# Sapphire HD 6950 1GB unlocked to HD 6970 1GB!



## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 9, 2011)

*Card Used/Needed - *
**media.bestofmicro.com/Y/W/309704/original/sapphire_6950-twin-fan.jpg
SAPPHIRE HD 6950 1GB GDDR5
SAPPHIRE HD 6950 2GB GDDR5
SAPPHIRE HD 6950 2GB GDDR5 Dirt3 Edition*

*Stock Settings (I am using a 1GB version) - *
*img683.imageshack.us/img683/484/capture3uu.png

*A Little Story Behind -*
I had overclocked my card to 900/1275 and was going to overvolt to get further. Before that i decided to read some user experiences at *newegg*. Saw this -


> Bios Switch unlocks 6970 shaders.


So thats how the fun began. 

*How to Unlock -*
1. You need to have a Sapphire HD6950 with a dual fan cooler. 1GB or 2GB both have good chance of unlocking. 
2. Make sure the card is running at stock 800/1250.
3. Turn off the system, open the cabinet side panel and locate the BIOS Switch on the card. Its near crossfire bridge connector. 
4. Flip the switch towards right.
5. Reboot.
6. Open *GPU-Z* and you shall see this hopefully -
*img267.imageshack.us/img267/8535/capturell.png
7. Now you can overclock it to 880/1375 (the HD6970 speeds) (Note - Every card is different. Some cards may need overvolting to get to 880/1375. Overclock at your own risk)

*My Overclocking Update - *
*img85.imageshack.us/img85/5853/capture3p.png
This is at Stock Volt. 

*Temps during BC2 (UPRIVER) -*
*img12.imageshack.us/img12/9251/capture2oh.png

*Benchmark Comparisons -*
*img832.imageshack.us/img832/7822/3dmark11u.png
*img163.imageshack.us/img163/5301/avph.png
*img51.imageshack.us/img51/5244/dirt3v.png

*UNIGINE - *


Spoiler



*880/1375 (1536) - *
*img607.imageshack.us/img607/1679/capture5yb.png
*800/1275 (1408) - *
*img820.imageshack.us/img820/6215/afterdb.png


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## rajan1311 (Dec 9, 2011)

awesome stuff mate... wonder why this went unnoticed for so long... pic of the BIOS switch would help some members i think..


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 9, 2011)

thanks rajan. 
bios switch is too small buddy. difficult to get good pic. tried.


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## kapilove77 (Dec 9, 2011)

any chance for me to unlock?


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## Skud (Dec 9, 2011)

This is killer! Some benchmarks would be helpful. 

*@kapilove77:* MSI had released a BIOS and instructions to unlock the shaders earlier for that card. Google it.


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## Sarath (Dec 9, 2011)

Haha 6970 users burn in hell  

Oh wait! 

On a serious note nice little tutorial up there. i wish there was such a trick for 6970 users too but nvm


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 9, 2011)

benches coming soon skud. let me oc first 

thanks sarath. 

*UPDATE - *

*now its a full 6970 (except less vram) -*
*img85.imageshack.us/img85/5853/capture3p.png

*temps during BC2 (UPRIVER) -*
*img12.imageshack.us/img12/9251/capture2oh.png

will post unigine and 3dmark11 tomorrow.

*no voltage tweaking done!*


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## coderunknown (Dec 9, 2011)

@jassy, congo man. free gift. lucky


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## Skud (Dec 9, 2011)

What about noise? I have read this card is noisier under load (just like other dual fan cards). Even my single fan's noise is audible at 50% and above in winter when the ceiling fan doesn't spin.


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## mithun_mrg (Dec 10, 2011)

^^ i think the noise even if it will be during gaming which is easily overtaken by the speakers/heaphones u use
congrats jas


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 10, 2011)

@sammy
yeah, thanks buddy 

@skud
yes card becomes noisy with high fan profiles. i used trixx fan bar to test this. 
but i use headphones, so not a problem. 

and we cant give away oc due to noise 

@mithun_mrg
right. and thanks buddy 


*Comparisons-*

*3D mark 11 - *

*800/1250 (1408 shaders) - 4804*
*img256.imageshack.us/img256/2538/800ph.png

*900/1250 (1408 shaders) - 5287*
*img585.imageshack.us/img585/2594/900p.png

*800/1250 (1536 shaders) - 4958*
*img36.imageshack.us/img36/6883/capturees.png

*880/1375 (1536 shaders) - 5431*
*img88.imageshack.us/img88/2374/capture4fgp.png

*Unigine - *

*800/1250 (1408 shaders) -*
*img820.imageshack.us/img820/6215/afterdb.png

*880/1375 (1536 shaders) -*
*img607.imageshack.us/img607/1679/capture5yb.png

changed the 1st post to a little tutorial.


