[SOLVED] RTX 3090 Throttling?

[Barkdoll14]

I have a PNY XLR8 RTX 3090 that is water cooled but it wont go over 60 degrees Celsius. When it gets around 60C it downclocks or throttles to around 750-1100 MHz causing a major drop in frames in multiple games. I have tried multiply drivers with no luck and never seeing the card go over 60C.

 

[Barkdoll14]

Issue has only been accruing for about a week or two as far as I have noticed it

 

[AdamG]

I'm not entirely sure 60c would induce throttling given its max temp of 93c, you will probably get asked what psu you have, so its probably better to list your specs for others who are going to come asking anyway. you can use afterburner btw to lock core clock frequency at higher mhz, but that doesn't prevent throttling due to power/temp issues so not sure it would do anything in your situation, its just for keeping the clock static at a high frequency instead of bouncing around as the demand is required for more processing power from the gpu.

 

[Barkdoll14]

I'm not entirely sure 60c would induce throttling given its max temp of 93c, you will probably get asked what psu you have, so its probably better to list your specs for others who are going to come asking anyway. you can use afterburner btw to lock core clock frequency at higher mhz, but that doesn't prevent throttling due to power/temp issues so not sure it would do anything in your situation, its just for keeping the clock static at a high frequency instead of bouncing around as the demand is required for more processing power from the gpu.

I am running a I9-10900k with 32GB of 3600MHz ram and 4TB of NVMe storage all on a ASRock Z490 Extreme4 MOBO powered by a 1000W EVGA supernova 80+ gold rating.

 

[Phaaze88]

Download Gpu-Z.
Run it > Sensors > PerfCap Reason. See what it says when the card is throttling.

The Vram or VRMs are probably thermal throttling, and the 60C reading is reflecting the gpu core thermals.

 

[Barkdoll14]

Download Gpu-Z.
Run it > Sensors > PerfCap Reason. See what it says when the card is throttling.

The Vram or VRMs are probably thermal throttling, and the 60C reading is reflecting the gpu core thermals.

It simply says THRM

 

[Barkdoll14]

It simply says THRM

https://ibb.co/Yy8cYQv

 

[Phaaze88]

Yep, THeRMal throttling.

Looks like you need to review your cooler mount.

 

[Barkdoll14]

Yep, THeRMal throttling.

Looks like you need to review your cooler mount.

Will do. although when I first put the water block on I didn't notice the issue but it could have been occurring. I have only had the block on sense the 14th.

 

[Barkdoll14]

another question. do you think I should get a back plate for the the gpu? it is vertically mounted and was thinking it could help with heat dispersion

 

[Phaaze88]

A back plate alone doesn't do anything. You should have thermal pads acting as a bridge between it and the Vram for it to aid with cooling.

 

[Barkdoll14]

A back plate alone doesn't do anything. You should have thermal pads acting as a bridge between it and the Vram for it to aid with cooling.

i have thermal pads on the Vram but i have no back plate. would it make a difference to have the pads on/ off

 

[Phaaze88]

If there are no pads between the Vram and the back plate, then the heat isn't being transferred to the plate, thus the plate isn't doing anything except looking neat.

 

[Barkdoll14]

i dont have a back plate. should i buy one?

 

[Dragos Manea]

i dont have a back plate. should i buy one?

Yes, you should, rtx 3090 has vram on the back too so it needs some sort of cooling, be sure to apply thermal pads on the vram before you put the backplate and also make sure that the backplate squeezes the thermal pads a bit (has good contact).

 

[Barkdoll14]

Yes, you should, rtx 3090 has vram on the back too so it needs some sort of cooling, be sure to apply thermal pads on the vram before you put the backplate and also make sure that the backplate squeezes the thermal pads a bit (has good contact).

Alright ordering one now. thanks for the help guys

 

[Phaaze88]

???
That model should've come with one, unless you threw it away? Oh wait, the original back plate isn't compatible with the water block, or something?
https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/pny-xlr8-rtx-3090-revel-epic-x-triple-fan.b8014

Spoiler

But yes, you DO need a back plate for that card. If there wasn't Vram on both sides, you could get away with not having one, though it wouldn't be ideal.

 

[Barkdoll14]

correct the one that came with the gpu would look ridiculous because it would overhang the card by about a whole fan and i believe that it is not compatible

 

[Phaaze88]

correct the one that came with the gpu would look ridiculous because it would overhang the card by about a whole fan and i believe that it is not compatible

Thanks for clearing that up.

Good luck! 👍