# RV670 862Mhz CLOCKLIMIT FIXED !



## bengun666 (Nov 20, 2007)

http://www.armada.fi/HD3870/HD3870_PLLVCO_v010.071.zip


i found this at http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=166334

ok, have fun with it and oc the hell out of the cards!!!

i am still waiting for mine!


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## DrunkenMafia (Nov 20, 2007)

Good find bro, I wonder how much higher the core can go on those cards...  1000????   nah surely not!!!


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## bengun666 (Nov 20, 2007)

life is like a box of chocolate .....


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## trog100 (Nov 20, 2007)

tell me what tool is needed to flash it and i will see what difference it makes.. 

i doubt mine will clock much faster.. vpu recovery cuts in on a 3dmark run at 860 and cuts in at 850 in crysis.. i am currently running at 840.. 

trog


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## EastCoasthandle (Nov 20, 2007)

Someone let us know when W1z updates Flasher.  No other bios flasher works for this bios at this time.  It appears that everyone is waiting for it.


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## SSXeon (Nov 20, 2007)

trog100 said:


> tell me what tool is needed to flash it and i will see what difference it makes..
> 
> i doubt mine will clock much faster.. vpu recovery cuts in on a 3dmark run at 860 and cuts in at 850 in crysis.. i am currently running at 840..
> 
> trog



Get a bigger cooler.  The stock cooler is pretty much the X1900XT/X cooler, not so big.


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## bengun666 (Nov 21, 2007)

here it is !!! http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/Utilities/BIOS_Flashing/ATI/

well then, can't wait to see some results!!!


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## cefurkan (Nov 21, 2007)

they just started to flashing

i wonder the results too


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## AsRock (Nov 21, 2007)

The INQ got hold of this too . With links to the TPU .
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2007/11/21/unlock-radeon-hd3870


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## trt740 (Nov 21, 2007)

it works with the stock cooler my core went stable to 872 core  ram still going will test stock and then with accelero s1


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## Ripper3 (Nov 21, 2007)

Awesome, so it's definately working. I wonder if someone tries this on a 3850, or else brings a 3850 version out, since I thought the 50s were running lower OCs than they should be able to... though I guess the single slot cooling doesn't help what-so-ever.


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## trt740 (Nov 21, 2007)

Ripper3 said:


> Awesome, so it's definately working. I wonder if someone tries this on a 3850, or else brings a 3850 version out, since I thought the 50s were running lower OCs than they should be able to... though I guess the single slot cooling doesn't help what-so-ever.



just maxed overdrive with accelero s1 and 120 mm fan


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## Ripper3 (Nov 21, 2007)

What's your current max for Overdrive though? 

Also, what sort of temperature is the card running at, with the S1, and the 120mm fan?


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## trt740 (Nov 21, 2007)

885/1387 had a unrepairable windows corruption in the middle of a reinstall unrelated to this so I'm going to be a while. Okay ran auto tune again and it say 877/1386 hum gonna have to test it as soon as my updates are done


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## nicepun (Nov 21, 2007)

I will have to check this out tonight.  Happy Thanksgiving ya'll!!!


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## trt740 (Nov 21, 2007)

temps are 32c idle 44c max load.


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## SSXeon (Nov 21, 2007)

trt740 said:


> temps are 32c idle 44c max load.



HOLY SH*T!  What fan? and show PICS!


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## trt740 (Nov 21, 2007)

well my card will now run the core stable without  video tearing / artifacting at 885/1316 memory. The memory is holding me back and the additional overclocking really doesn't increase this cards performance it is slower than my old 2900 xt.


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## Ripper3 (Nov 21, 2007)

Ho hum, guess it's to be expected that ATi would want to hold up the 3870, they still need to sell off the 2900, and if there are to be higher end, R680 based cards, they'd have to be faster than the 3870, to justify the possibly ridiculos prices that every top-end card uses.
Still, advantages are still the same: CrossfireX, lower power consumption, cooler temps, lower price, and still fast to hoot.


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## jpierce55 (Nov 21, 2007)

trt740 said:


> well my card will now run the core stable without  video tearing / artifacting at 885/1316 memory. The memory is holding me back and the additional overclocking really doesn't increase this cards performance it is slower than my old 2900 xt.



Reviews put it roughly the same in performance.... How much slower is the new card than the 2900xt?


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## trt740 (Nov 22, 2007)

about 200 points is my best estimate behind a 512mb


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## Ketxxx (Nov 22, 2007)

Cool, one less thing ppl will be bugging me to fix


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## trt740 (Nov 22, 2007)

Ketxxx said:


> Cool, one less thing ppl will be bugging me to fix



lol great one Ket


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## WarEagleAU (Nov 22, 2007)

Haha, very nice and interesting. Cool to see TPU getting some play from theINQ


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## jpierce55 (Nov 22, 2007)

trt740 said:


> about 200 points is my best estimate behind a 512mb



So it is more or less about the same, not bad when it is about 1/2 the price. So a new motherboard with the 2.0 specs should make the card faster, right?


