X1900XT impressions

Exactly.. shouldn't nvidia have even less heat when they hit the 90NM assuming they don't pull an intel?

 

About the noise with the X1800XT/X1900XT fans:

I have read in places that people have received units with the HSF loosely attached and that this seems to have forced the fan into 100% mode on a constant basis. Tightening or otherwise adjusting the screws holding the HSF in place for a flatter fit seems to have helped.

I am not sure how much I trust those reports, but it would make sense. However, it may be unlikely to do much for fan noise while the card is in use for gaming as this would require high fan speeds no matter what, but at that point you are probably gaming and the sound from the game should help mask the fan noise.

Are some of you saying it is loud when the card is idling and the fan is running on 50%?

Mendel,

You need to update your sig. With 100% certainty, you never owned an Asus AV8 because such a thing doesn't exist. Abit has an AV8, Asus has an A8V. The Asus A8V and the Abit AV8 are AGP parts and we know the 1900XT is PCIe only so this is just teasing us! Or, like Monty Python would put it: "Your sig is right out!"

 

Mendel, you must have a problem. My X1800XT is on a water cooled CPU with 2 120mm fans modded to 7v and the 120 mm fan on the radator is ajustable. With the radator fan set to almost silent I can bearly hear the XT. Of course my computer is not on my desk, but the case is a modified Antec Lanboy series 2 with the drive cage removed(that's where the radator is), which is made of very thin aluminum which does little to muffle any sound.

I don't doubt your X1900 is loud.......but it shouldn't be. If it's not a loose heatsink, then it may be RMA time. You shouldn't have to live with that kind of noise.

 

I have a X1900XT arriving tomorrow and will be on a mission to silence it somehow. At the moment the loudest thing in my case is the Arctic Clooing Freezer 64 on my CPU so obviously the X1900 is going to be louder.

However, I am also aware of the heat it pushes out. Because of this and the noise I will be looking to underclock it. Is there any limitation on how much you can underclock the card? I am thinking that I'd like to set it to something like 250/500 under 2D. Under 3D it can get louder, as I raise my exhaust fan speeds then.

 

For those that have a problem with the volume of the cooler, you might wait a few weeks and pick up one of these:

http://www.arctic-cooling.com/vga2.php?idx=90

Quiet....and pretty cheap too......

 

Oooh, schweet. I want a review!

 

Ask, and ye shall receive...

 

how long before they shove 80MM fans on vgas

 

And another.....

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ArcticCooling/AcceleroX2

 

The bigger the better as far as I'm concerned! You can get the same or higher airflow at lower RPM with larger fans and this will always lead to quieter cooling.

Fitting larger fans on graphics cards will be a problem due to lack of space though!

That said, it's very impressive cooling from the Accelero X2. Just a pity the IHVs don't stick these on their high-end cards as standard!

 

<splutter!!!>

What's the point of that then?

 

How about the fact that it's much quieter and cools better? Yea...I wish it exhausted the ait out of the back, but for thos ethat need, there's nothing better ATM...course, it's not availible yet.

 

I hope this review isn't accurate. They quote the stock cooler at 88db (!!!). At such levels the card should ship with a health warning and I am not talking about the 'cool' fakes ones like "A gaming experience so powerful you'll need to consult your doctor!" either. That just can't be right.

At least the Accelero X2 posts some nice results.

PS. Let's hope they stuck their measuring equipment in the heart of the stock cooler and somewhere more sensible for the Accelero.

 

A thing to remember is that if the outlet is blocked by the pcb, it will build up heat on the PCB and if the heat cannot flow away, the temperature will start to build up again. In mechanic view, a blower is always lound and noisier than a fan... that is why GTX 512 cooler is more quiter. I cannot remember well that to make a blower more quiter, it seems that we need quite distant to make the flow becomes uniform and steady. Thus, this can be not suitable for a space limited in designing a cooler on HSF on GPU. However, thing to be counted is that the hot air out from the card is also due to the cooler suck the hot-air in the case and flow out, thus lower heat transfer coefficient... anyway in your open case trinibwoy, this can be disregarded.

Anyway, I agree that ATi really needs to design an efficient cooling system than that of presented now.

 

Why do you leave your case open? The solution to your noice problems seems obvious.

 

First thing....unless you run the X1800/1900 fan at full speed - if you run the card with the fan set to stock fan settings, it's not that loud. in fact, as I have posted before, my X1800XT is no louder than my 7800GT SLi. The card does run hot, but I've never had any problems and have run in 3d for 12+ hours at a time - yes, addicted, I'll admit. Waiting for the MMORPG 12 step program!

As far as temps in my computer(s)...I have no problems because I run 120mm fans at about 1700 rpm (damn near silent) in a push pull aray - pull air in at the front bottom, push are out at the back below the power supply. Also, every power supply I have (cept 1) has a 120mm fan that pulls air out of the computer. I have been building custom computers for the last 12 years, and I'm pretty good at keeping a computer quiet and cool. BTW, given my druthers, I would have preferred that the AC cooler kick the air out the back, too.

One of the problems that most people have is they just don't build enough computers to be able to learn the art of keeping a system quiet and cool. It takes time to learn just what works and what doesn't. And few people have the time or resources to gain the knowledge.

 

It reverses the Arctic Cooling philosophy of taking the air out of the case, just when ATI is adopting it. The new cooler may cool better under lab conditions, but it will be fighting an uphill struggle if all the air that was now previously going out of the case is now blown into the case heating everything up, making your fans (including the one on the VPU) work harder in a hotter environment.

It seems they could have made this product really perfect if they exhausted the air out of the case. The previous Arctic Coolers ran quietly and helped cool the case, meaning all other fans ran more quietly and your case temperature was significantly lower too.

 

IIRC it's measured at 10 cms inside the case.