GPU only at 75% power consumption?

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

I'm trying to get the most out of my GPU, so what I did was put FC3 on max settings (AA 8x, HBAO, Ultra preset, etc) and try it out. Lo and behold, in Afterburner the GPU power usage was only at 75% out of 150%. Is this normal or is my card buggy?

[Bad 💀 Motha]

All depends on the game, and your CPU/GPU combination.
This can happen for number of reasons.

Such as CPU being a bottleneck and thus it's running at/near 100%, at which the GPU can only be pushed so far if a CPU is holding it back. Certain games can also do this simply because of them not able to take full advantage of certain GPUs, or bugs in the GPU drivers. On most newer GPUs, such as NVIDIA 600/700 series, this is quite normal when running on a single screen, simply because the GPU has more breathing room for running across multiple screens.

Can u list your system specs plz.
> OS
> CPU
> RAM
> GPU

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

Originally posted by Bad-Motha:

All depends on the game, and your CPU/GPU combination.
This can happen for number of reasons.

Such as CPU being a bottleneck and thus it's running at/near 100%, at which the GPU can only be pushed so far if a CPU is holding it back. Certain games can also do this simply because of them not able to take full advantage of certain GPUs, or bugs in the GPU drivers. On most newer GPUs, such as NVIDIA 600/700 series, this is quite normal when running on a single screen, simply because the GPU has more breathing room for running across multiple screens.

Can u list your system specs plz.
> OS
> CPU
> RAM
> GPU

OS: Windows 8.1
CPU: Intel Core i7 Quad Core 3770 3.4ghz
RAM: 8GB 1600mhz DDR3
GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 Factory Super-Clocked Ed

I checked CPU usage, it was around 40%, give or take 10%.

EDIT: Game was Far Cry 3 on highest settings (Ultra Preset, 8x AA, HBAO, etc)

[upcoast]

Use GPU Z, tic 'log to file'.

http://www.techpowerup.com/gpuz/

Sensor tab and log to file box ^.

http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/SysInfo/GPU-Z/

Download ^.


Ps, 75% of 150% don't know what all that's about.

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

Originally posted by upcoast:

Use GPU Z, tic 'log to file'.

http://www.techpowerup.com/gpuz/

Sensor tab and log to file box ^.

http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/SysInfo/GPU-Z/

Download ^.


Ps, 75% of 150% don't know what all that's about.

Already have GPUZ, thats what told me it's at 75%

[upcoast]

Tbh I have no idea where the 75% out of 150% is coming from in gpuz it's gpu load and it starts at 0% there's no ratios it's solid up to 100%.

You did a log file and what was the gpu load % mid gaming?

If in fact it is 75% with vsync OFF not on then ya there is a problem but if vsync is ON then it could be 75%.

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

Originally posted by upcoast:

Tbh I have no idea where the 75% out of 150% is coming from in gpuz it's gpu load and it starts at 0% there's no ratios it's solid up to 100%.

You did a log file and what was the gpu load % mid gaming?

If in fact it is 75% with vsync OFF not on then ya there is a problem but if vsync is ON then it could be 75%.

Actually, I should clear something up:
In Afterburner AND GPUZ, the power consumption was at 75%, but on Afterburner power consumption goes up to 150%. Not sure why :P

I did NOT do a log file but if I recall correctly it was 100%. But if you think it'll help you tell me how to do a log file in the next few minutes and I can get a sample.

I'm pretty sure with both VSync on and off it was 75%

[upcoast]

If you want to do a gpuz log file sure, open gpuz, click on Sensors Tab, look down at the bottom left corner tick the LOG TO FILE box, you'll get a save as what and to where name and save it where you want and it's saving a log right then, untick the box to stop it after you do your test..

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

Originally posted by upcoast:

If you want to do a gpuz log file sure, open gpuz, click on Sensors Tab, look down at the bottom left corner tick the LOG TO FILE box, you'll get a save as what and to where name and save it where you want and it's saving a log right then, untick the box to stop it after you do your test..

Ok I logged a file, weirdly the power consumption only hit 60%, although I do have a few aplitcations running in the background

[Bad 💀 Motha]

When u test GPU % consumption, do it with your web browsers closed. Other background apps shouldn't matter if they do not partake in using any GPU hardware acceleration. However browsers like Chrome can tax the GPU quite a bit, even when idle, so it can throw off your tests. Not by much, but still...

And to get an accurate reading, you will need to ensure VSync is always off, otherwise it will not be accurate. VSync off allows for fully allowable framerate, thus can require more power as well as a higher tax to the GPU itself. If you have VSync on, then u are capping the FPS and thus the system will not use as much power. Regardless of whether u wish to have VSync on/off in-game doesn't really matter. For testing purposes u always want it off.

[[☥] - CJ -]

Theres a difference between what you are looking at.

