OC issues/crashing (GTX 980)

[Ellie_Freckles]

Hi guys. I built my first PC recently, and I'm still fumbling around with things. Up to this point, I've avoided OC, because I've been content with my performance. I game at 1440p, and the recent Rise of the Tomb Raider release is having erratic performance for me.

I know this is prob a port issue, and the fact that it just came out. However, when I OC it brings me closer to 60 with less dips, vs erratic fps dips without. But after gaming for an hour my entire screen gets artifacts and crashes. Have to reboot my PC. I've also gotten the crash when going in and out of the start menu.

Tbh, I have no idea what I'm doing with OC. I've tried following guides, and got crashing. So I finally just used MSI afterburner and tried doing minimal OC boost. But still am getting crashes.

My system:

GTX-980 (4GB)

i7-4790K CPU @ 4.0GHz

16.0 GB RAM

1 TB EVO SSD

This is actually my first time building a PC, and I just built this set up recently.

My current MSI Afterburner settings are:

Core Voltage (mv) 0 (not using this)

Power Limit (%) 105

Core Clock (MHz) +100

Memory Clock (MHz) +250

Fan Speed AUTO

My GPU is Gigabtyte Windforce. And its out of the box speeds are:

178 MHz / BOOST: 1279 MHz

Is someone able to look at what I posted, and figure out what's wrong? I'm assuming I am OC terribly wrong. And if possible, can someone tell me what to lower in my OC settings?

Just curious if the MSI settings I posted will show what I'm doing wrong. If you guys can't tell, then I'm sorry for wasting your time.

I also want to apologize in advance if this is not the right place to post, or if this is basic stuff that can normally be found out. I'm finding this all overwhelming tbh as I'm not usually tech savvy. I had to teach myself how to build a PC.

Thanks for your time and consideration,

Ellie

 

[JimF_35]

"Core Voltage (mv) 0 (not using this)"

Why not. That is how you overclock. You raise the speed and the voltage until the card is stable at that speed. Voltage stabilizes the overclocked GPU. It also causes more heat. This is why you have to monitor your temps when overclocking.

The more voltage the more heat and the shorter the life span of the card. This is the point of overclocking; to sacrifice the life of a card (because you will probably be upgrading within a couple years) for performance.

 

[Ellie_Freckles]

"Core Voltage (mv) 0 (not using this)"

Why not. That is how you overclock. You raise the speed and the voltage until the card is stable at that speed. Voltage stabilizes the overclocked GPU. It also causes more heat. This is why you have to monitor your temps when overclocking.

The more voltage the more heat and the shorter the life span of the card. This is the point of overclocking; to sacrifice the life of a card (because you will probably be upgrading within a couple years) for performance.

I guess i'm and idiot! When I unlocked Core Voltage on MSI, my entire system crashed immediately upon booting up the game. So when I turned it off, I was getting crashes less frequent. Clearly I don't understand Overclocking.

Based on the MSI settings I posted, and my specs, do you have any idea what Voltage I should be doing, or not doing? Or is not that obvious? I'm not asking for a perfect answer, I understand it's too complex (taking into consideration many other factors, including the game).

Just curious if one is able to tell like, when a Voltage is too high.

Or maybe a better question is, how do you match the Voltage with the other settings? Is there like a specific way to match it?

 

[Guest]

May still be valid for your card. Explains everything easy to understand.
https://youtu.be/fyk5DCladcY

 

[JimF_35]

"Core Voltage (mv) 0 (not using this)"

Why not. That is how you overclock. You raise the speed and the voltage until the card is stable at that speed. Voltage stabilizes the overclocked GPU. It also causes more heat. This is why you have to monitor your temps when overclocking.

The more voltage the more heat and the shorter the life span of the card. This is the point of overclocking; to sacrifice the life of a card (because you will probably be upgrading within a couple years) for performance.

I guess i'm and idiot! When I unlocked Core Voltage on MSI, my entire system crashed immediately upon booting up the game. So when I turned it off, I was getting crashes less frequent. Clearly I don't understand Overclocking.

Based on the MSI settings I posted, and my specs, do you have any idea what Voltage I should be doing, or not doing? Or is not that obvious? I'm not asking for a perfect answer, I understand it's too complex (taking into consideration many other factors, including the game).

Just curious if one is able to tell like, when a Voltage is too high.

Or maybe a better question is, how do you match the Voltage with the other settings? Is there like a specific way to match it?

Over clocking is more of an art form than a science because no two chips are alike. Voltages that might work for you might not work for some one else. You simply raise the voltage until the overclock becomes stable.

As for what the max is, most cards have governors that prevent you from going over a max voltage unless you flash the BIOS to remove these restrictions. That said you may also be limited by the PSU or you might have lost the silicon lottery in that your GPU is not a good over clocker.

Would you list your PSU's make and model?

Also, I would not start with Core Clock (MHz) +100. I would start small like 15-20 and work your way up.

Hope this helps.