Vidcard o/c goes to hell...

[Riptide]

Anyone ever have this sort of thing happen?

My XTPE has been running just fine at 549/591 for over six months now. In fact, I played hours of CS:S a few nights back with no problem. Well starting yesterday my system locks up hard after about 10-30 min. of play time.

I started by removing my system overclock but it kept on doing it. So I took my XTPE back to stock speeds and it seems to have quit locking up hard. So for some reason what used to be stable has more or less out of the blue become unstable. WTF? Temps on the core are the same so nothing there seems to have changed. It just has all of the sudden decided it won't run at my previous overclock.

[BrianG]

Fan failure, dirty heatsink, deteriorating thermal compound, power supply capacitor damage...

Plenty of reasons why your card could have lost is upper limits. Did you recently add any hardware cutting your available power? Any recent power outages or surges?

[Riptide]

Nothing has changed at all. The fan is fine as well. Dirty heatsink maybe... but doubtful. I keep it pretty clean and I run filters on all my fans and keep them clean as well. There has been some dust gather in there but it's hard to see how it could've got down in where the contact is made between the chip and the heat sink. My computer is one of the cleanest I've seen. ;)

[saturnotaku]

Sometimes stuff just happens. Unfortunately it seems to happen a lot to you. :(

[Riptide]

Yes, I seem to have more than my share of bad luck. I'm starting to wonder if such a thing as a curse does indeed exist. Some of the experiences I've had... it makes me wonder.

If I get some more time tonight/tomorrow I will troubleshoot this a little further and see if perhaps it isn't just CS:S that is the problem. One thing I haven't done yet is test with other games/benchmarks to see if they lock or not. I also need to run some more tests at default clocks w/CS:S to make absolutely sure it is completely stable at those settings. I wasn't able to do a full test last night as I ran out of time. We'll see.

[saturnotaku]

There have been some recent updates to CS:S so maybe one of those is causing your trouble as opposed to the hardware. Just a thought.

[Riptide]

Could be. That's why I'm going to do a bit more testing before I decide it's my hardware at fault. Probably will take a couple hours tonight and play around with it. First I'll play for a solid hour at default clocks. If it's OK, then I'll clock it back up and try again. If it locks... Well then it's probably not any update causing the issue. But if it locks at stock speeds I'll go and play some other games/run some 3dmark03/05 looping and see what happens. I also have ATI Tool so I can try running an artifact scan and see if things are getting flakey there.

Basically I'm going to have to pour some time into it in order to figure out what's going on. I do know other people have had hard lockups in that game so it may not be just me. The only thing that seems odd is the fact it worked fine on Friday night.

[|JuiceZ|]

<stupid_question> Does anything else lockup beside CS:S? </stupid_question>

Ahh nm, report back after testing....:)

[SH64]

Try ATi's artifacts tester .. my system locked up once when i overclocked my X800 beyond 520 , but my case is different .
also try 3DMARK2003/2005 @1600x1200,4xAA,8xAF & Doom3 ... if it dosent lock up on these then its probably a problem with something else .

[circuitbreaker8]

Nothing has changed at all. The fan is fine as well. Dirty heatsink maybe... but doubtful. I keep it pretty clean and I run filters on all my fans and keep them clean as well. There has been some dust gather in there but it's hard to see how it could've got down in where the contact is made between the chip and the heat sink. My computer is one of the cleanest I've seen. ;)


I beg to differ...


But I dont have any pics of mine ATM. :cool:

As wrong as it feels to say it, it might be your PSU. Try using another one and see if you have the same problem.

Other things to recomend...


*Reformat
*Try different drivers
*Reset the CMOS
*Take the card out, reapply thermal compound, reseat HS/F

[Sazar]

you must be a red sox fan... scratch that... you must be a cubs fan...

[Riptide]

I beg to differ...

As wrong as it feels to say it, it might be your PSU. Try using another one and see if you have the same problem.

Other things to recomend...

*Reformat
*Try different drivers
*Reset the CMOS
*Take the card out, reapply thermal compound, reseat HS/F
While I appreciate the suggestions... I've been down the road of swap this, swap that, buy this, buy that before. And I'm not gonna go there again.

If it works fine at stock speeds then I'm going to leave it at stock speeds. Same goes for my CPU. In fact, I am probably going to leave that back at stock as well. Given the modest increases in overall performance that I've got out of my overclock I don't think it's worth it any more. I get maybe another 500 points on 3dmark03 and another 2000 in 3dmark01. The difference is barely even noticeable in games, if at all. Nah, I think my o/c days are over with. For good. I'll leave it up to people with better luck than I.

