GPU tuning for Ethereum mining

0

This is the basic method for tuning GPUs for mining Ethereum. It is suitable for most Nvidia and AMD GPUs.

Exceptions

  1. AMD RX470, RX480, RX570, RX580, RX590 GPUs should be tuned by another manual.
  2. Nvidia GTX 1080, GTX 1080ti GPUs should be overclocked using "a pill".
  3. AMD RX5xxx perform better if you upgrade its BIOS.
  4. You should be careful tuning Nvidia 3080 и 3090

All other cards may be tuned with this instruction without any pecularity

What you need for overclocking

  1. A GPU. It must have at least 6Gb VRAM. If you have 4gb or less - it cannot be used to mine Ethereum on full power. You should mine Ravencoin.
  2. Working miner app.
  3. MSI Afterburner app.

Before you start overclocking - save all your data, as the computer may freeze or restart. This is normal.

Algorithm for overclocking of a GPU

  1. Start Afterburner and set the fan to 100%. This is to protect the card from overheating during setup.
  2. The first step is to increase the memory frequency. This gives an increase in the hash rate, since Ethereum mining is memory intensive. Increase the memory frequency by 50MHz. Wait five minutes and write down the hash rate obtained at this frequency. Also see if there are any messages about Incorrect shares in the miner window.
    1. If the computer restarts, freezes or you see messages about Incorrect share in the miner window, roll back the frequency 50 MHz back. This will be the maximum memory frequency that you can set on your video card.
    2. If the computer is stable, repeat step 2 until the computer freezes or restarts.
  3. The next step is to decrease the core frequency. This reduces power consumption and makes mining more stable. Set the memory frequency you determined in step 2. Decrease the core frequency by 50MHz. Wait 5 minutes and check if the hash rate has dropped. If it remains at the same level or falls slightly, repeat this step, reducing the frequency by another 50 MHz. If the hash rate drops, increase the core frequency back by 50MHz.
  4. Moving on to Power Limit. Lowering the Power limit reduces energy consumption, which means the cost of electricity and heating. Lower heating also reduces the required fan speed and the fan will have longer lifetime. Decrease it in the same way as you lowered the core frequency, by 2-3%. When the hash rate starts to fall, add 1-2% and leave it.
  5. Finally, set up the fan. Its speed is selected so that the temperature of the card is kept at around 65-70 degrees Celsius. See Safe GPU temperatures

After completing all these steps, your GPU will be reasonably well configured. Experienced users can go a step further and use downvolting to reduce power consumption by another 5-10%, however, for most users this will be sufficient.