3850/3870 o/c question

[donimo]

I was planning on getting one of theres for an o/c rig, not so much for bleeding edge, hi-res gaming (my monitor for this rig is 1280x1024 for quite a while), but a lower priced card I can o/c.

From reviews etc it seems the 3870 can a/c to 1ghz (I know there is more to it than that), but I havent found any 3850 o/cs any where near that. But the share the same core, what gives?

I am leaning towards the 3850 due only to the cheaper price and it not being more than I need. But the 50 dollar difference isnt toooo much of a deterrent if it is worth while.

remember 1280x1024.

[werty316]

If I remember correctly in order to do a high overclock you need a modded BIOS as there is a power/voltage problem when overclocking.

Unlock your Radeon HD3870 - The INQUIRER

[donimo]

Sure, but I still havent seen a 3850 do 385 on the core, which the 3870 will do no problem without the BIOS mod.

And why would the BIOS mod not be availible for the 3850 if it is the same core?

[werty316]

Because the HD3870 and HD3850 are electronically and physically different.

Thats like saying why can't you flash an 8800GTS 640MB using an 8800GTX BIOS even though both use the same G80 GPU core.

[donimo]

Originally Posted by werty316

Because the HD3870 and HD3850 are electronically and physically different.

Thats like saying why can't you flash an 8800GTS 640MB using an 8800GTX BIOS even though both use the same G80 GPU core.

I wasnt asking if you could flash a 3870 bios on a 3850, but rather why isnt there a BIOS flash for the 3850 like there is for the 3870, seeing as they are the same core.

if the cores are the same they are the same are they not? if they are "electronically different" then they are not the same cores and should have different names.

[Jmac]

Well, I can't say I have overclocked my HD 3850 yet (it's part of an Xmas gift for my bro), I must say that it performs remarkably well stock @ 1280x1024 ...

Where on Van Isle are you ?

[MpG]

Just because two GPU's share the same core (such as the 3850 and 3870), doesn't mean they have interchangable BIOS. And in this case, it's quite definite that the BIOS' are NOT interchangable. I know there's a BIOS fix for the 3870 out, which removes an overclock limiter (frequency divider issue, I believe), but I haven't heard of one for the 3850 yet.

That aside, it wouldn't surprise me to learn that they bin the cores, and the better ones go into the 3870 cards.