Trying to get the best performance out of your favorite games without spending a dime on a new graphics card? "Overclocking" your graphics card will provide a significant performance gain, although the risks are not small. Every time you try to increase the speed above the factory default speed, you run the risk of damaging your graphics card. However, if you perform the overclock steps with care and patience, you can safely "overclock" it without any major problems.
Step
Method 1 of 5: Get Ready
Step 1. Update your video card driver
Before starting to "overclock", make sure you are using the latest drivers for your video card, which can be downloaded from the Nvidia or AMD sites depending on the brand of your graphics card. Having the latest drivers will ensure your card is running as stable as possible. Often, new drivers also increase the "overclock" capability.
Step 2. Download your device
To overclock, you'll need a few different programs, all of which are available for free. These programs will give you a performance comparison, allow you to set your graphics card's "timings" and voltages, and monitor temperature performance.
- Download the "benchmark" program -- several "benchmark" programs are available, but one of the most intuitive is Heaven, which is available for free from Unigine, the developer of Heaven. Another popular program for "benchmarking" is 3DMark.
- Download a program to "overclock". Although Nvidia and AMD have their own "overclocked" programs, MSI Afterburner is one of the most popular and widely used programs. Despite the name MSI, this program can be used with almost all graphics cards from Nvidia and AMD.
- Download a monitoring program. While the "benchmark" and "overclock" programs will report the temperature and speed of the card, it's a good idea to install another monitor program to make sure your settings are saved. GPU-Z is a lightweight program that will monitor the temperature, processor speed, memory speed, and all other aspects of your graphics card.
Step 3. Know your card
Starting "overclocking" without sufficient information will only invite headaches and waste your time. Find the maximum speed other people get with the same graphics card as you, and the maximum safe voltage for your card.
- Do not apply these values directly to your graphics card. Since every graphics card is different, no one will know what will happen if you enter the wrong speed value. Use the values you find as a guide to assess whether the values you are getting are effective.
- Try visiting forums like Overclock.net to find people with the same graphics card as you and have already "overclocked".
- You should not "overclock" the laptop's graphics card. Compared to computers, laptops have a harder time handling heat, and "overclocking" can push your laptop to dangerously high temperatures.
Method 2 of 5: Performing a "Benchmark" on the Graphics Card
Step 1. Open the "benchmark" program
Install the program after it's finished downloading. Most users can leave the default settings during installation. Once the program is installed, open it to start the "benchmarking" process.
Step 2. Set the "benchmark" settings
Before starting, you can adjust the graphics settings. Adjust the settings to your taste, and make sure the resolution is set to "Desktop". If your "benchmark" program is not working properly with the settings you selected, you can change them later.
Step 3. Click "Run"
The "benchmark" program will run, and after loading resources for a few seconds, some scenes will play on your monitor. If the performance on the scene is poor, you can exit the "benchmark" and lower the setting, but this is not necessary. During the "overclock" process, you will see a performance increase without the need to lower settings.
Step 4. Click "Benchmark"
Once the scene starts playing, you'll see a row of buttons at the top of the screen. Click the "Benchmark" button to start the process. In Heaven, this button will run 26 different scenes, and take a few minutes. After the "benchmark" is completed, you will be given a score based on the capabilities of your graphics card,
Step 5. Record your score
These notes will help you compare results once you start to speed up your card.
Method 3 of 5: Increase Card Core Speed
Step 1. Open MSI Afterburner
You'll see a slider to the left of the program and a hardware monitor to the right of the program. You can also run GPU-Z now to have a second monitor and verify readings.
Step 2. Find the "Core Clock (MHz)" slider
This slider adjusts the core speed of your GPU. If your card has a Shader Clock slider, make sure it's tied to the Core Clock slider. You'll see link icons on both sliders if they're tied together.
Step 3. Increase core speed by about 10Mhz
When making card speed adjustments for the first time, we recommend that you start with small increments, such as 10Mhz. This small increase allows you to see a performance increase, but not too much.
Step 4. Click "Apply"
The effect of this change should appear immediately. Check the information on GPU-Z to make sure the new speed has appeared.
Step 5. Run the "benchmark" program
Once you've made your first adjustments and made sure your adjustments are saved, run the "benchmark" program again and get a new score. While the program is running, notice whether the image quality or frame rate increases markedly from the first try.