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## Skud (Dec 10, 2011)

Yours is the story of luck, getting a 6970 from a 6950 1gb, that too a RMAed one.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 10, 2011)

Skud said:


> Yours is the story of luck, getting a 6970 from a 6950 1gb, that too a RMAed one.



yup. RMA helped me get this card which has high chance of unlocking.


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## topgear (Dec 10, 2011)

nice going mate ... now time to play with HD6970


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## Cilus (Dec 10, 2011)

Jas, superb work buddy. You are becoming pro day by day. Now you got a HD 6970 from your HD 6950. So I don't think you need to puch the card much further.


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## slashragnarok (Dec 10, 2011)

Does this card have 2 6 pin connectors or 6pin+8 pin?


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## DARK KNIGHT (Dec 10, 2011)

Jas does we the *owners of 6950* have chance to do this . i ask this question bcse we all have different company cards only *kapilove* have and i have the same company card. can we do this or not . and yes nice oced jas & cilius check Ur spell mistake u did it in a hurry i think edit it .


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## Skud (Dec 10, 2011)

DARK KNIGHT said:


> Jas does we the *owners of 6950* have chance to do this . i ask this question bcse we all have different company cards only *kapilove* have and i have the same company card. can we do this or not . and yes nice oced jas & cilius check Ur spell mistake u did it in a hurry i think edit it .




It's answered here:



Skud said:


> *@kapilove77:* MSI had released a BIOS and instructions to unlock the shaders earlier for that card. Google it.




Of course, it won't be just a flip of switch, you have to actually flash the BIOS. Else there are scripts to do it automatically. But beware, this might be risky and there's no guarantee. In any case, always backup the original BIOS.


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## d6bmg (Dec 10, 2011)

@Jas: pure luck here.  Enjoy your unlocked 6950.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 10, 2011)

topgear said:


> nice going mate ... now time to play with HD6970



thanks TP. 



Cilus said:


> Jas, superb work buddy. You are becoming pro day by day. Now you got a HD 6970 from your HD 6950. So I don't think you need to puch the card much further.



thanks cilus. 
yes i am keeping it at 880/1375. 



slashragnarok said:


> Does this card have 2 6 pin connectors or 6pin+8 pin?



2 6pin. 



DARK KNIGHT said:


> Jas does we the *owners of 6950* have chance to do this . i ask this question bcse we all have different company cards only *kapilove* have and i have the same company card. can we do this or not . and yes nice oced jas & cilius check Ur spell mistake u did it in a hurry i think edit it .



MSI R6950 Twin Frozr III Power Edition Unlocking - Unlocking Guide
and thanks 



d6bmg said:


> @Jas: pure luck here.  Enjoy your unlocked 6950.



thanks. 
but these sapphire dual fan versions have high chance on unlocking. check newegg. 
Newegg.com - SAPPHIRE 100312-3SR Radeon HD 6950 Dirt3 Edition 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity


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## kapilove77 (Dec 10, 2011)

What is the worse thing can happen while unlocking my card?


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## Skud (Dec 10, 2011)

A bricked card at its worst and no extra shaders if there's nothing to unlock.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 10, 2011)

*img163.imageshack.us/img163/5301/avph.png

*img51.imageshack.us/img51/5244/dirt3v.png


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## Tenida (Dec 10, 2011)

You're very lucky  jaskanwar......congrats for your new unlocked HD6970 1GB DDR5 Now forget about  GTX560Ti vs HD6950 hehehe...


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 10, 2011)

thanks Tenida. 

added a dirt 3 bench in previous post.

update - 
added graphs of 3d mark 11, dirt3, avp benches in first post.


