Poor 8800GTX overclocking

[aznxk3vi17]

So I just built a new computer, shiny and fast.

e6600 @ 3.6ghz
eVGA 680i P28 bios
OCZ-8500 Reaper 2gb @ 1164mhz
eVGA 8800GTX
Vista Home Premium
OCZ GameXStream 700W

As you can see, my memory and cpu overclocks are just fine and dandy. However, my video card... it just plain sucks! With ATITool, I get artifacts and errors on the fuzzy cube at 600/975! I increased PCI-E voltages to 1.5V, but it doesn't help. I have yet to break 10 minutes at greater than those speeds.

Am I doing something wrong? Did I just get horribly unlucky?

[Edit: my temps also reach 85C in ATITool... generally at any clock speed]

 

[Hauk]

Not sure about now, but last month when I built with Vista neither RivaTuner nor ATI tools would work for overclocking, though I know some people are using the latest ATItools. You should easily be able to do 600/950 with just about any GTX. Only variable may be a GTX in cramped case. If you haven't already, consider a PCI blower under the GTX.

I put one of these in and keep it set on medium:
Antec dual slot adjustable PCI blower.
It's quiet and pulls air out that would normally be exausted into the case. It lowered my GPU, CPU, and NB temps dramatically.

If you're adventerous, you could always flash your GTX to GTX superclock speeds using NiBiTor. No third party program needed to o/c. Flashed mine without a hitch.

 

[Jules]

Just got my GTX and im doing 621/1000 for 30mins in ATI tools



Im also getting 71C load with the fan at 80%

 

[vhx]

Seems like you got unlucky. Use Rivatuner and turn the fan speed up, card does look hot, even for the 8800 series.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

Well, my case is the CM Stacker 830, so space is definitely not a problem. I've also made sure to steer any cables clear of the area surrounding the motherboard. Most of my cables are packed above it, clear of the blowhole.

With Rivatuner I put the fan at 80% fixed, and my ATITool temps are around 80C. I also just picked up another artifact.

Should I be putting more power into something? Since I am overclocking, after all.

 

[swtethan]

open up your pci slots and let the air flow out (maybe fix a fan on the slots if you have room) or buy a blower

 

[aznxk3vi17]

Funny story, I have no other cards installed except the 8800GTX. I was planning on buying a 2nd fan for the side intake, but I haven't gotten around to it.

Update: Now at 600/1000, it's ATITool stable for about 7 minutes. 82C at 80% fan speed. Don't know what is going on.

 

[5150Joker]

Not all video cards are built equal. Lower your memory to 950 and your core should go higher.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

I lied. For some reason, ATITool wasn't picking up the artifacts. I restarted it, and BAM, errors. Damn it...

 

[swtethan]

youre reaching the danger zone, I wouldnt let it pass 80c.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

Any reason why my temps would be so abnormally high? I didn't do anything special to it. I put my voltages back to normal (for the SPP and PCI-E), and my overclocks are even low. My case temp is around 40C load, and I'll be adding another fan to it.

 

[swtethan]

40c is pretty high for a case, you need better airflow or a cooler room

 

[fern420]

its that 3.6 over clock on the dualcore. unless your on water your producing a massive amount of heat just from the cpu. that will easily raise your case temp 10 degrees and probably even more in game.

i honestly wouldn't suggest anyone try to over clock that far on air, it just produces way to much heat to try to dissipate. i have a 6700 and i dont even overclock that far on water because it just creates too much heat to get out of the case. if you must run it that high take the side off of your case and leave it off.

 

[Jules]

It also might be a CPU Overclock problem. I had a similar problem.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

All right, I'll try dialing down the CPU a bit. The temps looked fine though, at least for my CPU. Ah well, you guys probably know more about this than I do. But I really liked the high numbers, haha.

 

[imported_flounder]

Yea, that case temp is very high. What kind of cpu cooler do you have? Does it have a side-mounted fan blowing air right out to the case vent?

 

[aznxk3vi17]

I have the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme. The fan is blowing through the heatsink towards the back of the case. I have 4 120s cooling the case, one in front, one in the side as intakes, and one in the back and top for exhaust. I plan on adding on more 120 to the side.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

These temps btw are what's measured in NVIDIA Monitor. Not sure how accurate it is. I did some cable management and dropped it to 38C. Would the place I plug the case fans in change anything? Some of my fans are connected to motherboard headers, while others I had to use a converter. The fans I use only had 3-pin headers, so I used some converters to molex and plugged those in.

I don't think it matters, the fans seem to be running, but I could be wrong.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

I also forgot to mention that my case is the CM Stacker 830. The fans in the side and top are held by the toolless bracket that comes with the case. It might reduce my airflow because of the air filters, but it's one thing I'm willing to sacrifice for a cleaner, less dusty case. It really seems I should have better temps all around.

 

[Woofmeister]

Your temps are too high. Manually increase your fan speed to 100% using ATI Tool or Riva Tuner.

Also, try switching the side fan to exhaust, you need to get the hot air off the GFX, more than you need to bring cool air in. You may also have too much positive pressure in the case with all those intake fans and as a consequence, your hot air can't be exhausted. Either way, try turning your side fan around.

Edit Oh yeah, go here. See, you are not alone.

 

[aznxk3vi17]

Well, as of now, I have 2 intake and 2 exhaust. Actually, 3 exhaust if you count my PSU's fan. I thought positive pressure was marginally better than negative? Maybe I'm getting those terms mixed up...

Man I feel like such a noob!