ASUS Maximus V Extreme-ly fast overclock.

Subject: General Tech, Motherboards, Processors | October 2, 2012 - 08:06 PM | Scott Michaud
Tagged: overclock, asus

ASUSTeK has just accomplished a new world record overclock with their ASUS Maximus V Extreme motherboard. They calculated 1 million digits of Pi in a time of 5s 94ms which beats the current best time 5s 125ms according to HWBot. This result once validated lands the Maximus V Extreme in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place positions.

ASUS has once again broke records in the Pi eating contest with their Maximus V Extreme motherboard.

It must be a fun day for an overclocker when you get to play with Liquid Helium. While I attended the Physics department of Queen’s University up here in Canada the facility was known for its condensed matter group. Much of the building was fitted with piping to recapture and recondense the Helium after its experiments strictly due to how much it cost and how rare it is. If someone offers for you to break an overclocking record with it you are obliged to say yes.

The achieved overclock appears to be tuned towards the application. Memory frequency was kept at 1333 MHz with a FSB of about 110 MHz. I would expect this multiplier-centric overclock is designed to keep the overclock focused on sheer number crunching which Super Pi likely relies on over memory bandwidth. Perhaps reduced memory timings might even come in to play for applications like this?

ASUS broke a few records with their Liquid Helium attempt. As of time of writing none of these records have been updated to the HWBot leaderboard.

With Super Pi running to 1 million digits Asus and their team recorded a time of 5s 94ms -- 31 milliseconds faster than the current leading time of 5s 125ms. The current leaderboard already contains the ASUS Maximus V Extreme motherboard in Gold, Silver, and Bronze positions. This podium has already been well represented by the Maximus V.

When you cannot be satisfied with 1 million digits of pi you can run the marathon to 32 million digits.

The most current record that I could find was set by a team sponsored by GSkill who achieved the time of 4min 44sec 609ms just a couple of weeks ago. ASUS and their team - which apparently has at least one member, “Smoke”, in common with the team GSkill assembled - also beat this record by almost 2 full seconds with a score of 4min 43s 0ms.

Fastest isn't necessarily best when it comes to GTX 660s

Subject: Graphics Cards | September 20, 2012 - 04:35 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: overclock, gtx 660, DirectCU II, asus

As promised [H]ard|OCP has spent some time overclocking the ASUS GTX 660 DirectCU II card and have come back with their results.  The highest GPU clock they managed was a reported 1170MHz Boost clock in GPU Tweak but which was 1215MHz in actual in-game performance.  While that was the high speed record it did not provide the best performance as the frequency often dipped much lower because of the heat produced, [H]'s sweet spot was actually a 1100MHz Boost clock, in-game a much more steady 1152MHz though it did still dip occasionally.  They also upped the memory, but again because of the heat produced by the overclock they could not raise voltage without negative consequences.  Check the whole review here.

"We put our new ASUS GeForce GTX 660 through the ringer of overclocking and make real world gaming comparisons. If you are thinking the new GTX 660 (GK106) GPU will be a good overclocker like its bigger brother GK104, you may be in for a surprise that puts the new GTX 660 in a new light."

Here are some more Graphics Card articles from around the web:

Graphics Cards

• ASUS GeForce GTX 660 Ti DirectCU II TOP @ [H]ard|OCP
• GeForce 9800 GT vs GeForce 660 GTX @ Guru of 3D
• Zotac GTX680 AMP Edition @ Bjorn3D
• EVGA GeForce GTX 660 SuperClocked Video Card Review @ Hardware Secrets
• Zotac GeForce GTX 660 with GK106 GPU @ @ X-bit Labs
• NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 2GB Review @ Techgage
• Sparkle GTX650 OC Dragon Series @ Kitguru
• GeForce GTX 650 MSI Power edition @ Guru3D
• KFA GeForce GTX 650 EX OC 1 GB @ techPowerUp
• EVGA GeForce GTX 660 SC @ Guru of 3D
• MSI GeForce GTX 650 Power Edition OC 1 GB @ techPowerUp
• NVIDIA Chips Comparison Table @ Hardware Secrets
• NVIDIA FXAA Anti-Aliasing Performance @ Phoronix
• Seven Nvidia GeForce GTX 680 round-up: Super cards @ Hardware.info
• Desktop Graphics Card Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• Arctic Accelero Twin Turbo 6990 VGA Cooler Review @ eTeknix
• Sapphire Radeon HD 7750 1GB Low Profile Review @ Neoseeker
• ARCTIC Accelero Hybrid 7970 @ Hardwareoverclock
• PowerColor Devil 13 HD 7990 Review @ OCC
• Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 Flex Edition Review @ Hi Tech Legion
• XFX Radeon HD 7770 Black Edition Overclocked 1GB Graphics Card Review @ eTeknix
• Sapphire HD7770 GHZ FleX Edition @ Kitguru
• Sapphire Radeon Flex HD 7770 GHz Edition Video Card @ Pro-Clockers
• Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Vapor-X Review @ OCC
• HD 7990 Review; PowerColor’s Devil 13 @ Hardware Canucks
• MSI HD7850 Power Edition Video Card @ Bjorn3D

Just how fast can the GTX 660 Ti go?

