Two teams, Paulo Gomes and “harteck,” have released a video showcasing a new modification they’ve made to the RTX 30 graphics card. This mod is different from the one that added 16GB VRAM support to the RTX 3070 GPU and is more unique, as it’s unlike anything we’ve seen before.
Initially, the RTX 3060 graphics card came with 12GB VRAM, and that was the only option until the latter part of last year when the RTX 3060 8GB was released. Despite sharing the same CUDA core specs, there is a significant difference in memory between both cards. The ‘budget-friendly’ RTX 3060 comes with 8GB GDDR6 and a 128-bit memory bus, as opposed to the 12GB GDDR6 configuration attached to a 192-bit memory bus in the original version. This may cause issues when playing high-quality games, and choosing the 12GB VRAM option would be a much better decision in 2023 to avoid potential bottlenecks.
If someone ends up with the 8GB version of the RTX 3060 graphics card, there may be a solution to upgrade it. It has been discovered that the card can be professionally modded to increase the memory back to 12GB, but it’s important to ensure that there is enough space to accommodate the additional memory.
Many RTX 3060 8GB cards are designed to accommodate up to 8 memory modules on the original PCB. The RTX 3060 8GB card used in this test, however, only had four modules installed, which left plenty of space for additional modules to be added.
Upgrading the memory is just one aspect of the modification process. The card needs to be modified to support a 192-bit memory bus by changing the resistors and replacing the BIOS with the one from the 12GB model. In other words, if a 12GB BIOS was not available, this modification would not have been possible.
The graphics card was tested with the Unigine Superposition benchmark both before and after the modification. To ensure consistent and accurate results, the card was set to 100% power limit and the same fan speed was maintained throughout the testing process. The purpose of this was to prevent any potential bottlenecks and maintain consistency in the testing methodology. The results showed a 22% increase in the score in the 1080p Extreme profile after the modification was made.
It is important to note that these types of modifications should only be carried out by professionals with the necessary equipment. Users of the RTX 3060 8GB should not attempt to perform this modification at home.