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## MegaMind (Dec 11, 2011)

Well done Jas, Congrats


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## topgear (Dec 11, 2011)

take a look at here 
Sapphire Radeon HD 6970 2GB Dual Fan Review - Introduction & Specifications


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## rchi84 (Dec 11, 2011)

That is impressive jas. Congrats! The first 1 gb 6970 I have read about  happy gaming


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## ashis_lakra (Dec 11, 2011)

Yep, first one.. I wish GTX 560 ti could unlock to GTX 570 . haha


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 11, 2011)

@megamind 
thanks buddy 

@rchi
thanks buddy 

@TP
in AvP they have used 4xAA, i have run it at default settings - 


Spoiler






> # AvP Benchmark Config File
> # =========================
> #
> # To use a config file such as this with the Benchmark, launch the
> ...







Benchmark Results: Aliens Vs. Predator : Nvidia GeForce GTX 560 Ti 448 Core Review: GF110 On A Diet
*media.bestofmicro.com/G/L/316821/original/AvP%201920.png*img163.imageshack.us/img163/5301/avph.png

scores in line with 6970 and 6950 scores. i used same settings. 

in 3dmark11 i think they have used the score combined of all 6 tests whereas i have used 4 GPU tests only.
in unigine i think they have used default settings. 

Guys i have problem with Dirt3 benchmark. 
i choose 8xmsaa 3 times for benching, but everytime i see the xml file its reset o 4xmsaa. any solution?

here is 3d mark 11 extreme preset gpu score -


Spoiler



*img198.imageshack.us/img198/3649/3dmark11extreme.png
*img542.imageshack.us/img542/6937/capture7c.png





ashis_lakra said:


> Yep, first one.. I wish GTX 560 ti could unlock to GTX 570 . haha



nice one


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## nilgtx260 (Dec 11, 2011)

nice unlocking jaz, hav fun


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 11, 2011)

thanks nilgtx260 

@TP
ok now Dirt3 settings problem solved. 
here is what i got - 
Ultra, 8xMSAA - 64.61
Ultra, 4xMSAA - 67.21
scores aren't matching with any of these -
Sapphire Radeon HD 6970 2GB Dual Fan Review - Page 9 - DiRT 3
*media.bestofmicro.com/G/X/316833/original/DiRT3 1920.png
and where is option of AF?


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## topgear (Dec 12, 2011)

I'm not using win 7 anymore so can't tell about Dirt 3 AF setting and I've not played this game - just installed it for testing purposes and only ran it 4-5  times but there's must be the AF option - a lot of benches online have used it so the option must be in the game settings - just try to find it 

You have got low FPS in same set of tests in Dirt 3 - the reason could be the HD6970s used in the tests has 2GB GDDR5 mem but yours unlocked one 1GB mem and Dirt 3 really likes more vrams at higher resolutions.

Regarding AVP 2010 benchmark I think the batch file method has some glitches so I recommend you to use this GUI tool for AVP benchmarks - here's the link of AVP 2010 Benchmark GUI tool ( look at the post by japamd )
Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 Benchmark Tool - Guru3D.com Forums

BTW, if you can just perform the game benchmarks I've done with same gfx settings - I would really like to see them


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 12, 2011)

topgear said:


> I'm not using win 7 anymore so can't tell about Dirt 3 AF setting and I've not played this game - just installed it for testing purposes and only ran it 4-5  times but there's must be the AF option - a lot of benches online have used it so the option must be in the game settings - just try to find it
> 
> You have got low FPS in same set of tests in Dirt 3 - the reason could be the HD6970s used in the tests has 2GB GDDR5 mem but yours unlocked one 1GB mem and Dirt 3 really likes more vrams at higher resolutions.
> 
> ...



as i thought TP -


> DiRT3 automatically enables a level of anisotropic texture filtering, which looks to us to be 4X AF when using the highest post processing quality. We found that enabling 16X AF in the NVIDIA Control Panel and the AMD Catalyst Control Center gave us the expected improvement in texture filtering quality. Therefore we will force 16X AF from the control panel for our testing to ensure maximum visual quality.


HARDOCP - Configuring and Testing DiRT3 - DiRT 3 Gameplay Performance Review

so first i set tessellation to 'use application settings' and forced aa to 16x in control panel. 
first time results match with this -
Sapphire Radeon HD 6970 2GB Dual Fan Review - Page 9 - DiRT 3
i had got - 60.801456
now everytime i ran test again they increased (settings same) -
61.958145
63.745071
63.384754
then i set tessellation to 'amd optimized' in control panel and got this -
64.066498



AVP tool giving this error -
*img812.imageshack.us/img812/6281/11631530.png

about game benches i dont have lost planet 2 benchmark, crysis 2 benchmark, metro2033 benchmark, f1 2010 benchmark.


