Alternate cooler for 8800gtx

[NoctisReitop]

I was browsing around and I couldn't really find any information on any alternate cooling solutions for an 8800gtx. You guys have any experience with this? I'm simply curious if it would be possible to lower the temps of that card. I currently just have a stock cooler on mine. Thanks =)

[RAID]

my card was running in the high 60's idle and mid 80's under load. although it seemed really high, i never saw any performance problems. now that its watercooled, it's in the low 40's idle and low 50's under load.

but before you buy an aftermarket cooler, i suggest taking off the stock heatsink / fan, remove and then reapply some AS Ceramique. i was really surprised at how much thermal paste EVGA applied to the GPU on my card. i believe stormcrow did the same thing and lowered his temps significantly.

i'm going to put together a little guide on this next week, after my finals are over

[NoctisReitop]

Originally Posted by RAID

my card was running in the high 60's idle and mid 80's under load. although it seemed really high, i never saw any performance problems. now that its watercooled, it's in the low 40's idle and low 50's under load.

Whoa that wasn't good. Was yours overclocked? I talked to some guys at EVGA about temps and whatnot. He said that my stock GTX should NEVER go above 80.
On the other hand, they naturally don't give opinions on aftermarket coolers, and they also said that it was a good idea to reapply the paste (being the paste is often slopped on like the food of a prisoner's cafeteria tray). Would the AC MX-2 be better than ceramique? Also, are the methods of applying TIM in this case the same as a CPU? Do I need to apply TIM to the chipsets also being cooled by the current cooler?

[gvblake22]

I tested both the MX-2 and Ceramique and found the MX-2 to be ever so slightly better. I believe there are thick thermal pads between the memory, and other power regulatory chips and the main heatsink. You need to leave those thermal pads there or else the heatsink and the surface of the chip will not make contact (bad for obvious reasons). Unless you have some extra thermal pads, do not remove them! But anything with regular thermal paste is fair game (probably just the GPU IHS).

If you are not satisfied with the results after replacing the TIM on the GPU, then you could look into the Thermalright HR-03 Plus, it's the only aftermarket heatsink I would recommend getting to put on an 8800GTX. Just remember to get a fan for it!
You can read Rich's review of the HR-03 Plus on an 8800GTX here...

[NoctisReitop]

Very cool. I think I missed the specs of the fan that was used in the operation; what were they, or were they even mentioned? That was a pretty serious drop in temperatures. What cfm rating fan would even be recommended?

What about in the application of TIM in the case of a GPU? Is it the same as a CPU in amount and application method?

[polobunny]

Originally Posted by NoctisReitop

Whoa that wasn't good. Was yours overclocked? I talked to some guys at EVGA about temps and whatnot. He said that my stock GTX should NEVER go above 80.

I'd take that with a grain of salt as i've seen quite a few 8800GTX reach a bit over 80. Not overclocked or anything. It depends a lot on your case ambient temperature too. It's not rare to see them reach around 85 to 88 celsius from my experience. :)

[NoctisReitop]

Well, eighty degrees was practically described as a warning threshold. Not that they should technically never exceed that. For good practice, 80 is the number you want to stay below. At least that's what I gathered from that one tech rep.

[polobunny]

Originally Posted by NoctisReitop

Well, eighty degrees was practically described as a warning threshold. Not that they should technically never exceed that. For good practice, 80 is the number you want to stay below. At least that's what I gathered from that one tech rep.

80 is a temperature you'll likely hit with the fan at auto while playing a few hours of any game that just got out in a Thermaltake Armor case. Like I said, I'd take that with a grain of salt.

[NoctisReitop]

*shrugs* Is there any real reason to have the fan on auto, rather than 100%? I have mine on 100% all the time.

[gvblake22]

Originally Posted by NoctisReitop

*shrugs* Is there any real reason to have the fan on auto, rather than 100%? I have mine on 100% all the time.

Usually for noise levels...