Underclocking question

[Tulsa299]

Hey guys, I'm having some graphical artifacts happening whilst using an ENB and when temps get a bit high.

The Gpu only gets hots with the enb turned on.

Running a solid 45-60 in most scenarios.

My GPU isn't being used fully (MSI reports 60% usage max )

Specs

R9 280X
A10-6800k 4.10GHz
16GB ram
750w psu

I'm thinking my GPU isn't taking as much as it should.. y tho?

Would underclocking my GPU be of any help?

[Deleted3082751User]

it depends if the GPU is overclocked by default (most aftermarket manufacturers tend to overclock their cards, msi, asus, xfx especially). i remember on my old radeon 7970 which was overclocked (it was XFX black Edition and as such was badly overclocked by XFX), as it turns out the card could not handle the overclock and thus created artifacts (after long playtime), however setting it back to its factory clocks eliminated the issue, so yea, if the card is overclocked already, try setting it back to its factory defaults this should eliminate the artifacts. GPU(s) are made to withstand extreme tempertures (about 90 degrees absolute max, should obviously never reach this temperture, but this is maximum operating temperture), and as such the artifacts should not be caused by temperture alone, but will be caused by overclocking to high, or worse case scenario the card may need to be returned.

 

Graphical artifacts are usually a sign of a faulty card. so if setting it back to its factory defaults clock speeds does not work, then that means the card is basically dead or dying and should be returned for a potential refund or replacement.

 

the factory default clock speeds for rx380x:

 

Engine clock = 970 Mhz

 

Memory Speed = 1425 Mhz

 

 

you can change these in Msi Afterburner, and likewise create a profile so you can apply these everytime you boot your system (It is very important that both memory clocks and engine clocks are set properly, if either 1 is not then, they can cause artifacts)

 

i do not recommend underclocking below factory defaults. if the card cannot handle its own default clocks (set by AMD themselves and not the aftermarket manufacturers) then the card is faulty and should be returned a.s.a.p

 

and lastly, this is the most important, check how much juice (voltage) the card is getting, when you overclock a piece of hardware, this generally means the piece of hardware will require more voltage, if the piece of hardware is getting too much voltage, this will severely limit the lifespan of said hardware, as such make sure that your graphics card is getting the right amount of voltage. i do not know what the correct voltage should be for the radion 380x you will need to research it (i do not own amd cards anymore) so their is a good chance that 1. the clocks are wrong, or worst, the card may be getting the incorrect amount of voltage (power)

 

Note: incorrect clocks tend to result in system freezes, hanging, and crashing. if these do not apply, then their is a good chance that the card is faulty, getting maximum performance out of the GPU means nothing, as you could be getting maximum performance 1 day, and then all of a sudden the card no longer works.

 

Graphical Artifiacts is the Graphics Card telling you that is it faulty, just as getting noises from a harddrive indicates it is failing.

 

=============================

Notes on Graphic Card Tempertures (these tempertures only apply when the graphics card is being used, for this example we will use gaming)

=============================

 

50 Degrees = Very nice Temperture for gaming (very rare that you should get this temperture, this would indicate superior cooling solutions). this temperture will only be achieved in very light tasks. if your gpu usage is at a constant 100% and is only getting this temperture, then you will have an extremely good cooling solution.

 

60 Degrees = Perfectly fine and ideal tempertures for gaming or work that requires graphics card power. (this will be the typical temperature you get with games that are using less then 100% gpu usage)

 

70 Degrees = Perfectly fine temperture for demanding tasks only, you would get this temperature in very demanding games, or heavily modded games with enb, typically enb with Ambient occlusion and SSAO enabled would cause your gpu to reach this temperture (Ambient occlusion, that is why it is 1 of the most demanding ENB Effects as this effect alone will raise the tempertures of a gpu easily, typically to this type of temperature.)

 

Note: For the graphics card to reach and hover around 70 degrees, this would mean that graphics card constant usage would be at 100%, a heavily modded fallout 4 for example, would be a game that would cause the gpu to consistently stay at 70 degrees, and that is on a gpu that has very good cooling. and as such this is a perfectly fine temperture, for tasks that cause the gpu to constantly stay at 100% usage., again both a heavily modded skyrim with enb, and fallout 4, with an enb, will cause this temperature, and its is perfectly fine and expected.

 

80 Degrees = only SLI or Crossfire should reach this temperature (Multi GPU Setups), this temperature is very bad for a single GPU, try to avoid it at all costs ~(note in a multi gpu setup, the top card would be blowing its heat on to the bottom card, and thus the bottom card could reach this temperture) a system with only 1 gpu in it, should never reach this temperture, if it does, you will either have poor cooling in your system and or card, and should seriously consider getting a better cooling solution. AMD cards in the past are notorious for having higher then average tempertures (i have not had an amd card since radeon 7970 so i do not know if they have improved in this regard), especially compared to nvidia, as such amd cards will have higher then normal temperatures, but they should never reach 80 degrees.

 

90+ Degrees = Danger zone, this is maximum operating temperature, avoid this temperature at all costs. if a single graphics card reaches this temperature constantly, then the gpu will have a severely limited lifespan, or could immediately die. (its potentional lifespan will go from years. to just days.)