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## topgear (Dec 13, 2011)

Ok .. nice find there - so we need to enable AF setting for Dirt 3 using gfx driver control panel - did not have any clue about this before - thanks for this 

For me the AVP bench tool worked just fine - when you first on the avptool it will ask for a exe file - just select the avp_d3d11_benchmark.exe.



			
				Jaskanwar Singh said:
			
		

> i have a problem. yesterday i was installing ubuntu and when running from live cd i opened net. found that some images were distorted, noisy, blue,black lines sort of. rest fine. same happened when i was checking overclock.net dirt3 thread, one of images was distorted (in win7 now).
> later in dirt3, i collided with a stand while racing and the image during collision became distorted at some portions of screen for that little moment. then i completed the race and got a dxgmms1.sys BSOD during quitting the game. today i repeated same level and collided with same building to verify and found same problem. but no BSOD. everything ok.
> 
> my card is unlocked and running at 880/1375 (default - 800/1250). memory is 11-11-11-29.
> ...



Buddy - proceed step by step :

1. Remove the newly installed Ram Module - Use only the Old modules.
2. Use only the final version of gfx driver - the recent one is 11.11 or use 11.10 drivers.
3. Keep the Shaders enabled (aka bios switch of the gfx card ) but run the gpu at stock clock speed.
4. As I said before run Metro 2033 Benchmark @ HD resolution with max settings possible - from my experience I've seen that it puts maximum amount of load on the gpu.
5. If the card can pass this use the 880/1325 clock setting - test with Metro 2033 again.
6. If the test is successful install the new mem module and run all of them @ 1333 Mhz.
7. Now play some different games like BFBC2/BFBC3/Crysis2/Rage/Fallout 3/NV etc. for 2-3 hours each - if they are running without any issue then set the mem to 1600Mhz and re-run the No7 test set and see if the sustem remains stbale or not.

This way you can rectify what is actually causing the BSOD.

Now coming to the UPS part - is it a APC 600VA one ?? then it can output power limitation is 360W and the neoseeker guys test rig consumed 378W under HD6970s benchmarks ( which has core i7 920 Corsair AX1200 powering the rig which has better efficiency ) but when using memtest like apps gpu is not used at it's full load ( most probably ) - even if it shutdowns then then their might be some issue with the ups it-self - if possible check it with some other low power consuming rig.

Overall these are a long sets of test to ensure a safe and stable OC - take your time , do these in step by step and post feedback


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 13, 2011)

TP ok but metro 2033 is giving me same error i told you before even after update. and benchmark too. 

and what do you think of dirt3 scores?

and how to run AvP with command line to use our preferred text file?

and UPS works fine when i am browsing etc and power goes off.

and i had tested it stable with battlefield bad company 2. but not for 2-3 hours. i cant game for that much due to lack of time.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
_updated_

@TP 

i figured out that metro 2033 problem. searched the internet and found it something related to visual c++ file. so reinstalled.
AND ITS WORKING. 

and then i installed update 2. ran benchmark at highest possible settings settings (ofcourse physx off) - 
Options: Resolution: 1920 x 1080; DirectX: DirectX 11; Quality: Very High; Antialiasing: MSAA 4X; Texture filtering: AF 16X; Advanced PhysX: Disabled; Tesselation: Enabled; DOF: Enabled

Got this - 
*img46.imageshack.us/img46/8408/m20331.png
*img85.imageshack.us/img85/5099/m20332.png

*AND THE BEST THING IS THIS WAS AT 6GB 1600MHZ RAM (11-11-11-29) AND GPU - 880/1375. *

max GPU temp went to 59C at the end of benchmark. 

what do you think of this?


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## topgear (Dec 14, 2011)

If the UPS goes off even while browsing then it's some sort of issue with the PSu itself - RMA it.

For AVP benchmark just edit the config file located on the folder where AVP stores the result txt files.

Metro 2033 running at high settings means the gpu core clock Oc and volts are stable - now try some other games which can put enough loads on the system ram and vram as well.

