6600GT Fan Nuked Itself (Pic)

[JasonSix78]

Update: Got the Zalman VF700 and HSI heatsink installed. It was a major PITA as I had to Dremel the ram heatsinks down on one side to allow the fan assembly to sit flush on the GPU. If I had to do it again it wouldn't be so bad and would only take a quarter of the time.

After I tore it down I discovered the stock cooling fan motor burnt up and had a nuclear meltdown:
Burnt Fan Motor 1
Burnt Fan Motor 2
Here it is after removing the stock cooling fan assembly, stock HSI heatsink still on:
Card
And with the new Zalman installed (sorry the pics cut off):
Zalman installed

Haven't got any good temp. numbers yet. Before I had a 20" box fan blowing in the case, room temp @ 70 F and the GPU core temp was 55C. Now with the case closed up, room temp. @ 70 F it's down to 48C with the case closed up. Pretty sweet!!

A big thanks to all who replied with suggestions and help!

-Jason



So I'm surfing the net and I start smelling something getting hot. I check my CPU temp and other temps...everything's fine. Check my video card temp: 80c. Open the case up and see this:

WTH???

I have no idea how this happened. The tower has not been moved or bumped. So now I guess I need a new fan assembly. I'm monitoring the temperature now to make sure it doesn't overheat, it's running at a steady 71c now.

Can any of you give me some good suggestions on a replacement fan?

Thanks,
-Jason

 

[Fardringle]

Pretty!

If the card is in warranty, I'd get it replaced just in case something else has failed. If not, Zalman makes a great video card cooler for the 6600GT. (I forget the exact model number but I'm sure someone will come along soon with that info...)

 

[JasonSix78]

Thanks Fardringle, got any idea what would cause that to happen??? It's baffled me. I'll look and see how long the warranties for, I've had it since last Feb.

-Jason

 

[fliguy84]

uhh that's nasty

i see that you're using the 6600gt agp. since there's no NV silencer for 6600gt agp, i recommend the zalman vf700cu or al-cu. while it's not officially supported, many have been using the zalman on their 6600gt agp. the only problem is the heatsink fins might protrude a bit from the card, so check your casing for clearance.

http://www.futurelooks.com//?m=show&id=196&page=5

ramsink might also pose a problem

http://www.futurelooks.com//?m=show&id=196&page=4

edit: added link

 

[otispunkmeyer]

zalman VF700Cu is an awesome choice its very very quiet even at full speed

 

[JasonSix78]

Is there any difference between the CU and ALCU? Guess it's my only choice after scowering google for ideas. I looked and I think it will clear my case door so that shouldn't be a problem. I will have to remove my 120mm cooling fan from the door though as it's sitting immediately beside the video card when closed. Thanks again!
:beer::beer:

-Jason

 

[fliguy84]

other than the price, the Cu version is about 2-3 degrees C cooler than the Al-Cu version. also, it's noticeably heavier

 

[mwmorph]

RMA it so that you can amke sure the chip si not permanantly screwed. you've had it less than a year. <MSI owes you a new card, because if you install the alcu an you see it was heat damaged, you legally lose all your RMA and warranty rights fromchanging the fan.

 

[JasonSix78]

Originally posted by: mwmorph
RMA it so that you can amke sure the chip si not permanantly screwed. you've had it less than a year. <MSI owes you a new card, because if you install the alcu an you see it was heat damaged, you legally lose all your RMA and warranty rights fromchanging the fan.

I was doing some research on MSI's RMA dept. and I found that a lot of people had bad experiences with them. Some were saying it took a month to get there card back and others said they returned them defective cards. I really can't do without my PC for more than a day since I use it for my college classes. As far as heat damage, within 5 minutes of smelling something I was checking the temps and I didn't see it get past 80c. That's the highest I've seen it (during intense gaming it runs 70-75c) but still within the safe temperature range from what I've seen reading about other's 6600GTs.

