- Apr 14, 2014
- 59
- 10
- 18,545
Greetings!
TL
R - Got a used ASUS GTX 570 with turbo cooler design, replaced thermal compound and overclocked it (nothing too aggressive), it blacked out in a game, and started blacking out in any game even without overclock, and power caps smell like burned cables. Is it worth trying to repair,
or better leave it for dead?
So I'm building a new PC for my little bro, and to save a bit of money, I decided to go with a used Graphics Card. I got him a used GTX 570 - it was a really good deal. I also decided to overclock it - not the smartest decision, in retrospect. Apparently, those GTX 570 were burning like flies back then.
This one was an ASUS version of the reference design, with turbo cooler and black design: https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_570/3.html
We replaced the dried out thermal compound with MX-2 Arctic Cooling and cleaned everything. Under the cooler, there was a thick metal plate with holes for components. I didn't quite figure out how to take it off, so I just used some canned air to clean dust from under it. Despite being old, the card was relatively clean, the previous owner was pretty anal about vacuuming his PC, it seems.
Using ASUS GPU Tweak, I increased voltage to 1.150, core frequency to ~880 MHz, and memory frequency to ~4600 MHz, as well as tweaked the fan settings so it starts spinning full throttle when approaching 95 degrees, cuz boy this thing is an oven.
All the numbers I got from the Tech Power Up review, and I specifically didn't go too aggressive.
After overclocking, the card handled a short benchmark run just fine, and from 4700 passmark score we've gotten to 5500.
Then I left my bro to play some games, and a few minutes after he called me, saying his PC blacked out and restarted. Nothing bad, I thought. The usual overclocking instability.
I wanted to figure out whether this is caused by memory or core overclock. So first I reset memory frequency back to standard 3800. PC blacked out again, so I rolled back core frequency instead, and once again increased memory frequency to 4600. PC blacked out again. I gave up for the night, and rolled back all settings to default, but it was too late. Now the PC would black out when any game is launched, though it did handle Windows just fine.
By that moment a nasty smell of burned cables started to appear. We pulled out the card, and the smell was coming from the rear part of the card, where the power caps are located.
I unscrewed the top cover, but couldn't see any burn marks. Maybe there are some under that metal plate I still don't know how to take off, though I haven't tried very hard yet.
Is it worth trying to repair this card, or should I just give up on it? I'm asking because this is the first time I've actually killed a graphics card, and I'm not sure how repair-able they are.
TL
R - Got a used ASUS GTX 570 with turbo cooler design, replaced thermal compound and overclocked it (nothing too aggressive), it blacked out in a game, and started blacking out in any game even without overclock, and power caps smell like burned cables. Is it worth trying to repair,or better leave it for dead?
So I'm building a new PC for my little bro, and to save a bit of money, I decided to go with a used Graphics Card. I got him a used GTX 570 - it was a really good deal. I also decided to overclock it - not the smartest decision, in retrospect. Apparently, those GTX 570 were burning like flies back then.
This one was an ASUS version of the reference design, with turbo cooler and black design: https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_570/3.html
We replaced the dried out thermal compound with MX-2 Arctic Cooling and cleaned everything. Under the cooler, there was a thick metal plate with holes for components. I didn't quite figure out how to take it off, so I just used some canned air to clean dust from under it. Despite being old, the card was relatively clean, the previous owner was pretty anal about vacuuming his PC, it seems.
Using ASUS GPU Tweak, I increased voltage to 1.150, core frequency to ~880 MHz, and memory frequency to ~4600 MHz, as well as tweaked the fan settings so it starts spinning full throttle when approaching 95 degrees, cuz boy this thing is an oven.
All the numbers I got from the Tech Power Up review, and I specifically didn't go too aggressive.
After overclocking, the card handled a short benchmark run just fine, and from 4700 passmark score we've gotten to 5500.
Then I left my bro to play some games, and a few minutes after he called me, saying his PC blacked out and restarted. Nothing bad, I thought. The usual overclocking instability.
I wanted to figure out whether this is caused by memory or core overclock. So first I reset memory frequency back to standard 3800. PC blacked out again, so I rolled back core frequency instead, and once again increased memory frequency to 4600. PC blacked out again. I gave up for the night, and rolled back all settings to default, but it was too late. Now the PC would black out when any game is launched, though it did handle Windows just fine.
By that moment a nasty smell of burned cables started to appear. We pulled out the card, and the smell was coming from the rear part of the card, where the power caps are located.
I unscrewed the top cover, but couldn't see any burn marks. Maybe there are some under that metal plate I still don't know how to take off, though I haven't tried very hard yet.
Is it worth trying to repair this card, or should I just give up on it? I'm asking because this is the first time I've actually killed a graphics card, and I'm not sure how repair-able they are.
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