How loud is the X850 XT cooler?

[cockeyed]

I'm thinking of getting a X850 XT (AGP) but am concerned about cooling fan noise. I currently use a 9800 with a Zalman VF700 Alcu which is very quiet. I read somewhere that the X850 XT is loud at turn on, then settles down around 43db. I don't want something that sounds like a jet plane, but the power of the X850 XT would be nice. Comments on cooling fan noise comparisons would be appreciated.

Forgot to mention that the Zalman site says, the VF700 Alcu can be used on the X*** series of cards. Is anyone using this cooler on their X850?

 

[mwmorph]

43db is ok. 115db is jet plane whixch means a jet plane is actually if mesaured by decibles, about literally 10 million times(give or take a couple million) louder than the cooler. 43db is more liek a quiet conversation(a whisper is about 30-35db).

 

[imported_thefonz]

The x850 cooler is loud, but you could always just put your vf700 on and it would be alot quieter. And you could probably even OC it more with the vf700.

The zalman can be used on almost every card from what I've read
enjoy the x850

 

[hans030390]

put the zalman on the x850

 

[Rubycon]

The cooler on the x850xt is not that loud. It's very noticeable at POST but drops down to reasonable levels. This cooler also rejects the heat outside of the case instead of circulating it inside the case like more traditional fans.

 

[amenx]

Regardless of loudness, compare temps with the stock cooler and the Zalman. Go with the cooler one (most likely the Zalman), and you'll have a better performing, longer lasting card.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: amenx
Regardless of loudness, compare temps with the stock cooler and the Zalman. Go with the cooler one (most likely the Zalman), and you'll have a better performing, longer lasting card.

the only problem with this is, IF the card malfunctions, you have no warranty with a Zalman . . . my 9800xt died because [of my carelessness] the fan connector got loose . . . i get to "eat" it.

no biggie as it was also ~$200 2 years ago . . . what i paid for my x850xt today . . . but still something to consider

 

[cockeyed]

The warranty is always in the back of my mind when using a non-stock cooler, so I set the alarm to go off if the fan RPM drops too low. I've been searching the web and it seems a lot of people use the VF700 or ATI Silencer 5 Rev 2 to replace the cooler on the X850 XT. The temp charts all show a significant drop in temp with these coolers and they are near silent. Since I already have the VF700, I think I will use it.

Learning that I could still have a quiet videocard, I went ahead and ordered the X850 XT; it should be a nice replacement for my 9800.

 

[Conky]

My X850XT's fan was really loud the second day I got it... it has settled down now and is about average noise wise. It really does a nice job of cooling off the case so I can't see how a Zalman could beat it when the heat stays in the case... unless, of course, you had a bunch more than the 6 case fans I have which I doubt if you are worried about noise.

That second day was when I researched all the heatsink/fan options but the noise went down considerably as the stock fan got broken in. I no longer consider the noise an issue. :thumbsup:

 

[cockeyed]

I wanted to let everyone know that I got the X850 XT AGP today (Micro Center hot deal) and installed it. It is loud at power on for a few seconds then settles down to a fairly quiet sound level. I find it acceptable so I'm not going to install the VF700 on it right now, but miight sometime in the future. Actually, I was surprised at how quiet it is in normal operation. Maybe heavy 3D opertion would cause it to spin up RPM, but running 3Dmark03 didn't cause that to happen.

 

[Eureka]

Personally, I set the temps/fan manually through ATi Tray Tools, so that it's always cool . Now if I even run a game it will start to spin... satisfaction.

Norm

 

[cockeyed]

Thanks for the tip. I'll DL ATI Tray Tools and give it a try.

 

[Eureka]

Yeah... it's in Overclocking settings > Fan Tab or something like that... and the profiles are a bit tricky. You have to set the speeds, then apply, then save to the profile, then tell it to load up profile every time you startup.

Norm

 

[amenx]

Also note that the fan can gather a lot of dust after a few weeks which can can slow it down a bit and may increase noise.. I blow it with compressed air every few weeks along with the other PC parts.

 

[cockeyed]

DL'd Tray Tools and installed it. Sure has a lot of "stuff" to play with. I found the fan speed in Overclocking -> Fan. Interesting that the fan in Auto mode runs at 14% until it hits 86c then only goes to 18%. I'll have to spend some time playing the settings.

The highest I've gotten it up to is 68c playing TW Golf and the fan never speeded up. It idles at 43c.