ATITool

ATITool is not just another video card adapter tweaking tool. The guys at TechPowerUp are the ones responsible for this and other successful software like GPU-Z and Real Temp. While its name suggests that it is intended for ATI video cards, the application also supports NVIDIA adapters. What it does is to actually unlock the potential of your VGA by allowing you to set the Core and Memory speeds.

Before getting this program, you must know that overclocking of any faulty hardware component completely damages it, while this exact same process stresses new ones into failure if no additional cooling parts or better coolers are installed on your system. To make sure everything turns out right, you may also use a piece of software that displays detailed information about temperatures inside your PC.

The installation process takes only about a minute of your time due to the driver installation. This enables the application to easily get control of your video card while monitoring its temperatures. ATITool's interface is minimalistic yet very well organized. Everything's in place and you can start tweaking your video adapter right away. Every time you successfully get to a stable overclock, you can easily save the profile for later use by accessing the top section of the application.

This tweaking program also provides GPU and RAM voltage adjustment and RAM timings tweaking. The 'Find Max Core' and 'Find Max Mem' options automatically overclock the GPU and RAM of the video card while rendering into a Direct3D window and checking for artifacts to ensure a safe level of overclocking. ATITool also provides basic temperature monitoring of both the core and the memory.

The application removes the overclocking lock set by ATI Catalyst on older 9xxx series video cards. Backups of the video BIOS can be made through extraction and you can configure hotkeys to switch between your previously saved profiles. You can choose to 'Scan for Artifacts' to make sure your video adapter is working properly or select the 'Show 3D View' to watch for temperatures at given core and memory speeds.

This tool is what you need if you are looking for a program to unleash your video card's performance while remaining within the limits of non-destructive overclocking. It delivers what its development team designed it to be – a lightweight application for the enthusiast.