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## Pinchy (Nov 22, 2007)

jpierce55 said:


> So it is more or less about the same, not bad when it is about 1/2 the price. So a new motherboard with the 2.0 specs should make the card faster, right?



I dont think a PCIe 2.0 mobo will make the card any faster mainly because it doesnt use the full bandwith of PCIe 1.0 ..


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## jpierce55 (Nov 22, 2007)

Pinchy said:


> I dont think a PCIe 2.0 mobo will make the card any faster mainly because it doesnt use the full bandwith of PCIe 1.0 ..



OK, I was not sure what the PCIe 2.0 performance was... Still can't argue that this card is way more bang for the buck (vs 2900). Unfortunately it looks like its prices, and the 8800gt are going to keep going up.

TRT, how does the vreg cooler look? I may order a cooler and want to know if it looks like copper ram sinks will fit on the vreg?


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## InnocentCriminal (Nov 22, 2007)

WarEagleAU said:
			
		

> Haha, very nice and interesting. Cool to see TPU getting some play from theINQ.



Yeah it is, and it really pisses me off when people say that it's not a creditable source of information - bullcrap! It's a damn good site and if you don't understand their somewhat satrical take on some issues then go to another site. I'd like to see some proof that this site isn't a creditable source for technology news. I bet it's the old Frudzilla malarkey that's putting people off.... rant over!


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## trog100 (Nov 22, 2007)

trt740 said:


> about 200 points is my best estimate behind a 512mb



is that 200 point behind in a 3dmark.. ???

have a look at my 3870 score in the lightsmark bench.. i aint sure exactly what the thing measures but whatever it is the new 3870 seems to do it nearly twice as quick as the 2900 series ati cards did..

is the winbench flash thing safe to use by the way.. ??

trog


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## Tatty_One (Nov 22, 2007)

If overdrive is maxing you have you tried the latest Rivatuner release Trt?....it is said that Rivatuner will overclock the HD3000 series, your performance limit at overdrive max may well be overdrive induced in which case you should be able to push forward with rivatuner.

Also if I understand rightly you are not on Cat 7.11??


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## TonyStark (Nov 22, 2007)

Does this fixed BIOS void warranty? Is it supported by AMD/ATI? 


My HD3870 should arrive in a few days. I wish to clock the shit out of it.


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## trog100 (Nov 22, 2007)

TonyStark said:


> Does this fixed BIOS void warranty? Is it supported by AMD/ATI?
> 
> 
> My HD3870 should arrive in a few days. I wish to clock the shit out of it.



i am pretty certain it will void warranty.. which is why i am still working up the courage to flash mine. 

i am on the new 7.11 driver tatty.. just the driver i left the rest alone..

trog


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## Tim_HKG (Nov 23, 2007)

I've already flashed that "fixed bios" onto my Gigabyte HD 3870 2 days ago. Yes, it did break the 862MHz lock. However, in my case, the ATI Overdrive will always push the core and memory frequency all the way upto the limit of the sliding bar and of course, it fails the 3DMark06's stability test. Thus, for me, the "real" function of ATI Overdrive becomes meaningless...weird!

It seems that a real workable bios editor for HD 3870 is absolutely needed for editing its frequency、voltage and fan profile...etc.,  at least the fan profile...I've found the stock fan is quite powerful since I set it at 60% by using the RiverTuner and just got 35-36C at idling and 59-60C at full loading, with acceptable noise level.

Really hope some experts can make a workable bios editor for this nice vga card! Besides, I've heard of a 1.377Vcore bios for this card, any experience?


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## Tatty_One (Nov 23, 2007)

Tim_HKG said:


> I've already flashed that "fixed bios" onto my Gigabyte HD 3870 2 days ago. Yes, it did break the 862MHz lock. However, in my case, the ATI Overdrive will always push the core and memory frequency all the way upto the limit of the sliding bar and of course, it fails the 3DMark06's stability test. Thus, for me, the "real" function of ATI Overdrive becomes meaningless...weird!
> 
> It seems that a real workable bios editor for HD 3870 is absolutely needed for editing its frequency、voltage and fan profile...etc.,  at least the fan profile...I've found the stock fan is quite powerful since I set it at 60% by using the RiverTuner and just got 35-36C at idling and 59-60C at full loading, with acceptable noise level.
> 
> Really hope some experts can make a workable bios editor for this nice vga card! Besides, I've heard of a 1.377Vcore bios for this card, any experience?



Would it be worthwhile not to install the CCC and just manage the card with RivaTuner?


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## Tim_HKG (Nov 23, 2007)

Tatty_One said:


> Would it be worthwhile not to install the CCC and just manage the card with RivaTuner?



