9600GT - Stock or VF700-Cu cooling?

[Rogue 2]

I'm in the market for a 9600GT, and I'm trying to decide if I should just leave it "as-is" when I get it, or to use my existing Zalman VF700-Cu cooler. So I guess the question is two-parts:
1) Is anyone using the 9600GT with this cooler? Prelim. searches show that it's compatible, but I want to be sure.
2) Is it going to cool better than the stock HSF? I have no clue as to the heat these cards generate relative to my "old" card (a 6800-GS which works great w/ the VF700).

Many thanks in advance!

 

[ajaidevsingh]

Use the stock cooler... The VF700-Cu is fine for the core but not any other components other than that.

 

[error8]

No. Use your Vf700, is way better then the stock cooler. I guess it should give you a 20 C drop in temperature at least. Even if you have the ram chips and power regulators naked, they will have a better temperature then that with the stock cooler on.

 

[Rogue 2]

So maybe I just get some more thermal tape to re-use the ram sinks too? I've been out of the video card market for a while and I see all these new Zalman models, so I really don't know how to compare the heat output of a 6800GS vs. something like an 8800GT or 9600GT. Thanks for your input.

 

[error8]

Originally posted by: Rogue 2
So maybe I just get some more thermal tape to re-use the ram sinks too? I've been out of the video card market for a while and I see all these new Zalman models, so I really don't know how to compare the heat output of a 6800GS vs. something like an 8800GT or 9600GT. Thanks for your input.

Yes, buying thermal tape is the best idea. The heat output of the 9600 gt is about 95W and the 6800 GS is around 50 W. It's a big difference between these two, but the VF-700 Cu is a powerful cooler and will be way better then the stock cooler of the 9600 GT.