HIS 6870: New HS/Fan or $24 re-stocking fee?

[deadken]

Last week I bought a MSI 6870 from Newegg to hold me over until I buy a 7xxx series. I can sell it to my son in a few months and get the best card I can for around $250. I figured I would keep it for at least 2 months, maybe up to 6 or 8 months.

The 6870 is worlds away from my old 8800GTS. It performs well in BF3 and was worth every penny. My problem is the noise. The HIS HS/Fan isn't great and the card gets VERY loud when I play. Of course, if I turn up the speakers to drown out the noise, then it the sound gets bothersome to my family. I considered returning the card and I was looking into a replacement HS/Fan for the card, when Newegg sent me an email showing the XFX 6870 Double D (dual fan) card to be on sale for $10 more then I paid for the MSI. Figuring that to be better then replacing the HS/Fan on my 6870, I read the Newegg return policy (Return Policies: This item is covered by Newegg.com's VGA Standard Return Policy. Return for refund within: 30 days) and filled out an RMA. I left a detailed note describing how loud the fan gets. I chose Defective as the RMA reason, since you have to choose something, and it was the closest thing that applied.

After submitting the RMA, the next screen shows a $24 restocking fee. I again read the return policy and don't understand why.

So, I am trying to figure out what I should do:

1) Return the card, pay around $10 for shipping + $24 restocking fee + spend $10 more for a card with better cooling (while it is on sale). $44 and I could be much happier with the noise level.

2) Keep the card, buy a Arctic Cooling Accelero L2 Plus VGA Cooler for around $25. Install it and be worried that I might void the warranty by installing it? But at least be pretty sure it'll be quieter.

3) Keep the card, buy a really good cooler for around $50+. Install it and be worried that I might void the warranty by installing it? But be really sure it'll be much quieter.

4) I don't think I can keep this card given how loud it is. Please don't suggest that I live with the noise. I wouldn't have been looking up replacement fans if I thought that I'd learn to live with the noise.

Of course, I think I will call Newegg tomorrow and ask about the restocking fee. I've bought a lot of hardware from them and really haven't returned much at all (one TV Tuner that wouldn't work and one Motherboard that was exchanged for one that was stable). Maybe they will waive the fee and I'll return the HIS and buy a XFX dual fan. Not wanting to count on that happening, I figured that I would ask what others have done to quiet down their 6870's.

-Ken

BTW: For what it is worth I am using a Antec AMB3700 case, with 1x120mm front filtered intake fan, 2x120mm side filtered intake fans (1 over the GPU + 1 over the CPU), 1x120mm exhaust fan, and a PSU with a 140mm fan (which I believe counts as another exhaust fan). I really think I have VERY good airflow in my case. This MSI 6870 is louder then my 640MB 8800GTS!

BBTW: Yes, I have a 120mm fan for my CPU HS also. So this little fan just SCREAMS above all the other fans.

 

[RavenSEAL]

Try to talk to a customer rep on Newegg, if you act upset enough they normally wave the re-stocking fee.

I would also suggest a new case if you have the money, as the one you seem to have looks like you bought with a time machine

EDIT: Personal suggestion, Sapphire is awesome.

 

[Concillian]

Video cards can get loud, yes.

If you have room, what I do us get an Arctic cooling Accelero S1 Rev 2 (around $25) and zip tie a 120mm fan to it (around $10). Good cooling and quiet, but it takes up significantly more than 2 slots.

It will definitely void your warranty, but you will be sane.

The other thing you can do is mess with the fan profile in one of the software tools like MSI afterburner or whatever. Been a while since I've messed with one of those, I don't know the tools available, but you might be able to run a little lower fan speed if the case airflow is good.

 

[deadken]

Thanks for the replies, they are good points.

I know my case is old, but I still love it. I used a 4 1/2" hole saw to cut two holes in the side and mounted 120mm fans on the side of the case (as I said, 1 over the CPU, and 1 over the GPU). With (3) 120mm fans as intakes, I certainly get good airflow with low noise.

I'm gonna call Newegg and talk to a customer service representative. I'd hate to have to add up all of the money I spent there! It'd make a good point as to why I'm a good customer, but it'd suck to realize how much I've spent on technology of which most is LONG gone.

Thanks for the suggestion of the 'Arctic cooling Accelero S1 Rev 2'! I had forgotten about the Arctic Cooling 'universal' passive products. I bet you are right that it with a 120mm would be a much better then stock cooling solution. I like the idea that it is around $25, since I'd hate to spend more then $60 fixing the cooling on a $140 card (I like the Accelero XTREME Plus and Zalman VF3000A).

