Am i overclocking my ASUS GTX 980 Strix too much?

[babychimz]

Hi, i'm trying to OC my GPU ASUS GTX 980 Strix to a moderate extent without concern for deterioration to my GPU itself. I also have some queries which i hope the experts here can help.

Using ASUS GPU Tweak i have these settings currently:
GPU Boost Clock (MHz): 1475 (increase by 196)
Max GPU Voltage: 1175 (never modify)
Memory Clock (MHz): 7750 (increase by 740)
Power Target(%): 110
GPU Temp Target(C): 79
Fan Speed(%): 60

My logs show that under load (i use Heaven's 4.0 benchmarking),
a) i will easily hit the 79/80C threshold, resulting in downclocking of my GPU from top clocks of 1512MHz and giving average clock speeds of 1350-1450MHz instead. Does this mean i am overclocking too much and should i lower my GPU clock speeds to minimize deterioration of my GPU?

b) i have kept my fan speed at 60% manually as anything above that can get too noisy (65% and i will hear the fan pretty loudly). I am not too sure if its coil whine, but i generally hear the very audible noise when the fan speeds increase above 60%. Any advise on this or how i should adjust my fan profile?

c) The high temps are partly due to where i live (Singapore which is hot season all year round) and also partly cause my mATX casing, Fractal Design Node 804 is not very awesome in terms of air flow. I currently have 5 fans in the CPU/GPU chamber and 3 fans in the HDD/PSU chamber. For the CPU/GPU chamber (i ain't overclocking my CPU by the way), i have 2 Noctua NF-12 as front intake fans, 2 Enermax Cluster Advance APS fans as top intake fans and 1 Fractal Design 120mm R2 silent series fan for back exhaust. Is there anyway i can improve airflow to keep temps lower?

Not too sure if necessary/helpful, but here's my rig details:
Mobo + CPU: AsRock B85M Pro 4 + i5-4590
GPU: Asus GTX980 Strix
PSU: Superflower Leadex Gold 650W 80+ Gold
Case: Fractal Design Node 804
RAM: Crucial Vengeance 2x 4GB dual channel
SSD: Crucial M550 256GB
HDD: Western Digital Blue 1TB 7200rpm
Monitor: QNIX 27inch 1440p
ODD: Silverstone SOD02 Slim Slot Loading Drive
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit
Sound Card: Asus Xonar Essence STX

Thank in advance for everyone's thoughts and advice!

 

[Cristi72]

Hello,

Going as high as 80 C means the card is reaching its thermal ceiling, so either you back down the overclocking, either do a better cooling.

It's very good you didn't fiddle with the voltage, but you shouldn't let it to AUTO; reset the frequency to default, enter a fixed voltage value (1,1V-1,125V) and augment again the frequencies, see how it works.

The biggest enemies for any electronic component are the temperature and the voltage, if higher than normal; as long as you keep these things in check, your card will run a long time without problems, even if overclocked. If you don't have the desire to change the case, you should consider a water loop for the GPU.

 

[babychimz]

Hello,

Going as high as 80 C means the card is reaching its thermal ceiling, so either you back down the overclocking, either do a better cooling.

It's very good you didn't fiddle with the voltage, but you shouldn't let it to AUTO; reset the frequency to default, enter a fixed voltage value (1,1V-1,125V) and augment again the frequencies, see how it works.

The biggest enemies for any electronic component are the temperature and the voltage, if higher than normal; as long as you keep these things in check, your card will run a long time without problems, even if overclocked. If you don't have the desire to change the case, you should consider a water loop for the GPU.

Thanks for the quick reply Cristi72!

Pardon my noobness, but wouldn't putting it the voltage to auto allow the GPU to dynamically decide its voltage requirements (within its given limits). I noted on my logs that it hit 1212mV at higher OC.

In that case, i should reset everything to default and then set it fixed at say 1175mV? I read that it isnt advisable to increase the voltage, hence i didn't touch that setting actually.