 

100 Degrees = the graphics card is being tortured, its lifespan will go from years to just hours. their is absolutely no reason it should reach this temperature, if it does, return it immediately.

Edited December 17, 2017 by Guest

[Tulsa299]

Thanks for the epic run down!

Small edit, I've got a Gigabyte R9 280X 3GB 1050MHz which does come overclocked (1100), I didn't know until now so thanks for that!

I've set it running as:

GPU clock 1050MHz
Memory Clock 1000MHz
No edit to voltage, flat zero (in radeon's control panel)

The artifact that's annoying is odd, I've not come across it before, I get flickering, faint, occasional checkerboard patterns when running around 80-85, but that's not the oddity, it's hard to get a screenshot due to it's quickness and unrepeatable.

It's an orb, it usually emanates from a static object such as a fence or post.

Here's a pic of the closest screenshot I've tried. (On the smelter)

http://i64.tinypic.com/jb68tf.jpg

The card is no doubt on it's way out, I got it second hand and I've had it for a year but I have a strong feeling it's not the card.

Thanks for the lesson, a lot of good info in there :smile:

[Deleted3082751User]

you're welcome :smile:

 

also with regards to artifacts, if its just some artifacts here and their (just like that screenshot) it could simply be incorrect clocks and or voltage, however, 1 thing i do know, a card that is very close to giving up, will result in full screen artfiacts.ie the entire window will have artifacts. my old gtx 560ti (Msi Twin frozr edition) failed about a few years ago, and the last thing before it failed, was full screen artifacts. basically it looked like scanlines. so if its just some artifacts on the screen, it could be potential invalid clock speeds or voltage. looking at your screenshot it does not look too bad. however the card could simply have dust on it, this could even create artifacts, it will definitely increases tempertures if the card has dust on it, especially as dust on hardware acts as a heat conductor, thus increases temperatures.

 

also that 80 - 85 number you mention, is that framerate or temperatures, if its the latter that would definitely explain the artifacts, as that is very hot for a single card. (a very well cooled card will reach 70 degrees at constant 100% usage, no higher, 80+ degrees is very bad temperture)

 

clock speeds, voltage and temperatures all go hand in hand, voltage is the primary thing that increases temperatures. as when someone overclocks their hardware they try and get as less voltage as possible. as to get as low tempertures and increase the lifespan as long as possible. and clock speeds will result in the card working harder then normal, which in turn could increase tempertures.

 

also 1 thing to always remember, overclocking is always trial and error, regardless of how reputable the company is, when a company overclocks their hardware, it is in a completely different setting compared to where the the hardware ends up (in the consumer house), ie the cooling solution, ambient temperatures etc etc will be completely different to the place where the card was overclocked. and as such, just because the card has been given the green light, that it can accept and withstand its new clock speeds, voltage etc etc, that does not mean it will be able to run inside a different setting (with regards to its new home) so basically an overclocked piece of hardware must be cooled sufficiently (this includes sufficient cooling solution in the tower case, room temperature and the graphics cards own cooling solution), especially as it will be performing at a much higher rate compared to its normal clocked self. this is why laptop versions of hardware are nowhere near as powerful as their desktop counterparts, because a laptop does not have good cooling, and likewise a desktop counterpart would melt inside a laptop. temperatures are very important for hardware (determines their lifespan), but the voltage they are given is even more important (also determines their lifespan, and too much can kill the card straight up, too little can also cause the card to malfunction)

 

Edit: that screen shot from the smelter, i believe that is actually caused by an ENB (any ENB can cause it), basically it happens if you have decreased the Object Draw Distance, and when approaching a Smelter (this is literally the only thing that causes it) the screen flashes, and causes mini artifacts for a few seconds. this is an Oddity that is caused by using an ENB and Lowering the Object Draw Distance option in Skyrim. if it is the same thing that i am thinking of, that is nothing to do with the graphics card, its an oddity with Skyrim + Enb + Draw Distance

 

Note: Object Draw Distance = the setting that determines how close the player must be to objects for them to be in view, the further away the player is, the object will not appear (i believe this is the setting that makes the smelter for example disappear if the player is nowhere near it, i put the explanation of the what the setting does, to make sure it is the correct setting)

 

Note: if that is indeed the reason for the artifiacts, then the simple solution is to increase the Object Draw Distance to 100 (this will then make the smelter always visible regardless of how far away you are from it, this in turn prevents it from popping in to view, and likewise prevents the screen from flashing and creating the artifacts.

 

Note: the Object Draw Distance setting can be set in game, by dragging the slider all the way to the right, or alternatively it can be done in Skyrim's Launcher

Edited December 18, 2017 by Guest

[Tulsa299]

Over the past few days I've noticed less artifacts and lower temperatures (after underclocking Clock & mem ) I'm going lover the voltage today.

It got cleaned maybe two months ago, I'll give it a clean today.

80-85 = temp. It only gets that hot after a fair amount of time in game, say two to three hours, without rest.

