6800 GT Problem

[imported_ewright]

I received an eVGA 6800 GT on Friday from NewEgg. Built new system, installed Windows, ran 3DMark (10,800). Played CoD @1600x1200, 4xAA & 8x AF=around 60 fps. Out of curiosity, I ran "detect optimal frequencies", which=376/1050, tested it, no problems. But since it wasn't much of a difference, I hit "restore default" and went back to CoD.

Scenes that were just fluid @60 fps were now choppy & dropping below 10 fps. Checked driver, speed sliders were now all the way to the left and blank (no numbers). So I open NVHardPage, which says clocks=0/0. Back to driver, hit "restore default" again, ran CoD and this time the screen filled with wierd colors and locked up. Checked driver again, and apparently "restore defaults" had selected "Auto" OC instead of No OC, which had overheated GPU. So I hit "restore defaults" again, and it goes to Auto OC right before my eyes (which is NOT default).

I check NVHP again, and both core & mem clocks=15000, with "apply at startup" checked! So I delete NVHP, un-& reinstall driver (safe mode, w/Driver Cleaner), and run 3DM again=7000! Comparing results to earlier bench, I notice that in first (10,800) my clocks are listed as 5/1, and in second (7000), as 5/14!?

Today I boot up and 3DM=10,800 again (but still lists speeds as 5 MHz/1 MHz?!), & CoD runs tolerably but not as fast as before. So is 10800 3DM about right? Is CoD @1600x1200 w/4xAA & 8xAF=60ish fps about right? Why did NVHP report speeds as 0/0 and then 15,000 a few minutes later? Why do my clocks appear as 5/1 on 3DM? Should I just return this card?

P4 3C GHz Northwood
Intel 875 PBZ
1 GB Corsair TwinX-1024XL
eVGA GF 6800 GT
SB Audigy 2 ZS
Windows XP Pro

 

[Schadenfroh]

uninstall the old drivers (use driver cleaner)
reinstall latest dets on nvidia.com

welcome to the forums:beer:

 

[imported_ewright]

Thanks for the answer and the welcome, but I've done that several times, both with 61.76 and 61.77.

I haven't paid any attention to 3DMark since I got my GF4 a few years ago, and it was v. 2001 SE. Is it normal for a GT with clock speeds of 350/1000 to appear on Futuremark's comparison pages as clocked at 5/1?

 

[user1234]

yes, 10800 is right where your system should be in 3dmark3 benchmark, oh and btw my condloscence for having to run that awful ugly benchmark so many times, it could drive you crazy

 

[imported_ewright]

It did. I'd never seen '03 before...I liked '01 better.

Anyway, thanks for the advice guys, but I just sent the card back to NewEgg for an exchange.

 

[user1234]

it's also a pretty stupid benchmark, and the results it gives are not really correlated to real world performance in games (at least not in a linear fashion). It's just a yardstick to check the strength of the video subsystem alone in DX9 tasks. Aquamark3 is much better indication of real world performance (i.e. correlates better to frames per second in games), and also much shorter. I would guess you're score in that should be 54-57 K (at stock speed). Check it out.

 

[imported_ewright]

Hey, you don't have to tell me it sucks. I just wondered about the clock speed wierdness, and the fact that it got 10,800 and the next run at same settings 7000. Thats too big a difference even for 3DM. I will check out Aquamark, thanks for recommendation.

Anyway, the good folks at NewEgg allowed me to order another GT (same make & model but $5 less due to sale) today (2nd day air) and will refund my money for the first card as soon as they receive it. So I'll have the new one by Thursday, and the $5 off almost makes up for the money I spent shipping the RMAd card back.

Thank God for NewEgg.