I would like to minimize deterioration to my GPU. In that case, if i lower my OC setting to say max temps under 78C, do you think its ok?

If water loop for GPU, any entry level water loops to recommend for my ASUS strix gtx 980?

Thanks a lot again!

 

[Cristi72]

I would like to minimize deterioration to my GPU. In that case, if i lower my OC setting to say max temps under 78C, do you think its ok?

If water loop for GPU, any entry level water loops to recommend for my ASUS strix gtx 980?

What you can do: note the ambient temperature, put all GPU settings to Default and do a prolonged gaming sessions (at least 2 hours), while monitoring the voltages/temperatures. Your temperature target should be at least 10 degrees lower than the maximum temperature obtained when gaming. Set this target and overclock the card.

Half of the warm air exhausted by the GPU is not going anywhere, because the lower case fan, in its default configuration, is pushing cold air over the hot air stream. Easiest way to do a better airflow: move the lower front fan to the bottom of the case, under the second GPU fan (the one over the VRM, close to PCI-e power plugs); you can also change the lower front fan to exhaust and add two fans as intake at the bottom of the case.

As for the water cooling: use this GPU bracket: http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/138-kraken-g10-gpu-bracket.html and pair it with a compatible closed loop (I would go for their own X41 with an additional fan, or Corsair H75). You could use the better Corsair H105 (240-mm radiator) in the front fan bays, but 980 Strix is quite long and it will be a tight fit, and the tubing may not be long enough to mount the radiator in the PSU bay.

What CPU cooler are you using?

 

[babychimz]

What you can do: note the ambient temperature, put all GPU settings to Default and do a prolonged gaming sessions (at least 2 hours), while monitoring the voltages/temperatures. Your temperature target should be at least 10 degrees lower than the maximum temperature obtained when gaming. Set this target and overclock the card.

Half of the warm air exhausted by the GPU is not going anywhere, because the lower case fan, in its default configuration, is pushing cold air over the hot air stream. Easiest way to do a better airflow: move the lower front fan to the bottom of the case, under the second GPU fan (the one over the VRM, close to PCI-e power plugs); you can also change the lower front fan to exhaust and add two fans as intake at the bottom of the case.

As for the water cooling: use this GPU bracket: http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/138-kraken-g10-gpu-bracket.html and pair it with a compatible closed loop (I would go for their own X41 with an additional fan, or Corsair H75). You could use the better Corsair H105 (240-mm radiator) in the front fan bays, but 980 Strix is quite long and it will be a tight fit, and the tubing may not be long enough to mount the radiator in the PSU bay.

What CPU cooler are you using?

Noted on resetting to default and taking ambient setting readings first to determine by temp target. Thanks!

I will consider mounting 2 more fans at the bottom for intake and the front lower fan to exhaust. Should i be changing my top 2 fans as exhaust too? By the way, do you know if i can mount 120mm fans at the bottom? Can't seem to find any clear confirmations and some indications of mounting 80mm fans only. There's 3.5in and 2.5in mounts i believe.

I actually am only using the stock fan for my CPU :S
Should i look to getting maybe Corsair H60i or something to cool it? Since i was not planning to OC the CPU (its no unlocked), i didnt really think it would need a cooler. If i need one, i probably need to swap my RAM for low profile ones to fit a rad at the top.

 

[Cristi72]

What you can do: note the ambient temperature, put all GPU settings to Default and do a prolonged gaming sessions (at least 2 hours), while monitoring the voltages/temperatures. Your temperature target should be at least 10 degrees lower than the maximum temperature obtained when gaming. Set this target and overclock the card.

Half of the warm air exhausted by the GPU is not going anywhere, because the lower case fan, in its default configuration, is pushing cold air over the hot air stream. Easiest way to do a better airflow: move the lower front fan to the bottom of the case, under the second GPU fan (the one over the VRM, close to PCI-e power plugs); you can also change the lower front fan to exhaust and add two fans as intake at the bottom of the case.

