Vista - Diferent types of cooling.

Hello everyone, Luckystar here once again,

right latest question, I am really considering going upto using GTX graphics cards maybe either the 280 or 285 (not sure as yet), but as we all know the standard passive cooling it has is a bit, well, crap.

So i want to find out the best cooling solution apart from water cooling as i don't really want that much maintenance, is there anything different i can use or is that the only thing i can use for best results.

Thanks in advance

the GPU cooling is crap but theres not much you can do with it apart from assist the GPU fan with an exhaust fan taking the hot air away from the GPU, its amazing how much "stale" air is hovering about and causing the GPU to overheat.

maybe find some big fans to mount close to the card?....
or get a case like the coolermaster haf932 case that has the 230 fan on the side right at the gpu that would prolly help alot

GPU cooling is still something to be desired, agreed. For optimum cooling you will have to research some quality chassis's out there on the market. Here's a link to reviewed chassis's by Techpower (lots of them) techPowerUp! :: Reviews.
Research thoroughly and everyone has different tastes but I personally choosen Lian-Li over almost every other brand just for the excellent craftsmanship & the lightest aluminum architecture available on the market. You will not have in any mid-size case optimum cooling simply because of it's size & lack of internal space (there is some exception's). Full tower's provide huge internal space for all of those wires, overall more accesories to wiring management and 3 times the cooling air flow. You decide

Get a case with a side fan, or simply get one of those spot fans. They are like $15 at Fry's or BestBuy.

Or get liquid cooling...... 0_o

~Lordbob

Since upgrading to a GTX280....man the temperature on that thing raised some eyebrows. I dont OC the card at all.

In my old case, with decent airflow, it would still crank up to around the seventy degree mark. Thats freakin hot in my opinion. It increased the case temp considerably. The design of the onboard fan system is ordinary at best on all these cards. Some of the aftermarket air cooled setups are just so much more efficient.

I began using Rivatuner to kick onboard fan into play. For some crazy reasoning, the onboard controller, starts the fan at 40% capacity. Then moves to 60% when warmer, then up to 80% when under full load for a decent amount of time.

Running the fan @ 100% provided a considerable decrease in running temp from start to finish. We are talking 10 degrees. At least.

It seems that I am a complete fusspot when it comes to my temp situation so I recently upgraded my case from a series one Thermaltake Armor (which WERE ahead of their time) to an Antec twelve hundred. Was a big toss up between the Antec or the Coolermaster HAF....similar price point, similar quality of case.

The Antec (or the Coolermaster) have massive airflow straight out of the box. Three fans at the front, two at the rear with a larger fan on top. The HAF has a similar setup, with the same if not more air coming in the front.

Just switching the case over, had a large effect on temps. Most notably I must say, on the GPU. My idle temp on the GTX 280, with an ambient temp of around 20 degrees Celcius is about 47 degrees. That made me smile. Under load, with the stock fan going 100% it peaks at about 55-57 degrees. In my opinion, thats much more acceptable.

Positioning fans blowing on the BACK of the card also helps. But be careful to not block your throughput air.

There are some aftermarket coolers that are just rediculously good for these cards, but you have to be prepared to pull the card apart. I've lost a perfectly good GTS8800 doing this before. They are freakin sensative.

I'm giving serious thought to one of these: Ultimate CPU Cooling Solutions! USA

Some of the reviews on those are rediculous. Load temps of Mid 30's degrees. Pretty sweet.

Of course there is watercooling.... but I am struggling to justify the cost involved.

Anyhoo...Hope this helped.

Wow.
Wow.

That is insane(ly cool).

I don't know what to say.

~Lordbob

I'm trying to find the review I read the other day. Was from one of the smaller tech sites around...but they were using my card and THAT cooler...which is why I was interested...The results were kinda good. Especially for the cost involved.

I'm seriously gimped at work...half the interwebs that I try to search are blocked...will look into it tonight...

**EDIT: I'm a scrub. From what I can find...Idle temps with one of those coolers is around 35-37 degrees...Load temps are 50-60 ish. They STILL absolutely smash most coolers on the market***

Apologies if I mislead anyone. The 37 degree figure must have stuck in my mind. They still look like a solid solution to me :P

Those Thermalright's are serious coolers for sure but honestly man on full load the GPU will get around 50~ and that is still hot, you know that but better than 70~ for sure. Wouldn't be to hyped with nickel as it's still not the lightest metal (titanium, platinum & aluminum) but much better than copper for sure. Best solution, liquid cool these beats but it's costly.

Or just immerse your entire computer in mineral oil....

~Lordbob