Quieter replacement for HD4870

[Snobok]

I just recently put together a new rig, and initially purchased a Visiontek HD4870 512mb. The following components are housed in an Antec 300 case:

AMD Phenom II 920 (cooled by Xigmatek S1283 HSF)
8gb of DD2-1066
Seagate 500gb HDD
Evga 7900GS (temp card at the moment)
PC P&C 750W Silencer PSU
DFI LP 790FX mobo.
DVDRW, etc.

I finally decided tonight that my HD4870 was the cause of all the freezes that I was having. For example, I could not play Fallout 3 for more than 4 minutes before it would freeze. I had to take my sidepanel off in order for Windows to boot properly and not freeze 5 minutes later. Essentially, I am now in the market for a different card; I don't want to spend the money on aftermarket cooling.

I would like recommendations for a good card that does not put out so much heat and on which the stock cooler does not sound like a hairdryer. I'd prefer something like a GTX 260/HD4870 as that is the level of performance I want (gaming on a 1920x1200 28" monitor); I can downgrade, but I would prefer not to. Also, either Nvidia or ATI is fine. My other main option instead of purchasing a new card is to wait until the next gen cards are released, probably later this year, but frankly, I don't want to have to wait to really enjoy Fallout 3 with high settings.

 

[fourdegrees11]

I dont think your going to find any single cards of that performance level that are cool and quiet. A pair of 4830s or GTS 250 1gbs might be better?

Have you thought sbout adding the 3 additional 120mm fans that your case can support, and also possibly upgrading the exhaust fan to a higher flowing model?

edit: MSI does have a 4870 thats supposed to run 20c lower temps than a stock 4870

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814127413

 

[cusideabelincoln]

I don't see why you'd be opposed to aftermarket cooling.

You're going to have to find a card that comes with non-reference cooling if you want it to be significantly quieter. As for exactly which cards would meet your criteria, I do not know. I would have to look at some reviews for specific models, but this is something you could do as well.

 

[Snobok]

All of the fan spaces in my Antec 300 are filled currently. I might should change the exhaust to better fans though as the tri-cools that come with the case are not the greatest fans known. The two front fans and the side panel fan are all filtered intakes; currently, things are set up for a positive pressure case.

Also, I'm not opposed to aftermarket cooling if it already comes on the card. I'm opposed to spending an additional $40-$50 to replace the stock cooling that came on a card.

 

[bryanW1995]

just get an accelero s1 and a screwdriver. problem solved

 

[AstroManLuca]

Originally posted by: Snobok
All of the fan spaces in my Antec 300 are filled currently. I might should change the exhaust to better fans though as the tri-cools that come with the case are not the greatest fans known. The two front fans and the side panel fan are all filtered intakes; currently, things are set up for a positive pressure case.

Also, I'm not opposed to aftermarket cooling if it already comes on the card. I'm opposed to spending an additional $40-$50 to replace the stock cooling that came on a card.

For the fan connector problem, you could just use molex adapters to power any extra fans. But don't video card fans draw power directly from the card itself, not from the motherboard?

As for aftermarket cooling, some HIS video cards ship with an IceQ4 aftermarket cooler as standard equipment. A little more expensive but supposedly worth it (I don't have experience with the IceQ4).

You could even look into a passively cooled card. Here's one. Fanless Gigabyte 4850 1GB for $170 ($150 after rebate). Again, a bit steep for a 4850, but that's the price you pay for special cooling.

Personally, my Sapphire 4870 1GB is plenty quiet, and during games I can't even tell since there's sound associated with the game that covers up the fan noise. The fan automatically adjusts to only about 20% of max when the card isn't being stressed, and the core downclocks from 750 MHz to 500 MHz.

 

[error8]

It's clear that your card is defective. All you need to do is RMA. Cards should not overheat and crash your computer, you do realize that!? It should also be quiet enough at stock fan speed, not even close to a hair drier. So it's clear that something about it it's not right.

 

[DaveSimmons]

I played 50 hours of Fallout 3 with a 4870 and its stock heatsink, so it does sound like your card is defective.

It's also a quiet card if you don't mind it running at 80c (which it's designed to handle perfectly well). I run mine a bit louder since I prefer to keep it at 60c but that's just personal preference.

 

[Snobok]

Does anyone know how Visiontek RMA process is? I bought the card secondhand from a fellow on HardForum, so I'm not sure how the process goes for second hand owners. Also, I did remove the heatsink last night to apply a fresh coat of Arctic Silver 5 to the core, so I am unsure as to how that might affect any RMA process. I guess it could not hurt to try RMAing the card.