Subject: Graphics Cards | August 23, 2012 - 03:10 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: GeForce GTX 660 Ti GC, galaxy, overclock, nvidia, 660ti

The majority of the GTX 660 Ti models run faster than the stock clocks, with some having a Boost Clock approaching 1.1GHz and some sporting memory overclocks as well.  This lead [H]ard|OCP to ask two questions; just how fast can the card go and are you better off with faster memory or a faster processor.  When they left the GPU as is, they could hit an effective speed of 7.71GHz and when they returned the memory to the base speed they pushed the core to 1.3GHz.  Along the way they discovered that the reported clocks might be a bit lower than the actual clocks, which is a nice bonus to owners.  Read on to see what happened when they overclocked both components.

"We've evaluated the GALAXY GeForce GTX 660 Ti 3GB video card, now it is time to overclock it to its maximum potential with XtremeTuner Plus and find out how it compares to the GTX 670 and Radeon HD 7950. We will also find out if it is best to concentrate on the GPU clock speed or its 192-bit memory speed to get the best performance gains."

Here are some more Graphics Card articles from around the web:

Graphics Cards

• NVidia GTX 660Ti SLI Performance and Overclocking @ Ninjalane
• ZOTAC GeForce GTX 660 Ti AMP Edition @ Bjorn3D
• Palit GEFORCE GTX 660 Ti 2GB JetStream Overclocked @ Tweaktown
• NVIDIA SLI: GeForce GTX 660 Ti vs GTX 670 @ Benchmark Reviews
• SUS GeForce GTX 660 Ti DirectCU II TOP @ Bjorn3D
• EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti SC @ Guru of 3D
• MSI GTX 660 Ti Power Edition @ Bjorn3D
• EVGA GTX 670 FTW Graphics Card and Z77 FTW Motherboard @ HardwareHeaven
• EVGA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB SC Edition Launch Review @ Neoseeker
• MSI GEFORCE GTX 660 Ti 2GB Power Edition @ Tweaktown
• Radeon HD 7950 with Boost vs GeForce GTX 660 Ti @ Guru3D
• GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 660 Ti Windforce OC @ Bjorn3D
• Fast and Quiet: Inno3D iChill GeForce GTX 670 HerculeZ 3000 @ X-bit Labs
• Kepler for the Masses: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti from Zotac @ X-bit Labs
• NVIDIA Chips Comparison Table @ Hardware Secrets
• Workstation Graphics Card Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• i3DSpeed, July 2012 @ iXBT Labs
• HIS 7970 X Turbo 3GB IceQ X2 @ Kitguru
• PowerColor HD 7950 3GB Boost State Review @ Hardware Canucks
• Sapphire Radeon HD 7750 1GB Low Profile Review @Hi Tech Legion
• AMD HD7770 & HD7750 Roundup: Sapphire, XFX and HIS @ Kitguru
• Sapphire HD 7970 Toxic 6 GB @ techPowerUp
• PowerColor to Launch Dual GPU HD 7990 Very Soon? @ Hardware Canucks

G.Skill To Host Overclocking Invitational at Computex 2012

Subject: General Tech | June 3, 2012 - 04:07 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: overclocking, overclock, msi, hicookie, gigabyte, G.Skill, evga, computex 2012, asus

G.Skill will host an overclocking event at Computex 2012 with seven overclockers in an attempt to break world overclocking records. The company is teaming up with ASUS, EVGA, Gigabyte, and MSI for the event, which will be held in Taipei, Taiwan from June 5th to June 9th 2012.

Enthusiast RAM manufacturer G.Skill has announced that they will be hosting an overclocking event at Computex 2012 in Taiwan. The company is partnering up with motherboard manufacturers ASUS, EVGA, Gigabyte, and MSI who will provide several high end motherboards for the overclocking invitational.

G.Skill has further invited seven professional overclockers to attend the event and try to break world records for processors and DDR3 memory using LN2 and a combination of high end motherboards, graphics cards, and G.Skill’s DDR3 RAM. The overclockers in question are Elmor, Fred Yama, Hiwa, Young Pro, Kingpin, HiCookie, and Dinos22. HiCookie was covered by us recently when he pushed a Core i7 3770K to 7.03 GHz and DDR3 memory to an impressive 3.28 GHz. The G.Skill event will push for even higher overlcocks.

