6950 SUCCESS !

[krazymate]

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So bought a 6950 ati i can finally say its a card wworth every bit of its money chucked bad company 2 max settings getting really good fps,along with modern warfare 2 maxed out, black ops maxed out crysis 2 maxed out Basiclly everything on a high end gaming rig, so far has been maxed out im not bragging well i am but aha what can you say ?
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If anyone is wondering to buy a 6950 get it ! Dont even think about it it plays everything maxed and also overclockable to a 6970 which is great

Thankyou
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[Maguscreed]

I would imagine so I have it's predecessor the 5850, and I have no complaints about it even.

 

[krazymate]

There's just absolutley no complaints be chuffed !

 

[Clinkz]

Its not whether i want the card thats in question, its more the rate at which money leaves my pocket that limits me, though i am due for a GPU upgrade soon enough. Glad you are having success.

 

[sygnus21]

You can also turn it into a 6970 with a BIOS swap - Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 2GB Unlocked to HD 6970 :: TweakTown USA Edition

My card - http://www.sevenforums.com/graphic-cards/138499-ati-6950-a-4.html

 

[TCG]

You can also turn it into a 6970 with a BIOS swap - Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 2GB Unlocked to HD 6970 :: TweakTown USA Edition

My card - http://www.sevenforums.com/graphic-cards/138499-ati-6950-a-4.html

Most definitely. I picked up an XFX 6950 a few weeks ago and it was very easily flashed w/ the bios from the 6970 which unlocks the extra shaders and boosts the performance of the card a bit more. It tends to run a bit hotter while flashed I've experienced, so be sure to increase your fan speed while playing games or taxing the card.

Enjoy!

 

[sygnus21]

It tends to run a bit hotter while flashed I've experienced, so be sure to increase your fan speed while playing games or taxing the card.

Thanks for the tip. I'll keep that in mind when I decide to flash my card; still haven't done it yet.

Thanks

 

[Maguscreed]

I haven't flashed a graphics bios in years. The one time I did try it, the card worked for a week then bricked out of nowhere. (it didn't overheat I was actually actively monitoring the temps on it they never got anywhere near card killer) ...and naturally even though I attempted to return the default bios to it they knew it when I tried to return it and a replacement never came.

Anyhow, ever since then I always ask one question of anyone flashing a graphic bios.

Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?

It will work more often than it fails, but to me the risk just isn't worth it. If I had a bottomless pocketbook things might be different though.

 

[sygnus21]

The 6900 cards (well at least the 6950) has a dual BIOS - Look at the link I provided. Bottom line if you brick the card, there's always the backup BIOS which can't be overwritten.

Look here under "What if something goes wrong?" - AMD Radeon HD 6950 to HD 6970 Mod | techPowerUp

It seems like AMD intentionally made this a easy process.

 

[profdlp]

...It will work more often than it fails, but to me the risk just isn't worth it. If I had a bottomless pocketbook things might be different though.

If you had a bottomless pocketbook you'd probably just buy the better card to begin with.

 

[sygnus21]

...It will work more often than it fails, but to me the risk just isn't worth it. If I had a bottomless pocketbook things might be different though.

If you had a bottomless pocketbook you'd probably just buy the better card to begin with.

And tweak the heck out of it. I would, after all I wouldn't have to worry since I had bottomless pockets

 

[profdlp]

You have a point there.

 

[sygnus21]

Thanks. But seriously I do understand Maguscreed's concern, and it definitely is a valid one, but with this card having a dual BIOS I think that concern is minimized.

 

[Gornot]

edit: nevermind

 

[krazymate]

agree with you all i would unlock the 6950 to become a 6970 but i have no experience of overclocking so i think ill do my research and maybe be something to upgrade to cheers guys !

 

[sygnus21]

Just to FYI you - the 6950 is plenty fast as is, so there's really no need to do the BIOS tweak. I'll put it this way - I had intended to turn mines into a 6970 but gaming with it as is I've decided to hold off as I'm happy with the performance as is. It's just nice knowing you have that option

My two cents.

 

[krazymate]

Just to FYI you - the 6950 is plenty fast as is, so there's really no need to do the BIOS tweak. I'll put it this way - I had intended to turn mines into a 6970 but gaming with it as is I've decided to hold off as I'm happy with the performance as is. It's just nice knowing you have that option

My two cents.

Yes that is true i totally agree with you plus they have an overdrive feature if you want to go that little bit more its like an all in one card its fast reliable and sure as hell play alot of games maxed out ! with lots of fps baby ! YEH !

 

[TCG]

There is an alternate way to "hack" this card now. Some people are having overheating issues with prolonged use of the 6970 bios on a 6950 card. Someone has written a script to edit the 6950 bios and unlock the shaders only, and not upping the GPU clock. I know personally that it works for some people I know, however for me I had stability issues with it and went back to the 6970 bios and keep my fan speed up to compensate for the increase in temperature.

• 6950 default:
• View attachment 145377

• 6950 > 6970 flash:
• View attachment 145378

I don't have a screenie of the 6950 shader only edit as I had issues with it on my particular system. All the stats match the 6950 screenie other than the shaders which will match the value shown in the 6970 image above.

Original flash guide to 6970: HERE
Forum post regarding the shader only edit: HERE
Script to keep 6950 bios and edit shaders only: HERE

I've been running on the 6950 w/ 6970 bios for about 2 months now with no issues. I do keep my fan speed on the card on manual @ about 35% rather than "auto" which only seems to run the fan at about 25% - 30%. When gaming, I crank it up to around 55% and have NO issues with heat.

I've gone through this several times now, feel free to pm me if you have any questions or need help.

Good luck and happy flashing!

 

[sygnus21]

I can't imagine having to listen to that card's fan running at 35 percent all day. My system is fairly quiet, save for the video card's fan at 24 percent, so 35 would drive me batty.

Yeah I know they ramp up during gaming, but that's gaming, and honestly I can't say it runs too high a speed anyway as I really don't hear it during gaming like I did with my 4890.

That's me.

 

[TCG]

My pc sits about 2 feet from me up on my desk, that fan @ 35% is no louder than my dual Kaze's on my cooler. For me it's a non issue. When that fan is cranked up to 55% while playing a game, if my headphones are off it sounds like it might take off in flight