Lower temps and lower noise (@load) for my HD4850

Chevalr1c · 05-25-2009, 04:59 PM

Hey folks,

I am looking for a solution to get lower temps and less noise for my Radeon HD4850. It is a model from Sapphire in the reference design. It´s not really overheating, but when gaming the temperature is often about 84C (186.8F) and that seems a bit much to me. The stock cooler is starting to make a lot of noise too (like a vacuum cleaner), only when I am not gaming (e.g. watching video material or doing study-related stuff) it is pretty silent. Temps are acceptable then, at roughly 55-65C (131-149F).

I have used Catalyst for the temp detection, so I am not sure about the accuracy.

Would it be smart, to replace the stock cooler? Please keep in mind that I am not that experienced in messing around with a pc's internals (the pc I am currently behind is my first home-build), so if it may be too risky to replace the VGA cooler itself other solutions are welcome.

The case I am using is a Cooler Master Centurion 5, cpu is a C2D E8400 with stock cooler on a Asus P5K SE/EPU motherboard. I am having a 80mm case fan in the front, a 120mm case fan in the rear and my psu has a 120mm fan too.

For in case replacing the VGA cooler is not that troublesome, I found this one in a dutch magazine a few days ago: http://www.scythe-eu.com/en/products...ga-cooler.html
It is supposed to be cooling well and remaining silent, according to several reviews. Yet, it seems a bit hard to me to apply such a cooler.

I would like to know your thoughts about this.

BuffaloChips · 05-25-2009, 10:43 PM

My brother's step-son has an HD3650 in his PC and it overheats too. When I discovered the issue he asked me to check it because of locking issues. I opened the case and promptly burned my finger on the back of the video card. I told him for now to leave the case open and set a box fan next to it and just let it blow into the case to help keep it cool. I keep telling them to find an aftermarket cooler for it, but they aren't listening so far.

Those ATI cards with the little bitty stock coolers just suck!

I think the cooler you are looking at should be a decent one. Read the reviews here carefully before you make a final decision though, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835185081 . There is something about the screws that hold it on. There are a couple solutions described to fix that but it just depends on whether or not you feel comfortable doing that sort of thing to get it to work.

The reviews say it is very good for cooling though.

$SOLID$ Necro · 05-26-2009, 03:20 AM

I have good news and bad news.

The bad news is the stock cooler has a million tiny screws (Probably 20-25) holding it in place, you will need a small precision philips screwdriver to remove them.

It took me probably 20-30 minutes to disassemble it the first time, some of them are hidden. Once you have it all removed though, most likely the replacement cooler will be easier to install.

It comes apart in s acouple of sub assemblies, you might want to look around online to see if somone has made a step by step guide on how to take it apart..the the new cooler may have instructions.

You can do it, just be patient and take your time, have a large clear table and a few cups to hold all the screws according to there sizes, you will want to bag them up (Seperately) in case you need to send the card in for warranty later down the road.

Chances are, if your card is around 3-6 months old, it's probably like my buddies card, and it's full of dust and hair, and thats why it seems hot and loud compared to new!

After a good cleaning...the temps dropped at least 15c.

That meant tearing it down to get at the insides, if he had just taken a can of air to it every month or so and blown it out, it would never had to be taken apart (Look at the pics and you will see why just blowing it out would not do it)

And thats the good news, you might not need to replace it, just clean it. (If you do that..make sure you are carefull with the white/pink thermal pads on the memory and various places...don't rip them or get dirt on them as they will need to be re-used...try not to remove or disturb them at all!)

You will need a paint brush to remove the dust from the fins (Like 3/4 to 1 inch wide) some canned air and some thermal paste ( I used AS Ceramique) to do what I did, and this may take care of it.

I also suggest adding a 80-120mm fan blowing on the card (The back of the card gets realy hot!) You can add one to the side panel of your case, or do a ghetto mod like I did in this thread:

http://www.appetitefortech.com/forum...ead.php?t=2483

Don't forget you can control the fan speeds from the ATI control panel in the newer driver versions also.

Very plugged up inlet fan!

A couple of pics (Above and below) during disassembly, note all the tiny screw holes...there's alot!) also note how I did not disturb any of the thermal pads...they kind look like sticks of bubble gum, lol

This picture (Above) is why a simple cleaning of the inlet fan (Partially cleaned here) would not fix it...if you look at the fins on the cooler (Wich is hidden under the plastic when fully assembled, and why most people don't realise it's dirty) it is completely blocked off with dust! (It looks black, and came off in one big furry peice)

After cleaning....you can finally see through the cooling fins!!!