As for the water cooling: use this GPU bracket: http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/138-kraken-g10-gpu-bracket.html and pair it with a compatible closed loop (I would go for their own X41 with an additional fan, or Corsair H75). You could use the better Corsair H105 (240-mm radiator) in the front fan bays, but 980 Strix is quite long and it will be a tight fit, and the tubing may not be long enough to mount the radiator in the PSU bay.

What CPU cooler are you using?

Noted on resetting to default and taking ambient setting readings first to determine by temp target. Thanks!

I will consider mounting 2 more fans at the bottom for intake and the front lower fan to exhaust. Should i be changing my top 2 fans as exhaust too? By the way, do you know if i can mount 120mm fans at the bottom? Can't seem to find any clear confirmations and some indications of mounting 80mm fans only. There's 3.5in and 2.5in mounts i believe.

I actually am only using the stock fan for my CPU :S
Should i look to getting maybe Corsair H60i or something to cool it? Since i was not planning to OC the CPU (its no unlocked), i didnt really think it would need a cooler. If i need one, i probably need to swap my RAM for low profile ones to fit a rad at the top.

If the CPU temps are OK (under 65C), don't change the fans' airflow, let them be as is (I was asking about the CPU cooler because I wanted to know how much space do you have above the GPU).

I am sorry, I was not aware of a peculiarity of your Fractal case: the two bays at the bottom of the case are designed to be used only with 2,5" drives (HDD, SSD). You could add an 80 mm or 90 mm fan, but you must use the grid holes and it will look a little bit weird: bolt --> fan --> spacer --> case --> nut.

 

[babychimz]

If the CPU temps are OK (under 65C), don't change the fans' airflow, let them be as is (I was asking about the CPU cooler because I wanted to know how much space do you have above the GPU).

I am sorry, I was not aware of a peculiarity of your Fractal case: the two bays at the bottom of the case are designed to be used only with 2,5" drives (HDD, SSD). You could add an 80 mm or 90 mm fan, but you must use the grid holes and it will look a little bit weird: bolt --> fan --> spacer --> case --> nut.

Ok, i'll look at getting to 80-92mm fans to put there as intake fans (changing the front lower one to exhaust?).

Update: Hi Cristi72, i just set the GPU settings to default and ran Heaven Benchmark 4.0 at these settings:
API: DX11
Quality: Ultra
Tesellation: Extreme
AA: x4
Resolution: 2560x1440p (using 27in 1440p monitor)

Based on the runs, i'm hitting GPU temps of 79C still. (CPU temps maxed at 68C)

Not too sure but is it cause my fans are not able to draw enough power to run at higher speeds? I see it running at 834 rpm mostly.
My CPU/GPU chamber fans (i.e. 2 enermax cluster advance - 0.35mA max/each, 2 noctua NF-P12 - 0.03mA/each and 1 fractal design r2 silent series) are all connected to 1 CHASIS Fan 1 (4pin) via a 5*4pin splitter with 1 molex plugged to PSU. Should i be re-routing this?
The other 3 case fans are connected to the fan controller on my casing.
What puzzles me is the air through the back exhaust fan or even when i open the case to feel the 'hot' air at the lower level of the chamber is not hot...

 

[Cristi72]

If the CPU temps are OK (under 65C), don't change the fans' airflow, let them be as is (I was asking about the CPU cooler because I wanted to know how much space do you have above the GPU).

I am sorry, I was not aware of a peculiarity of your Fractal case: the two bays at the bottom of the case are designed to be used only with 2,5" drives (HDD, SSD). You could add an 80 mm or 90 mm fan, but you must use the grid holes and it will look a little bit weird: bolt --> fan --> spacer --> case --> nut.

Ok, i'll look at getting to 80-92mm fans to put there as intake fans (changing the front lower one to exhaust?).