The overclocking event will run from June 5th, 2012 to June 9th, 2012 from 11am to 5pm. It will be located at Computex 2012 in the Nangang Exhibition Hall at booth L0118. The event schedule will be as follows:

As G.Skill's first overclocking invitational, they will need to push hard for success, and they made sure to have the best record-breaking chance possible by inviting some of the world's best overclockers. As a personal fan of G.Skill, I'm rooting for them to break the RAM overclocking record!

Overclocked Gigabyte WindForce GTX 680 GPU Pictured

Subject: Graphics Cards | April 5, 2012 - 11:19 PM | Tim Verry
Tagged: windforce, overclock, nvidia, gtx 680, gpu, gigabyte, custom gtx 680

Popular motherboard manufacturer Gigabyte is the latest company to debut a custom version of the NVIDIA GTX 680 reference graphics card. Gigabyte’s unique take on the GTX 680 starts off with a custom dark blue PCB and ripping out the puny two six pin PCI-E power connectors. They are then replaced with one eight pin and one six pin PCI-E power connector. Then, they top it off with a custom three fan cooler. The heatsink uses three copper heatpipes with direct contact with the GPU, and two arrays of aluminum fins.

The cooler and blue PCB via VR-Zone

The extra power provided by the eight pin PCI-E connector allows for potentially higher overclocks (depending on the particular chips), and the custom cooler keeps the overclocked card nice and cool. In fact, Gigabyte is shipping the card with a factory overclock. Although they did not overclock the 2 GB of GDDR5 memory from stock, they have set the base clock frequency and boost frequency at 1071 MHz and 1124 MHz boost respectively. Compared to the reference specs of 1006 MHz base and 1058 MHz boost, that amounts to a respectable 65 MHz base overclock and 66 MHz boost overclock out of the box. Further, depending on the chip, they may be capable of overclocking much higher.

The assembled card showing the video outputs via Guru3D

So long as you can find one in stock, the NVIDIA GTX 680 GPU is shaping up to be an interesting card, especially the custom versions! More photos of the previewed Gigabyte GTX 680 WindForce edition is available here and here.

Bad for reviewers, great for gamers ... AMD will allow non-reference Tahiti graphics cards

Subject: General Tech | December 14, 2011 - 12:00 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: tahiti, radeon, pitcairn, overclock, HD7000, amd

One quickly forgets about the initially released reference GPUs once the cards with custom coolers, capacitors and PCBs arrive on the market all cool and factory overclocked.  Usually the original GPU and card designer, in this case AMD, licenses theit top tier partners, like MSI , Gigabyte or Sapphire, to sell cards following a design that AMD provides along with the license to design and sell the cards.  As SemiAccurate points out, this has lead to a market where the only unique feature they can add is usually armed and wearing a bikini.  After the card has been on the market for a while, then AMD allows non-reference designs to appear for some cards from some manufacturers.

Not so with one of the four lineups of GPUs soon to arrive on the market, AMD will be freeing us from the tyranny of Ruby in different outfits and allow their partners to modify the Tahiti Pro cards from the get go.  Expect to see a large difference in the appearance and specifications of AMD's new high end series of cards.  That is the only one of the four to get this treatment, Tahiti, Pitcairn and Pitcairn XT cards will still come out only as copies of the reference card design.  This may change over time but for now the idea of custom cooler, power distribution and PCB design is something to look forward to in the coming years.

"Back to the new news, and it concerns the Tahiti Pro card. Word has reached SemiAccurate that Tahiti Pro will be unconstrained to the normal reference designs. If you recall, most GPU manufacturers will force AIBs to make cards based on the reference design for the first 3 months or so, and there are a variety of very good business reasons to do this.

Unfortunately, it leads to a problem where the reviews all are the same, mainly because all the cards are the same. The main difference between manufacturers comes down to what color the AIB decides to put on the chrome bikini of the girl with the big sword riding the mythical beast just below their logo. We are partial to Hafnium bikini’s on women riding giant Were-moles around here. Luckily, Tahiti Pro changes this."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• NVIDIA Releases Source To CUDA Compiler @ Slashdot
• Global DRAM oversupply expected to fall to 13% in 1H12, say Taiwan makers @ DigiTimes
• Futuremark 3DMark 11 v1.0.3 Now Available on NGOHQ.com
• TP-Link TL-WR2543ND router @ The Inquirer
• TRENDnet TEW-691GR 450Mbps Wireless N Gigabit Router Review @ Real World Labs
• The Antec Giveaways: Part 2 @ AnandTech