How overclockable is the ATI-made Radeon 9800 Pro?

[Jeriko]

I'm trying to talk myself into buying this card and not worrying about NV35.

So I'm wondering, since the ATI-manufactured model is the easiest to buy, is it overclockable, or does ATI try to prevent it on the boards they make?

And if so, how far can it safely go without adding more cooling, and how easy is it to do?

-J

 

[WA261]

Ati does nothing to prevent overclocking.
no telling how far you will be able to oc w/out more cooling.
Overclocking is as simple as downloading a program and running it, then just set your core and mem speeds.

 

[Blastman]

I imagine all 9800's probably overclock about the same. HardOCP got theirs up to 450mhz (from 380) ...

HardOCP

 

[BoomAM]

Originally posted by: Blastman
I imagine all 9800's probably overclock about the same. HardOCP got theirs up to 450mhz (from 380) ...

HardOCP

Not exactely.
Not all cards are made the same. The chances are, if you were to get a 9800 card in the same batch of cards as the one HardOCP got, then it`d wouldnt OC as well. Its hit and miss really. One card will OC very well, while another card wont OC at all.

 

[Technonut]

Out of the box (stock HSF no RAM sinks) my retail 9800 Pro does 450/351 rock solid. I usually do not OC my graphics cards, but was curious. Anyhow....



3DMark2001

3DMark2001 Results

3DMark03

It was the first time that I have seen over 200 FPS in one part of the 3DMark2001 Nature benchmark.. :Q

 

[Jeriko]

^ Are there any noticeable artifacts on screen?

I ended up ordering the Sapphire 9800 Pro and it comes with its own OCing utility. So I plan on cranking this baby up a bit.

I may not go as high as 450, though. Probably 440.

-J

 

[bunnyfubbles]

What he meant was that most all "cards" will pretty much be the same as almost all card manufacturers will pretty much follow the same card design which is why several of the cards will look practically the same but be badged differently. It is true that the chips themselves will handle overclocking differently, but for the most part it seems that for today's GPUs, their ability to overclock only gains with maturity of the chip and the process they are created on. This is why we can see a 380MHz hike from 325MHz on what is pretty much the same .15 micron process. Ofcourse the first 9700 Pros could hit near 9800 speeds without much trouble in the first place, now the new 9800 Pros themselves can tack on to themselves what the 9700 Pros could tack on in the past...

425+MHz probably shouldn't be too improbable with a fairly new 9800 Pro, even 450MHz like someone has already important. Give it FX-class cooling or better and you'll probably be able to push it a little bit more...

 

[Jeriko]

^ I'm actually considering buying a Zalman passive cooling system for my 9800 pro, and attaching an 80mm fan for additional cooling. It'll depend on how brave I am, and how easy those Zalmans are to install. One review showed a 8-10C drop in temperature from the stock heatsink/fan with this setup.

-J

 

[Technonut]

^ Are there any noticeable artifacts on screen?

Not at all.... When I say ''rock solid" that means no tears or artifacts whatsoever. I went on to play a couple hours of MOHAA @ 450/351... perfect image quality.

 

[aggressor]

Mine is running at 450 core, 370 memory with no additional cooling. The memory tops out at 370 (Artifacts any higher), but I think I could get the core to around 465 (475 produced artifacts).

 

[billyjak]

ATI conservatively clocks down the 9800 by 100mz, so there is room for overclocking.
They know most people will do it anyway. So they give a little room for this.

 

[68GTX]

Mine is running @ 450 Core 360 Memory with Zero Artifacts.

 

[Jojo1971]

My first 20,000+


stock cooling so far

 

[BoomAM]

Originally posted by: billyjak
ATI conservatively clocks down the 9800 by 100mz, so there is room for overclocking.
They know most people will do it anyway. So they give a little room for this.

No offence, but wheres you proof on this? Ive never heard of this, and from a buisness point of view, i dont think ATI or any video card manufacturer gives a toss about how their card OC`s. Apart from Gainward.
They would be more likely to clock it as high as possible, that could be standardised accross all manufacturered boards. Hence the reason why some boards OC well, and others dont.

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: Technonut
Out of the box (stock HSF no RAM sinks) my retail 9800 Pro does 450/351 rock solid. I usually do not OC my graphics cards, but was curious. Anyhow....



3DMark2001

3DMark2001 Results

3DMark03

It was the first time that I have seen over 200 FPS in one part of the 3DMark2001 Nature benchmark.. :Q

What kind of CPU u got powering that? my P4 3.0 and 9700 pro pulls 15,500 in 3dmark2k1 but the video card is not overclocked, it's an OEM Sapphire 9700 pro. you probably have an Athlon don't you...
does the 9800 pro warrant that big of a difference? if it does, perhaps I will sell the 9700 pro early and go for a 9800!

 

[BoomAM]

Originally posted by: CraigRTdoes the 9800 pro warrant that big of a difference? if it does, perhaps I will sell the 9700 pro early and go for a 9800!

Theres no point. Your 9700pro card is plenty fast enough and only slightly slower than a 9800. Its a waste imo.

 

[Jeriko]

I have a question.

Is there a "always on" OC speed as opposed to temporary performance/benchmark speed?

In other words, do those of you who are OCing this card to 450/350 keep it there, or do you drop down for everyday use?

What will be some of the telltale signs that it's time to stop pushing the OC margin?

I currently have my 9800 running at 440/345. I'm sure it can go further - but I haven't tried it yet. I'm already at 6150 on 3DMark03 - it's amazing how much of a difference the extra 60MHz made in some of those demos.

-J