Undervolting (when done correctly) won’t damage PC parts.
Yes, it reduces the voltage supplied to the components but CPUs and GPUs are designed to operate within a specific voltage range and you keep the voltage within this range. Even if you reduce the voltage below the recommended range, the system may become unstable but this doesn’t cause damage – it simply results in crashes.
I have a undervolt curve on my GPU and I get about 2-3% better performance for 90% of the tdp.
It’s because consumer GPUs try to max out their TDP pretty much at any cost with no individual refinement. Undervolting is pretty much tailoring a power profile to the silicon lottery.
I think you’re totally right for a load that needs a certain amount of power. But a CPU just needs to be able to flip transistor gates fast enough. They don’t draw more current at lower voltage, so the lower the voltage, the lower the power. At some point, too low of a voltage won’t let them flip fast enough for a given clock speed (or, eventually, flip at all)
I feel this.
I went AM4 in 2017 when the AMD gave a leap forward at a reasonable price and efficiency.
Then I added a 3060 when one became available.
They’re both undervolted, and ticking along nicely.
I don’t plan to change anything until probably 2027. Heck, I’m still catching up to 2020 in my games backlog.
Doesn’t undervolting damage parts over time?
no. If anything, it helps them last longer.
Undervolting (when done correctly) won’t damage PC parts.
Yes, it reduces the voltage supplied to the components but CPUs and GPUs are designed to operate within a specific voltage range and you keep the voltage within this range. Even if you reduce the voltage below the recommended range, the system may become unstable but this doesn’t cause damage – it simply results in crashes.
In what possible way? Genuinely curious 🖖🏽
Lower voltage = higher current for a given power. Guess if you simultaneously reduce power you probably are okay
That’s not how current works (most of the time… Some loads, i.e. big motors, might do that, but not any solid state electronics)
No undervolting reduces power consumption.
I have a undervolt curve on my GPU and I get about 2-3% better performance for 90% of the tdp.
It’s because consumer GPUs try to max out their TDP pretty much at any cost with no individual refinement. Undervolting is pretty much tailoring a power profile to the silicon lottery.
I think you’re totally right for a load that needs a certain amount of power. But a CPU just needs to be able to flip transistor gates fast enough. They don’t draw more current at lower voltage, so the lower the voltage, the lower the power. At some point, too low of a voltage won’t let them flip fast enough for a given clock speed (or, eventually, flip at all)
I’m playing XCOM: The Bureau (2013) right now on an 6700K (2015). Why touch a running system. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