RTX 2060 double vram mod gigabyte

[w2lf]

I replaced on my old RTX 2060 1GB VRAM with 2GB VRAM Samsung. All is working, the problem is I still read only 6GB. I know you have to switch on a board few capacitors to set it to 12GB but the gigabyte board is very different than what other modders have tried to mod.

Is there any documentation for the gigabyte board? Board is gigabyte v18091 and has TU106-200A-KC-A1. From what I can see the GPU VRM is six-phase, controlled by a uP9512R controller. I have no idea how to modify it to show 12gb and can't find any tutorials online.

The only closest thing I found is this: https://www.techpowerup.com/review/nvidia-geforce-rtx-2060-12-gb/3.html

 

[Toothless]

Did you flash it to a custom 12GB vbios?

 

[w2lf]

Did you flash it to a custom 12GB vbios?

No I haven't but after reading about it this might be what I need. I though I had to do physical mod to allow switch it to 12Gb. I guess uP9512R works with vbios? also what is Risk of Bricking?

 

[Toothless]

No I haven't but after reading about it this might be what I need. I though I had to do physical mod to allow switch it to 12Gb. I guess uP9512R works with vbios? also what is Risk of Bricking?

Brick the card, it turns into a paper weight.

 

[w2lf]

Brick the card, it turns into a paper weight.

yeah I get that its a firmware, I am more intrested in

1. NVIDIA Protection Mechanisms:
   • Modern NVIDIA GPUs have built-in protection mechanisms to prevent unauthorized VBIOS modifications. This can include firmware locks or checksums that need to be bypassed or disabled before flashing. Failure to properly manage these protections can result in the flash failing or the GPU being locked in a non-functional state.

 

[Keullo-e]

yeah I get that its a firmware, I am more intrested in

1. NVIDIA Protection Mechanisms:
   • Modern NVIDIA GPUs have built-in protection mechanisms to prevent unauthorized VBIOS modifications. This can include firmware locks or checksums that need to be bypassed or disabled before flashing. Failure to properly manage these protections can result in the flash failing or the GPU being locked in a non-functional state.

Might not be an unpassable thing as there's been news about those hw mods recently where people have doubled the VRAM.

 

[StViolenceDay]

Factory-produced "2060 12GB"s have a difference device id, you won't be able to use it VBIOS due to protections.

However chances are that yours original VBIOS supports Samsung 2GByte=16Gbit ICs !

You have to switch "strap configuration resistors" (not capacitors).
Here they are on your photo:

And here are their meaning:


Those 3 straps are pulled either HIGH to 1v8 (the "logical 1"), or LOW to the gnd (the "logical 0").
The puling is done with a 100KOhm resistors.
3 straps encodes a 3-bit number as a binary notation, ranging from 0 to 7.
strap0=HIGH is +1; strap1=HIGH is +2; strap2=HIGH is +4.

On yout photo all resistors are in "pull to LOW state", so the value is 0.

How to determine which value you need for Samsung 2GByte=16Gbit ICs?
Use the recently published nvidia VBIOS parser/viewer (link to another topic) - it has an explicit "mem_variants_by_strap" section on correspondence between "strap number"<->"memory IC variant"

Here is a part from its screenshot example (from 4060ti using 2-side 16Gbit moules, so the specific example looks quite different from 2060 VBIOS)

The method does not "always work", sometimes after mod the card requires enforcing "Prefer maximum performance" mode in Nvidia app/nvidia settings

Sometimes, it even just makes GPU unbootable. However, for both cases moving resistors back to restore the original encoded strap value would return card to the original state. So, actually, since you already replaced the VRAM ICs - the chance of "total bricking" is quite low.

P.S. the up9512R is voltage controller, it is not related to your scenario.
P.P.S Since you already successfully solderd VRAM ICs - it seems that you quite good at soldering))
So manipulations with resistors should be much less risky for you compared even to experiments with VBIOS flashing than can turn GPU into "need hardware programmer to flash original VBIOS back" state.