MSIAfterburner

UserManual

Catalog

1.TheIntroduction.P.2

2.GetMSIAfterburner.P.3

3.SoftwareInstallationP.7

4.OverclockingFeatures..P.11

41.GraphicsCard&DriverVersionP.11
42.InformationP.12
43.CoreVoltage(mV)P.13
44.CoreClock(MHz)P.13
45.ShaderClock(MHz).P.13
46.MemoryClock(MHz).P.14
47.FanSpeed(%)P.14
48.ProfileSlot1~5..P.14
49.Applyoverclockingatsystemstartup..P.15
410.Apply&Reset&SettingsP.15

5.MonitoringWindow..P.17

6.AdvancedProperties.P.18

61.General.P.18
62.FanP.19
63.Monitoring.P.21
64.OnScreenDisplay.P.23
65.Profiles.P.24
66.UserInterface..P.25

1.Introduction

CodevelopmentbymsiandRivetuner,MSIreleasestheultimategraphicscardutilityAfterburner.This
utilityenablesallMSIgraphicscarduserstoboostperformanceandtomonitorallkindsofcriticalinformation
onthefly.Afterburnerisakindcompletefreeutilitywhichiscompatiblewithalmostallgraphicscards.

2.GetMSIAfterburner

TheMSIAfterburnerCDwillbebundledwitheveryMSIgraphicscard.Ifyouwantanewerversion,You
canalsovisittheMSIAfterburnerofficialwebsite(http://event.msi.com/vga/afterburner/)todownloadit.

Step1:RunyourWWW
browsersoftwareandvisittheMSI
Afterburnerofficialwebsite
(http://event.msi.com/vga/afterb
urner/).Click<Go>toenterthe
mainpage.

Step2:Afterenteringthe
mainpage,clickthe<Download&
Discussion>buttontoenterthe
Download&DiscussionPage.

Step3:IntheDownload&
Discussionpage,clickthe
<DownloadMSIAfterburner>
buttontodownloadthelatest
versionofMSIAfterburner.

Step4:Whenthedownload
dialoguewindowappears,clickthe
<save>buttontodownloadtheMSI
Afterburnerzipfile.

Step5:SelectafoldertosaveMSIAfterburnerzipfile.

Step6:Thedownloadprogress
starts.Itwillspendsometimeto
downloadit.

Step7:Afterthedownload
progressiscomplete,youwillsee
theMSIAfterburnerzipfileinthe
folderyouselected.

3.SoftwareInstallation

Step1:Runthe.exefileinthezipfile.

Step2:Click<Next>to
continuetheinstallation,or
clickthe<Cancel>buttonto
cancelit.

Step3:Ifyouagreewith
theLicenseterms,choose
the<Iacceptthetermsinthe
LicenseAgreement>andclick
the<Next>buttonto
continuetheinstallation.

Step4:Click<Browse>
toselectanotherfolderto
installtheMSIAfterburner,or
justclick<Next>toaccept
thedefaultvalue.

Step5:ChooseaStart
MenuFolderfortheMSI
Afterburnershortcuts,or
enteranametocreateanew
folder.Thedefaultfolderis
MSIAfterburner.

Step6:Afterfinishing
theseselectionsbefore,the
MSIAfterburnersetup
programwillstartinstalling.
Click<Showdetails>tosee
whattheinstalliondoesin
yoursystem.

Step7:Whenyousee
thispage,itmeanstheMSI
Afterburnerinstallationis
complete.Click<Finish>to
closethewizard.Youcan
uncheckRuntheMSI
AfterburnerandShow
Readmeifyoureallydon't
wanttodothesetwothings.

10

4.OverclockingFeatures

41.

GraphicsCardDisplaymasterGPUgraphicscardmodel.
DriverVersionDisplaymasterGPUdriverversion.

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42.

InformationDisplayinformationaboutyourgraphicshardwareandsoftware.InamultiGPUsystem,
userswillseetheinformationlistedasGPU1,GPU2and,etc.Thedifferenceisjustasbelow:

SystemInformation(SingleGPU)

SystemInformation(2GPUsorabove)

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43.

