Thinkpads Forum

Can some one tell me how to overclock my GPU, I've seen some people talking about it but I'm not sure how to do it myself. My computer specs are in my sig.

Those GPUs work pretty well sans overclocking, from what I hear. If you really want to do it though, there is always ATITool, though I am not sure if it works with laptops. Powerstrip worked under XP on my current laptop (T60 with ATI x1400), and it was the only program I found to work. That said, thats just for my GPU, yours probably works with a few more programs than mine.

It is not recommended that laptop GPU gets overclocked, there is already trouble removing the amount of heat produced in the system. The Nvidia GPU used in T61p produce significant amount of heat when strained, the GPU can reach 90 degrees celsius + when stressed, If you want to overclock it then the temperature could be 100 degrees celsicus +, the critical shutdown temp is around 110 celsicus and 120 to 130 degrees is when the GPU completely fails.

The Nvidia chip used in the T61 are similar to the ones getting recalled by Nvidia, if you want your laptop to last then don't try to overclock it.

add everything the last poster said to my advice. Sure, I have the best 3dmark scores for my laptop, but the amount of speed increase I could do and keep the system stabile was small. It was more of a "because I can" thing.

blackjab24 wrote:Can some one tell me how to overclock my GPU, I've seen some people talking about it but I'm not sure how to do it myself. My computer specs are in my sig.

nVidia drivers were easy..there's a registry entry you can make called Coolbits, which unlocks some extra panels in your advanced display properties, including a section on setting the vid cards GPU and RAM speeds.

There is a tweaking program out there called "Coolbits" you can Google and download, automatically does the registry change for you if you don't like doing that manually.

I don' tthink the nVidia chipset used in the T61P is similar to the ones being recalled--I think it IS THE EXACT SAME CHIP. Almost immediately after the recall story broke, a new driver was released, and nVidia's program was to release new drivers that would run the chips cooler--until a long term solution can be found.

I'd suggest that overclocking the GPU in these machines is flat out asking to burn it out, unless you can confirm that your GPU is not one of the specific group with problems.

T61p have 3 years warranty. If GPU burns out, OC or not, Lenovo will change the mainboard and send the bill to NVIDIA.

Rivatuner is the best way to overclock and monitor the GPU.

"T61p have 3 years warranty. If GPU burns out,"
Maybe. These days? I would give you odds that nV have ways to tell if a GPU has been heat damaged, especially from overclocking, and that Lenono has been instructed on how to test for this. CPU makers have done the same thing for many years. Sure, you can slip some of them by--by some warranty claims get rejected as "out of warranty--abuse".

Your money, your choice. If you're looking for speed and you're not using liquified gasses for cooling, you're not really trying very hard though.<G>

It's impossible to know if a GPU burns out because of overclocking or heavy use or cooling issue.

Presumably so, Pascal. However, in a "properly engineered installation" that the supplier has actually approved as having sufficient cooling, with the designated cooling equipment (fan, etc.) present and working, if you find evidence of massive overheating you can presume someone overclocked it, or did other intentional damage. Evidence can mean slicing it open to look for internal chars or melts, or external heat monitors, often just a dab of thermal wax that looks like an innocent "bump" but melts away after overheating. I don't know what policy nV and Lenono are taking on this, but as the price of claims goes up--most start to pay more attention to these things.

Got a cell phone? Look for small (2-3mm) white paper "dots" inside the case or behind the battery. They are moisture sensors, if you get the phone damp they turn red--and your warranty claim is denied due to water damage. One sweaty day in your pocket is, sadly, enough to trigger them. Outright rain damage was costing too much money in warranty claims though.

For overclocking nvidia, there is a free tool called "rivatuner" that is very good. It's very easy to set up a "3d Performance" profile, where overclocking only kicks in when you are really stressing the GPU like when playing games. Highly recommended. Just don't overclock too aggressively. I have my 3d performance profile set up at 500 core, 1000 shader, 800 memory, and it raised my gaming graphics performance quite noticeably without increasing maximum temps more than a couple of degrees.