7950 runs hot with dual monitor setup

[LeoMatrix]

I just got a second monitor today. When I plugged in, I noticed the 7950 running hot stably at 57C idling. Then I tried to unplug the second monitor, the temp dropped to 42C within 2 minutes. Is it normal that the gpu runs hot with 2 monitors? And my spec is in the signature. Thank you.

 

[go4brendon]

I have the same problem with my 7970. Apparently it has to do with the second monitor running on a different frequency. I was told to make sure both monitors run on either hdmi or dvi but not both at the same time. I still didn't work.. I've had to resort to running my second monitor on my intel onboard graphics.

 

[Rustyy117]

Hi,

The increase in heat is because when you plug more than one monitor into the graphics card the card goes into a higher power state (higher core and memory clocks aswell as more voltage).
It has to do this to support both monitors at the same time and is perfectly normal.

 

[go4brendon]

Hi,

The increase in heat is because when you plug more than one monitor into the graphics card the card goes into a higher power state (higher core and memory clocks aswell as more voltage).
It has to do this to support both monitors at the same time and is perfectly normal.

I don't think its perfectly normal for a gfx card to idle at 60deg. It's just not right. I have email ATI support about this with no response.

 

[Rustyy117]

I don't think its perfectly normal for a gfx card to idle at 60deg. It's just not right. I have email ATI support about this with no response.

You can check for yourself, take a note of the clocks with only one monitor connected (use CCC or MSI AB), then connect the second monitor and you can then see the difference in clocks.

 

[go4brendon]

You can check for yourself, take a note of the clocks with only one monitor connected (use CCC or MSI AB), then connect the second monitor and you can then see the difference in clocks.

Thats exactly what the problem is. Why does the memory clock go so high? Surely it should double and not max out?

 

[Rustyy117]

Thats exactly what the problem is. Why does the memory clock go so high? Surely it should double and not max out?

Yep, an increase in clock speeds and voltage will cause higher temps...

I didn't write the drivers so can't tell you why the mem clock has to be so high, I'm sure AMD know what they're doing though.
If it's an consolation the same thing happens with nVidia GPU's aswell.

 

[wanderer11]

I don't think this is normal. My 7870 with 2 monitors still idles at 300 MHz and goes up to 1000 under load, like it does with 1. Check the refresh rate on both monitors. Do you have the newest non-beta driver installed?

 

[Ohmybad]

with two monitors plugged in my 6870 idles @ 300MHz instead of 100MHz when i have 1 monitor active. the idle temps are 55-57C under full load @ 900MHz is 72-74. so nothing out of the normal.

 

[LeoMatrix]

I don't think this is normal. My 7870 with 2 monitors still idles at 300 MHz and goes up to 1000 under load, like it does with 1. Check the refresh rate on both monitors. Do you have the newest non-beta driver installed?

Both is 60hz. I just cloned my primary drive to an ssd, don't know if the driver is still there. Let me check

 

[LeoMatrix]

Hi,

The increase in heat is because when you plug more than one monitor into the graphics card the card goes into a higher power state (higher core and memory clocks aswell as more voltage).
It has to do this to support both monitors at the same time and is perfectly normal.

So it's normal? What if I plug in 3rd monitor, then it will jump to 70C at idle?

 

[wanderer11]

You should do a fresh install instead of cloning.

 

[LeoMatrix]

You should do a fresh install instead of cloning.

But it comes with the ssd . I think it must be safe, so they would include their own program in there!? It's a 840 pro

 

[LeoMatrix]

Best answer selected by LeoMatrix.

 

[AdioKIP]

So it's normal? What if I plug in 3rd monitor, then it will jump to 70C at idle?

After the 2nd monitor the increase isnt as apparent. I run 4 monitors on my 7950. Yes going multiple monitors does slightly increase the workload on the card thus increasing heat, but overall its a minor increase and with a good case shouldnt be that noticeable. My 7950 idles in the 50's with all 4 monitors running and when in low power mode. It never goes past the 50's unless I start gaming at which point it ramps up into high power mode (Clocks go from 500 to 900). Idling in the 50's is nothing to worry about but if you want to cool the card more, ramp up the fans or look into a different case / cooling setup. My card use to idle in the 40's, but when I bought a TV card and stuck it in the PCIE slot right next to my video card, I had a 10 degree increase in idle temp up to the 50's. Unfortunately this jump was even higher when I overclocked my card and crossfired, at 95 degrees I had to shut it down and dial back my overclock.