Graphics cards and cooling options?

[Gerry_uk]

Hi,

(originally posted to alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus by mistake!)

I recently bought a "passive" ATI based X1300, it's totally silent and
has more graphics power and memory than I'll ever need (I only use old
versions of OpenGL for 3d, never DirectX).

That's great, except I didn't bank on "passive" meaning "oven"! It turns
the PC case into a greenhouse. It's not a major problem right now as I
have to run the PC with the side cover off because of other temperature
issues, but I'm hoping to be able to run the PC with the cover on one day.

I notice a number of cards that have a fan which is ducted to a vent on
the back of the card, however, I'm interested to know the direction of
airflow on these cards?

A) Does the air get sucked in through the duct and then gets blown
downwards onto the GPU and then leaks into the PC case?

B) Does the hot air get EXTRACTED from the GPU and blown out the back?

or some combination thereof?

Is there a PCI-E x16 card I can get that will not leak any hot air at
all into the inside of the PC case? I don't need SLI or CrossFire.

My CRT monitor has a 15pin D-SUB, but I have a converter from my old ATI
Radeon. In theory I can use this with ANY DVI output?

 

[bgd]

http://www.silentpcreview.com/

they try all kinds of stuff. I ended up with a xp-90 heatsink on cpu and
ductwork sucking heat out. My passive ati vid is great.

 

[kony]

Hi,

(originally posted to alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus by mistake!)

I recently bought a "passive" ATI based X1300, it's totally silent and
has more graphics power and memory than I'll ever need (I only use old
versions of OpenGL for 3d, never DirectX).

That's great, except I didn't bank on "passive" meaning "oven"! It turns
the PC case into a greenhouse.

False. The video card produces the same amount of heat
either way, and that much heat, at the same rate (after it
has normalized at it's highest temp, a few minutes at most
elapsed) is released into the case.

Putting a fanned heatsink on will do nothing to decrease
case temp, but it will reduce the normalized highest temp of
the video card, but that may not be needed (keep reading).

It's not a major problem right now as I
have to run the PC with the side cover off because of other temperature
issues, but I'm hoping to be able to run the PC with the cover on one day.

Fix your other case cooling problems, by ensuring adequate
airflow rate in and out of the system. That will cool the
video card better too, particularly with a passive heatsink
on it. For even better cooling, don't place any card(s) in
the adjacent slot, even the 2nd closest slot if possible.
At least on the first adjacent slot under the card, remove
the case's rear slot bracket cover. This will cause more
passive airflow past the video card heatsink, BUT it will
also slightly reduce front case intake rate so it is not the
total solution, is only to be done in conjunction with the
other case cooling improvements as needed (which we don't
know, not having seen or read a description of the problem).

I notice a number of cards that have a fan which is ducted to a vent on
the back of the card, however, I'm interested to know the direction of
airflow on these cards?

It exhausts out the rear. You should not need a heatsink
like this, it is typically used on much hotter running
cards, and is louder than necessary for your card.

A) Does the air get sucked in through the duct and then gets blown
downwards onto the GPU and then leaks into the PC case?
No.



B) Does the hot air get EXTRACTED from the GPU and blown out the back?

yes



or some combination thereof?
no


Is there a PCI-E x16 card I can get that will not leak any hot air at
all into the inside of the PC case? I don't need SLI or CrossFire.

Forget about leaking hot air, you first need to get your
case cooling correct- ignoring the video card, then see if
the video card remains cool enough. At that point, try
removing the rear bracket cover, and if it still isn't
enough (it should be enough, unless your room temp is very
high), THEN consider adding a case front fan, or a slot
blower under the video card, or replacing the video card's
passive 'sink with a normal fanned 'sink. If the case temps
were so bad as to make a heatsink with a rear exhaust
helpful, there would be other parts overheating too and the
solution is to fix the case cooling first.

My CRT monitor has a 15pin D-SUB, but I have a converter from my old ATI
Radeon. In theory I can use this with ANY DVI output?

No, not "any" DVI. DVI-D has no analog output so you can't
use that, but most cards (including yours) have DVI-I, which
does have analog out and will allow using a simple
pin-adapter/converter to drive an analog display. If a
consumer/PC video card listing only mentioned "DVI" instead
of DVI-I, it almost always implies that it's "-I" but it
never hurts to check.

 

[Gerry_uk]

No, not "any" DVI. DVI-D has no analog output so you can't
use that, but most cards (including yours) have DVI-I, which
does have analog out and will allow using a simple
pin-adapter/converter to drive an analog display.

Ah!

Thanks. This is very helpful. I knew there was a caveat but could not
remember what it was. I'll be sure to check for DVI-I.