The BSODS you faced in DiRt3 could be due to gpu mem clock , display driver or ram timings/clock speed - the only way to make sure about this is to play some other resource hungry games for 2-3 hours - For system memory you can try Lynx test.

only this way you'll be know for sure about the stability of all OCed settings


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 14, 2011)

see buddy, i am no longer getting the BSOD. Dxg bsod was only once during returning to desktop after exiting the game. the thing is still i am getting that distortion on collision in DIRT3. green, red, blue lines appear on screen for that moment and vanish. 
i removed 4gb new stick, still got that issue. ran the 2gb stick at 1333 still the issue. ran the vram at stock 1250, still the distortion. 

and no more BSOD (fingers crossed). the ntoskrnl.exe i found on net was related to some old drivers on system. 

about AvP, editing that default config file didnt make a difference. how to use this - 


> To use a config file such as this with the Benchmark, launch the
> # AvP_Benchmark.exe with the following on the command-line (e.g.via a
> # short-cut).
> #
> # -config=name_of_your_config.txt


exact command?

no buddy, UPS doesnt go off during browsing. it went off during memtest and gaming. 

are metro scores ok?


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## Skud (Dec 14, 2011)

I got similar scores with OCed 6950 (900 Mhz core) with a stock c2q 9550. It's more in line.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 14, 2011)

ok thanks for info skud. 

Ok TP here is the video. notice when i collide. 
this is running at 880/1250.
ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting


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## Skud (Dec 14, 2011)

Eh, even I got the same thing when I collide, and all this time I thought its a feature or bug of the game. 

Do it really relates to the card anyway?


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 14, 2011)

At stock too skud?


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## Skud (Dec 14, 2011)

A stock and OC, with all the driver updates, with a genuine game. I guess that's a bug, nothing more.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 14, 2011)

I read in youtube now, its a feature. Camera tilt!!!
WHAT A MESS IT CREATED FOR ME


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## Skud (Dec 14, 2011)

lol, yeah.


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## MegaMind (Dec 14, 2011)

Skud said:


> A stock and OC, with all the driver updates, with a genuine game. I guess that's a bug, nothing more.



Guys, no its not a game bug.. I don't get that while crashing..


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 14, 2011)

Guys see -
Dirt3 artifacts video (solved) in youtube.

I read comments only.(on mobile)


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## Skud (Dec 14, 2011)

When there's no other problem in no other games, who cares? I have some weird problems with CMR4 too, looks like Codies have some unique features/bugs in their games.


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## MegaMind (Dec 14, 2011)

Doing some Google says its normal..


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## topgear (Dec 15, 2011)

@ Jaskanwar Singh - just edit the config file located in benchmark result dir - no need to run the exe with any command line option but I've used this config file method two or three times only - for regular benches the AVP tool is much more better as I'm not on Win 7 now can't tell exactly about it.

Your UPS just can't take the load of the and that's why it's unable give proper backup - the battery may be weak.

If all games are running just fine with gpu OC and all the mem modules installed then you've a nice and stable OC - congrats and enjoy the extra performance in games


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 15, 2011)

MegaMind said:


> Doing some Google says its normal..



yeah, what a relief for me 



topgear said:


> @ Jaskanwar Singh - just edit the config file located in benchmark result dir - no need to run the exe with any command line option but I've used this config file method two or three times only - for regular benches the AVP tool is much more better as I'm not on Win 7 now can't tell exactly about it.
> 
> Your UPS just can't take the load of the and that's why it's unable give proper backup - the battery may be weak.
> 
> If all games are running just fine with gpu OC and all the mem modules installed then you've a nice and stable OC - congrats and enjoy the extra performance in games



thanks for all your help buddy 

and reinstalling the benchmark fixed the problem. here you go at 880/1375 - 

*img17.imageshack.us/img17/6977/avp.png

how is the score?

Sapphire HD 6970 FleX Battlefield 3 Edition Review » Page 5 - Testing: Aliens vs. Predator - Overclockers Club
strange!

tessellation set to 'use application settings' in vision control center i got this - 



> AvP D3D11 Benchmark Report
> ==========================
> 
> **************************************************
> ...




results in line with this - 
AMD Radeon HD 6970 Review > Benchmarks: Far Cry 2, Aliens vs. Predator - TechSpot Reviews

also verified metro 2033 results -
used G3D settings (GeForce GTX 560 Ti 448 core review)


Spoiler



*img214.imageshack.us/img214/9747/metro2.png



scores in line


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## topgear (Dec 16, 2011)

^^ nice going ...


