Can Oc'ing Impede Performance

[Slo Gun]

Ok so ive been overclocking my card, and while doing this i have been playing 3 different games

Quake 4
COD 2
Oblivion.

I have been ocing in increments, and then playing for a bit and writing down the clocks and what gamesi have played with these clocks.
With the idea that if i experienced articfacting i would back down the clocks to the one before that i knew was stable.

Anyways ive not played the games for a couple of days, and today have been playing oblivion, at my highest clocks yet using overdrive

661 core
776 Mem

Load temps about 80 degrees.
I experience no artifcating etc, but oblivion just doesn't seem as smoove as it did.
I have misplaced the piece of paper with all the previous clocks and cant remember what i last ran oblivion on.

But my question is can ocing hamper the performance without artificating etc.
It could be something else, or prehaps it has always played this way and i never noticed.
Using fraps i don;t get a low framerate, usually around 75 with vsync on dropping down to 30's in some out door areas.



Thanks

 

[^eMpTy^]

I think, but I'm not sure, that overclocking might make the card hit high temperatures which cause it to automatically throttle back the clock. In any case, I know I've seen many cases where overclocking caused a drop in performance.

 

[bbordwell]

i am not realy sure why but i have had the same thing happen to me.....i oc'd my card and i got higher frame rates but it just didnt seem smooth almost like it hitched every so often but it didnt do it before the oc so i know it wasnt my ram

 

[rox1co]

what tool are you using? ATITool?

instead of writing them down, save every OC with the appropriate name