280x Won't Overclock

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Hi guys, so i've got an Asus 280x in my rig atm. Now, when i originally got it i used Asus GPU Tweak to fiddle with its settings and run a mild overclock, but at some point that started causing problems so i uninstalled it and have simply been using the Catalyst control center (AMD Overdrive) to get by. Anyway, a week ago i bought a second Asus 280x on Ebay so i could Crossfire them and i figured i'd set up a more aggressive fan profile before it arrived, to make up for the extra heat. So i downloaded MSI Afterburner and went about doing that, but in the process i noticed that the monitoring software always registered a clock speed of 970MHz (the base clock for this card), no matter what clock speed i set it to myself. I uninstalled and did a clean reinstall my graphics drivers but it didn't make a difference, so i uninstalled Afterburner and downloaded the newest version of GPU Tweak, whereupon i had exactly the same problem.

These are some screenshots i took while running Firestrike. It doesn't make a difference whether i try to set the clock speed higher or lower than the default speed, it simply won't change. So my question is, does anyone have a clue why i cant change the clock speeds???

Screen%201_zpszkuds7jz.jpg

Screen%202_zps1maqmw7i.jpg
 
Alright, in that case please download DDU from this thread Here that lovely Dice kindly posts. Run it and clean install the drivers.

Also what OS are you on?

Remember to let it reboot your OS into safemode.
 
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Alright, in that case please download DDU from this thread Here that lovely Dice kindly posts. Run it and clean install the drivers.

Also what OS are you on?

Remember to let it reboot your OS into safemode.

Ok, uninstalled my drivers using DDU AND uninstalled GPU Tweak. Reinstalled my drivers, installed Afterburner this time aaannd...... Its still stuck at 970MHz...

Oh, and Windows 10.
 
Do you happen to have more than 1 program like MSI AB installed? Also did you remember to disable AMD overdrive?
 
Nah i've made sure to only have one installed at a time, unless GPUz can affect it which i doubt. AMD Overdrive is definitely disabled as well.

Is there a way to tell if another program is interfering?
 
Well if you want, you could chack the processes tab in Task manager. Other than that, maybe a clean install of windows the hard way :lol:

BTW does the card perform properly when you game/ bench? As in are you getting decent scores that are in line with what reviews got (should be similar depending on the drivers they tested with)
 
Yeah its in line with what i should be getting on base clocks. Right now im getting around 7200 in Firestrike (standard) which is around where reviews put it.
 
Why not just leave it be then? Frankly I suspect that the person you bought the card from flashed the cards bios.
 
I had that card. I used AMD's built in thingy (its been a while since..). IIRC correctly if you have the same card as I did (the basic asus one with the DCUII cooler) the base clock is 1000 (or if its the TOP version then 1070) not 970.
 
Actually I haven't gotten the second card yet, i've discovered all of this in preparation of the second card's arrival. The card in there now is still the one i bought new almost 2 years ago, and used to run at 1150MHz lol.

I probably will just leave it if i cant figure out a way to fix it, Its more the principle than anything else. i like having a nice round 1000/1100MHz to suit my mild OCD ;)

I had that card. I used AMD's built in thingy (its been a while since..). IIRC correctly if you have the same card as I did (the basic asus one with the DCUII cooler) the base clock is 1000 (or if its the TOP version then 1070) not 970.

Hey you know what, it IS the TOP version and the base clock IS supposed to be 1070, forgot about that. Ok now i really want to know why its screwing me around.
 
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asus gpu tweak is buggy in windows 10 have you tryed afterburner?
970 is low for any 7970/280x you should be aiming for 1150-1200Mhz on those cards.
 
asus gpu tweak is buggy in windows 10 have you tryed afterburner?
970 is low for any 7970/280x you should be aiming for 1150-1200Mhz on those cards.

Yeah tried Afterburner, same deal.

HOWEVER, i just found something interesting. Ever since i noticed this i've been testing it with Firestrike, but i just tried out a selection of random games and in those the GPU clock is what i set it to, it works fine. Perhaps should have tried that earlier :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

So it seems my issue is limited only to Firestrike, which i guess spawns a different question entirely. That being, has anyone else experienced a similar issue with Firestrike, because it never used to do anything like this to me?
 
Throttling? Maybe it aint getting enough juice?

Yeah perhaps, that was my first thought. but it locks at 970 as soon as soon as i open Firestrike and then stays locked there like a rock. Seems a bit too consistent for throttling, but i'll fiddle around with the power limit just to make sure.

What is up with VRM1 showing 147C?

Lol nice pick up, i've got no idea. I have had problems with the VRM Cooking on this card in the past. Went through an RMA process but Asus said there was nothing wrong. I'll keep an eye on that

EDIT - Just ran Valley for 15 mins and the VRM temps never went above 50. Surely it must've been a false reading before.
 
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