Tearing apart the stock 7600GT heatsink for fun and profit

tu2

Member
Apr 3, 2004
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If it's one thing I'm a sucker for, it's a deal I know is going to be almost more hassle than it's worth. So when I saw that newegg had an XFX 7600GT for 190-something with a $30 rebate and a coupon for a copy of Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter, I HAD TO HAVE IT. Of course, having a XFX 6800GS and a single PCI-E x16 slot meant that something had to go, so the old video card went on the market as the new one arrived swathed in packing peanuts. A few PDFs and stamps later, the rebates were sent out and the card installed.

Then I realized that this XFX 7600GT followed in the fine tradition of the XFX 6600GT AGP (which I also owned, then sold, when the XFX 6800GS looked like a steal) of having a MY-TEETH-ARE-GRINDING-CONSTANTLY whiny fan. The 6600GT's fan was fairly easily tamed when I replaced it with a 70mm fan from the stock AMD heatsink/fan. You could just remove the fan shroud with a jeweller's screwdriver, pop out the fan, and use some self-tapping screws to bolt a 70mm low-profile fan onto it. It assuaged the geek in me to know that XFX had bolted a copper plate onto the aluminum 6600GT cooler; temperatures slightly improved and the noise went away.

So when the 7600GT's fan threatened to sterilize me with dastardly ultrasound magicks, I decided I'd have none of it. I prepared for a quick and easy victory, armed with a spare OMG LEDS fan that came with my Raidmax case. My confidence would be short-lived.

Like some devious demon-type demon-thing, the cooler lured me in with spring-loaded screws that were easy to remove... then the fan shroud came off with nary a whimper. But when I got to the screws binding the plastic banshee to its copper prison, they laughed at my feeble efforts as my suddenly-ineffectual screwdriver STRIPPED THE THREADS! At that point I knew the fear David felt, facing Goliath, the screaming throngs laughing at my efforts to remove this thrice-cursed fan.

Like Atlas, bearing the weight of the world, the fan refused to budge from the prison to which it was lashed.

So then I said screw it, and just bolted the 80mm fan on top of the old one. As it turns out, the screw-holes anchoring the fan shroud can be jerry-rigged to accept the exotic and highly technical toolparts known as "twisty ties." One corner was vanquished, then the other! Like that one dude who killed that hydra thing in that one movie, I looped the last twisty-tie through the fins of the heatsink and the beast cried uncle.

As I gazed upon my creation, I knew love, fear, and hate - all at the same time. I knew that the beast could only be tamed for a short time before its fiery wrath would try to consume me... but that is a tale for another time.

What was important now was that my land could know peace, as it was bathed in the orangey-reddish glow of the one called... "Light Emitting Diode."

and that's my story kthxbai
 

A554SS1N

Senior member
May 17, 2005
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My first thoughts on seeing the piccies was "what the [beep] have you done?!!!"

Nice one mate, very brave to do something so 'DIY'.
 

RallyMaster

Diamond Member
Dec 28, 2004
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pretty good. how have the temps gone down? nice glow from that Raidmax fan, although a blue one would be sexier :p
 

Nirach

Senior member
Jul 18, 2005
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I vote the 'send the Anandtech guys some of whatever you're smoking' option.

Also, does it work as well as the stock?
 

tu2

Member
Apr 3, 2004
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Temperatures are a bit higher*, but it really depends on what fan you're gonna use. I'm running the 80mm fan at 7v, so it's not building a whole lot of pressure; I imagine a 70mm fan running at higher RPMs would be better suited to the task. The way the fins are soldered to the base, I figure it's designed for the radial fan to push air under the fins (you can see it better here), so any regular fan has to be a bit less efficient.


* about 5c higher at idle, something like 10-15c higher under load, no crashing. Peaks at around 70-75c. To moi, the noise reduction's worth the higher temps.
 

iRONic

Diamond Member
Jan 28, 2006
7,806
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Originally posted by: tu2

Like some devious demon-type demon-thing, the cooler lured me in with spring-loaded screws that were easy to remove... then the fan shroud came off with nary a whimper. But when I got to the screws binding the plastic banshee to its copper prison, they laughed at my feeble efforts as my suddenly-ineffectual screwdriver STRIPPED THE THREADS! At that point I knew the fear David felt, facing Goliath, the screaming throngs laughing at my efforts to remove this thrice-cursed fan.

and that's my story kthxbai

Jeebus, dude. Just carefully drill the stripped screw heads off then remove the shanks with a pair of vice grips.
 

Zap

Elite Member
Oct 13, 1999
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That's an entertaining write-up and a nice hack job. :thumbsup:
 

tu2

Member
Apr 3, 2004
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Originally posted by: iRONic
Jeebus, dude. Just carefully drill the stripped screw heads off then remove the shanks with a pair of vice grips.

I am sorry, iRONic, "carefully" does not compute.
 

Arkane13131

Senior member
Feb 26, 2006
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Did you ever think getting a 20$ aftermarket cooler would have been a better option?
also since your into twist ties ect... should have used the CPU heatsink on the GPU and strapped a 120mm fan on it like the guy at VR-Zone did to his 7900gt... and "unlocked" the beast within.

http://resources.vr-zone.com/79gtoc/7.jpg

during this article.

http://www.vr-zone.com/?i=3437

just a thought heh atleast it would lower your temps instead of raise them =P

though i do say you wrote that post well...

 

tu2

Member
Apr 3, 2004
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Originally posted by: Arkane13131
Did you ever think getting a 20$ aftermarket cooler would have been a better option?
No, I can't say that spending 2/3 of the rebate value on a chunk o'metal seemed like a good use of my cashy money (compared to spending, uh, nothing ;)). The card comes clocked at 590/1600, so I'm not sure I'd get a significant gain on the core/memory clocks, anyway.
 

iRONic

Diamond Member
Jan 28, 2006
7,806
3,095
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Originally posted by: tu2
Originally posted by: iRONic
Jeebus, dude. Just carefully drill the stripped screw heads off then remove the shanks with a pair of vice grips.

I am sorry, iRONic, "carefully" does not compute.

Heh heh...