Is it worth it?

[lobstah]

This summer I built my first computer, a budget gaming/browsing rig. It was my first time building and tbh, I knew nothing about what parts so I foolishly ordered products that had good reviews. I picked the Sapphire Radeon HD 4670 1GB. I have enjoyed the card, but the fact that its several series behind the current generation bugs me. I use this card to play SC2 at high with a reasonable framerate. Recently, I've been thinking to OC this card because I think I should get some more juice out of it and it's an old card anyway.

My question is: how much of a performace increase would I see from Ocing this hd 4670? What would this do to the life of the card? If I should, can someone please point me in the direction of a guide for OCing?

Thanks

 

[acer0169]

I've heard loads of people ask about the life of their CPU or GPU after overclocking and it's always pretty simple to answer. Most CPUs or GPUs will run for years and years if left at stock, and when overclocked it might drop it by a year or two. Because of this - overclocking doesn't matter unless you're planning to use this computer in 2020 .

You can overclock your GPU with RivaTuner or MSI Afterburner. (MSI being the choice for most people).

They are simple tools with sliders to increase / descrease speeds.

If you google how to use MSI or RivaTuner it'll come up with no end of tutorials (probably a lot from here at Tom's) and you can follow it from there.

 

[Gman450]

Overclocking GPU's will decrease the lifespan.If you had warranty for the 4670, then you would lose it. If it gets damaged, you would not be able to return it back or the manufacturers will not give a new one for free. You would notice almost better fps increase in SC2. Probably a boost of 10 to 15 frames.
You can use Rivatuner for OCing a card.
You should also download GPUz which is a software that tells you about the the core clock, shader clock, memory clock, architecture of the GPU, temperature of the GPU etc.
You have to go slowly, increase the core clock by 2 MHz and keep on going just like that. Keep an eye on the temperature of your Gpu as it is very crucial.
After increasing your core clock tom the maximum it can reach, an error will appear and your computer will freeze.
Simply restart your system and decrease the core clock by 2 MHz. This is so as to get the perfect overclock.
Similarily do this with the other clocks.
I do not recommend you trying this as it may kill your GPU.
Best you don't.