Overclocking an msi HD7950, safe temperature?

[xvizx]

Hi everyone, after getting advice on upgrading from a gtx460 I decided to pick up msi hd7950 twin frozr. I am using msi afterburner to overclock the card and have it currently up to 1050 core, 1500 memory, and fan set to auto with no additional voltage. So far after playing a few different games it seems to be working okay (no artifacts), however it does seem to get rather loud and a bit hotter than my gtx460 used to get.

Here are some of the temps.
Ambient room temp 85 deg. f

33dmark11 temp 74c, gpu 99%, fan 70%
Skyrim temp 74c, gpu 88%, fan 73%
Witcher 2 temp 76c, gpu 93%, fan 74%
Bad Company 2 74c, fan 75%
msi kombuster (14 min run) 86c, fan 75%

Do these seem about right. Also what temperatures would be safe for an hd7950?

Other info, case lian li pc7(1 in. and 1 exh. fan), psu corsair hx750, cpu i5-760.

 

[cmdrdredd]

those temps are ok, you'd have to judge whether it's worth it for the fan speed required to maintain those clocks.

 

[xvizx]

thanks for the reply

 

[Jaydip]

I don't know much about ur case but can u add another side fan?It should help

 

[aaksheytalwar]

IMO way too high for the 7xxx series.

Ideally core should be sub 70C worst case.

Best case is 50s or even early 60s, but sub 70C is the max recommended unless you change more than once a year or nearly every year at most.

 

[railven]

Ambient temps are rather high, but still it shouldn't get that high. I'd go with Jay's recommendation and toss another case fan (possibly one over the card on the panel.

 

[Dark Shroud]

Time for some case fans.

COOLER MASTER R4-S2S-124K-GP 120mm Case Fan 4 in 1 pack

Edit, ok it looks like your case only has two 120mm fans. You're probably going to have to buy two very strong fans to increase your cases air flow or get a new case.

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/antec-case-oneillusion

 

[xvizx]

Hey everyone thanks for the suggestions. So I rechecked the specs on my case and the correct part # pc-7fnw which has a 140mm int. fan and a 120mm exh. fan. Now I don't mind buying a new case, but will a new case with better cooling be able to drop my temps by at least 10 degrees so that my gpu is in the low 60's?

 

[Rvenger]

Theres another guy on here with a 7950 Twinfrozr with high temps and lockups http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2257142

 

[xvizx]

Theres another guy on here with a 7950 Twinfrozr with high temps and lockups http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2257142

Thanks for the link, I have the same (revision?) my card also has 1 8 pin and1 6 pin power connector instead of 2 6 pin. However, I'm not having lockups so I don't think my card is faulty. After some additional testing with the side panel of my case removed I think my high temps are due to poor ventilation.

core 880mhz, mem 1250:
heaven bench temp 71c, gpu 98%, fan 71%
panel off 67c, gpu 98%, fan 66%

3dmark11 65c, 99%, 65%
panel off 63c, 99%

core 1050, mem 1500
3dmark11 70c, 99%
panel off 66c, 100%

Ambient temp. is also a lot lower today ~79 deg., regardless it looks like I need to get a better case.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Don't wprry about wehat people say temps should be. No two cases are the same, no situation is the same, and no two cards are identical.

Look for crashes, errors, artifacts and the like.

 

[Jaydip]

In case it's in ur budget u can look at this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119213

 

[xvizx]

Don't wprry about wehat people say temps should be. No two cases are the same, no situation is the same, and no two cards are identical.

Look for crashes, errors, artifacts and the like.

Yeah, many of the reviews of the card have much lower temps, I was more concerned about what temps were considered dangerous for the card to be running at, since I would like to get 2 to 3 years of use before upgrading again. But what really bothered me was the noise, the volume of the fan running at 75% is pretty annoying.

In case it's in ur budget u can look at this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119213

Thanks, it looks to be a good case but it's to tall (limited to 20" height). Looking at a Silverstone FT02, but need to do a little more research and see what else is available.

 

[zaydq]

70*c isnt too high for the 7 series... just because the cards run at 60*C has nothing to do with it not being able to handle higher. The idea behind aftermarket coolers that cool so well is so you can overclock it and not hit unsafe temps. I would say dont go over 85*C but 70*C is just idiotic.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I had a GTX 295 for a while and normal operation for that was above 80c (not kidding). After a long time it worked just fine.

 

[xvizx]

Yeah, I'm not to worried about the temps any more. I was initially concerned because I thought I might of had a faulty card since my temps were much higher than those reported in reviews. I ended up getting a ft02 and with fans set to low it only runs ~1-2 degrees cooler (2-3 high). Not much of a change in temps, but the card comes with a 3 year warranty, so if it dies a little sooner from running oc'd with low to mid 70c temps, I'll just send it in.

Out of curiosity do you think the 7950's with the new pcb (6+8 pin power) runs hotter than the original 6+6? If so would that make the older design a better overclocker, since in my particular system temps are more of a limiting factor than voltage.

70*c isnt too high for the 7 series... just because the cards run at 60*C has nothing to do with it not being able to handle higher. The idea behind aftermarket coolers that cool so well is so you can overclock it and not hit unsafe temps. I would say dont go over 85*C but 70*C is just idiotic.

I had a GTX 295 for a while and normal operation for that was above 80c (not kidding). After a long time it worked just fine.

 

[cmdrdredd]

It won't make much difference with the different power requirements I wouldn't think.

Review sites sometimes run their test setups in open air. Inside a case the temps are a bit higher.