CoreVoltage(mV)AdjustmsterGPUcorevoltage.Dependingongraphicscardmodelthevoltagecanbe
representedeitherexplicitlyorasanoffsetaddedtobasevoltage.Singedvaluesrepresentedtheoffsetwhilst
unsignedvaluesrepresentabsolutevoltage.Dragthebarleft/righttodecrease/increasetheGPUvoltage;or
inputthecustomvaluedirectlyinthefinalcolumn.YoucantrytoadjusttheGPUvoltagetogethigher
overclockingcapability.
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinthesystem.
Hint2:Voltagecontrolisavailableonlimitedsetofgraphicscardmodelsequippedwithprogrammable
voltageregulationmodule.Pleaserefertodocumentationtogetfulllistofgraphicscardmodelssupporting
voltageadjustments.
Hint3:Whenthesliderisfocused,youmayusecursorkeysonyourkeyboardtofinetunetheclock.
Hint4:Youmayclicktheadjacenteditfieldtodirectlytypetheinadesiredclock.

44.

CoreClock(MHz)AdjustmasterGPUcoreclock.Dragthebarleft/righttodecrease/increasethemaster
GPUclock,orinputthecustomvaluedirectlyinthefinalcolumn.Whenitissethigher/lower,itwill
increase/decreasethe3Dperformance,andtheworkingtemperaturewillbehigher/lower.
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinthesystem.
Hint2:Whenadjustingcoreandshaderclocksindependently,pleaserememberthattheminimum
shadertocoreclockrationislimitedbyhardware.Attempttodrivetheratiooutofrangemaypreventthe
clocksfromapplying.
Hint3:Whenthesliderisfocused,youmayusecursorkeysonyourkeyboardtofinetunetheclock.
Hint4:Youmayclicktheadjacenteditfieldtodirectlytypetheinadesiredclock.

45.

ShaderClock(MHz)AdjustmasterGPUshaderclock.Dragthebarleft/righttodecrease/increasethe
GPUShaderClock,orinputthecustomvaluedirectlyinthefinalcolumn(NVIDIAGPUonly).
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinthesystem.
Hint2:ShaderclockadjustmentisavailableonlyonNVIDIAGeForce8orhigherseriesgraphicscards.ATI
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graphicscardsdontsupportindependentshaderclockadjustment.
Hint3:Whenadjustingcoreandshaderclocksindependentlypleaserememberthatthemaximum
allowedshadertocoreclockratioislimitedbyhardware.Attempttodrivetheratiooutofrangemayprevent
theclocksfromapplying.

Hint4:The
buttonmustbeuncheckedtoadjustshaderclockindependentlyofcoreclock.
Hint5:Whenthesliderisfocused,youmayusecursorkeysonyourkeyboardtofinetunetheclock.
Hint6:Youmayclicktheadjacenteditfieldtodirectlytypetheinadesiredclock.

46.

MemoryClock(MHz)AdjustmasterGPUmemoryclock.Dragthebarleft/righttodecrease/increasethe
graphicsmemorysclock,orinputthecustomvaluedirectlyinthefinalcolumn.
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinthesystem.
Hint2:Whenthesliderisfocused,youmayusecursorkeysonyourkeyboardtofinetunetheclock.
Hint3:Youmayclicktheadjacenteditfieldtodirectlytypetheinadesiredclock.

47.

FanSpeed(%)AllowcontrolofmasterGPUfanspeedtobeautomaticormanual.Thedefaultvalueis
Auto.Afterdisablingit,dragthebarleft/righttodecrease/increasethegraphicscardscoolingfanspeed,or
inputthecustomvaluedirectlyinthefinalcolumn.Whenthefanspeedissetlower,thegraphicscardwill
workmorequietly,buttheworkingtemperaturewillbehigher.Whenthefanspeedissethigher,thegraphics
cardsworkingtemperaturewillbelower,butthefannoisewillbeincreased.
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinthesystem.
Hint2:Fanspeedcontrolisnotavailableifgraphicscardisnotequippedwithfancontrollerchipand(or)
controllablecoolingsystem.
Hint3:
buttonmustbeuncheckedinordertocontrolthefandirectly.
Hint4:Whenthesliderisfocused,youmayusecursorkeysonyourkeyboardtofinetunetheclock.
Hint5:Youmayclicktheadjacenteditfieldtodirectlytypetheinadesiredclock.

