Damaging GPUs

Is it possible to damage a GPU by just setting a higher core and memory speed(from 8600gt speed to 8700gt), and then do a 3dmark06 test. While doing the test temperatures were not overheating. After the test the clock speeds are revert back to normal. Whole procedure took about 30 min. So can a gpu be damaged by clocking it higher than usual?

 

Definetely YES

 

They can be damaged by extreme heat (which can be caused by a couple things) Overclocking is risky, make sure you take the proper precautions to keep your notebook cool. Don't push too hard.

 

Most of the time when you start going to far is when artifacts are popping up in games, high gpu stressing games like Oblivion. I think you'll run into artifacts before you fry it but notebooks can get pretty hot fast.

 

Its very difficult to damage a modern processor, be that central processing or graphics processor. Alot of safety features are built in to protect it from overheating. Increasing clockspeed does have an affect on temperatures, and it is possible to damage a processor, by going to far, but this tends not to happen.

 

The most likely way to damage a part is to over-volt, which is basically impossible to do with a laptop. Just read the Cooling Guide, monitor temps at all times, and SLOWLY OC your parts...probably 5-10MHz at a time followed up by stress tests. After that, overclocking can damage...but as Zero said it is hard to do as safeties usually shut down or throttle down the PC before it hits the point of no-return.

 

Thanks for the info. Now I'm pretty sure something is wrong with the drivers that is causing my weird decrease in score for 3dmark and pc.

 

Kiwiboy, to optimise your 3DMark score, increase your core/ram speed in increments of 27Mhz. That's the frequency of the internal crystal that keeps track of core and mem speed (27.271Mhz to be exact). When you're at the threshold of stability, 3DMarks will tend to decrease. Clock back 10-15Mhz and your score will inexplicably jump higher. For more info, refer to xtremesystems.org - a very hardcore overclocking forum.

And no, you won't inadvertantly damage a GPU by overclocking. It takes a concentrated effort to push ridiculous amounts of voltage thru it (which is near impossible to do on a notebook, and without a soldering iron) or prolonged exposure to high temps - which will lock up your video long before it reaches harmful levels.

 

Thanks for those xtreme overclocking tips. I'll give them a try after I finish a clean install first.

 

Here's a good thread on overclocking:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=124420

 

Onyx - where did you get that 27mhz myth from? I've been on XS for years and never seen that one in all my time.. not even since the days we were all doing PLL mods which ran at frequencies varrying from 25mhz to 50mhz

 

Could've been hardOCP forums. I dunno, it's been a while since I was a hardcore 3DMark bencher. I had employed every last tip and trick to optimise 3dwank scores... It worked for me.