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 16, 2011)

max i could go is 890/1375 at stock volt now. 
*img855.imageshack.us/img855/9062/stockvoltstable.png

TP metro2033 bench at highest settings was stable at 900/1400 stock volt but BC2 Upriver unstable. BC2 is running stable at 890/1375 stock volt.


Spoiler



*img708.imageshack.us/img708/9039/metro2033y.png


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## topgear (Dec 17, 2011)

^^ I don't think there will be much difference in performance between 900/1400 and 890/1375 and it look like you have hit the sweet spot of the gpu using stock volts which is 890/1375


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 17, 2011)

yeah TP, i am happy with 890/1375.


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## comp@ddict (Dec 19, 2011)

Oh goodie, huge upgrade for free eh!


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## topgear (Dec 20, 2011)

^^ you can say that but Jas had to put a lot of efforts and spend a lot of time to achieve this


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Dec 20, 2011)

comp@ddict said:


> Oh goodie, huge upgrade for free eh!



thanks. 



topgear said:


> ^^ you can say that but Jas had to put a lot of efforts and spend a lot of time to achieve this



yeah, thanks TP.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Jan 21, 2012)

cleaned it yesterday, thought to show some pics -
(sorry for bad quality)

default TIM removed - 

*img830.imageshack.us/img830/1697/20012012199.jpg
*img841.imageshack.us/img841/7462/20012012201.jpg

and that white thing surrounding cayman is TIM spilled over by default 

cooler cleaned , TIM removed -

*img189.imageshack.us/img189/6950/20012012206.jpg
*img862.imageshack.us/img862/7623/20012012205.jpg

re-TIMed -

*img85.imageshack.us/img85/6839/20012012207.jpg

re-assembled -

*img856.imageshack.us/img856/5302/20012012209.jpg
*img141.imageshack.us/img141/1803/20012012210.jpg


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## Skud (Jan 21, 2012)

You are having a great time with your card.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Jan 21, 2012)

yea skud


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## MegaMind (Jan 21, 2012)

Nice Jas.. Which TIM applied?


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Jan 21, 2012)

thanks megamind. 
the one that came with hyper 212 evo 
there is drop of 2-3C in idle and load temps. idle - 28-30 (250/150), load - 52-53. (in BF3 at 890/1375)


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## topgear (Jan 22, 2012)

great going jas


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Jan 22, 2012)

thanks TP. 

BTW how to remove these screws -
(red circled)
*img85.imageshack.us/img85/1697/20012012199.jpg
i push them, compress but still not able to get them out!


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## topgear (Jan 24, 2012)

I think you need to open them from the back side though I'm not very sure about this.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Jan 26, 2012)

i tried TP, but couldn't


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## mrradeon6950 (Feb 2, 2012)

Hi i have follow all the instructions you have and its fascinating thbat my Sapphire dual fan 1gb 6950 is unlock already. Got the 1536. I need to ask if I need to use RBE and getting a atiwinflash? and also want to ask if what is the recommended power supply for OC the 6950? Its very good topics you have. Thank you so much.


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## avinandan012 (Feb 2, 2012)

you have to get a forcep and try from the back


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## ico (Feb 2, 2012)

mrradeon6950 said:


> Hi i have follow all the instructions you have and its fascinating thbat my Sapphire dual fan 1gb 6950 is unlock already. Got the 1536. I need to ask if I need to use RBE and getting a atiwinflash? and also want to ask if what is the recommended power supply for OC the 6950? Its very good topics you have. Thank you so much.


No, you do NOT need to use RBE and ATi Winflash now because your card has unlocked already to 1536. 

Recommended power supply? Seasonic S12II 520w or 620w.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 2, 2012)

mrradeon6950 said:


> Hi i have follow all the instructions you have and its fascinating thbat my Sapphire dual fan 1gb 6950 is unlock already. Got the 1536. I need to ask if I need to use RBE and getting a atiwinflash? and also want to ask if what is the recommended power supply for OC the 6950? Its very good topics you have. Thank you so much.



ico answered.

BTW congrats and do not forget to add your entry here -
*www.thinkdigit.com/forum/graphic-cards/148907-amd-radeon-hd-6900-series-owners-club.html



BTW guys see the linkbacks below


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## mrradeon6950 (Feb 9, 2012)

hi I did already unlock the shaders to 1536. then when I OC it to 6970 speed using the sapphire trixx and then OC it as well in msi after burner then use the msi kombustor to check if its stable then it happened that I cant move the mouse anymore and it stucks and cant either ctrl+alt+del. Also when Im playing Battlefield 3 or starcraft 2 after 15 minutes I can see some flickering color in the screen and it exitsmy game. then When I play the game again my screen have different colors in it. What would be the reason.