Update: Hi Cristi72, i just set the GPU settings to default and ran Heaven Benchmark 4.0 at these settings:
API: DX11
Quality: Ultra
Tesellation: Extreme
AA: x4
Resolution: 2560x1440p (using 27in 1440p monitor)

Based on the runs, i'm hitting GPU temps of 79C still. (CPU temps maxed at 68C)

Not too sure but is it cause my fans are not able to draw enough power to run at higher speeds? I see it running at 834 rpm mostly.
My CPU/GPU chamber fans (i.e. 2 enermax cluster advance - 0.35mA max/each, 2 noctua NF-P12 - 0.03mA/each and 1 fractal design r2 silent series) are all connected to 1 CHASIS Fan 1 (4pin) via a 5*4pin splitter with 1 molex plugged to PSU. Should i be re-routing this?
The other 3 case fans are connected to the fan controller on my casing.
What puzzles me is the air through the back exhaust fan or even when i open the case to feel the 'hot' air at the lower level of the chamber is not hot...

Changing the lower fan from intake to exhaust is the quickest way to improve the airflow for the GPU, and you don't have to buy another fan (so you can do it right away).

With all settings to default (so not doing any OC), the card still hits 79C? This is not good, but you also used a benchmark software; in real gaming scenarios, the card will never be pushed so hard (unless of course you want to drive a 4K monitor).
What speeds the card fans have? Edit the GPU fan setting: put the minimum speed at 20-25% and set a much sharper slope for the "fan speed VS temp" setup (set the fan to speed up to 60% when the GPU is reaching 60C for example).

 

[babychimz]

Changing the lower fan from intake to exhaust is the quickest way to improve the airflow for the GPU, and you don't have to buy another fan (so you can do it right away).

With all settings to default (so not doing any OC), the card still hits 79C? This is not good, but you also used a benchmark software; in real gaming scenarios, the card will never be pushed so hard (unless of course you want to drive a 4K monitor).
What speeds the card fans have? Edit the GPU fan setting: put the minimum speed at 20-25% and set a much sharper slope for the "fan speed VS temp" setup (set the fan to speed up to 60% when the GPU is reaching 60C for example).

I realise i shouldn't change the front bottom fan to exhaust as it would conflict with my front top fan which is intake. This is due to the front panel design which only has vents at the bottom row (not too sure if you can see the link)...
http://techreport.com/r.x/2014_3_14_Fractals_doublewide_Node_804_case_can_swallow_a_dozen_drives/front.jpg

And yea, with default settings, the card seems to hit 79C already while hitting boost clocks of 1304MHz quite steadily. Voltage seems to be hitting 1212mV while at this default settings too though. Idle temp of GPU seems to be around 45C.

Could the fact that i am running it at 1440p and 4x AA thats driving it so hard? I'll probably play games at 1440p, 2xAA (or maybe even off it) though. Maybe i will run the benchmarks at 2xAA instead going forward.

The fan speeds was on auto during those benchmarks. I'll probably set it to a much sharper slope to hit 60% at 55C to hopefully lower temps earlier. The fans seem to make a coil whining sound between 65-70%, after which i can hear the fans picking up speed yet no such 'whining' sound. Should i be concerned?

 

[Cristi72]

Changing the lower fan from intake to exhaust is the quickest way to improve the airflow for the GPU, and you don't have to buy another fan (so you can do it right away).

With all settings to default (so not doing any OC), the card still hits 79C? This is not good, but you also used a benchmark software; in real gaming scenarios, the card will never be pushed so hard (unless of course you want to drive a 4K monitor).
What speeds the card fans have? Edit the GPU fan setting: put the minimum speed at 20-25% and set a much sharper slope for the "fan speed VS temp" setup (set the fan to speed up to 60% when the GPU is reaching 60C for example).

I realise i shouldn't change the front bottom fan to exhaust as it would conflict with my front top fan which is intake. This is due to the front panel design which only has vents at the bottom row (not too sure if you can see the link)...
http://techreport.com/r.x/2014_3_14_Fractals_doublewide_Node_804_case_can_swallow_a_dozen_drives/front.jpg

And yea, with default settings, the card seems to hit 79C already while hitting boost clocks of 1304MHz quite steadily. Voltage seems to be hitting 1212mV while at this default settings too though. Idle temp of GPU seems to be around 45C.

