Kraken G10 with Gelid VRM Kit For 290X

dn7309

Senior member
Dec 5, 2012
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I just installed the Corsair H50 using the G10 Bracket. Immediately I saw a massive improvement. The core temperature never never exceeds 60c and my PC is whisper quiet and heat being expelled outside of the case. But we all expected that.

However, many reviews of the G10 all have the same thing to say about this mod.

PcPer said

There is a downside though - the temperature of VRM1 was approaching 100C with the NZXT cooler installed but only reached 65-70C with the reference cooler. Clearly the removal of heatsinks on the VRM is problematic and could cause issues with overclockability on some cards. Increasing the speed of the 80mm fan might help this but I think a better solution is to purchase some generic stick-on heatsinks to use in addition to the fan.

Puget System said

While the GPU core is certainly being cooled well in Furmark, the thermal images give us a great look at the problems associated with removing the stock heatsink. In short,there is a hot spot right on the VRMs for both the R9 290X and GTX Titan when using the Kraken G10. Our thermal image doesn't quite show the exact temperature since we are looking at the back of the card rather than the front, but we are still able to see that the VRMs are running at dangerous levels. In fact, GPU-Z is able to report thermal readings for the VRM on the R9 290X and reported temperature as high as 112 °C in Furmark! For reference, the same sensors on the R9 290X reported temperatures of only 84 °C when using the stock cooler.

I heard of other people doing the "ghetto mod" by cutting heat sinks from other manufacture and used zip tie to secure it to the card. I'm not really down for that. I want 100% compatibility and reliability.

So to get the around the VRM cooling problem I purchased the Gelid VRM kit for 290x and oh boy this thing is amazing. Not only did my VRM never went up it was was below when it was being cooled by the stock blower.

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=FAN-ICY290

Here is the results.
Here is the stock cooler VRM Temps (stock cooler 290x runs at 95c so no screenshot of that)


And here the is the Core and VRM Temps with H50 Gelid VRM kit.



WOW, I was expecting low temps, but NOT THAT LOW. Even lower than stock

So to sum it up, I am completely blown away by the results.

The only thing missing from the 290x are the memory heat sinks, but when China send me the 16 pieces copper heat sink I still install and overclock this thing.
 
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dn7309

Senior member
Dec 5, 2012
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H50 50
G10 30
Gelid Kit 15
18 piece cooper bits 12

I didn't have to pay taxes for any of those item but I had to pay for new egg shipping 3.99
 
Feb 19, 2009
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AytQ9G4.jpg


Thats from the older 7900 series GELID VRM heatsink, and a "ghetto mod".
 

Face2Face

Diamond Member
Jun 6, 2001
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It's a great kit. I am glad they finally released one. I'm sure you could even get the temps lower with installing some Fujipoly thermal pads, but they are great as is. Silverforce was able to get some great temps as well. It's amazing what adequate pressure on your mosfets will do for temps.
 

thilanliyan

Lifer
Jun 21, 2005
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I'm sure you could even get the temps lower with installing some Fujipoly thermal pads, but they are great as is.

Is the fujipoly stuff adhesive on both sides?

If not, anyone know a good thermal tape that IS adhesive on both sides? I really don't want to use the alumina epoxy. Although I've been able to get the stuff off by freezing it, I don't really want to go that route.
 
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Kenmitch

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 1999
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Great results :)

For anybody looking for a 290 TriX there is a daily deal(5/23) at tigerdirect for $360 shipped after a tiny $10 rebate. Includes the free games also! There is also a $15 off $100 or more purchase coupon for email subscribers.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...844&CatId=7387

Not a 290x but for the price who could complain.
 
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Face2Face

Diamond Member
Jun 6, 2001
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Is the fujipoly stuff adhesive on both sides?

If not, anyone know a good thermal tape that IS adhesive on both sides? I really don't want to use the alumina epoxy. Although I've been able to get the stuff off by freezing it, I don't really want to go that route.

It's not. It has the consistency of play-doh. For double sided adhesive, I grabbed some 3M branded thermal tape from Frozen PC.

http://www.frozencpu.com/cat/l2/g8/c487/list/p1/Thermal_Interface-Thermal_Pads_Tape.html
 
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thilanliyan

Lifer
Jun 21, 2005
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Seems like it is. I used it on my memory when installing individual heatsinks. You may want to find something else for your mosfets.

Yeah, I may just bite the bullet and go with the alumina adhesive...maybe dilute it with some regular TIM.
 

dn7309

Senior member
Dec 5, 2012
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ok finally got the copper Vram chips. Installed it and OC the card using powertune.

I raised the power limit to 30% and let the core and memory clock max out at 1040 and 1300 MHZ respectively. Anything above that causes 3d mark ice storm to crash. However, Unigine valley doesn't.

The temps are the same as posted above, being that temperature is not an issue, what else can cause the cause the card's instability making 3d mark crash?