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## Skud (Feb 9, 2012)

Run the card on stock speed (with unlocked shaders) and report back.


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## coderunknown (Feb 10, 2012)

mrradeon6950 said:


> hi I did already unlock the shaders to 1536. then when I OC it to 6970 speed using the sapphire trixx and then OC it as well in msi after burner then use the msi kombustor to check if its stable then it happened that I cant move the mouse anymore and it stucks and cant either ctrl+alt+del. Also when Im playing Battlefield 3 or starcraft 2 after 15 minutes I can see some flickering color in the screen and it exitsmy game. then When I play the game again my screen have different colors in it. What would be the reason.



most HD6950 that have locked shaders are not locked on purpose. instead AMD could have those as HD6970 at lower price. some of the GPUs are defective and the bad transistor section are locked. so even if you successfully unlock the extra shaders, there is no guarantee GPU will run stable. over that you overclock the GPU. run at stock speed. if everything works fine, switch the second bios (hence unlocking it to HD6970) and check for stability. avoid overcloking an unlocked GPU/processor. and even if you do, be ready for all sort of fireworks.

also if you want to check for stability, run some graphics heavy game. or run a game with everything max'd out.


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## mrradeon6950 (Feb 10, 2012)

Im actually running battlefield 3 at max settings and at unlcok shader 1536 but at stock speed of 800mhz/1250mhz. and it works fine. but when I sued the sapphire trixx to OC it to 880/1375 then the problem starts and it gives me flickering color and it exits my game. and when I run some benchmark like MSI kombustor it just went out of power and I need to plug it out then turn the PC again.


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## rchi84 (Feb 10, 2012)

Well I guess either your psu is running out of juice or the gpu on your card is one that needs more volts to run at 880 mhz. See if you can use afterburner to raise the gpu voltage to around 1150.

But make sure your psu is upto the task and your fans are set at 45% or more before you do this.


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## dibya_kol (Feb 10, 2012)

mrradeon6950 said:


> Im actually running battlefield 3 at max settings and at unlcok shader 1536 but at stock speed of 800mhz/1250mhz. and it works fine. but when I sued the sapphire trixx to OC it to 880/1375 then the problem starts and it gives me flickering color and it exits my game. and when I run some benchmark like MSI kombustor it just went out of power and I need to plug it out then turn the PC again.



I guess u r getting artifact when ur gpu is oced, lower down ur gpu clock speed, or else it could damage ur card. BTW what is ur gpu temp during heavy games ?


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## mrradeon6950 (Feb 10, 2012)

When I play battlefield 3 in max settings including 8x msaa and 16x anistrophy and skyrim the same settings in 1080p resolution. Playing it for 8 hours. I have a max temp of 74c in HWmonitor and in MSI afterburner. this is under 800/1250mhz. Im using silverstone ST60F-P 600watts. I cant change the gpu voltage.


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## ico (Feb 10, 2012)

mrradeon6950 said:


> When I play battlefield 3 in max settings including 8x msaa and 16x anistrophy and skyrim the same settings in 1080p resolution. Playing it for 8 hours. I have a max temp of 74c in HWmonitor and in MSI afterburner. this is under 800/1250mhz.


Temperature is fine.

Don't overclock to 880/1375 if you get problems.

Either keep it at stock i.e. 800/1250 or overclock to something around 830/1300.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 10, 2012)

yeah, your gpu might not run stable at 880/1375 without extra voltage. 
you can overvolt using sapphire trixx. 

and remember to up fan profile before over volting.


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## mrradeon6950 (Feb 10, 2012)

Thanks!! I will try that and check it.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 10, 2012)

^BTW its VRMs already stressed with addition shader load. dont overvolt too much IMO.
is someone able to find some nice links in this regard?


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## dibya_kol (Feb 11, 2012)

Jaskanwar Singh said:


> yeah, your gpu might not run stable at 880/1375 without extra voltage.
> you can overvolt using sapphire trixx.
> 
> and remember to up fan profile before over volting.





ico said:


> Temperature is fine.
> 
> Don't overclock to 880/1375 if you get problems.
> 
> Either keep it at stock i.e. 800/1250 or overclock to something around 830/1300.