Could the fact that i am running it at 1440p and 4x AA thats driving it so hard? I'll probably play games at 1440p, 2xAA (or maybe even off it) though. Maybe i will run the benchmarks at 2xAA instead going forward.

The fan speeds was on auto during those benchmarks. I'll probably set it to a much sharper slope to hit 60% at 55C to hopefully lower temps earlier. The fans seem to make a coil whining sound between 65-70%, after which i can hear the fans picking up speed yet no such 'whining' sound. Should i be concerned?

Check the GPU utilisation, it is the only way to see if the card is running to the maxx. It's also better to test the card in your favourite games (a couple of hours in one game, check temps, another couple of hours with other game, check temps, etc.). A benchmark is pushing the card much harder than the real-life scenarios (it is useful though if you need to know if the cooling solutions and the PSU are enough).

I don't see any problems in changing the direction of the airflow for the lower front fan, maybe it will disturb you a little bit if you keep the case on the desk, as the air will be blown outside the case (and towards you) through the front grille (for a quick test it's nothing wrong to do so).

What I would do for better airflow inside the CPU/GPU bay: I would take out the front lower fan and find a way to mount it under the GPU (the front upper fan remains as intake), I would set the back fan as intake and both top fans as exhaust (blue: cold air; red: hot air):

http://imgur.com/jwqYWFN (now);

http://imgur.com/A5iSVY2 (modified).

 

[babychimz]

Check the GPU utilisation, it is the only way to see if the card is running to the maxx. It's also better to test the card in your favourite games (a couple of hours in one game, check temps, another couple of hours with other game, check temps, etc.). A benchmark is pushing the card much harder than the real-life scenarios (it is useful though if you need to know if the cooling solutions and the PSU are enough).

I don't see any problems in changing the direction of the airflow for the lower front fan, maybe it will disturb you a little bit if you keep the case on the desk, as the air will be blown outside the case (and towards you) through the front grille (for a quick test it's nothing wrong to do so).

What I would do for better airflow inside the CPU/GPU bay: I would take out the front lower fan and find a way to mount it under the GPU (the front upper fan remains as intake), I would set the back fan as intake and both top fans as exhaust (blue: cold air; red: hot air):

http://imgur.com/jwqYWFN (now);

http://imgur.com/A5iSVY2 (modified).

Wow thanks for the diagrams! Anyway, the GPU usage is 99%
The problem would be the front fans can only take in fresh air from the grille which is in the front lowest (believe can be seen from the earlier photo). Wouldn't this cause the top front fan to take in hot air?
I'll be purchasing a 92mm fan to place under the GPU chamber. However, could my sound card lower its effectiveness drastically?

Anyway got a vid of my coil and fan whines.. Would i be able to rma for such reason?
Coil whine?
http://youtu.be/mtvn5vV4xSk
Fan whine?
http://youtu.be/oN2wkySdENw

Thanks again Cristi72!

 

[Cristi72]

Check the GPU utilisation, it is the only way to see if the card is running to the maxx. It's also better to test the card in your favourite games (a couple of hours in one game, check temps, another couple of hours with other game, check temps, etc.). A benchmark is pushing the card much harder than the real-life scenarios (it is useful though if you need to know if the cooling solutions and the PSU are enough).

I don't see any problems in changing the direction of the airflow for the lower front fan, maybe it will disturb you a little bit if you keep the case on the desk, as the air will be blown outside the case (and towards you) through the front grille (for a quick test it's nothing wrong to do so).

What I would do for better airflow inside the CPU/GPU bay: I would take out the front lower fan and find a way to mount it under the GPU (the front upper fan remains as intake), I would set the back fan as intake and both top fans as exhaust (blue: cold air; red: hot air):

http://imgur.com/jwqYWFN (now);

http://imgur.com/A5iSVY2 (modified).

