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Lately my old system with a 4870 512mb has been getting BSOD's with Memory_management error in games like Assassins creed 3, BF3, FarCry 3
so i wnet ahead and increased fan speed to 70%(waaaay to loud so i just turn up the vol. to hide it ) it seemed to take away the problem but only for a while then i decided to go back to stock still the problem persisted so i took it down to 850mhz default was 900mhz and the problem is well gone pretty much so i was wondering if the memory chips have degraded over time?

I would advise you get a new card ASAP.

Have you used one of the many utilities available to keep an eye on GPU temperature? That would be a good place to start. The BSODs are a bad sign but if it's a heat issue then you might be able to fix it by either adding in a new case fan or maybe you could replace your existing GPU fan if the old one is failing.

When was the last time you opened up your case and removed all of the dust bunnies?

Seriously. I have to do mine every 6 months due to the longhair cat running around. Even without said cat you'll be surprised at the level of cruft in the case.

Captain Ned wrote:

When was the last time you opened up your case and removed all of the dust bunnies?

This exactly. Small coolers especially can get a pretty good complete blockage of airflow.

If downclocking the GPU has solved most of the issues, this sounds to me as it has some kind of overheating problem.
You should try to clean the heatsink and fan, and if that is not enough you can consider getting a new cooler for your graphics card.
I don't think your gfx memory is degrading over time.

Yes to the cleaning and addressing the cooling requirements.

This will fix problems 90% of the time.

If however, you have run at extreme temps.(due to blocked cooling or whatever) and voltage OC for an extended time....you might have damaged the voltage regulators. (vrm)

if these are cooked...there is no return...time to get a new card.