+1 .. 

And @OP, ur psu is fine, don't worry.



Jaskanwar Singh said:


> is someone able to find some nice links in this regard?



If i were nt wrong, u r talking about unlock/tweak the 6950 to 6970, am i right ? If yes, go to guru3d forum, and search for ' dave's ' article regarding unlocking this gpu. U can find a sticked article in there. As i know he is the 1st person who unlocked this gpu. 

p.s: link added 

6950 BIOS Unlocking (At Users Risk) - Guru3D.com Forums


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 11, 2012)

^i want some info on overvolting unlocked 6950.


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## MyGeekTips (Feb 11, 2012)

Congrats Jas, Awesome Job with your card. Now Enjoy Doing Hard-core Gaming.


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## Mr.V (Feb 11, 2012)

you can overclock the GPU clock but dont overclock the Memory clock much as it may cause instability.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 11, 2012)

MyGeekTips said:


> Congrats Jas, Awesome Job with your card. Now Enjoy Doing Hard-core Gaming.



thanks 



Mr.V said:


> you can overclock the GPU clock but dont overclock the Memory clock much as it may cause instability.



i already run the memory at 1375.


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## topgear (Feb 12, 2012)

I think this is what you need 

Unlock and OC that 6950 TF3/ Twin Frozr III- the definitive guide!


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## Skud (Feb 12, 2012)

Nice share tg.


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 12, 2012)

@TP
thanks buddy, but thats for TF3.

i found this -
Unlocked Sapphire HD6950 Dirt3 Edition


> Just recently picked up a Sapphire HD6950 Dirt3 Edition. So far I am very pleased with the card. Shaders unlocked with the bios switch flip and it is a pretty solid overclocker as well. 970/1370 @ 1.18v stable




Unlocked Sapphire HD6950 Dirt3 Edition


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## topgear (Feb 13, 2012)

Jaskanwar Singh said:


> @TP
> thanks buddy, but thats for TF3.
> 
> i found this -
> ...



nice - I think now you've got what you were looking for - do let us know the results if you are going to apply 1.18v


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## Jaskanwar Singh (Feb 13, 2012)

ok TP


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## Sapphirez (Jun 21, 2012)

Hi, I have the Sapphire 6950 1GB(dual fan) dirt 3 edition and after seeing this thread, I shut my PC down to look if my card has the small BIOS switch. It turns out there is actually the magic switch that I was looking for. I turned the swicth to the right, open my PC and launched GPU-Z and BAM! 1536 shaders. I was really surprised because I had a factory pre-installed 6970 BIOS in my GPU. 

However, I switched back to the stock BIOS (1436) because I was worried about breaking my card. What do you guys think? Should I use the pre-installed 6970 BIOS switch? Keep in mind I have the 1GB edition. Thanks.


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## topgear (Jun 22, 2012)

^^ just use the the magic switch to enable 1536 Shaders and get extra performance - if the card remains stable through games and benches then congrats - you got a HD6970 and try bumping up the core and mem speed ( without changing volt ) similar to HD670


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## Sapphirez (Jun 22, 2012)

topgear said:


> ^^ just use the the magic switch to enable 1536 Shaders and get extra performance - if the card remains stable through games and benches then congrats - you got a HD6970 and try bumping up the core and mem speed ( without changing volt ) similar to HD670


Well, I bumped the Core clock to 840 and the memory clock to 1325 with the unlocked shaders and I put the power control setting(in CCC) to +20. I've tried going with 880 and 1375(6970 clocks) but I got random freezes in BF3 so I guess it's stable at 840/1325. 

Btw thanks alot for your response.


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## topgear (Jun 23, 2012)

^^ looks like that's the limit but after 840/1328 core/mem speed try to increase the core/mem clock by 5 mhz only on each step untill the card becomes unstable in games - thus you will find the maximum stable clock speeds for your card


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## Sapphirez (Jun 23, 2012)

topgear said:


> ^^ looks like that's the limit but after 840/1328 core/mem speed try to increase the core/mem clock by 5 mhz only on each step untill the card becomes unstable in games - thus you will find the maximum stable clock speeds for your card


Thanks again for your reply, and one more question, am I suppose to add more core voltage to the videocard after I've unlocked the extra shaders? Because I've tested with 3 softwares(trixx, CCC and msi afterburner) and they dont allow me to add more voltage. Only the power limit which is on +20.


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