8600GT 2d clock settings?

So, I'm just playing around with my video card and was using RivaTuner. I'm on a Dell XPS M1530, with a 8600G 256MB DDR3. Using RivaTuner, I was looking at the 2D settings and was thinking to myself... "2D doesn't really require a super strong GPU, so why do I need high clock settings while browsing the web or maybe playing a 2D game?"

So, I've been underclocking my graphics card to save power. Currently, I'm at 110mhz core/220mhz shader/85mhz memory.

Is it safe to do this? Or smart? I notice my battery life has gone up a bit, and it -may- run a bit cooler. Could I underclock it a bit more? Also, is it safe to not sync the core+shader clocks, or should I keep those synced.

Are their any cons to this? What about pros?

Thanks!

 

Bump... want some answers.

 

I have never heard anyone having problems due to underclocking before. Why don't you just leave the job to Nvidia's powermizer (built-in into the driver)? I think you still need some of your GPU power even if you're on 2D mode. The default setting for 2D under powermizer is 168/100, when it comes to 3D it'll be set to 475/700.

By the way the latest WHQL driver from Nvidia (175.19) will set the laptop to 2D mode all the time when you're on battery (even if you turn on to high performance mode or play video games). There is a way to fix this by editing the registry so that while you're on battery, the laptop can switch to 475/700 automatically when you really need it...and yeah off course it will turn back to 168/100 when you switch back to desktop.

There are many ways to make your battery last longer... underclocking the GPU and (undervolting) CPU are not the only ones. Some of them are: use touchpad instead of mouse, decreasing the brightness, do not use usb powered laptop cooling pad while on the go, turn of the volume, wireless LAN, bluetooth and so on.

I hope this helps.

 

I tried and found that 8600gt ddr2 can be stable at 130/100. The test is movie play. If it runs ok - it is stable.

And just some comments on the above posts - undervolting CPU - easy and probably the best thing you can do even for games - since it brings the temp down. If you have the same heatsink for GPU and CPU - even better.
Underclocking GPU in 2D makes sense - you can actually bring down the temp of 8600 by 2 degrees. Overclocking GPU in 3D has obvious advantages - but be caruful of temp. Undervolting CPU and overclocking GPU under the same heatsink is a good thing.

Now undervolting GPU would be the best thing temp wise. Is it possible? ACTUALLY YES! It is possible to change GPU BIOS settings and undervolt it that way. The problem is that if you make a mistake - notebook could be unbootable and you cannot put another graphic card to boot it like you can in a desktop. So it is a RISKY stuff. But I read that people have done it - and on 8600gt it worked like a charm - they could overclock more since it became more stable when OC because of the temp drop. And yes I am aware of the higher voltage - more stability rule, but it seems that if you drop the temp just for a few degrees on a mobile GPU - despite the fact you undervolted it a bit - it is enough to overclock a bit more.

And now in line with the thread - underclocked gpu - ok, but undervolted GPU in 2d cannot be bad either. Since GPU is using only a fraction of its power - this undervolting should be easy, but the temp drop would be quite small. When idle - cool and quiet. In games the stable undervolted card should be much cooler than before since just a small undervolting should bring at least a few degrees drop.The problem is that you cannot know when to stop undervolting - the numbers are written into the graphic BIOS and will be applied every time. If you have stable 2d - perhaps you could change 3d voltages even if you went too low and computer restarted.

So as I said - risky stuff but possible.

Cheers,

Ivan

 

How has this been working out, Im considering trying it