Clock Speeds

For this test, we first let the card sit in idle to reach thermal equilibrium. Next, we start a constant 100% gaming load, recording several important parameters while the test is running. This shows you the thermal behavior of the card and how the fans ramp up as temperatures increase. Once temperatures are stable (no increase for two minutes), we stop the load and record how the card cools down over time.



MSI is offering a "low temperature" BIOS as an optional download. It increases fan speeds a bit and rewards you with lower temperatures:

Voltage Frequency Analysis

The card will dynamically adjust clock and voltage based on render load, temperature, and other factors.

For the graph below, we recorded all GPU clock and GPU voltage combinations of our 4K UHD resolution benchmarking suite. The plotted points are transparent, which allows them to add up to indicate more often used values. A light color means the clock/voltage combination is rarely used, and a dark color means it's active more often.

Clock Profiles

Modern graphics cards have several clock profiles that are selected to balance power draw and performance requirements.

The following table lists the clock settings for important performance scenarios and the GPU voltage that is used in those states.

Power Limits

All NVIDIA graphics cards have a power limit defined in the BIOS, which limits power draw by adjusting Boost frequencies accordingly. A second limit exists that defines the maximum TDP adjustment limit for user overclocking; i.e., how far the power slider will go. In the second chart, the (+xx%) value lists the percentage increase from the tested card's default power limit to the highest available manual setting—the slider's adjustment range.