VGA Silencer vs Zalman Heatpipe VGA cooler

[LIVAN]

Thoughts and opinions?

 

[WobbleWobble]

Having both...

Silencer still makes enough noise that's noticable. Zalman without a fan doesn't. The Silencer is MUCH easier to install. I don't notice any temperature drops using an exhaust system. The Silencer was significantly cheaper as well.

My vote goes to the Silencer.

 

[LIVAN]

Thanks, any difference between rev 2 and rev 3?

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: LIVAN
Thanks, any difference between rev 2 and rev 3?

Think it was compatibility with something obscure like the 9600XT or some of the AIW cards.

 

[LIVAN]

That is what I thought, I couldn't see any performance differences.

 

[Budman]

My vote goes to the Silencer.

:thumbsup:

 

[animeba]

Just a reminder: current crop of totally passive cooling option isn't enough for ATI 9800Pro or higher. You will need a fan with the heatpipes/heatsinks.

Newegg has a ready made totally passive ati 9600xt from saphire for $175ish

 

[BullsOnParade]

http://www.prism.gatech.edu/~gtg533a/radeon.htm

is better

 

[jdiddy]

Originally posted by: Budman

My vote goes to the Silencer.

:thumbsup:

 

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: WobbleWobble
Having both...

Silencer still makes enough noise that's noticable. Zalman without a fan doesn't. The Silencer is MUCH easier to install. I don't notice any temperature drops using an exhaust system. The Silencer was significantly cheaper as well.

My vote goes to the Silencer.

I agree with what he said, (I have both) but I like the Zalman better just because it's noiseless. The Silencer on low still makes SOME noise. The funny thing is, I haven't put the Zalman back on because it's such a damn pain to install!

 

[WobbleWobble]

Originally posted by: Nebor
I agree with what he said, (I have both) but I like the Zalman better just because it's noiseless. The Silencer on low still makes SOME noise. The funny thing is, I haven't put the Zalman back on because it's such a damn pain to install!

I'm in the exact same boat! I want to go back to the Zalman but I'm too lazy to install it :laugh:

 

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: WobbleWobble

Originally posted by: Nebor
I agree with what he said, (I have both) but I like the Zalman better just because it's noiseless. The Silencer on low still makes SOME noise. The funny thing is, I haven't put the Zalman back on because it's such a damn pain to install!

I'm in the exact same boat! I want to go back to the Zalman but I'm too lazy to install it :laugh:

I think as long as I'm going to do it, I might as well buy a new generation video card and a ZM80D-HP.

 

[Dantzig]

I've never used the Zalman, but the VGA Silencer isn't an extreme cooling solution by any means. It's good for moderate overclocking and near silent operation, but I wasn't overly impressed by its cooling ability.

 

[oldfart]

I've had both as well. The Silencer is much more "sturdy" when installed. The Zalman is kind of a pain to put on. Yes, the Silencer is not 100% silent like the Zalman, but it is VERY quiet on low. What I like is it directly exhausts the GPU heat out of the case instead of just dumping it back in. On a high end GPU, that is a lot of heat. On my rig, the upper heatsink of the Zalman was just underneath the NB. This heated up the NB, which I was not crazy about. I sold the Zalman and am keeping the Silencer.

 

[cuttergallery]

I bought the VGA Silencer Rev 2 a few months ago for $12.00 (look in Hot Deals forum) for my MSI 9800 Pro/XT. Install was pretty easy & it's quieter than the stock fan.

Price, noise & ease of install makes the VGA Silencer choice a no-brainer!

 

[Matthias99]

Originally posted by: animeba
Just a reminder: current crop of totally passive cooling option isn't enough for ATI 9800Pro or higher. You will need a fan with the heatpipes/heatsinks.

Newegg has a ready made totally passive ati 9600xt from saphire for $175ish

My 9800Pro (even at XT speeds) runs just fine on the ZM80C without a fan. It is, however, MUCH cooler (and OCs better) with their add-on fan mounted on it.