To be honest, I prefer the CCC to any other ATI tools. I'll try it and report later, thanks for your advice anyhow!


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## Tatty_One (Nov 23, 2007)

Tim_HKG said:


> To be honest, I prefer the CCC to any other ATI tools. I'll try it and report later, thanks for your advice anyhow!



I only ask because I have a 3870 unopened and may try it myself when I install this weekend.


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## Tim_HKG (Nov 23, 2007)

Tatty_One said:


> I only ask because I have a 3870 unopened and may try it myself when I install this weekend.



Let's share the experiences! I've got to go since it's 4:38 a.m. in the morning.


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## trog100 (Nov 23, 2007)

does anybody know how to set rivatuner to run the auto fan speed side of things.. i couldnt figure it out.. the ccc is doing a lousy job i dont think it even turns the fan speed up at all for 3d mode.. i recon it runs about 30% all the time.. 

someone to the rescue please i aint geeky enough to understand rivatuner.. he he he

trog


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## Tatty_One (Nov 24, 2007)

trog100 said:


> does anybody know how to set rivatuner to run the auto fan speed side of things.. i couldnt figure it out.. the ccc is doing a lousy job i dont think it even turns the fan speed up at all for 3d mode.. i recon it runs about 30% all the time..
> 
> someone to the rescue please i aint geeky enough to understand rivatuner.. he he he
> 
> trog



Yes............open up the app, click on the 2nd drop down box where it says "customize" (mine says "320 bit G80 (A2 revision with 92sp and 640MB GDDR3), yours of course will say 256Bit RV670 etc etc.

Then you get the line of Icons, click on the first (the pic of a graphics card)

Then you will see the fan controls, choose auto or fixed dependant on what you want, the rest is self explanitory from there, make sure you check the "apply on Windows startup" tab.


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## trog100 (Nov 24, 2007)

Tatty_One said:


> Yes............open up the app, click on the 2nd drop down box where it says "customize" (mine says "320 bit G80 (A2 revision with 92sp and 640MB GDDR3), yours of course will say 256Bit RV670 etc etc.
> 
> Then you get the line of Icons, click on the first (the pic of a graphics card)
> 
> Then you will see the fan controls, choose auto or fixed dependant on what you want, the rest is self explanitory from there, make sure you check the "apply on Windows startup" tab.



i got that far tatty but i gathered all it did was run at the ccc settings.. either way it dosnt seem to work.. it certainly aint following the fan profile it comes up with and things run the same ticked or unticked.. 

the fixed fan speed works thow.. its how to alter things in that power user bit i was interested in..  its all in that other thread of mine.. 

what i would like is to run the CCC but have something else controlling auto fan speeds.. 0% to 40% runs things way to hot.. 0 to 60 with 60 coming in at at 65 C would work fine..

trog


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## Tatty_One (Nov 24, 2007)

trog100 said:


> i got that far tatty but i gathered all it did was run at the ccc settings.. either way it dosnt seem to work.. it certainly aint following the fan profile it comes up with and things run the same ticked or unticked..
> 
> the fixed fan speed works thow.. its how to alter things in that power user bit i was interested in..  its all in that other thread of mine..
> 
> ...



Right, power user is pretty simple but way to complicated to explain in the forum, I have used it a few times, let me have a play with the Power user fan settings then I will PM you, probably be a bit later today as the wife wants me to test drive a car she wants but I'll be back!


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## trog100 (Nov 25, 2007)

update.. so far even thow the new bios seems to help things along at first.. the card passes the overdrive self test thing right up to the overdrive max of 885.. it hasnt panned out this way..

i dont know if crysis is fair a test for stable clocking limits but i have had to slow my core down to 840-sh to play the game for lengthy periods without vpu recover being triggered..

this is with a fixed (rivatuner) fan speed of 55% keeping the card temp at about 70 C.. by default the card runs about 90 C..

it will run the 3dmarks at around 855 but if it wont game it dosnt count for me..

so i get 840 at 70 C as a max stable core speed for everyday use..

other cards might differ..

trog


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## Tatty_One (Nov 25, 2007)

Trog, sorry it's taken me a day to get back to you on the power user in Rivatuner, been trying to install my new hardware....slow process!

You cant do power user the normal way cause that requires the cards driver string and the HD3000 is not supported yet but there is another way that might work:

1.   Go to the power user tab.
2.   goto Rivatuner\nvidia\fan\currentdevice
3.   Expand that branch
4.   Set "apply at startup" to "1"
5.   Fan speed 0 is 2D so set at "1"
6.   Fan speed 1 is low power 3D so set to "1"
7.   Fan speed 2 is performance 3D so set to "1"
8.   Save presets by clicking on the floppy icon below.
9.   You should then be able to set fan control on bottom drop down on main page under "driver settings" clicking on the Gfx card icon and then set fan speeds in there for the 2D, low power 3D and perf 3D settings..