I ran 30 minutes of artifact scanning at lunch w/ATI Tool. GPU got up to 62c, which is a great temp. The scanner never reset nor were there lockups. Tonight I'm going to play the crap out of CS:S. If it stays stable... then the card is most likely not putting up with the overclock any more. And if so then back at stock it will stay henceforth.

My luck just isn't good enough to overclock with success. Plus I don't have the $$$. Ever figure the restock fee on an FX series CPU? It's horrendous. ;)

[circuitbreaker8]

While I appreciate the suggestions... I've been down the road of swap this, swap that, buy this, buy that before. And I'm not gonna go there again.

If it works fine at stock speeds then I'm going to leave it at stock speeds. Same goes for my CPU. In fact, I am probably going to leave that back at stock as well. Given the modest increases in overall performance that I've got out of my overclock I don't think it's worth it any more. I get maybe another 500 points on 3dmark03 and another 2000 in 3dmark01. The difference is barely even noticeable in games, if at all. Nah, I think my o/c days are over with. For good. I'll leave it up to people with better luck than I.

I ran 30 minutes of artifact scanning at lunch w/ATI Tool. GPU got up to 62c, which is a great temp. The scanner never reset nor were there lockups. Tonight I'm going to play the crap out of CS:S. If it stays stable... then the card is most likely not putting up with the overclock any more. And if so then back at stock it will stay henceforth.

My luck just isn't good enough to overclock with success. Plus I don't have the $$$. Ever figure the restock fee on an FX series CPU? It's horrendous. ;)



Haha, with you're system, OCing would be pretty pointless :) Plus...no game out there ATM really strains a X800XT-PE...

[Riptide]

Played for a couple hours last night at stock speeds. No hard lockups. I did get a lot of crackling/popping noises in some of the maps though. Very annoying. Not sure what that was all about but I've had that problem intermittently ever since CS:S/HL2 were out and playable.

Tonight I think I might clock the card back up and see what happens. If she locks up again then I most definitely will leave it back at stock speeds for good.

[Lfctony]

I didn't even touch mine in terms of o/c. I didn't overclock my 6800U before that either. I'm not so keen on video card o/c since it's fairly difficult to spot problems. The CPU just works, it's much easier to check whether it's handling a given o/c. I'd rather have my mind at ease rather than wondering whether that texture flash was a game bug or due to my video card o/c. For me, the tradeoff isn't justified. I don't like running hardware at it's limits.

[Pandora's Box]

quite frankly riptide i dont understand why you overclocked your xtpe anyway. they are so rare and if something happend to it, getting a replacement is not going to be easy. all for what? 2-3fps improvement?

[Riptide]

Well for one I went to the trouble of mounting a replacement HSF. I did that for more than just the sechsy looks it provides but to get a bit of a boost out of it.

You could ask the same question to any number of people on this board here. Many of them have 6800GT's that really don't need an overclock - but they do it anyway. And some even do it with their Ultras. They do it because the card seems to handle it, so why not get a little extra performance whether it's really required or not? They are taking a risk, as is evidenced by my experience. But most of them have better luck than I do so odds are they'll be just fine.

*EDIT* I tested w/ATI Tool today on my lunch. With my old clocks, which used to pass ATI Tool artifact scanner just fine, it dies after 8 minutes. Take it back to stock and it went over half an hour. It looks to me like my card no longer likes being overclocked any more. Let this be a warning to those of you who are overclocking your video cards - just because it's fine now does not mean it will stay that way.

[Acid Rain]

I didn't even touch mine in terms of o/c. I didn't overclock my 6800U before that either. I'm not so keen on video card o/c since it's fairly difficult to spot problems. I'd rather have my mind at ease rather than wondering whether that texture flash was a game bug or due to my video card o/c.

I agree. While it's cool to see how much free power you can crank out of your gear, there is something unsettling about it.

If you get a hard lock or see a game related graphical anomaly, it makes you question the stabilty of your system.

If your not OCed and you've got decent airflow and a good PSU, you can rest at ease knowing it's either the game needing a patch or a driver bug, neither of which shortens the life of your system.

These parts are somewhat expensive and ruining them just to take your frames from 100 to 110 doesn't justify it for me.

Not to mention that we now have so much power available even with stock settings.

I just want my system to run fast, stable and cool.

