Vga Fan Speed

[xsi_xsi]

Hi there,

Is this possible for me to reduce the fan speed of my VGA card (XFX 9600 GSO) using a resistor in series? Or is there any other easy way for that. The fact is that I'm sure I can not adjust the fan speed, because the fan on the heatsink only uses a two pin connection. See the attached image please. The sound is killing me.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanking you.

http://img144.*************/img144/3526/img0799wr.jpg

[kikkoman]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

err... you could surely do that with a 7805 or - even better - a lm317 (variable) but i'm not sure if temps would still be tolerable. don't know how hot a 9600 runs.

that fan is probably crap anyway.
Zalman coolers are great but pricey, maybe you can find a AC VGA silencer or accelero for less money. others here recommended rocket coolers (just addon fans i suppose, but why not?)

[370forlife]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

Since thats the stock cooler, I wouldn't reduce the fan speed, it would probably overheat.

That being said, check the temperature of the card, speedfan usually works well, if the temp is high, the card may have preset voltages to run the fan at certain temperature intervals. May just be some case cooling is in order.

If the temperature is fine, you may just need to go with a aftermarket cooler that is quieter.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835118037

I bought that one a while ago for my old 8600gt, it comes with a zalman fan mate or a regular 3 pin connector for your motherboard. Either way, it was really quiet, but is heavy, big, and expensive.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835118116

Thats also a nice one, a lot cheaper, too.

[willawake]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

i used to use rivatuner to mess with fan speed of geforce
but yeah inadvisable to use resistor and better go with aftermarket solution
that fan looks tiny and will fail early

first time i saw a decent looking stock fan was on this card
http://www.twintech3d.com/products_f...asp?num=218#b2

time they made all those tiny fans go the way of the floppy disk

[ss627]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

I had this problem on a xfx 8800gs which is essentially the same card as your 9600gso. I used a diode chain to lower the fan speed but it's a bad idea.

Even during the winter, the card idled at 50ºc and went into the 70's playing simple games. Now, imagine the summer. You should consider investing in a good aftermarket cooler so you can reuse it when you change videocards in the future. The stock heatsink on the xfx is total garbage.

[bgavin]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

I buy passive cooled cards, then put a Rocket V cooler in the slot below it.
The two 70mm fans in the Rocket do an excellent job of cooling the card and the northbridge nearby.

I run about 46C on average for the card temps.

[xsi_xsi]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

Thanking you so much for all of the comments. The fact is that the VGA cooling systems and brands you are talking about is not available in my country. The only VGA cooler I have found is Zerotherm Hurricane HC92 Cu model in local stores. The following link:

http://www.zerotherm.net/eng/product/HC92CU-88.asp

Is this a suitable model for current graphic card (XFX 9600 GSO) ? How about if I want to upgrade my graphic card in future - Is this VGA cooler still workable? I really need a silent and high performance cooler and don't know whether this Zerotherm could meet my expectations.

Thanking you.

[ss627]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

That zerotherm or duo-orb or any of these older design heatsinks like zalman with a proprietary fan are junky for their performance. My vf700 and 900 were unacceptable for cards newer than a 8800gt. I really doubt you'll be able to effectively cool down newer generation cards with them. What country are you from?

[xsi_xsi]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

Thanks for the info. Would you please recommend me some suitable heat sink and fan for such purposes? Please provide me some options (in order of performance) preferably with product's link from newegg.com. I'm living in Qatar and many of those quality products from famous manufacture and brands in not available in our market.

[KeriJane]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

Hi XSI

Yes, it is possible to slow down the GPU fan using a resistor in series with the fan wire.

I have done this many times on lower-end video cards with noisy fans. Your 9600GSO consumes a lot more power and produces more heat but you should be able to reduce the speed and noise somewhat without raising the temperature too much.

I generally use a 5w wirewound power resistor in a square, white casing. This allows easy attachment to the videocard cooler with a dab of hot glue.

The value for a small noisy fan like yours and the ones that I have experience with should be something along these lines:

22Ω- minimal effect, very slight reduction in noise, minimal risk to card.
47Ω- noticeable reduction in noise
82Ω- very noticeable reduction in noise, may cause overheating
100Ω- very noticeable reduction in noise, more likely to overheat a hot card.

It is important to monitor the GPU temperature carefully after modding the fan speed by running a GPU stress program like the one in ATITool. If the GPU starts to run hot, shut down the program and use a lower resistance value.

Overclocking the card after slowing down the fan is a really bad idea.

Lapping the contact area of the heatsink so that it is very flat and smooth and then using Arctic Silver 5 heat transfer compound is also a great idea. This will help compensate for the lower fan speed by allowing heat to flow more easily from the core to the heatsink.

Strangely, some cards actually run COOLER with the fan slowed down! This is probably due to the lapped heatsink and Arctic Silver. Maybe it's because the fan only makes more noise over a certain speed without increasing airflow as much, possibly due to increased turbulence?

The lower fan speed seems to reduce the rate of dust clogging as well.

I suggest getting the following to experiement with:
small heatshrink tubing
soldering iron and solder
a hot glue gun or some epoxy
one each of the following 5w or 10w wirewound resistors
10Ω, 22Ω, 47Ω, 56Ω, 68Ω, 82Ω, 100Ω

5w or 10w is overkill for such small fans but they stay pretty cool.

Have Fun!
Be Careful!
Keri

[momaka]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

Maybe it would also be a good idea to add a switch between the resistor legs to bypass resistor in case full fan speed is needed again.

[ss627]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

A resistor mod is pointless on this particular xfx cards heatsink. I can guarentee that it'll be a waste of time and money unless your ambient temps are very low.

Also, the OP stated that he/she is from Qatar. A definite no no. I think the only option would be international mail order which is costly if there are no suitable hardware stores in Qatar.

[xsi_xsi]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

So, if I want to go for a heatsink and fan, which models should I order?

[ss627]

Re: Vga Fan Speed

Depends on how much room you have in your case. I use a AC twin turbo model that was on sale. Its not worth it at its regular price. The arctic cooling S1 revision 2 would be your best bet but it is huge. Many people find that it inteferes with sata ports on the motherboard. Thermalright HR-03 GT is pricey but cools well and seems to be more compatible with pc configurations. You should look up reviews on late model videocard coolers.