I have tested this method and it worked for me but that might be because I still have the 8800GTS in and not an AMD card (I still aint got round to installing the 3870 yet)


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## nicepun (Nov 27, 2007)

O.K., I tried this and I think it worked.  Before I tried 840/1276 and it would crash (also I wasn't messing with the fan speed and I haven't replaced the stock TIM with AS5) but after doing this trick I tried 850/1300 on Crysis Demo (for a long while) and a few 3DMark06 runs without a hitch -- fan set @ 70.


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## TooFast (Nov 27, 2007)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160185013156&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=006


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## Tatty_One (Nov 27, 2007)

nicepun said:


> O.K., I tried this and I think it worked.  Before I tried 840/1276 and it would crash (also I wasn't messing with the fan speed and I haven't replaced the stock TIM with AS5) but after doing this trick I tried 850/1300 on Crysis Demo (for a long while) and a few 3DMark06 runs without a hitch -- fan set @ 70.



You mean you tried my method in Rivatuner?


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## btarunr (Nov 27, 2007)

What's the stock-TDP of a RV670?


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## TonyStark (Nov 27, 2007)

125 W .... I think.


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## btarunr (Nov 27, 2007)

TonyStark said:


> 125 W .... I think.



In your opinion, is it too high for a 55nm fab GPU?


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## trog100 (Nov 27, 2007)

this could be drivers and it could be crysis.. but i am down to 832/1226 for stability in crysis.. the card temp dosnt seem to make any difference..

trog


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## -=CrAnSwIcK=- (Nov 27, 2007)

well, i'm not sure if it's not the bandwidth, cause i know of a guy who has 2 HD 3870's in crossfire, and he had them both on liquid, and both cores to 920mhz idling in the 30's celcius, and he's got a Q6600 at 4.2ghz and there was a minimal increase in 3Dmarks from 860mhz to 920mhz...so with that much extra mhz is it the PCI-e BUS or the 4.2ghz quad holding it back??


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## Tatty_One (Nov 27, 2007)

-=CrAnSwIcK=- said:


> well, i'm not sure if it's not the bandwidth, cause i know of a guy who has 2 HD 3870's in crossfire, and he had them both on liquid, and both cores to 920mhz idling in the 30's celcius, and he's got a Q6600 at 4.2ghz and there was a minimal increase in 3Dmarks from 860mhz to 920mhz...so with that much extra mhz is it the PCI-e BUS or the 4.2ghz quad holding it back??



Has he increased his PCI-E slot frequency in BIOS?


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## -=CrAnSwIcK=- (Nov 27, 2007)

dunno...i'll ask him 

check it here....

http://forum.pcstats.com/showthread.php?t=41041


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## trt740 (Nov 27, 2007)

jpierce55 said:


> OK, I was not sure what the PCIe 2.0 performance was... Still can't argue that this card is way more bang for the buck (vs 2900). Unfortunately it looks like its prices, and the 8800gt are going to keep going up.
> 
> TRT, how does the vreg cooler look? I may order a cooler and want to know if it looks like copper ram sinks will fit on the vreg?



looks nice solid copper


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## trt740 (Nov 27, 2007)

trog100 said:


> i am pretty certain it will void warranty.. which is why i am still working up the courage to flash mine.
> 
> i am on the new 7.11 driver tatty.. just the driver i left the rest alone..
> 
> trog



It works perfect trog flash the card and save your old bios for warranty purposes to flash it back if needed. The flash tool give you that option.


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## EastCoasthandle (Nov 27, 2007)

-=CrAnSwIcK=- said:


> dunno...i'll ask him
> 
> check it here....
> 
> http://forum.pcstats.com/showthread.php?t=41041



Both of his 3d06 scores were obtained using windows 2003.  Looks to me that his os, win2003 is part of the problem.  He should try again with XP if nothing more then a comparison.


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## Tatty_One (Nov 27, 2007)

trt740 said:


> I works perfect trog flash the card and save your old bios for warranty purposes to flash it back if needed. The flash tool give you that option.



He has now mefinks and it's working good but he still cannot get gaming stability that takes him above the 862 in any case.


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## nicepun (Nov 27, 2007)

Tatty_One said:


> You mean you tried my method in Rivatuner?



I only used RivaTuner for the fan.


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## Tatty_One (Nov 28, 2007)

nicepun said:


> I only used RivaTuner for the fan.



Thats what I meant but using the way I explained?


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## zOaib (Nov 30, 2007)

ARE We supposed to install the hotifx for crysis after we install the 7.11 cat or before , just curious , i also did flash the new bios , no OC yet , still tryign to get the damn crysis not to flicker when i run it .....................