Overclocking is worrisome to me, getting a new card would not be something easy for me in my current circumstance.

My cooling system I think is just above average, I have an NZXT H440 case, Coolermaster Hyper TX3 EVO cpu cooler and the stock fans that came with the Gpu.

I'll test that idea shortly and report back.

The smelter oddity is not a great example of what's happening it's one of two oddities I've never seen before, I'll try and get a screenshot today.

There's another oddity that may be of use knowing; when close to a light source (such as a fireplace) if I turn the camera in a certain direction the fire will disappear and reappear again when I move, the "hit zone" is very small.

[Tulsa299]

I managed to get a few shots of it.

Temps average 70-75, 20 mins in game.

http://i66.tinypic.com/2hqxmxv.jpg

http://i67.tinypic.com/312csvp.jpg

See how, like in the smelter image, the orb has an origin point.

[Deleted3082751User]

yea looks very strange, i am not sure was going on there, also 75 seems very hot, especially with a sufficient cooler, the card should never exceed its peak temperature regardless of how long it is being used.

 

example: my 1070 at peak will hit 70 degrees on a heavily modded fallout 4, with demanding enb, and it will stay at this temperature for the entire time, we are talking like 12 hours, it will never exceed 70 degrees. Fallout 4 is much more demanding then skyrim, and this is without mods, my fallout 4 is heavily modded, and as such will be even more demanding then a heavily modded skyrim.

 

so it looks like AMD have still not improved on their temperatures. going from 75 to 85 degrees for a single card is very bad, even after only 3 hours of playtime. thats only 5 degrees away from maximum operating temperature, which is a temperture that no card should hit unless they are being tortured test (basically similar to how you use burn tests for processors, not sure what the GPU equivalent would be, thats if it even exists)

 

i can only think that it may be high temperatures, just like anything when it overheats its starts to malfunction. however looking at them screen shots its looks like a phenomenon caused by an effect.

 

just to confirm, is this oldrim, or special edition.

 

the closes thing i can think of is, the images looks like a corruption of an effect.

 

if this image was from real life, it would be classed as spirits/ghosts. refereeing to the 2 spirals in the trees, however the thing that would cause that would most likely be dust particles.

 

what you could try is lowering the particle settings:

 

in your skyrim ini, look for "IMaxDesired" and lower it,

 

Note: ImaxDesired = how many particles to display

 

however not sure if the above setting would make a difference, worth a try though.

 

so a few questions:

 

1. have you modified the ini files at all ?

 

2. is all your drivers up to date.

[Tulsa299]

I've not replaced the thermal paste on the GPU yet, something worth doing today.... So far I've not been confident enough in my skills.

The orb appears when at average temperatures as well as at higher ones, more so a higher temps.

Oldrim

iMaxDesired=6000 in mine, I know this is much higher than the average, I cannot remember which mod had me edit this value.

Perhaps this could be it?

I'll put it back to 750 and test.

Yeah, I've edited a lot, nothing un-researched or heavily suggested by trusted figures (Gamer poets, S.T.E.P ect.)

I've recently re-configured my whole rig, new Skyrim dedicated SSD, new windows 7 install (on other SSD).
So all drivers were updated within the past two weeks.

Just checked AMD, the new update doesn't seem to do anything other than add new features to the periphery software (ReLive)

[Deleted3082751User]

ok first backup the ini files (move them to another location), and delete them from skyrim location, to create new ones, just to eliminate potential incorrect modifications (this will then ensure the issue is not caused by ini edits, ini editing is trial and error, regardless of how reputable the people that recommended the settings are, you are still changing them from bethesda default settings, and like overclocking can result in bad results, having fresh ones is a sure way of eliminating potential other causes of graphical corruption). also bare in mind that every single edit is based on the author own system, every person has a different system and likewise will have different results either positive or most cases negative results.

 

it must be said that putting cooling paste on the gpu will void the warranty, so just be wary of that.

 

other things you could try is setting the gpu to power saving (in amd control panel), this will force lower temperatures, and steady temperatures, again just to make sure its not caused by high temperatures.

 

play the game without an enb for a while, just to ensure that its not an oddity with the enb. that also means deleting the dxd9.dll file from skyrim main launcher folder. (you only need to delete/move this file to disable the enb)

 

whilst doing that measure the usage and temperatures of both your GPU and CPU. and report here.

 

i would like to know the temperature of your processor as well to get a good idea of what your system temperature is and to make sure that the CPU has nothing to do with the Artifacts.

 

skyrim is quite demanding on the CPU as well and as such it must be brought into the equation

 

the CPU job in skyrim is to draw Shadows, a demanding feature that usally hits framerate quite heavily.

 

also your IMaxDesired is very high, at least deleting the ini files will help determine if that was the culprit or atleast part of it.

Edited December 19, 2017 by Guest

[Tulsa299]

iMaxDesired=750 (from 6000) seems to have eliminated it... Still need to test more.

I did reset the ini's a few days ago and still had the same problem? That's odd...

That's cool, I don't have a warranty :D

I get to recording some temps shortly, main PC is in pieces atm.

I'll try your suggestions and report back.