Overclocking graphics card worth it?

[danceMB]

I was just wondering if its still worth overclocking graphics cards still?

I have a GTX295 card, and wondering whats the best program to use that can automatically overclock the card as far as possible? I am running Windows Vista x64 bit edition.

I did use Rivatuner in the past, but then when I ask to detect settings, it doesnt seem right it thinks up an overclock without knowing whether it is safe or not?

 

[Angst]

ati tool

 

[gurusan]

there's no such thing as an "unsafe" overclock. Just keep an eye on temperatures and stability as you would with any other component.

Use rivatuner to change clocks and ATItool or just normal gaming to verify stability.

oh, and monitor temps Keep them under 90ish

 

[reflux]

It's not really worth it if you have a top-end card like that, which will obliterate every game that stands before it. I had a 9800GX2 and HD4870X2 and never bothered with those; they were already hot and power-hungry and I didn't want to make things worse.

 

[danceMB]

I just think that if I can increase the speed of the card before I start to go into the games I have, having an extra bit of speed can make a bit of a difference, especially when it comes down to Crysis

 

[vertica]

my gtx 295 is currently overclocked to 702/1548/1242(2484) core/shaders/mem.
using a combination of evga's voltage tuner and precision apllications. and it could go higher.

Is it worth it?
Well vantage score went from ~P20k up to ~P23k iirc
interms of in game perticularly crysis, a gtx295 has got enough grunt to run everythign on max anyway so thats how i run it.
Interms of overclocking in general... it is FREE performance!

Mine is mainly overclocked beacuse it runs folding at home clients when i'm not gaming so the extra shader speed makes a massive difference.
Also i'm running the card under water so temps dont come into the equation.
In terms of gaming i honestly cant say i notice the difference of the 20% OC unless looking at benchmark scores

 

[deSade]

Not really in a lot of ways. You'll see a difference in benchmarks - but you'll be lucky to see any real difference when gaming.

Depends if benchmarks impress you.

 

[danceMB]

In terms of benchmarks I dont really use those very often, but would sometimes use them if I feel my system is not running as fast as it should. Because im going to be playing Crysis, I know every bit of system speed counts, so the higher my card can go, the better. I did use Rivatuner to automatically overclock the card, but im still wondering if there are any other programs where I can detect the maximum overclock settings. The temp will matter as im on normal air cooling, but I do have an Antec 1200 gaming case, so there should not be any heat build-up