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## trog100 (Nov 30, 2007)

zOaib said:


> ARE We supposed to install the hotifx for crysis after we install the 7.11 cat or before , just curious , i also did flash the new bios , no OC yet , still tryign to get the damn crysis not to flicker when i run it .....................



mine flickers.. its crysis and the ati cards/drivers.. what i did find was the flickers or dropped textures drops of massively with some medium settings.. with all high in the cpu bench the jeep nearly disapears..

with only textures and shaders on high it all improves and so does the frame rates..

AA is a no-no.. 

trog


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## largon (Nov 30, 2007)

HD3870 vGPU mod is now available.


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## sneekypeet (Nov 30, 2007)

995MHZ core....As I am not a member and I dont see it in pinto's specs....what cooling is he using on the core?

@ largon Could you ask?


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## largon (Nov 30, 2007)

*sneekypeet*,
He's on water:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=167610


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## Tatty_One (Nov 30, 2007)

largon said:


> *sneekypeet*,
> He's on water:
> http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=167610



So do we have a 3870 FASTER than an 8800GT??


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## trog100 (Nov 30, 2007)

Tatty_One said:


> So do we have a 3870 FASTER than an 8800GT??



only if u get the soldering iron out dude.. 

trog


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## jpierce55 (Nov 30, 2007)

I don't think my 3870 is good for more than 810 on the gpu 

Ati Tool gives me 843 stable, but the fan control is quirky. Riva/CCC are only good to 810


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## trog100 (Dec 1, 2007)

jpierce55 said:


> I don't think my 3870 is good for more than 810 on the gpu
> 
> Ati Tool gives me 843 stable, but the fan control is quirky. Riva/CCC are only good to 810



try not running either and just use the CCC overdrive.. i am..

trog


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## nicepun (Dec 1, 2007)

I flashed to hacked bios, I'm still with HSF and since I've been quite busy with work, school, and the family (my duaghter recently turned THREE) so I haven't had time to get a waterblock for this one but so far it's doing pretty damn good with just HSF.  Anyway, below is something to start with, also, I'm not getting too high of CPU scores in 3DMark06 as others are getting with similar GHZs.

GPUZ Validation

3DMark06


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 1, 2007)

Sapphire had released a HD3870 ES Bios:

1. fixed the 862MHz limit.
2. fixed bugs of the fan speed from always 25%-25% to 35%-50%.


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## nicepun (Dec 1, 2007)

Tim_HKG said:


> Sapphire had released a HD3870 ES Bios:
> 
> 1. fixed the 862MHz limit.
> 2. fixed bugs of the fan speed from always 25%-25% to 35%-50%.



Would you mind providing the link, thanks.


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## Dr. Spankenstein (Dec 1, 2007)

nicepun said:


> I flashed to hacked bios, I'm still with HSF and since I've been quite busy with work, school, and the family (my duaghter recently turned THREE) so I haven't had time to get a waterblock for this one but so far it's doing pretty damn good with just HSF.  Anyway, below is something to start with, also, I'm not getting too high of CPU scores in 3DMark06 as others are getting with similar GHZs.
> 
> GPUZ Validation
> 
> 3DMark06



Very, VERY nice!! You didn't specify which hacked BIOS you applied. Care to share?
If...I...could....read.....screenshot, we might be able to determine what's hold your '06 score back.


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 1, 2007)

nicepun said:


> Would you mind providing the link, thanks.



http://www.uploading.com/files/IFYV1NN0/112007.rar.html


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## jpierce55 (Dec 1, 2007)

Hey guys re-install catalyst and don't unlock it. ATI Tool .27 Beta 3 seems to work in all ways but memory temp read-off after I did this. Fan control is now working great.


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## nicepun (Dec 1, 2007)

jpierce55 said:


> Hey guys re-install catalyst and don't unlock it. ATI Tool .27 Beta 3 seems to work in all ways but memory temp read-off after I did this. Fan control is now working great.



Thanks for the heads up.


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## bichonn (Dec 2, 2007)

Tim_HKG said:


> Sapphire had released a HD3870 ES Bios:
> 
> 1. fixed the 862MHz limit.
> 2. fixed bugs of the fan speed from always 25%-25% to 35%-50%.



is this bios a real sapphire work, or is it one of thoses moded bios we can find all around the net?


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## trog100 (Dec 2, 2007)

does anyone have an original HIS "not over 863" bios.. i ask cos i never saved mine..

interestingly i have  flashed back to what is claimed to be an original HIS bios and it flies straight past the 862 mark.. i wonder if there are two HIS ones..

there seem to be two bios file sizes out there 61k and 64k.. the HIS ones weigh in at 61k the others at 64k including the first modded one and the two saphire ones i have.. 

from my experience without volt mods these card are not stable above the 862 speed so its all a waste of time anyways.. my advice unless u like playing is just to stay with the one that comes with the card..

trog


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 3, 2007)

bichonn said:


> is this bios a real sapphire work, or is it one of thoses moded bios we can find all around the net?



