[SOLVED] RX 580 rejected undervolting? Then crashes.

[Rexaura]

Long story short, I undervolted my RX 580, and it didn't go well. I followed a guide on YouTube and the creator, as well as everybody in the comments, seemed to have success from this guide. So I know it probably wasn't that.

After undervolting, I launched Fortnite which is a game that I have stuttering problems in, just to realize that the settings I had previously changed were reset back to default. I changed the settings back to the undervolt again, just to have them reset once again in the AMD Radeon Software. I did this three times, just to have them reset each time.

Then, I got the idea of changing them while I was in-game. I did so, which lead to the screen freezing and turning on and off, along with black bars appearing and reappearing; everything crashed in the end.

I shut off my PC, and turned it back on. I also reset all the settings and everything is back to normal again.

My question is, what could have caused this? Is there a better way for me to undervolt?

My specs:
RX 580 4GB
I7-7700K
SSD Sandisk 1TB
HDD Western Digital 1TB
16 GB of RAM
B250M BAZOOKA Motherboard
PSU: 450 watts I believe; may be wrong.

 

[tennis2]

Please link said youtube guide.

Also please tell us what/how much undervolt you applied and how. All you've given us is "I undervolted in AMD Radeon Software". It sounds like you're applying too agressive of an undervolt (in that the voltage isn't high enough for some/all performance state frequencies to keep the card stable) and getting a driver crash (which results in a black screen flickers then resets GPU clocks/voltage to stock)

 

[tennis2]

PSU: 450 watts I believe; may be wrong.

This could be an issue, depending on what the make/model (quality) of the PSU is. Is this what led you to undervolting?

 

[DSzymborski]

Yeah, definitely need the specific 450W PSU. It's a bit troubling you don't know, considering how crucial a safety part this is!

 

[dotas1]

Yeah, definitely need the specific 450W PSU. It's a bit troubling you don't know, considering how crucial a safety part this is!

I do agree that it's crucial and we need to know in order to provide proper help but, personal question here, since it's undervolting, shouldn't be easier on the PSU? If OP was running fine at stock volts, wouldn't he be able to remain without issues when undervolting? Assuming he did undervolt right.

On another note, for OP, you need to tell us exactly what numbers you put in and consider that you might have been unlucky with the silicon lottery and your gpu won't be able to run with lower volts.

 

[tennis2]

since it's undervolting, shouldn't be easier on the PSU? If OP was running fine at stock volts, wouldn't he be able to remain without issues when undervolting?

Correct. If OP can run fine at stock/auto, then [proper] undervolting should only make things easier on the PSU.

Like I said, something wasn't set right and the driver is crashing due to unstable settings.

Same as overclocking, every chip has a voltage that's required to keep it stable at a given frequency. For instance, my RX480 (same as an RX580) can run at 1300MHz @ 1020mV. If I pull the voltage below 1000mV it crashes.

 

[DSzymborski]

Correct. If OP can run fine at stock/auto, then [proper] undervolting should only make things easier on the PSU.

Like I said, something wasn't set right and the driver is crashing due to unstable settings.

Same as overclocking, every chip has a voltage that's required to keep it stable at a given frequency. For instance, my RX480 (same as an RX580) can run at 1300MHz @ 1020mV. If I pull the voltage below 1000mV it crashes.

True, but that's without knowing the underlying reason for the undervolting. If the PSU is of such poor quality that undervolting is necessary to keep the machine running, then the PSU shouldn't be used under any circumstances.

The doctor's always going to ask about what current medications the patient is on. I'm not comfortable in diagnosing any situation involving a safety issue unless I have all the pertinent facts.

 

[tennis2]

True, but that's without knowing the underlying reason for the undervolting. If the PSU is of such poor quality that undervolting is necessary to keep the machine running, then the PSU shouldn't be used under any circumstances.

Absolutely agree. Don't get me wrong.

 

[Rexaura]

Absolutely agree. Don't get me wrong.

Before Undervolt:
Frequency(MHz): 300, 600, 918, 1167, 1239, 1282, 1326, 1366
Voltage: 750, 769, 925, 1156, 1150, 1150, 1150, 1150

After Undervolt:
Frequency: Same
Voltage: 750, 769, 906, 980, 990, 1000, 1010, 1020

Guide followed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w03bINVnXGo&t=301s


I have had problems with my computer shutting down unexpectedly in the past, but it went away for some reason. I also have upgraded my CPU, and added an SSD to my prebuilt without changing the PSU. So that could be a problem.

 

[tennis2]

1366Mhz @ 1020mV is too aggressive.

Like I said before, all cards are slightly different, so YMMV, but try this on for size:
600Mhz / 820mV
918MHz / 880mV
1167MHz / 940mV
1239MHz / 985mV
1282MHz / 1025mV
1326MHz / 1065mV
1366MHz / 1100mV

Also in "VRAM Tuning" enable "advanced control" and set VRAM Voltage to "manual" then enter 950mV for the 2000MHz VRAM setting. This voltage setting establishes the lower "limit" of voltage that will be applied to the card. I say card, because the core and VRAM get the same voltage on Polaris GPUs. However, you'll notice that the core can hit a LOT more frequency points than the VRAM can. Both components need a certain minimum voltage to be stable. By setting 950mV, we're saying the VRAM needs at least 950mV for it to remain stable. The card will still go to idle frequency/voltage as normal with this setting though (notice the State 0 VRAM voltage setting also).

Now, that's what I'd call "middle-of-the-road" voltage settings (considering a bell curve of chips and voltage curves). Your specific chip may still need more voltage than that to remain stable, OR you might be able to trim it back further than what I provided. Test test test.