is it worth overclocking my graphics card when i get a game that needs it?

Reaper 392 · 11 Mar 2011 at 13:57

right now, i dont actually own a game that i cant run happily at maximum, but i thought i'd ask this now in preparation for when i do.

currently i have the Asus version of the GTX 460 768MB (i believe its called the ENGTX 460 TOP). when i am running 3 copies of prime 95 and furmark, it is not getting above 75C (at ~2/3 fan speed too). the maximum temperature its ok to use it at is 105C, so even if it was running 20C hotter it would be absolutly fine.

how much of a benefit would i see if i overclocked it as much as i could while keeping it at a sensible temperature and voltage. eg, if the game was running at ~20FPS now, what would it be likely to run after the overclock?

ps. i know next to nothing about overclocking, so i would be doing this either with the built in programs, or INCREDIBLY carefully and slowly using the bios settings

Reaper 392 · 11 Mar 2011 at 14:18

beh* said:
To me the main point in watercooling the graphics card is to reduce noise. I recently installed my old 4870 for testing purposes without watercooling and it was soo damm loud. When using a full cover block you can run very high clocks with very little noise.

im just using the stock air cooler here. theres no way im mixing water and computers any time soon with my fists of ham

Reaper 392 · 11 Mar 2011 at 15:51

discobiscuits said:
As others said already just download msi afterburner and set up a couple of overclocked profiles. Test them to check they are stable then just run some benchmarks such as 3d Mark to see where the increase performance is worth it.

thanks, i will do that when i have a bunch of free time, but leave it stock until i need the extra performance

beh* said:
Further to that point, you can use afterburner to undervolt your card.

im really not fussed about the leccy bill - im living in very overpriced student accommodation where all the bills are included, so im gonna use that to the full

Reaper 392 · 12 Mar 2011 at 20:46

slagsmal said:
Undervolting is about reducing heat, not saving on your leccy bill

oh right, didnt realise that. shows how little i know about overclocking

Reaper 392 · 12 Mar 2011 at 21:26

BAppleton said:
ooverclocking does reduce the life of your card but I would rather mine broke before the warranty than after, so im ocing from the start. If it does break within 3 years I can replace it and no harm done

when you say reduce its lifespan, are we talking 15 years instead of 20, or a lot worse than that.

the reason i ask is im almost certainly going to be upgrading it after 4 years, so im not overly bothered if its going to die after 7 years of hard gaming