7970 Weird Overclocking

[taltool24198]

Hey!
So after (many) threads I opened, I got my 7970 today! YAY! The gigabyte GHz edition one, that comes OCed at 1100\1500.
VERY happy, very quiet!
One thing. I see a lot of people overclocking it WAY more than I am able to. So far, I have got it to 1200\1620, and if I push 15 from the core, it crashes. Testing with FurMark, and it "only" uses 99%.. Should I underclock it, because in games I use 100%? Just a little bit?
Anyway, I heard people talking about 1350 \1800, and I just cant see how it is possible to even get there! Using the new beta driver, I think its beta11.
Using MSI AB to OC. Fan is on Auto, the GPU never, EVER passed the 65C mark.
Now.. For some reason I cant change the core Voltage (mV), but I can tweak the Power Limit % up to 20.
Am I doing something wrong?
It has already crashes on me, twice, with 1200 1600.

 

[m44matt]

My mate has a similar problem with his GTX 670
Remember that not all cards overclock the same even cards of the same model they all vary in the speeds you can get.
I suggest leaving the ram where it is and just clock the GPU higher and see what happens. It was the OCing of the ram that kept crashing my mates card.
Use MSI Afterburner or GPU tweak that should let you raise the voltages as well

 

[taltool24198]

My mate has a similar problem with his GTX 670
Remember that not all cards overclock the same even cards of the same model they all vary in the speeds you can get.
I suggest leaving the ram where it is and just clock the GPU higher and see what happens. It was the OCing of the ram that kept crashing my mates card.
Use MSI Afterburner or GPU tweak that should let you raise the voltages as well

I just said i am using the MSI AB and it wont let me change the voltage, only the power limit so that sux :\ And if I OC the ram too much it will crash, but if I keep it stock and raise the GPU clock it will also crash.

 

[taltool24198]

Just downloaded and installed GPU Tweaker, and it gives me the exact same settings. Cant change the voltage, only power limit :\

 

[Dude496]

I believe that Gigabyte, XFX and a few other companies locked the voltage on the newer PCB's. From what I have read, there has yet to be a good work around on this problem.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1294856/cant-increase-voltage-gigabyte-7970-windforce-3x-gv-r797oc-3gd

What is your voltage set to right now? Is it 1.175 or 1.256? If it is 1.175, the best you are going to get is around 1200 on the clock and 1575 or so on the memory. I wouldn't bother tyring to boost the memory clock past that point, it yields very little gains except in synthetic benchmarks.

Also, make sure you are either running the fan at atleast 80% or do a custom fan profile in afterburner. Overclocking these cards get them very hot.

 

[Dude496]

Forgot to mention...that link also will give you tips on how to try to unlock the voltage...if you have an older card, you will be able to unlock it.

 

[taltool24198]

Forgot to mention...that link also will give you tips on how to try to unlock the voltage...if you have an older card, you will be able to unlock it.

Thank you very much. Haven't recieved the notification email for some reason, but I will check that RIGHT now! THANKS!

 

[taltool24198]

Hmm just.. Should I read the whole thread? Its like 7 pages
Any page\post in specific?

 

[taltool24198]

I believe that Gigabyte, XFX and a few other companies locked the voltage on the newer PCB's. From what I have read, there has yet to be a good work around on this problem.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1294856/cant-increase-voltage-gigabyte-7970-windforce-3x-gv-r797oc-3gd

What is your voltage set to right now? Is it 1.175 or 1.256? If it is 1.175, the best you are going to get is around 1200 on the clock and 1575 or so on the memory. I wouldn't bother tyring to boost the memory clock past that point, it yields very little gains except in synthetic benchmarks.

Also, make sure you are either running the fan at atleast 80% or do a custom fan profile in afterburner. Overclocking these cards get them very hot.

I tried it and it didnt work. It didn't unlock any voltage tweaks for me

 

[taltool24198]

And I cant even OC as I did before... ITS RUINED!