Video Card Fan

[SneakyStuff]

I am going to be building a quiet PC soon, but I figure I can just start with my whiney graphics card for now. I was going to get a Zalman fanmate1 for the card. I know the Zalman fanmate1 is a 3 pin connector, but i'm told that there are 3 to 2 pin converters available. Would a store like compusa carry them? Thanks!

 

[Pete]

Did you try oiling your current card's fan?

 

[SneakyStuff]

The fan isn't even 2 months old, would ripping off the sticker to oil it really do the trick?

 

[Pete]

I had two fans go bad in succession on my Vtek 9100. Oil helped quiet them down, at least temporarily (one reverted to making horrible grinding noises at startup, and the other is doing fine so far).

I have no idea what a Zalman fan mate is. Does it just reduce the voltage to the fan, or is it a fan itself? If it's voltage ye be wantin' to be reducin', then perhaps the fan isn't making the kind of whiny/buzzy sound that both of mine developed (they were quiet, initially), and so oil may not help.

Did you contact PNY re: the noise, to find out if it's normal or if they can mail you a replacement?

 

[SneakyStuff]

Seeing as how my card was overclocked, I voided their warranty. But the noise i'm getting is a result of the gargantuan copper heatsink reverberating the tiny little fan's noise. HERE is a pic of the card. The Zalman fanmate1 is a "go-between" of sorts, that changes the RPM of the fan, HERE is a link to that. I hope this helps a bit.

 

[Pete]

I don't think OC'ing your card could have negatively affected the fan. If it was overly noisy to begin with, I wouldn't take offense if you looked into having them mail you a replacement.

How hot is your card running, anyway? A slower fan might not be the best idea if you're interested in stability/longevity (although neither is OCing, I suppose), and it's possible it may not even fix your problem (depending on the noise). You'd want to be sure the Fanmate would lower the voltage for the fan to begin with. Is the PNY fan 12V, or lower?

 

[SneakyStuff]

What I was saying is that PNY's policy on overclocking is "If you raise the cards clock speeds above stock, we can detect that, and the warranty is voided" Which I have done, so I cannt send for a replacement. As for the voltage of my fan, how do I find that out?

 

[SneakyStuff]

mmmmbump

 

[Pete]

No idea. Product page? Email their tech support?

 

[SneakyStuff]

OK, I emailed tech support asking about the fan voltage.