Nvidia Gtx 660 overclocking problems

[Sraik]

I am trying to overclock my msi gtx 660 from 980 MHz to 1280 MHz in 100 MHz leaps. I am using gpuZ, msi afterburner, msi kombuster, and fraps to benchmark my graphics card in far cry 3. When i first tested my card at 1080 MHz, it benchmarked slightly worse than at stock, and I have no idea why. I ran the benchmarks twice at both 980 and 1080 MHz in the same areas and consistently get around 45 fps. After running the benchmarks the game randomly crashed, which never happened to me before. What I am wondering is if a 100 MHz increase is too small to make a noticeable difference in a game or do i also need to increase the voltage? Also will a 100 MHz overclock make a card unstable without increasing the voltage? Should I take smaller steps or larger ones? 

[Godlygamer23]

Are you sure the GPU is actually running at those clocks? You might want to step down a bit in how much you overclock per session. 50MHz is more suitable.

[mvitkun]

do i also need to increase the voltage?

you may depending on the card

 

What I am wondering is if a 100 MHz increase is too small to make a noticeable difference in a game

it depends on the game,a less intensive game will probably show an increase,in a more intensive game a good overclock might raise your fps by 2-5fps.

When i first tested my card at 1080 MHz, it benchmarked slightly worse than at stock

how much worse?was it within a margin of error?

 

I am using gpuZ, msi afterburner, msi kombuster, and fraps to benchmark my graphics card in far cry 3.

the more intensive the game the less of a difference there will be between different tiers of cards,so an overclock will be very unlikely to show.

[Sraik]

you may depending on the card

 

it depends on the game,a less intensive game will probably show an increase,in a more intensive game a good overclock might raise your fps by 2-5fps.

how much worse?was it within a margin of error?

 

the more intensive the game the less of a difference there will be between different tiers of cards,so an overclock will be very unlikely to show.

stock clocks average after 2 min. in the bone crusher mission: 41.883 and 41.083 fps

+100 MHz: 40.742 and 39.8 fps

 

thanks for the help

[Sraik]

Are you sure the GPU is actually running at those clocks? You might want to step down a bit in how much you overclock per session. 50MHz is more suitable.

i set the clock speed in afterburner and hit apply, then ran the benchmarks. do i need to restart my computer? i have never overclocked before

[Godlygamer23]

i set the clock speed in afterburner and hit apply, then ran the benchmarks. do i need to restart my computer? i have never overclocked before

No restarting is required. Were you monitoring your clocks? It seems like you were since you gave accurate numbers to @mvitkun.

[Morfy]

1200 is unreal, you need to overvolt it, and without a modded bios, you're not going to achieve that. Your game crashed because of the too high OC, Try in 10 mhz, until it crashes, then back up. You should be able to reach 1150ish.

[Godlygamer23]

1200 is unreal, you need to overvolt it, and without a modded bios, you're not going to achieve that. 

I've achieved that without a modded BIOS.(stable)

[Morfy]

I've achieved that without a modded BIOS.(stable)

On a 660? Non power edition.(which were rare)

[Morfy]

Double sorry post.

[Sraik]

No restarting is required. Were you monitoring your clocks? It seems like you were since you gave accurate numbers to @mvitkun.

i am monitoring kombustor with gpuz to get clocks. at stock it shows 979.8 MHz but when i add 100 MHz the max that it runs at is 1032 MHz :/

[Godlygamer23]

On a 660? Non power edition.(which were rare)

Well, it was a 660 Ti and it's a DirectCU II version.

[Morfy]

660 are GK-106 and are not inclined to high clocks without overvolting ;)

[Morfy]

i am monitoring kombustor with gpuz to get clocks. at stock it shows 979.8 MHz but when i add 100 MHz the max that it runs at is 1032 MHz :/

The clock will jump in a weird way, test at each jump you see in afterburner. But after your game/driver crashes, make sure you reset your Afterburner settings and then modify again.