1. My Gigabyte HD 3870's original bios:
    - P/N: 113-B33904-102
    - Bios Version: 010.067.000.000.026905

2. Fixed Bios at techpowerup's download section:
    - P/N: 113-B33904-103
    - Bios Version: 010.071.000.000.00000

3. Sapphire ES Bios(as it was said):
    - P/N: 113-B33904-X03
    - Bios Version: 010.071.000.000.00000

There's no way to justify whether it's really come from Sapphire, at least Sapphire wouldn't say a word on it. However, my HD 3870 is running with this Sapphire ES Bios now, no problem at all. Besides, it does really have a higher fan speed!

Try it yourself, it doesn't harm if you know how to "flash blind".


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## btarunr (Dec 3, 2007)

Can anyone teach me "blind-flashing" or at least provide a link


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## largon (Dec 3, 2007)

btarunr said:


> Can anyone teach me "blind-flashing" or at least provide a link


http://bios.techpowerup.com/articles//overclocking/vidcard/34/8
blind flash = same as in the guide but naturally with no picture on the monitor


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## bichonn (Dec 3, 2007)

Tim_HKG said:


> 1. My Gigabyte HD 3870's original bios:
> - P/N: 113-B33904-102
> - Bios Version: 010.067.000.000.026905
> 
> ...



OK thanks, I will try it, although my connect3D seems to have a good fan regulation. I can hear it spinning higher when I play.

BTW: if anyone want's to try my connect3D bios, just let me know and I will send it.
      -P/N: 113-B33904-102
      -Bios Version: 010.067.000.000


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

i would like a higher fan speed.. running the rivatuner monitor while the fur bench is running tells u exactly what your fan is doing..

my HIS bios and the (over 863 one) one on techpowerup both hit 45% at 93 C.. i assume if the card gets hotter (it never has so i dont know) the fan speed would increase..

so what fan speed does this "faster" saphire bios do.. ?????

trog

ps.. the two at the bottom of your list 112007.bin and Sapphire_HD3870_fixfan_unlock.bin  are byte for byte identical i have compared them useing beyond compare.. the fan runs the same as my HIS bios..

here is pic of my HIS fan speed.. basically nothing much happens till the temps get near 90 C then the fan speeds up.. its very critical and will hit 45% by the time the card get to 93 C.. in the example in the pic it didnt get to 93 C and the fan never fully sped up.. 

the room/case temps affect all this and it all starts to happen around the 90 C mark..


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## Tatty_One (Dec 3, 2007)

trog100 said:


> i would like a higher fan speed.. running the rivatuner monitor while the fur bench is running tells u exactly what your fan is doing..
> 
> my HIS bios and the (over 863 one) one on techpowerup both hit 45% at 93 C.. i assume if the card gets hotter (it never has so i dont know) the fan speed would increase..
> 
> ...



Firstly, there are now 2 versions of every manufacturers BIOS, the origional one with the PLL error (hence the 862 limit) and now every card being made has the revised BIOS with the PLL fix, hence the 2 different ones for HIS.

You can easily enuff mod your BIOS yourself for custom fan speeds, if you have not done it before I am quite happy to do it for you if you upload your BIOS here m8.


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

if u can tatty i would be glad to let u.. but having run this fan test countless times and getting the wrong idea i now think i know how it all works..

firstly.. the card is designed to run at 90 C or just slightly over when under load..

when it hits 90 C the fan starts to power up.. i have never seen mine go over 45% at 93 C but in a hot case or room i think it would go as fast as it needs to to try and maintain the target temp of 90 C..

we are not seeing higher fan speeds simply because at the target temp of 90 C there is no need for higher fan speeds..

my choice would be to simply lower the target temps to 80 C while leaving everything else alone..

there is a link here tatty with an HIS bios to play with.. its the one i am useing at the moment.. its the one from a guy called Karma.. 

http://www.mvktech.net/component/option,com_joomlaboard/Itemid,34/func,view/id,47157/catid,12/

basically if possible it needs the target temp dropping from 90 to 80c.. 

trog

ps.. got the guys name wrong.. its Jakus..


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

this thing is quite clever.. it also only goes into fullspeed gpu mode when the core is fully loaded.. its not just two speeds.. its variable..

its rigged for low power consumption and low noise..  

running the fur bench in a window at 800 x 600 when the bench is well system limited the gpu dosnt fully speed up.. it runs about 1/2 its full speed.. 

trog


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## SteeMcghee (Dec 3, 2007)

Hey trog and tatty, been reading loads of ur posts and trog you seem to have done everything pretty much the same as me. I was looking at the MSI 790X but am gonna wait now  (i've got a Abit Kn9S atm which works alright) I've got a HIS 3870, day of release) I've tried some of the modded bios's but found them to be a bit unstable. I'd like to find a HIS specific bios that fixes fan speed, PLL divider and keeps rock solid stability...not hopeful 

What processor are u running trog and also what scores u get on 3dMark? I've set the same settings as you for crysis (i'm on 1680 x 1050 also) and found similar results until the last few zones which crunch up a bit but have found instability throughout. Also are you running vista or XP? CHEERS 

P.S. do you know the performance differences between x8x8 (790X) and x16x16 (790FX) ty


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 3, 2007)

These pictures answer all!








