Upgrading bios nvidia gtx 970

[Epic818]

I have a gigabyte gtx 970 4GB

GV-N970G1 GAMING-4GD (rev. 1.0/1.1) Gallery | Graphics Card - GIGABYTE U.S.A.

Discover AORUS premium graphics cards, ft. WINDFORCE cooling, RGB lighting, PCB protection, and VR friendly features for the best gaming and VR experience!

www.gigabyte.com

Gigabyte GTX 970 VBIOS

4 GB GDDR5, 1178 MHz GPU, 1753 MHz Memory

www.techpowerup.com

it is fully functional except that once in a while it gets the notorious black screen where my monitor wont detect the input.
If i remove it from the case and use another graphics card then use DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller) and once more reinstall the card then
it will function again. I have tried alternative methods like using different drivers other then the latest nvidia drivers and I have also used the nvidia display port firmware updater.
My stubbornness to fix this card has led me here after following this video

.

After identifing my graphics card bios version and revision via ddu and gpu-z as well I have come to the conclusion it is the :
Version: 84.04.28.00.4D
GV-N970G1 GAMING-4GD_P/F50

When on this page:

Gigabyte GTX 970 VBIOS

4 GB GDDR5, 1178 MHz GPU, 1753 MHz Memory

www.techpowerup.com

I can download the same version .4D or hit the find compatible bios which then takes me to this page:

TechPowerUp

Extensive repository of graphics card BIOS image files. Our database covers submissions categorized by GPU vendor, type, and board partner variant.

www.techpowerup.com

My question is can i download the most recent version which would be :

Gigabyte GTX 970 VBIOS

4 GB GDDR5, 1178 MHz GPU, 1753 MHz Memory

www.techpowerup.com

which was compiled January 04 ,2015 and is identified as update F60
or do I have to go one version at a time till i get to the most recent?

I am familiar with updating motherboard bios and i always just update to the latest version from the one installed but I am new to flashing gpu's.
Thank you all in advance for your time and patience.

 

[Regeneration]

You can just flash the most recent one.

First, make sure to use VESA-certified DisplayPort cable. Cheap DP cables may cause random signal loss.

Then look for the latest BIOS (sort by "Date compiled") in both official and unverified uploads.

Look for Gigabyte GTX 970 BIOSes with clocks of 1178 / 1753 / 1329.

Flash with instructions from this thread.

And last, apply the Nvidia DisplayPort firmware update again:

NVIDIA Graphics Firmware Update Tool for DisplayPort 1.3 and 1.4 Displays

Download English (U.S.) drivers for NVIDIA hardware - , , ,

www.nvidia.com

 

[Epic818]

Thanks so much for your prompt response.
I have found the following 2 options:

Gigabyte GTX 970 VBIOS

4 GB GDDR5, 1178 MHz GPU, 1753 MHz Memory

www.techpowerup.com

This is the verified version but the latest version is of 2015-01-04 added to tech power 2015-10-27 .

The unverified version:

Gigabyte GTX 970 VBIOS

4 GB GDDR5, 1178 MHz GPU, 1753 MHz Memory

www.techpowerup.com

This has the same bios build date but was added more recently to techpower on 2019-05-03.

Being as you guys have more experience which of the two should i go with?

 

[Regeneration]

Go with the verified one (1st).

 

[Epic818]

So i jumped the gun and went with the unverified one 1st because of the more current upload date.
Everything went smoothly and the command prompt told me to reboot.
I have rebooted and the image instantly looks more clear and the colors more vivid.
Currently I am on drivers 432.00
Do I update it now to the latest nvidia drivers 446.14?

 

[Regeneration]

Upload date isn't important. Build date is what matters. Verified BIOS means it's 100 percent genuine and untouched.

It is always recommended to have the latest driver. You should also run Nvidia DisplayPort firmware update.

 

[Epic818]

I understand i will install the verified version over the non verified one.
Do I need to downgrade to another version then upgrade or can i just reinstall the verified one over the non verified version as they are the same version and build date.
i have installed the latest nvidia drivers and i ran the display port firmware which says im up to date no updates found.
Final question does using custom resolution utility to overclock my monitor for higher hz does it affect my graphics card meaning can i corrupt the bios once again?

 

[Regeneration]

You can flash whatever version you want (up or down). Custom Resolution Utility has no effect on the BIOS.

 

[Epic818]

Thank you so much for all your help. I will reflash it and will get back to you after i run some test and see if re-encounter the no signal or black screen .

So i woke up this morning,went to turn on my computer and once again my monitors wouldnt be detected.Furthermore after hard resetting(holding down the power button till shutdown) my computer 5 or 6 times i was able to get it to display only for it to crash a few seconds later after the screen became filled with distorted pixels. I shut down my computer and after another 5 or 6 hard resets i was able to get into my windows log in and then i reflashed with the verified version . I had to reset my computer a few times till i got the display to display. I am out of things to try to fix this card should i consider replacing it and ultimatly narrow this down as a hardware malfunction?

 

[Regeneration]

Sounds like your card is dying... assuming you're using good cables.

Uninstall all display drivers and then perform a cleanup with Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) from safe mode.

Take the PC outside, open the case, and remove all the dust with air blower or hair dryer with a cold setting.

Remove the graphics card and blow some air in the x16 PCI express slot.

Carefully remove the heatsink from the graphics card and clean the fans with a toothbrush.

Clean the graphic cards with isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs. Especially the GPU area and PCIe pins.

When you're done, reapply thermal paste on the GPU, remount the heatsink, plug it back in.

Download and install the latest drivers from Nvidia's website.

If it still happens, consider sending it to graphics cards repair lab, if there isn't any in your area, you can try the oven trick as the last resort.

 

[johnspack]

Really, the only reason to flash a maxwell card is to boost power limits. Like I did with my 980ti to guarantee 1512+ mhz boost. If I started getting black screens... time for new card.
You can't flash away a dying card.

 

[Regeneration]

Really, the only reason to flash a maxwell card is to boost power limits. Like I did with my 980ti to guarantee 1512+ mhz boost. If I started getting black screens... time for new card.
You can't flash away a dying card.

Early BIOS versions of Maxwell had some compatibility issue with DisplayPort.

 

[Ruru]

Try this out.

NVIDIA Graphics Firmware Update Tool for DisplayPort 1.3 and 1.4 Displays

Download English (U.S.) drivers for NVIDIA hardware - , , ,

www.nvidia.com