RTX 3080's 2-Pin vs 3-Pin

[Dagwoodyt]

For past two weeks I've been trying to come to grips with a 2-pin 3080Ti. As expected, gpu temps were an issue from the start given an ambient that is typically on the order of 27C. Gpu temps would quickly pass 80C under load and >350 watts. The first mission in the From England with Love mini campaign and the BoM I-16 Escort mission being scenarios provoking such stats. With lots of struggling to understand gpu undervolting i've been able to keep Ultra settings and bring gpu/cpu temps under 75C in those missions at cost of increased gpu frame times. Worth it to me so that I don't have to pay as much attention to the fpsVR overlay now. In less demanding situations I can maintain a near constant 80fps in the Valve Index. Over all I am fairly satisfied with my "budget" 2-pin card since my 750W PS hasn't complained to date. With the Afterburner profile I'm using wattage use typically averages <300W. I'm wondering what the 3-pin experience is like as I would have preferred one had the choice been available.

[1PL-Husar-1Esk]

You mean 2x8 pin power connector  vs 3x8 pin ?

I read it's good to have separate cable to each 8 pin connector,  not from branching cable. 

Edited August 22, 2021 by 1PL-Husar-1Esk

[jollyjack]

3 8pin connectors means more power available for the GPU, but be sure your power supply can handle that.

75 Celsius seems awfully hot. Is that normal for a 3080ti?

Edited August 22, 2021 by jollyjack

[firdimigdi]

More watts = more heat = quicker throttling.

 

I've got mine set to 1850Mhz @ 825mV. It can run at that boost speed without overheating and throttling and according to an external gauge my system uses 75-100W less compared to the card's factory OC and the GPU rarely gets to 70C.

 

[Dagwoodyt]

6 hours ago, 1PL-Husar-1Esk said:

You mean 2x8 pin power connector  vs 3x8 pin ?

I read it's good to have separate cable to each 8 pin connector,  not from branching cable. 

Yes, exactly. The 2x8 pin requirement is the same as for the 1080Ti it replaced. In fact the 3080Ti is no larger than the 1080Ti.

2 hours ago, 335th_GRFirdimigdi said:

More watts = more heat = quicker throttling.

 

I've got mine set to 1850Mhz @ 825mV. It can run at that boost speed without overheating and throttling and according to an external gauge my system uses 75-100W less compared to the card's factory OC and the GPU rarely gets to 70C.

 

Is that with a 2x8 or 3x8 card? Would be interested in seeing your undervolt curve and related graphs if using Afterburner or similar. BTW my pc setup is air cooled only.

Edited August 22, 2021 by Dagwoodyt

[firdimigdi]

2 hours ago, Dagwoodyt said:

Is that with a 2x8 or 3x8 card? Would be interested in seeing your undervolt curve and related graphs if using Afterburner or similar.

2x8 - here's the graph, not much to see really - although it says 1845 I guess due to some hocus pocus of the card itself it locks at 1850, if I put it up a notch (say set the graph to read 1850) it actually goes to 1860 but I noticed that it keeps fluctuating +-10MHz even though the temperature doesn't really change much so I preferred to keep it at a state that it remains stable and operates continuously at the same clock speed. In this config, memory OC is at +750MHz.

 

 

Edited August 22, 2021 by 335th_GRFirdimigdi

[354thFG_Drewm3i-VR]

Those temps are way too hot...my 3080 FE never goes over 60-65C. I havent even undervolted it yet.

[Dagwoodyt]

It seems a balancing act between gpu temps and frame time. I'm concerned if temps get above 75C under load.

[firdimigdi]

IMO undervolting is a no-brainer for these cards. In fact I'm tempted to reduce boost (and further undervolt it) as it's already going quite a bit over the stock boost and rarely will it hit 100% usage in normal gameplay anyhow. The above sub-70C I mentioned btw is with ~30C ambient.

[Props]

I agree, undervolting is definitely a positive step in keeping your temperatures low and still having great performance with the 3080s. It took a bit of trial and error as every card is a bit different and I found MSI's Afterburner to be the best utility for this job (I also use it to control my fan speeds). My Nvidia 3080 XC3 Ultra would run in the upper 70s sometimes hitting the low 80s when I first got it up and running (in IL2 BoX), stuttering when temps got high. Then I went through a few weeks of study on undervolting and subsequent trials at different levels gleaned from the web and now run it at 825mv / 1864 Mhz  with temps usually maxing out in the mid 60s no matter what kind of mission or terrain I'm flying in, even over cities, with only a rare microstutter that I don't even notice if it happens, which I usually chalk up to loading lag from the SSDs or such. Most of the time it runs in the mid 50s-low 60s C. 

 

I also changed out my thermal pads as I had noticed that some of the VRM nodules were improperly covered with thermal putty from the factory- I actually could see it without disassembling the card. It was kind of scary doing this surgery as getting a new card is still a pain in the butt, but it went well and the temps improved by an average of 5-10 degrees. All smooth sailing now.

[Dagwoodyt]

Been experimenting with AB settings a bit more and this is best I have come up with for the BoM I-16 Escort mission. Are you using the power/temp limit options and what are you getting for gpu mem clocks?