The higher the temperature, the faster the fan's speed; the lower the temperature, the lower the fan's speed!

Of course, with a workable bios editor, everybody could set which fan's speed at which temperature, just like what I've done on my previous BBA Sapphire X850 XT PE AGP(costed me a lot of money...sigh)!

Thus, this Sapphire ES bios works! It doesn't work only if your card's fan speed still fixes at 25% or probably messing up with some other third-party softwares like RivaTuner, ATiTool...etc.

Further, next shipment of all HD 3870 will probably have new fix-bugs bios flashed!


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

SteeMcghee said:


> Hey trog and tatty, been reading loads of ur posts and trog you seem to have done everything pretty much the same as me. I was looking at the MSI 790X but am gonna wait now  (i've got a Abit Kn9S atm which works alright) I've got a HIS 3870, day of release) I've tried some of the modded bios's but found them to be a bit unstable. I'd like to find a HIS specific bios that fixes fan speed, PLL divider and keeps rock solid stability...not hopeful
> 
> What processor are u running trog and also what scores u get on 3dMark? I've set the same settings as you for crysis (i'm on 1680 x 1050 also) and found similar results until the last few zones which crunch up a bit but have found instability throughout. Also are you running vista or XP? CHEERS
> 
> P.S. do you know the performance differences between x8x8 (790X) and x16x16 (790FX) ty



i have tried a few different bios's they seem to come in two sizes 61k and 64k i recon the smaller ones are the originals which black out at over 862.. the bigger ones dont seem to do this..

stability wise they all seem the same..  the clock speed shown in overdrive differs thow.. at the moment i am trying what i think is a Mk2 real ati bios.. overdrive says 832 rivatuna says 823.. the next step up is 837 both say the same at this setting.. i could get 830 with the smaller Mk1 bios.. 

the card games stable in cod 4 and crysis at 830 on the Mk1 bios.. anything higher produces the odd vpu recover.. this is with the card at 90 C..

apart from the different actual clock settings i recon stability is the same whatever bios u use.. without volt mods the cards are not stable at 860 anyways.. 

see specs for what i am running.. i score about 11000-ish in 3dmark 2006.. 

as u say crysis slows down during the end of game carrier deck scenes.. there is one hell of a lot going on thow.. he he he

cod 4 just bombs along nicely fully maxed out at 1680 x 1050.. 

i dont think at the moment there would be any speed difference between the 790x and 790fx with the cards we have.. more a future thing i think..

i know my abit na 520 board went faster thow.. which pisses me off slightly..

trog


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

> Thus, this Sapphire ES bios works! It doesn't work only if your card's fan speed still fixes at 25% or probably messing up with some other third-party software like RivaTuner, AtiTool...etc.



so far having tried pretty near every bios i can find i have not found any that are fixed at 25%.. so i dont till proved wrong believe that any are fixed at 25%.. 

i dont see any fan speeds shown in your pics and the autotune tool is not a good thing to use to see whats happening.. the fur bench does far better job..

trog


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 3, 2007)

trog100 said:


> so far having tried pretty near every bios i can find i have not found any that are fixed at 25%.. so i dont till proved wrong believe that any are fixed at 25%..
> 
> i dont see any fan speeds shown in your pics and the autotune tool is not a good thing to use to see whats happening.. the fur bench does far better job..
> 
> trog



Yes, you're right! ATI Overdrive's not functioning accurately on HD 3870 as comparing to my previous X850 XT PE, X1950 PRO but as least it can still be using for generating heat for testing purpose.

About the speed of the fan, I have no way of seeing it unless the LM63(???) has communication with a software.

Here's the temperature shown on Fur's 180-second stability test at 870/1251.


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

mine has to run the fan at 100% to get temps down there.. something is wrong.. 

noise wise.. 

25% pretty near silent.. 

50% audble but not overly so.. least not for gaming..

75% getting noisy but i recon okay for gaming..

100% sounds like a leaf blower but keeps the card temps down around 60 C..

so u cant see fan speeds.. how about the ear test..

trog


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## Tatty_One (Dec 3, 2007)

Trog, loaded the HIS BIOS, no damn BIOS editor!  of course nothing supports the 3870 yet? so cannot do it for ya


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

Tatty_One said:


> Trog, loaded the HIS BIOS, no damn BIOS editor!  of course nothing supports the 3870 yet? so cannot do it for ya



he he he.. i think the world would welcome a bios that keeps the card a little cooler left to its own devices.. never mind.. one will appear soon i recon..

trog


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## trog100 (Dec 3, 2007)

he he he.. my HIS 3870 had now become an MSI O/C edition running a default core speed of 800mhz.. 

another Mk1.. 61k bios.. exactly the same as the HIS one except for the different core speed.. i was hoping they might have tweaked the fan speed a little..

trog


ps.. what i am looking for is gecube turbo bios.. they fit their own cooler so might well have tweaked the bios fan speeds..