Chevalr1c · 05-26-2009, 07:17 AM

Thanks, guys.
I will check whether it's dirty first, I have never really taken the effort to do so, because last time I did (about 2 months ago) the fan itself looked clean. At that moment, the case was almost free of dust to, only at the HDD some very fine dust had been collected. But maybe it is different now, so I will take a look at it.

Chevalr1c · 05-26-2009, 11:12 AM

Here are three pics of my graphics card.

As you can see on the two pics above, there is no dust on it at all.

On the pic above, the cover is visible. It is probably too hard to see on the pic (pci slots are reflecting), but the cover is rather transparant so I could see the stuff behind. It seemed to be clean.

BTW, the temps do not differ (much) from when it was new as far as I'm concerned.

P.S.: I did not open the card, because my antistatic wrist strap is lying somwhere at my parent's, and because I currently don't have thermal paste to put on the gpu before reapplying the cover (assuming that that's necessary).

$SOLID$ Necro · 05-26-2009, 11:56 AM

Well..if you think the temps are about the same as when new, and everything is clean, don't worry about taking it apart.

I just wanted to make sure that was not an issue.

Go for a new cooler then, just select a good one, and study the instructions well before installing it.

Chevalr1c · 05-26-2009, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by $SOLID$ Necro

Well..if you think the temps are about the same as when new, and everything is clean, don't worry about taking it apart.

I just wanted to make sure that was not an issue.

Go for a new cooler then, just select a good one, and study the instructions well before installing it.

Thanks for your help so far. I think I need to look for step-by step guides on the web, cause manuals like this are not completely beginnerproof: ftp://ftp.scythe.com/Manuals/VGA%20C...A%20Cooler.pdf

$SOLID$ Necro · 05-26-2009, 02:51 PM

Good deal, if you need further help, you can IM me on MSN or Yahoo.

My login name is patdelaney36 @ yahoo.com for both of them (No spaces around the @ sign...I just did that cause it makes it a email link otherwise)

BuffaloChips · 05-27-2009, 07:00 AM

I think that the only issue you should have with the cooler you were looking at is that the reviewers said that the screws that anchor it are thin and allow the cooler to shift around. But if you manage to do as they did and add a little something for them to fit snugly where they pass to the holes the problem is eliminated.

As far as the static issue goes, you really don't need a wrist strap. Just make sure you always touch the case frame before you put your hands inside. Well, don't sit there rubbing your feet in the carpet while working on one either. I have built, torn down and repaired computers for a lot of years and never had a static discharge. Probably a little luck in that but still.

Thermal paste is pretty much a must when removing and reapplying heatsinks. If you go for the scythe, be sure to find some thermal adhesive for the RAM heatsinks, as well as make sure there will be enough for all the chips. The reviews said the thermal tape that comes with it just doesn't do the trick. Personally I wouldn't suggest super glue as one of the reviewers said he did.

Chevalr1c · 05-27-2009, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BuffaloChips

I think that the only issue you should have with the cooler you were looking at is that the reviewers said that the screws that anchor it are thin and allow the cooler to shift around. But if you manage to do as they did and add a little something for them to fit snugly where they pass to the holes the problem is eliminated.

As far as the static issue goes, you really don't need a wrist strap. Just make sure you always touch the case frame before you put your hands inside. Well, don't sit there rubbing your feet in the carpet while working on one either. I have built, torn down and repaired computers for a lot of years and never had a static discharge. Probably a little luck in that but still.

Thermal paste is pretty much a must when removing and reapplying heatsinks. If you go for the scythe, be sure to find some thermal adhesive for the RAM heatsinks, as well as make sure there will be enough for all the chips. The reviews said the thermal tape that comes with it just doesn't do the trick. Personally I wouldn't suggest super glue as one of the reviewers said he did.

I could for example look for different screws of the same lenght, but the right thickness. I would have to replace the "caps" with nuts though.

Indeed, superglue is nasty stuff, especially when it has to transport heat.

I think I'll use thermal adhesive tape from Akasa for the ram heatsinks (size of the tape= 8x8cm, should be enough I think) and OCZ Freeze Extreme thermal paste. The latter is not silver based and according the the OCZ website it does not have to be spread out before applying the cooler (seems advantageous to me).

I actually decided to always use the wrist strap, because I am a terrible creature as far as static discharge is concerned. When leaving a car, I quite often discharge on the door panel. So: just in case...