GPU Power Usage when it comes to 600 and 700 series GPUs are different than what youd expect it to be and in most cases has to do with overclocking and how much power the GPU can use to achieve and keep a stable overclock, thats what Power Target is used for on Afterburner and Precision.

Power Target is a power limiter. Increasing the Power Target will increase the available power to your graphics card, allowing for higher overclocks, or higher boost clocks. NOTE: Increasing this value may increase your GPU temperature. This feature is only available on 600 series graphics cards and above.
-

As mentioned above, using or not using Vsync will also effect these values. When VSync is enabled your system is basically limited to basically only allow the highest FPS to match your monitors refresh rate, having this enabled also keeps temperatures and actual power consumption in check.

When VSync is disabled you are basically giving your system permission to go all out as far as FPS and Power consumption is concerned and in turn the GPU Usage you are looking at may be higher than with VSync enabled. VSync enabled or Disabled will also yield different GPU AND CPU temperature results also. with VSync enabled temps should be lower due to FPS being capped, With it Off temps will be higher due to FPS/Power not being restricted.
-

If you want the max available performance from your GPU theres really only one thing you can do, aside from setting Power Management mode to Performance.

Within EVGA Precision and Possibly Afterburner on the Voltage tab you will see the option K-Boost(possible this is an EVGA Precision only feature but Afterburner may have a similar one)

What K-Boost does is make your GPU run at Max/Full clocks including the Boost Clock.
Example: Your GPU has a base clock of 900mhz and a Boost Clock of 1027mhz, Using K Boost will make your GPU run at the available Boost Clock for maximum performance. This is the best way to get the most performance from your GPU. When not gaming K-Boost should be turned off to lower the GPUs Temperatures and Clocks, when in this mode the clocks will not idle and thus idle temps will be higher than normal.


In Short, Power Target increases the amount of power the GPU can use. It mostly comes into play when Overclocking and when the Boost Clock auto overclock feature is being used in games. Power Usage is the amount of power the GPU is using in the current Game.
-

Be Cautious when using K Boost, if your Overclock is not stable in demanding games it can cause your game to freeze or cause your Graphics Driver to stop responding and crash, if this happens thats a sure fire way of knowing your GPUs overclock is not stable or your Powersupply is not suited to the Overclock you have set.

So what you are seeing is normal.
Unless you are trying to lower power usage and temperatures Power Target should be kept at 100% unless you are overclocking of which in that case it should be raised according to how much of an Overclock you are doing.

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

Originally posted by Bad-Motha:

When u test GPU % consumption, do it with your web browsers closed. Other background apps shouldn't matter if they do not partake in using any GPU hardware acceleration. However browsers like Chrome can tax the GPU quite a bit, even when idle, so it can throw off your tests. Not by much, but still...

And to get an accurate reading, you will need to ensure VSync is always off, otherwise it will not be accurate. VSync off allows for fully allowable framerate, thus can require more power as well as a higher tax to the GPU itself. If you have VSync on, then u are capping the FPS and thus the system will not use as much power. Regardless of whether u wish to have VSync on/off in-game doesn't really matter. For testing purposes u always want it off.

I have Chrome and everything closed besides FRAPS, and I have an i7 so that shouldn't affect performance too much

Originally posted by ☥ - CJ -:

What K-Boost does is make your GPU run at Max/Full clocks including the Boost Clock.
Example: Your GPU has a base clock of 900mhz and a Boost Clock of 1027mhz, Using K Boost will make your GPU run at the available Boost Clock for maximum performance. This is the best way to get the most performance from your GPU. When not gaming K-Boost should be turned off to lower the GPUs Temperatures and Clocks, when in this mode the clocks will not idle and thus idle temps will be higher than normal.

I cannot find KBoost, where is it exactly? :P

[rotNdude]

Originally posted by DomCobb1:

I cannot find KBoost, where is it exactly? :P

It's part of EVGA precision.
http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=369962

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

So I got precision and used KBoost and compared without KBoost. I could not notice a single difference, as well as GPU usage was the same. even in GPUZ it says the current clock speed is 1072, the base clock

[Dr. Gregory House, M.D.]

Ok, I think I figured it out. I looked up an EVGA vid on KBoost, and apparently the reason it goes up to 150 is because you can set up a power target. Should I raise this to maximum for best results?

[[☥] - CJ -]

Is 1072 the Actual Base Clock or is it the Boost Clock, with as high as it is it sounds more like the boost speed.

K-Boost as i explained before keeps the clocks raised to maximum. If you have a 900mhz base clock and a 1072 Boost Clock it'd make the GPU run at 1072 no matter how demanding a game is until you deactivate it.

Power Target also as i explained before has to do with overclocking and the Boost clock. a High overclock would require more power for it to be stable, thats what Power Target is for.