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 4, 2007)

trog100 said:


> mine has to run the fan at 100% to get temps down there.. something is wrong..
> 
> noise wise..
> 
> ...



Noise level and performance is similar to using RivaTuner's "fixed 50% fan control."

The automatic fan profile of this bios starts in at 35% and ends up at 50%(guess when temperature's reaching to 50-55C).


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## trog100 (Dec 4, 2007)

nope.. having tried all fan speeds and lots of bios's 50% fanspeed will run the card at around 75 C or slightly higher 

without any doubt at all the leaf blowing (fixed rivatuner) 100% is needed to keep the card around 60 C.. 

something is messing your figures (guesses) up..

the way all the bios fan speeds work in all the bios i have tried is the same..

when first booted into windows with no 3d apps run the fan is off.. its stays off.. the card runs about about 50 C with what amounts to passive cooling..

when a 3d app is run the card rapidly heats up to around 90 C.. the fan starts to come in before this but quite slowly.. around 30% at 90 C.. if the card reaches 93 C the fan speeds up to 45%..the card temp stabilizes around 90 C.. the fan slows down a bit..

when the 3d app is closed the fan speed drops off to 23%.. it seems to stay this way.. the card takes a while to cool back down again..

if it ever gets back down to around 40 C the fan switches off again.. it rarely does thow and seems to keep running at 23%..

ATI seem to have set 90 C as a target temp.. the fan makes no attempt to get the temps lower even thow it could easily do..

it all seems set up for silent running and the card temp being around 90 C.. ATI must be quite happy with 90 C.. perhaps we should also be.. dunno..

trog

ps.. there does seem to be two basic kinds of bios out there.. the Mk1 61k ones and the (i think) Mk2 64k ones.. the smaller ones do the black screen trick the bigger ones dont.. 3k is a fair size difference so the bigger ones might do something else i dont know.. but apart from the black screen thing and using different timing jumps i cant find any other differences..

i am currently using the Mk1 msi overclcocked bios with a default core of 800 instead of 777.. just got my second 3870 card and have flashed it to the msi bios.. gonna play with C/F.. he he


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## Tim_HKG (Dec 4, 2007)

It's been the tradition of ATI VGA card that using automatic fan which is temperature oriented, at least my previous X850 XT PE, X1950 PRO and HD 2600 XT DDR4 does it this way.

My Zalman VF 900's still left in the drawer, the stock fan does a great job!

If "your card" insists on running at 90C...then no way! 90C Vs. 90C, I'll probably take a 8800 GT.


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## trog100 (Dec 4, 2007)

it does insist on running at 90 C when fully loaded.. but then again so did my 1900xtx.. 

there was a logical explanation with the 1900xtx.. the fan was very noisy and noise kinda limited fan speeds..

the fact that the 3870 fan is quieter yet ATI still let things run at 90 C tells me that they are happy with those temps.. 

in an ideal world i would like mine to run about 70 C but aint gonna worry over much about the 90 C..

i dont supposed from what i read the 8800gt runs that cool either with its weak single slot cooler..

trog


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## jpierce55 (Dec 4, 2007)

At 60% fixed and 810/1206 my card is staying fairly cool. My temps are staying ~60c even playing games. Benchmarks are staying in the 50's. I do have Thermaltake 13cm fans blowing around that area and that may be partially why.


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## bichonn (Dec 9, 2007)

This Sapphire bios is way too noisy for me. You can hear the fan spinning up and down.
I flashed my card back to connect3d bios. It may be hot (up to 80°) but at least it is quiet, and I never got any bug.


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## trog100 (Dec 9, 2007)

there seem to be two basic bios versions out there.. one is sized at 61k and starts with the number ver 067..... the other is sized at 64k and starts with the number ver 071...

the stated core speed shown in CCC overdrive isnt always what it seems to be.. the core speed moves in blocks and each bios does it slightly differently..

i am not sure what the block size is.. 14mhz or something like that but it does differ depending what bios is used.. its not 14mhz for each digit but one digit lower in overdrive can be a big drop lower in riva tuner..

the bios that blacks out at 862 (067) does seem to move in smaller blocks at lower core speeds.. closer to the figure shown in overdrive..

they all seem to run the fan at the same speed and temps.. or at least all the ones i have tried do..

trog


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## OziiX (Feb 5, 2008)

Hi guys im new here and the bios flashes..I have Sapphire Hd3870.Do we know which one is the best bios at the overclock. I saw here the latest Sapphire bios is '010.073'.. Any idea?

Thx, Oguz


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