Wow thanks for the diagrams! Anyway, the GPU usage is 99%
The problem would be the front fans can only take in fresh air from the grille which is in the front lowest (believe can be seen from the earlier photo). Wouldn't this cause the top front fan to take in hot air?
I'll be purchasing a 92mm fan to place under the GPU chamber. However, could my sound card lower its effectiveness drastically?

Anyway got a vid of my coil and fan whines.. Would i be able to rma for such reason?
Coil whine?
http://youtu.be/mtvn5vV4xSk
Fan whine?
http://youtu.be/oN2wkySdENw

Thanks again Cristi72!

Well, at 99% GPU usage you card is certainly reaching its limits! In that case, 80C suddenly seems a decent temperature for an air cooled GPU.

Having the sound card on the second PCI-e slot will obstruct the airflow, but it will bring more cold air into the GPU' fans. Too bad the side panel cannot accomodate any fans... You can try to find a solution to mount the additional fan onto the side of the GPU (parallel with the side panel), but that will not bring visual benefits...

If set the lower fan to exhaust, much of the hot air will pass through the front grille. Of course, a part of hot air will rise and will be picked up by the upper fan, but it will mix with the cold air anyway.

There is too little coil whine, an RMA is not justifiable (or the microphone didn't catch the most annoying frequencies?). THIS is a coil whine

As for the GPU fans: they seem to resonate with the card' shroud; check if the shroud don't vibrate excessively.

 

[babychimz]

Well, at 99% GPU usage you card is certainly reaching its limits! In that case, 80C suddenly seems a decent temperature for an air cooled GPU.

Having the sound card on the second PCI-e slot will obstruct the airflow, but it will bring more cold air into the GPU' fans. Too bad the side panel cannot accomodate any fans... You can try to find a solution to mount the additional fan onto the side of the GPU (parallel with the side panel), but that will not bring visual benefits...

If set the lower fan to exhaust, much of the hot air will pass through the front grille. Of course, a part of hot air will rise and will be picked up by the upper fan, but it will mix with the cold air anyway.

There is too little coil whine, an RMA is not justifiable (or the microphone didn't catch the most annoying frequencies?). THIS is a coil whine

As for the GPU fans: they seem to resonate with the card' shroud; check if the shroud don't vibrate excessively.

So i guess my best solution is not to overclock it and try putting 1 or 2 more fans on the bottom of the case or at the side panel (maybe mod the side panel?) to facilitate better air flow. A bit more drastic is to remove the sound card to provide more fresh air to my GPU too...

And yea, get that my coil whine is negligible. Sadly, my ears pick up the high frequency easily haha. Will live with it none the less.

Thanks!

 

[Cristi72]

So i guess my best solution is not to overclock it and try putting 1 or 2 more fans on the bottom of the case or at the side panel (maybe mod the side panel?) to facilitate better air flow. A bit more drastic is to remove the sound card to provide more fresh air to my GPU too...

And yea, get that my coil whine is negligible. Sadly, my ears pick up the high frequency easily haha. Will live with it none the less.

Thanks!

How are your DIY skills? Because if you love tinkering around, you can make an air duct; this way, you can leave both front fans in their default configuration:
http://imgur.com/5EgFU1Z

 

[babychimz]

So i guess my best solution is not to overclock it and try putting 1 or 2 more fans on the bottom of the case or at the side panel (maybe mod the side panel?) to facilitate better air flow. A bit more drastic is to remove the sound card to provide more fresh air to my GPU too...

And yea, get that my coil whine is negligible. Sadly, my ears pick up the high frequency easily haha. Will live with it none the less.

Thanks!

How are your DIY skills? Because if you love tinkering around, you can make an air duct; this way, you can leave both front fans in their default configuration:
http://imgur.com/5EgFU1Z

Sadly i ain't great at DIY haha, but i'll definitely look at it if after mounting the 2 92mms still doesn't help. Cheers!