UserDefine:Click

toenableuserdefinedsoftwareautomaticfancontrolmode.Inthismode
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softwarewillperiodicallydetectGPUtemperatureandsetsnewfanspeedaccordingtothefanspeedcurve,
definedinthe<fan>tabinadvancedproperties.
Hint1:Youcanstilluse
toswitchbetweenautomaticandmanualfanspeedcontrolmodeseven
iftheuserdefinedautomaticsoftwarefancontrolmodeisenabled.

48.

ProfileSlot1~5Savecurrentappliedvoltage,clockandfancontrolsettingstoProfileSlot1~5.
Hint1:Youmayclick

button,thenclickeachprofileslotbutton(

,and

whileitisflashingtosavecurrentappliedsettingstotheprofileslotyouselect.ProfileSlotsofallGPUs
installedinthesystemaresavedsynchronically.
Hint2:Youmaysave/deleteaprofilebyrightclickingeachprofileslotbutton.ProfileSlotsofallGPUs
installedinthesystemaresavedsynchronically.
Hint3:Youmaysave/deleteaprofiletoprofileslot1/2/3/4/5bypressing<Ctrl>+<1>/<Ctrl>+<2>
/<Ctrl>+<3>/<Ctrl>+<4>/<Ctrl>+<5>onthekeyboard.ProfileSlotsofallGPUsinstalledinthesystemare
savedsynchronically.
Hint4:YoumayloadmasterGPUprofilefromprofileslot1,2,3,4,or5byclicking(

,or

) button,orbypressing<1>,<2>,<3>,<4>,or<5>keyonyourkeyboard.
Hint5:Youmayloadandautomaticallyapplytheprofilesviatraymenuorevenassignglobalhotkeysfor
eachprofileslotviaadvancedpropertieswindow.
Hint6:Youmayuseautomaticprofilesmanagementfunctionandassigndifferentprofilesfor2Dand3D
applicationsviathe<Profiles>tabin

49.

ApplyoverclockingatsystemstartupWhenitisenabled,itallowsapplyingcurrentvoltage,clockand
fancontrolsettingsatWindowsstartup.
Hint1:Youmaypressandhold<Ctrl>keyimmediatelyafterloggingintoWindowstobypassapplyingthe
settings.

410.

ApplyAppliescurrentsettingstothemasterGPU.
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinstalledinthesystem.
Hint2:AlwaysapplytothechangesyouvemadebeforeswitchingtoanewmasterGPU.Anyunapplied
GPUsettingsarelostonnewmasterGPUselection.

15

 ResetResetsmasterGPUtodefaultsettings.
Hint1:WhenGPUsettingssynchronizationmodeisenabledin<General>tabinadvancedproperties,any
changesappliedtothemasterGPUarealsoappliedtoallsimilarGPUsinstalledinthesystem.
Hint2:Youmaypress<Ctrl>+<D>keystoresetmasterGPUtodefaultsettingsfromyourkeyboard.

SettingsDisplaysadvancedproperties.

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5.MonitoringWindow

MonitoringWindowItdisplayshistorygraphforyourGPUtemperaturesandotherhardwarehealth
parameters.Ifyouclickthe
button,itwillseparatefromthemainwindow,andbecomea
standalonemonitoringwidow.Itwillbeliketheexamplebelow:

Clickthe

button

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CombineMode(default)

DetachMode(separated)!

6.AdvancedProperties

61.General

Mastergraphicsprocessorselection
Throughthedropdownlist,userschoosethemastergraphicsprocessortoadjusttheoverclocking
configurationandmonitoringitstemperaturesandotherhardwarehealthparameters.

SynchronizesettingsforsimilargraphicsprocessorsSynchronizeyoursettingsforsimilargraphics
processors.ItisusefulforasystemwithmultiGPUtechnologysuchasCrossFire/SLItosynchronizeits
overclockingsettingstoallGPUs.

Generalproperties

StartwithWindowsAfterloggingintotheWindows,startuptheAfterburner.
StartminimizedAfterloggingintotheWindows,startuptheAfterburnerandminimizeittothesystem
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tray.