Whoa.......holy offtopic, Batman....ummm, like, don't OC X800 or stuff and something......X800 already roxxxorz......guzzles another Henry's...burp...

[circuitbreaker8]

Well for one I went to the trouble of mounting a replacement HSF. I did that for more than just the sechsy looks it provides but to get a bit of a boost out of it.

You could ask the same question to any number of people on this board here. Many of them have 6800GT's that really don't need an overclock - but they do it anyway. And some even do it with their Ultras. They do it because the card seems to handle it, so why not get a little extra performance whether it's really required or not? They are taking a risk, as is evidenced by my experience. But most of them have better luck than I do so odds are they'll be just fine.

*EDIT* I tested w/ATI Tool today on my lunch. With my old clocks, which used to pass ATI Tool artifact scanner just fine, it dies after 8 minutes. Take it back to stock and it went over half an hour. It looks to me like my card no longer likes being overclocked any more. Let this be a warning to those of you who are overclocking your video cards - just because it's fine now does not mean it will stay that way.


Thats a very odd problem Rip. My old 9800 Pro used to be OCed 480/800 ( 380/680 stock ) for over a year. Donno what the deal is

[Riptide]

I'm pretty sure I know what the problem is. It's the same issue that can come up with any overclocked part. Shortened lifespan. In this case it just happened faster than anyone would have expected. Part of this is just bad luck (so rare for me) but it also indicates just how close to the edge the XTPE really is as far as clocks go at stock. There really isn't a lot of headroom there.

[circuitbreaker8]

I'm pretty sure I know what the problem is. It's the same issue that can come up with any overclocked part. Shortened lifespan. In this case it just happened faster than anyone would have expected. Part of this is just bad luck (so rare for me) but it also indicates just how close to the edge the XTPE really is as far as clocks go at stock. There really isn't a lot of headroom there.

Yeah well I wouldn't worry about it much. I dont know a single game that stresses a X800XT PE. Thats why, IMO, SLi is a huge waste ATM.

[Riptide]

Yeah well I wouldn't worry about it much. I dont know a single game that stresses a X800XT PE. Thats why, IMO, SLi is a huge waste ATM.
And I would agree with that. Which is why I'm not sweating it to much since the card, technically, isn't ruined. It still runs OK at stock speeds. Down the road if it starts freaking out at stock speeds then I'll have to replace it.

That is the last component I ever attempt to overclock though. Period.

[OWA]

Yeah well I wouldn't worry about it much. I dont know a single game that stresses a X800XT PE. Thats why, IMO, SLi is a huge waste ATM.
Heh, you must not have tried the 2.0++ mode in the Chronicles of Riddick or seen the performance drop some when using SM 3.0/HDR in Far Cry. :) Cards are never fast enough, IMO, and there is always some game or resolution / settings that seems to tax them. Having an option to gain back the performance lost when cutting edge features are used in games is a good thing I think. Edit: My comment above applies to overclocking and SLI, BTW.

As far as overclocking, I always try and run things overclocked although not to the extreme. I guess I find it fun trying to squeeze a little extra performance out of the hardware. Also, sometimes a few extra FPS can make the difference between an enjoyable gaming experience and a frustrating gaming experience (for those times when you're on the stuttering/lagging threshold).

The only time I've ever had my overclocks affected was when changing drivers. It does sound like your card may have issues now though. Sorry to hear that.

[circuitbreaker8]

Heh, you must not have tried the 2.0++ mode in the Chronicles of Riddick or seen the performance drop some when using SM 3.0/HDR in Far Cry. :) Cards are never fast enough, IMO, and there is always some game or resolution / settings that seems to tax them. Having an option to gain back the performance lost when cutting edge features are used in games is a good thing I think. Edit: My comment above applies to overclocking and SLI, BTW.




You guys really need to focus on what you're upgrading FOR though. Sure FC looks great w/ HDR and crap, but its really distracting and doesn't look that great when you're trying to actually play the game. Is eye candy worth $1,000? Just turn one setting down and save some $$ :D

[BrianG]

Well, at what point is sacrificing the immersive effects of better texture filtering, jaggie elimniation and shader effects worth a resolution notch or shader effect?

Point being, everyone has to pick their poison. I used to play Q3A at LAN parties against guys that maxed gamma and killed the shadows. Instead, I played with max eye candy. I just thought it was more of a challenge and a helluva lot more fun. I am sure the HDR Far Cry crowd agrees with my point of view, but it doesn't make them right either. Heh.