If the "benchmark" program runs without problems, your "overclock" is still stable so far and you can continue the "overclocking" process
Step 6. Repeat steps to increase speed and check it via "benchmark"
Increase your speed by multiples of 10Mhz, and try the results in the "benchmark" program each time you finish. Sooner or later, you are bound to find instability.
Instability will show up in the form of black screens, graphics glitches, artifacts, poor colors, color blobs, etc
Step 7. Decide on the next step
Once you find instability, you can revert your settings to their previous settings, or increase the voltage. If you see a clear performance increase, or you don't want to risk damaging your card by changing its power path, return the card to its last normal speed and read step 5. If you still want to try to increase the performance of your card, leave the card speed and switch to next section.
Method 4 of 5: Raising Card Core Voltage
Step 1. Click the Settings button in MSI Afterburner
The Core Voltage slider is locked by default to prevent accidental damage to your card. Disabling this option alone already gives an idea of how serious it is to increase the voltage of your graphics card. Check the "Unlock voltage control" box on the General tab and click OK.
Step 2. Increase the "Core Voltage (mV)" slider by about 10mV
You may not be able to choose 10mV precisely, as the voltage can only be increased by a certain multiple. Click "Apply".
Step 3. Run the "benchmark" program
Once you have increased the voltage, run the "benchmar" program to test the stability of your "overclock". Remember, you left your settings at an unstable speed, so if your settings stabilize after increasing the voltage, you can increase the core speed.
Step 4. Repeat the third step
If your "overclock" is stable, try increasing the core speed again by a multiple of 10Mhz, and running the "benchmark" program each time you increase the speed. Repeat until you find instability.
Step 5. Look at the temperature of the graphics card
As the voltage goes up, your GPU temperature goes up too. As you increase the voltage, pay attention to the temperature in GPU-Z. It's best to keep the temperature below 90 °C, but many "overclock" enthusiasts recommend a lower temperature, such as 80°C and below.
Upgrading your graphics card and case's cooling system will help you increase your "overclock" capability, but doing so can be expensive and time-consuming
Step 6. Raise your GPU voltage again
Once you find further instability, increase your Core Voltage by 10mV again. Don't forget to pay attention to the temperature of your GPU, because temperature is one of the biggest limiters on "overclocking".
Step 7. Do not increase the voltage above the safe voltage
Do you remember the notes on your cards that you made earlier? Make sure you don't exceed the safe voltage limit on your card when you make adjustments.
Step 8. Know when to stop
At some point, your "overclock" will become ineffective. You'll either hit the temperature or voltage limit, or your core speed won't stabilize as much as you increase the voltage. If you are already facing this, you can move on to the next step.
Step 9. Repeat all steps to change the "Memory Clock (Mhz)" value
Once you reach the "Core Clock" limit, do the same with the "Memory Clock". Repeat steps by increasing the "Memory Clock" by a multiple of 10Mhz, and increasing the voltage when you find instability (if you haven't reached maximum temperature).
Make sure you keep running the "benchmark" every time you finish making certain adjustments. Increasing the "Memory Clock" can improve GPU performance, but at some point, the "Memory Clock" will actually start to degrade performance. Pay attention to your "benchmark" scores to make sure you find the right one
Step 10. Overclock the SLI card
The "overclock" process on an SLI card is generally similar to that of a single graphics card. Each card needs to be "overclocked" separately, and the late card will set the speed for both cards. Since no two cards are exactly the same, one of the cards will be controlled by the other. Follow the steps above to overclock each card.
Method 5 of 5: Stability Test
Step 1. Start your benchmark program
Doing a "stress test" takes a lot of time, so make sure you don't need your computer for several hours. You can leave your computer for testing, but you may want to check your computer and test its performance.
Step 2. Click the "Run" button
Instead of running the "benchmark" process in Heaven, click "Run" and leave. Heaven will continue to move between scenes until you stop it.
Step 3. Check for errors
As the scene continues to play, watch for errors, artifacts, or outright errors. They all show an unstable "overclock", and you'll need to go back to MSI Afterburner to downgrade the settings. If for 4-5 hours no errors, artifacts, or live errors occur, you can use your computer to play the game.
Step 4. Play
A "benchmark" program may be cool, but that's no reason to "overclock". Your game is the reason you overclock. Open your favorite game and test its performance. Your old setup should work better, and you might be able to upgrade it to a higher level!
