver reset. Unigine just crashed straight back to desktop. I reset, increased voltage to 1150, same again, crash back to desktop.

Increased voltage to 1160 this time, the benchmark ran all the way through but a few seconds after giving me the score I got a BSOD. Just increase voltage again?

Keep increasing voltage until it gets stable. Double check that the power limit is sticking at +20%. Ensure temps are staying below 70c.

 

[LtMatt]

Keep going. You should be ok up to 1.25v.

 

[LtMatt]

Thanks.

1160/1200 - 1190v - Stable.
1185/1200 - 1190v - BSOD straight away.

I increased to 1200v
1185/1200 - BSOD straight away.

Increasing to 1210 now. The limit would be 1225?

Cheers

Limit is 1.25v but if you want to stop before that its up to you.

 

[LtMatt]

1185/1200 - 1220v. BSOD at the end of benchmark.

What are my options now?

Are you sure the power limit is sticking each time?

 

[LtMatt]

1200/1200 @ 1.225 - Driver reset halfway through Unigine.

Gahhh... What can I do now then?

Do I start stepping the memory clock up now?

Cheers

Settle for 1175 on the core if you can. Be sure 1175 is stable before you move to the memory.

 

[LtMatt]

Yeah I thought the 1185core was stable but I benched it again and it BSOD half way through.

I'll move it back down to 1175 now and see what happens.

I don't know if it's relevant but my exact card is HIS 7850 2GB iceQX.

Looking around at reviews they only got 1120 stable. Maybe you should aim for between 1150-1175 and leave it there. After that see what you can get on the memory.

 

[LtMatt]

Just benched at 1175/1200 stable. Ofcourse it does need more testing but this is with the voltage at max.

Should I leave the voltage as is or is it worth trying to bring that down aswell?

Cheers

Sounds like its on the edge. I'd leave it alone and see if its game stable. If it is then start on the memory. Once you have the memory bench and game stable then you can experiment lowering voltages.

 

[LtMatt]

I remember there being a list with different brands of 7850 and the OC they achieved. Can't seem to find it anymore though. I think I found the link somewhere on this forum.

Anyway, you could you link me to your source? Maybe it is the same I remember. I would love to take a look at it since I might return my card soon. The ASIC with 68.8% is rather poor and I might opt for the 2GB version since I can a lot of tiny micro lags in BF3 on Ultra which I think corresponds to the mere 1GB of VRAM.

Thanks

I just looked at a couple of reviews from typing "HIS 7850 2GB iceQX review" into google. Nothing like you mentioned im afraid though that would be handy if you could find it.

 

[LtMatt]

1175/1225 seems fully stable in benchmark now. I tested it 5 times, one after another. No crashes or anything amiss.

Now I'll give it another go in Sleeping Dogs and take a look at the voltages, I suspect their won't be much leverage though but I guess it's just finding the sweet spot.

Now you're getting the hang of it. Keep at it.

 

[LtMatt]

Played Sleeping Dogs a fair bit now. No issues at all.

In terms of lowering the voltage, is it the exact same basis but backwards i.e 7 digits down each time?

Cheers

Yeppers, good job.

 

[LtMatt]

Any lower than 1200 on the voltage and it just BSOD.

Is it safe to keep the card always running at 1200v?

Yes.

 

[LtMatt]

No problem Tom happy to help.

The fan profiles i created were for a reference 7970 so may not be suitable for all cards. However the one you've picked looks like it might suit your requirements perfectly. You can always tweak it slightly yourself for better performance if needed.

 

[LtMatt]

Gah, got a BSOD playing sleeping dogs. Should I put the voltage back up to max and see how it is?

Just move it up one more notch.

 

[LtMatt]

One more notch would be the max voltage of 1225. It is stable at this voltage so far with no issues. Is it going to cause problems long term running at this voltage?

Cheers

How long is a piece of string? Its unlikely. Afterburner doesn't let you run silly volts through the card. It should be fine. Enjoy your over clock.

 

[LtMatt]

Thanks.

Just had a massive session on Sleeping Dogs... Completing it infact! I did notice my GPU temp maxed out at 73c though. Not sure if I should be concerned.

That seems fine. Sleeping dogs heats up the gpu a lot. Just try to keep it below 75c.

 

[LtMatt]

Do I even have to have 'Run Afterburner at Start Up' ticked if I have 'Apply Overclock on Start Up' ticked?

Also - got my card WF3 7950 @ 1100/1500 - 1.13v. Heaven on Extreme doesn't go above 61'c.

Not if you don't want to. I just like to have it run at start up and apply my gpu over clock/custom fan profile

 

[LtMatt]

Well for some reason my card keeps downclocking when plying games?

Any ideas?

Is this when over clocked? Have you increased the power slide to +20%?

 

[LtMatt]

Yes - while overclocked. Power slide is at +20%. Going to try upping the voltage some more.

1.2v safe you reckon?

Yeah a voltage bump might help. 1.2v is safe as far as i know.

 

[LtMatt]

1.2v may have solved it. Not had the problem since. No higher than 64'c, although fans get a little loud - but not noticeable with headphones.

Yeah not enough voltage can cause that, same with gpu usage dropping.

 

[LtMatt]

Weird upon reading this thread my OC has gone haywire with new 13.3 beta 2's. AB OC's wont apply, GPU-z is reading my card at 860/1200 when default is 900/1200. When I power up valley its reading out as 450/1200.

Going to try and reinstall the driver see if that sorts it out.

Might be worth completely un-installing afterburner. Reboot after uninstall, don't keep afterburner settings. Then reinstall.