I have played with the fan profile in MSI Afterburner. From what I read online, *70C is a good target. Every time I set a profile that keeps me around *70C, it's very loud. I'd guess that I could set a really quiet profile and let the card run at *85C, be nice and quiet, and if it dies, just send it back to HIS. I never really considered this an option, but perhaps it'd be the most cost effective way to keep this card quiet.

 

[RavenSEAL]

If you plan to get a new card, go for a Sapphire or MSi...The Twin Frozr is usually as quite as it gets from a high end video card unless you go water/passive cooling.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127545

 

[Concillian]

isn't 70C a little low for modern GPUs? At stock, they should be able to handle higher temps. Is it the stock fan profile that's loud, or is it a custom one you made that gives the extra noise.

Also I have the same case for my file server computer. It's a good case and there really is no reason to upgrade just because it's old. I mean it's a case, and a damn sturdy one with low resonance.

 

[PingSpike]

Yeah, I just had to return a motherboard to newegg that had a networking issue. I wasn't super impressed when after paying the restocking fee they had the return shipping label printed with their "discounted" shipping for $13.33. I think all told I took it in the pants to the tune of $25 on a $80 motherboard I only bought because it had a $40 rebate.

I wasn't interested in the replacement because I'd still take it in the ass for $13 and I figured there was a decent chance it was defect in the board design meaning I'd end up returning the replacement and up out even more money. So I decided to cut my losses and get the headache out of my house.

 

[RavenSEAL]

isn't 70C a little low for modern GPUs? At stock, they should be able to handle higher temps. Is it the stock fan profile that's loud, or is it a custom one you made that gives the extra noise.

Also I have the same case for my file server computer. It's a good case and there really is no reason to upgrade just because it's old. I mean it's a case, and a damn sturdy one with low resonance.

Technically, you wanna keep mid high-end cards under 70C. Under 60C if possible at all. So with my cards being OC'd, I personally don't mind cranking up the fans thanks to my Sennheiser headphones...

 

[monkeydelmagico]

I have played with the fan profile in MSI Afterburner. From what I read online, *70C is a good target. Every time I set a profile that keeps me around *70C, it's very loud. I'd guess that I could set a really quiet profile and let the card run at *85C, be nice and quiet, and if it dies, just send it back to HIS. I never really considered this an option, but perhaps it'd be the most cost effective way to keep this card quiet.

I say let it run a little hotter, say high 70's - low 80's. You should be able to stay below 60% fan while gaming and not go over low 80's.

 

[Schmide]

There is one other; I guess, option, replace the TIM on the card. I've had more than a few cards that for some reason or another get a crappy hard thermal pad on them. Replacing this with basic zinc oxide grease, more often than not brought down the temps by 10c+ degrees. If you're thinking of voiding your warranty anyways, before you buy a after market cooler, take a shot at cleaning and replacing the TIM.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

There is one other; I guess, option, replace the TIM on the card. I've had more than a few cards that for some reason or another get a crappy hard thermal pad on them. Replacing this with basic zinc oxide grease, more often than not brought down the temps by 10c+ degrees. If you're thinking of voiding your warranty anyways, before you buy a after market cooler, take a shot at cleaning and replacing the TIM.

I'll second that. I've recently done exactly that on sig card. Cleaning it up and using some artic silver resulted in a nice decrease in temps.

 

[Madpacket]

I would keep the card and just use a less aggressive fan profile. Use MSI afterburner to create an ideal ramp up but don't worry too much about the temperature. These cards can handle prolonged use at 85 degrees degrees without issue, its just most people still compare GPUs to CPUs but really shouldn't because they have different heat tolerances. Another trick you can do is undervolt the card as this reduces heat dramatically, just move in small decrements and test for stability along the way. If you can't undervolt than the last resort is to underclock 50 to 75 mhz, this won't affect the performance terribly but should drop the heat a little.

Good luck!

 

[MrTeal]

I might have the same card as you, and am in the same boat.
http://www.hisdigital.com/un/product2-660.shtml
The fan on it just screams when it's at 99% utilization, even with a custom profile. ~77C ends up giving ~80% fan speed, and even that you can hear from the next room. I'm looking at picking up either an Accelero S1 and adding S-Flex to it. The other option would be the L2; it's not rated for the 6870 but it's supposed to work with the 6850. I'm sure it would be better than the stock cooler, and with all the ram coolers it includes the price can't be beat. I don't mind having a space heater in the room since if I'm not paying attention my wife will turn on the electric fireplace in the office anyway, but the noise is too much.