 

[error8]

What are your temperatures now, after reapplying AS5?

 

[Snobok]

The core temps were a little bit lower. 45-46C idle as compared to 50-51C idle. I have no idea on load temps, but I know that Fallout was still crashing within 5 minutes, requiring a hard reboot each time to get back to windows. Yes indeed, the card would seem to be defective.

 

[Sylvanas]

Well, if a new layer of AS% to the core isn't affecting the freezing and if you can be sure it's overheating thats causing it, a good aftermarket cooling solution is better than spending 5 times that on a new card :/. At least try and RMA the card if possible.

 

[Snobok]

I'll call Visiontek tomorrow and see about RMAing the card. RMAing the card would certainly be the cheapest option.

 

[Creig]

Originally posted by: Snobok
Does anyone know how Visiontek RMA process is? I bought the card secondhand from a fellow on HardForum, so I'm not sure how the process goes for second hand owners. Also, I did remove the heatsink last night to apply a fresh coat of Arctic Silver 5 to the core, so I am unsure as to how that might affect any RMA process. I guess it could not hurt to try RMAing the card.

You can try to RMA it, but the Visiontek lifetime warranty states it only applies to the original owner. Also, I believe replacing the stock TIM with AS5 invalidates your warranty even if you had been the original purchaser.

I think you might be out of luck.

 

[Beanie46]

Like Creig said, your call to Visiontek will be just a waste of your time and theirs.

You have no warranty on that card nor ability to RMA it, except maybe if you pay for any repairs done.

From Visiontek's website:

VisionTek Products LLC, is pleased to warrant to the original purchaser (?Warrantee?) of the graphics card (?Product?), that the product will be free from manufacturing defects in material or workmanship....yada, yada, yada.....

Additionally, you may have a bit of difficulty in meeting this requirement for warranty service, too:

No VisionTek product will be accepted for warranty service without valid proof of purchase and an RMA number. Your sales receipt or invoice from a retail store is your proof of purchase.

Good luck, though.

 

[Snobok]

Well, that will teach me to not purchase a used video card again. It sounds like I'll have to just get a new card and eat the extra cost; RMA does not appear to be an option, especially after reading their terms. On the bright side though, its a chance to upgrade, just an expensive one.

On a side note, how long is a standard GTX260/280 and HD4870/4890? I know that the HD4870 just barely fit in my Antec 300. I dont want to get a card that wont fit.

 

[Warren21]

I would try contacting the original purchaser to see if you could get him to RMA it maybe? Have him fax the receipt to you, you ship it, have him do all the phone/contact work? Might have to be shipped to his address (same on the receipt) but if you offer to cover shipping, I'm sure it's still a lot cheaper.

Might work.

Also: HD 48xx (Non X2) are all 9.5" in length (some non-reference HD 4830/4850s might be shorter), all GTX 2xx (Not including 295) are 10.5" In length, IIRC.

 

[Grinja]

Do you have problems with any other games?

 

[Golgatha]

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=31&threadid=2224954

There's my solution for both a 4850 and now my new 4870.

 

[error8]

Originally posted by: Grinja
Do you have problems with any other games?

this. Weird thing is that nobody thought about this question by now.

 

[Snobok]

Cod 5 was working flawlessly at 1680x1050; I did not remember to change to 1920x1200. Most of the other games that I have seemed to work fine (TF2,COD,COD2, etc). Thus, it may just be an issue with Fallout 3 1.4 and Vista-64 Ultimate. I'll test again tonight if I have time.

Frankly, if it is indeed a software issue, I'll plan to keep the 4870. I'd really rather not have to purchase a new card.

 

[Modular]

What driver version are you using?

 

[Snobok]

I was using Catalyst 9.3, but I am currently trying to downgrade to 8.11

 

[Snobok]

Well, I tried reinstalling my OS (Vista 64 Ultimate) Thursday, and I am thinking that my issues were due to a crap install of my OS. I played Fallout 3 with few crashes last night for several hours; the crashes I had were easy to deal with and occured seldomly. I know F3 is known to randomly crash, so I am not surprised at this. I'll do some more testing on other games once i get them installed, but I am thinking that I should be able to keep my card now if other games work well. I did not really want to change cards in the first place, so I am pleased that the card seems to work.