Nvidia has reportedly blocked core power control functionality for its RTX 50-series graphics cards in driver update 615.56, countering recent enthusiast software like mVolt+ and Hydra that unlocked higher voltage offsets, memory speeds, and power limits beyond standard manufacturer constraints.
Driver Update 615.56 Halts Power Limit Adjustments
Enthusiasts attempting to push hardware past official boundaries have hit a sudden software wall. Following recent reports that open-source tools unlocked power limit control on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5000-series GPUs, Nvidia moved to shut down the capability. The driver update 615.56 introduces restrictions that trigger a black screen resembling a driver crash whenever extra current is supplied to the card. Based on reports from the Overclock.net forums, via Uniko’s Hardware on X, any attempt to input any extra current results in a black screen, reminiscent of a driver crash.
The restriction impacts modifications such as those enabled by mVolt+, which previously allowed hardware like the RTX 5090 to draw up to 125 W of additional power and enabling significantly higher core clock speeds as a result. That extra headroom supported significantly higher core clock speeds. Community reports originating from Overclock.net forums and highlighted by Uniko’s Hardware on X indicate that the latest software package effectively neutralizes these core power overrides. Reportedly, a beta build of Hydra 2.3 is still able to access its core power overrides on NVIDIA GPUs, even after the driver update. It’s unclear if NVIDIA has intentionally blocked mVolt+ or if it’s simply an untested combination of mVolt+ and the new NVIDIA driver causing an incompatibility.
Hydra 2.3B Pushes Limits on VRAM and Power
Developer Yuri Bubliy, also known as 1usmus, is already well known in the overclocking community for developing several Ryzen tuning tools. These include DRAM Calculator for Ryzen and ClockTuner for Ryzen (CTR), with HYDRA later expanding his work into CPU and GPU tuning. The GPU side seems to be getting more attention recently. According to the author, HYDRA which is primarly an OC tool, is adding unlocked GDDR7 overclocking and Power Limit controls for NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 series graphics cards. The new functionality raises the software limits beyond those currently exposed by standard GPU tuning tools. Just bear in mind I have not tested this, but Yuri provided videos showing that it works. Computer enthusiast 1usmus has developed a new update for their Hydra overclocking application that introduces VRAM overclocking and power limit control for some of the best graphics cards on the market, Nvidia’s RTX 50-series. The new update, 2.3B, adds support for a maximum memory offset of +3000MHz for memory overclocking and a static power limit adjustment that peaks at 125% regardless of which RTX 50-series model is used.
Unlike conventional tuning tools that cap power sliders at 100%, HYDRA raises RTX 50 GDDR7 limit to 36 Gbps and Power Limit to 125%. The software also introduces direct interconnect tuning. The first release allows GDDR7 memory speeds of up to 36 Gbps and Power Limit adjustment up to 125%. The feature is designed to work with RTX 50 series cards from any board partner. RTX PRO 6000 support is also available experimentally. Beyond VRAM and power limit adjustments, Hydra version 2.3B also features direct XBAR offset control and support for second-generation “Rail Offsets.” The voltage frequency curve has also been changed and is now unrestricted compared to prior versions. Today, I’m excited to introduce an exclusive HYDRA capability: unlocked VRAM overclocking and Power Limit control for NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5000 Series graphics cards.
Memory Bandwidth and Hardware Metrics
Demonstrations of the Hydra toolkit illustrate massive theoretical gains on high-end hardware. 1usmus showed off their personal Asus ROG Astral LC RTX 5090 OC overclocked to 36 Gbps on the memory to confirm that the application works as advertised. Hydra’s aforementioned limits are reportedly aimed at this first release specifically to keep users safe. But 1usmus hinted that future iterations of the app could have higher limits, noting that the RTX Pro 6000 has experimental support for the complete feature set
of the program. A demonstration using an ASUS ROG Astral LC GeForce RTX 5090 shows the card running its GDDR7 memory at 36 Gbps.
While models like the RTX 5080 natively allow adjustments up to 36 Gbps, other cards in the lineup face stricter software ceilings. Current software limits differ depending on the GPU. The RTX 5090, RTX 5070 Ti, RTX 5070, RTX 5060 Ti and RTX 5060 are normally limited to a maximum reported memory speed of 34 Gbps. The RTX 5080 already allows adjustment up to 36 Gbps, while the RTX PRO 6000 is currently limited to 28 Gbps. GeForce RTX 5090 ranges from 28-34 Gbps normally and goes up to 36 Gbps with HYDRA. GeForce RTX 5080 goes from 30-36 Gbps normally to up to 36 Gbps with HYDRA. GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, RTX 5070, RTX 5060 Ti, and RTX 5060 run at 28-34 Gbps normally and up to 36 Gbps with HYDRA. The RTX PRO 6000 goes from 28 Gbps to up to 36 Gbps with HYDRA, achieving an RTX 5090 that reaches 2.3 TB/s memory bandwidth.
Unresolved Compatibility and Future Access
While standard utilities and tools like mVolt+ trigger crashes on driver version 615.56, reports indicate that specific builds, such as a beta build of Hydra 2.3, are still able to access its core power overrides on NVIDIA GPUs, even after the driver update. It’s unclear if NVIDIA has intentionally blocked mVolt+ or if it’s simply an untested combination of mVolt+ and the new NVIDIA driver causing an incompatibility.
