downclocking video card to lowest settings?

K

konsole

Member
Using the Catalyst Control Center I see that the GPU CLOCK slider goes all the way down to 500mhz and the MEMORY CLOCK slider goes all the way down to 450mhz on my Diamond 4870. From what I have read, underclocking can be just as unstable as overclocking, but does anyone have much experience with underclocking their cards to maybe save a little power and maybe lengthen the life of the video card?

I'd be very interested in underclocking the card all the way if possible to save wear and tear and power, when the system is not being used.
 
I think underclocking is like driving in a low gear all the time. It's not gonna save electricity (or gas) and it will decrease the life of the card.
 
thats absurd nvidias high end cards do this on there own.wearing out a transmission in a car is a terrible analogy for this.less clocks on a video card do mean less heat,and power draw.it will certainly not kill its longevity.
 
My eVGA GTX 260 down clocks itself when not loaded.

It drops to about 300MHz core and the shader clock drops with the strap. The memory drops to about 550 or so.

I guess it saves electricity...as soon as I need it, the card jumps right back into action:D
 
yup my 4670 also down clocks it self. When on idle, its at.
IDLE:165mhz(core)/250mhz(mem)
GAMING:780mhz(core)/1125mhz(mem)
Im sure tis saving a lil power but i dont really care, i dont pay the bill lol.:D
 
ScOuT said:
My eVGA GTX 260 down clocks itself when not loaded.

It drops to about 300MHz core and the shader clock drops with the strap. The memory drops to about 550 or so.

I guess it saves electricity...as soon as I need it, the card jumps right back into action:D
Click to expand...


exactly my gtx260 does the same.downclocking a card will not hurt it.
 
My 4870 runs at 750 gpu and 900 memory, but when the gpu doesnt detect any needed 3d calculations the gpu downclocks to 500. Be interesting to find out if I can get my card all the way down to 500 gpu and 400 memory like the CCC says.
 
yeah, your hardware should be smart enough to do this. on the other hand, if it's not being used, why not just turn it off? or do what i did:
build a low power system for everyday use, and leave the powerful rig just for gaming.
 
ScOuT said:
My eVGA GTX 260 down clocks itself when not loaded.

It drops to about 300MHz core and the shader clock drops with the strap. The memory drops to about 550 or so.

I guess it saves electricity...as soon as I need it, the card jumps right back into action:D
Click to expand...

It also saves CPU cycles as there is not as much being directed to the GPU. Laptops all do this by trade. When your laptop runs off of battery power everything under clocks automatically to consume less power.

It is not like driving your car in a low gear, that analogy is wrong. Especially since computers don't have gears. *facepalm*
 
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