62.Fan

Automaticfancontrolproperties

EnableuserdefinedsoftwareautomaticfancontrolAftercheckingit,theFanspeedcurvewillbeshown,
anduserscancustomizethefanspeedsettingsbyaddingandadjustingnewfanspeed/temperaturenode,just
astheexamplebelow:

addingnewcheckpoints

19

DefaultSettings
CustomizedSettings
Hint1:Youmayperformthefollowingactionswhileeditingthecurve
Hint11:Clickthecurvetoaddnewnodeinthecursorposition.Itisallowedtoaddupto8nodes.
Hint12:Clickexistingnodetoselectitanddragitwithmousecursortoadjustthecurve.Selected
nodepositioncanbealsofinetunedfromthekeyboardwithcursorkeys.
Hint13:Press<Del>todeletetheselectednode.
Hint14:Press<Ctrl>+<D>toresetthecurvetodefaultstate.
Hint15:Doubleclicktheeditareatoswitchbetweenlinerandstepcurvemodes.
Hint2:ThesoftwareautomaticfanspeedcurveisaglobalsettingforallGPUsinstalledinthesystem,and
isnotaffectedbytheprofiles.
Hint3:Ifthegraphicscardisnotequippedwithafancontrollerchipand(or)acontrollablecoolingsystem,
thefanspeedcontrolwillnotbeavailable.

Fanspeedupdateperiod(inmilliseconds)Whenthevalueissetincreased/decreased,theresponding
timeofFanspeedintheMonitoringWindowwillbeslower/faster.Thedefaultvalueis5000,andthemax/min
valuewillbe60000/100.

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63.Monitoring

Hardwaremonitoringproperties

Hardwarepollingperiod(inmilliseconds)Whenthevalueissetincreased/decreased,theresponding
timeofmonitoringwindowwillbeslower/faster.Thedefaultvalueis1000,andthemax/minvaluewillbe
60000/100.

Activehardwaremonitoringgraphs
CheckeachitemlikeGPU1temperature,itwillbeshownintheMonitoringWindow.Ifyouwanttohide
it,youcanuncheckit.

GPU1temperaturegraphproperties

ShowinOnScreenDisplayCheckthistodisplayGPU1temperatureontheupperleftsideofthescreen
whenthe3Dgame/applicationisrunning.

21

ShowinLogitechkeyboardLCDdisplayCheckthisoptiontodisplayGPU1temperatureintheLogitech
keyboardLCDdisplay.

ShowintrayiconCheckthistoshowGPU1temperatureinthetaskbar.

Afterthesettingsaredone,press
toapplythesettingsandclosetheMSIAfterburner
propertieswindow.

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64.OnScreenDisplay
+

GlobalOnScreenDisplayhotkeys

ToggleOnScreenDisplaySetahotkeycombinationtotoggleOnScreenDisplayinformationwhenthe
3Dapplicationisrunning.

ShowOnScreenDisplaySetahotkeycombinationtoshowOnScreenDisplayinformationwhenthe3D
applicationisrunning.

HideOnScreenDisplaySetahotkeycombinationtohideOnScreenDisplayinformationwhenthe3D
applicationisrunning.

Aftertheselectionisdone,click
toapplythesettingsandclosetheMSIAfterburner
propertieswindow.

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65.Profiles

Globalprofilehotkeys

Progfile1~Profile5SetthehotkeysfortheProfile1toProfile5individually,userscansettheirownkey
combinationsforquicklyswitchingtheprofile.

Automaticprofilesmanagement

2DprofileChooseoneamongProfie1~Profile5,Afterburnerwillautomaticallyapplyitwhenthe
systemisinthe2Dmode,suchasInternetsurfingortextediting.

3DprofileChooseoneamongProfie1~Profile5,Afterburnerwillautomaticallyapplyitwhenthe
systemisinthe3Dmode,suchasplayinggamesorusingCADsoftware.

Aftertheselectionisdone,click
toapplythesettingsandclosetheMSIAfterburner
propertieswindow.

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66.UserInterface

Userinterfacehelpsystemproperties

ShowuserinterfacetooltipsShowtooltipswhenusersputthecursoronthefeatureitems.

Userinterfaceskinningproperties
Throughthedropdownlistinthebottom,userscanselecttheSkintypetheywant,andtheskinspreview
willbeshown.ThedefaultisMSIAfterburnerskin.Aftertheselection,click
toapplythe
settingsandclosetheMSIAfterburnerpropertieswindow.

25