-Jason

 

[mwmorph]

Originally posted by: JasonSix78

Originally posted by: mwmorph
RMA it so that you can amke sure the chip si not permanantly screwed. you've had it less than a year. <MSI owes you a new card, because if you install the alcu an you see it was heat damaged, you legally lose all your RMA and warranty rights fromchanging the fan.

I was doing some research on MSI's RMA dept. and I found that a lot of people had bad experiences with them. Some were saying it took a month to get there card back and others said they returned them defective cards. I really can't do without my PC for more than a day since I use it for my college classes. As far as heat damage, within 5 minutes of smelling something I was checking the temps and I didn't see it get past 80c. That's the highest I've seen it (during intense gaming it runs 70-75c) but still within the safe temperature range from what I've seen reading about other's 6600GTs.

-Jason

smelling something usually rquires a temp above 80c. Temp probes are rarely accurate and if the temop probe was connected to the heatsink, it might be even more inaccurate since the damn fan and possibly the thermal probe fell off. Smelling something burning usually means you fried something or it's taking damage, hence the smell.

 

[JasonSix78]

You're probably right. I flashed the BIOS on the video card after I first got it to make the Nvidia temp. monitoring available under the Nvidia settings menu. That's how I've been monitoring it. I guess I'll flash the factory BIOS back and give the RMA a shot.

-Jason

 

[xtknight]

Cu=Copper, AlCu = Half copper half aluminum

 

[zagood]

Hopefully nothing's borked on the card, that's pretty scary.

The vf700AlCu is fine for the 6600GT, the 2-3 degree difference doesn't make up for the weight on that card (unless you have a stabilizing bracket, which I don't think any 6600GT's have). You won't be able to use the ramsinks unless you want to grind or cut them down, but you won't need them. Also you've already got the chipset heatsink on that MSI so don't be concerned with the warnings they place on compatibility charts.

Too bad about your side fan though, is it a 32mm (thickness)? If so, try to measure for a 25mm fan.

EDIT: If you're worried about the length of time it's going to take for the RMA, pick up a cheap replacement for the time being, something that won't even play games. A PCI card is always a great thing to have around, you can find them for about 32 bucks on newegg, or probably cheaper (sometimes free + shipping) in the FS/FT forum.

NewEgg PCI Video Cards

PCI Video Card free + shipping in FS/FT

-z

 

[Phantronius]

I can almost smell the burnt silicon......

 

[JasonSix78]

Originally posted by: zagood
Hopefully nothing's borked on the card, that's pretty scary.

The vf700AlCu is fine for the 6600GT, the 2-3 degree difference doesn't make up for the weight on that card (unless you have a stabilizing bracket, which I don't think any 6600GT's have). You won't be able to use the ramsinks unless you want to grind or cut them down, but you won't need them. Also you've already got the chipset heatsink on that MSI so don't be concerned with the warnings they place on compatibility charts.

Too bad about your side fan though, is it a 32mm (thickness)? If so, try to measure for a 25mm fan.

EDIT: If you're worried about the length of time it's going to take for the RMA, pick up a cheap replacement for the time being, something that won't even play games. A PCI card is always a great thing to have around, you can find them for about 32 bucks on newegg, or probably cheaper (sometimes free + shipping) in the FS/FT forum.

NewEgg PCI Video Cards

PCI Video Card free + shipping in FS/FT

-z

Thanks for taking the time to dig that up for me ZaGood. I went ahead and ordered the Zalman VF700Cu and a Zalman HSI heatsink. Not sure if I needed the HSI heatsink or not but it was only a few bucks. I'm not having any video related problems so it should be alright. I've had a 20" filtered box fan blowing in the case the last few days and it's been running at a steady 50-55c. Thanks again.

-Jason

 

[fliguy84]

tell us how does it go once you got it running

 

[JasonSix78]

Updated the OP with pics.

-Jason