Well, casing wise, i am not sure how good the airflow is though with my casing but i am pretty sure i have enough exhaust fans to push air out though..LOL..

Anyway, i am not sure whats the problem but there are times when my LCD just wouldnt turn on after a very long time in idle mode. I am guessing it might be a problem with the GC as off now. Maybe overheating?

EDITED:

Anyone ever replace the original TIM and the cooler cover before?Thinking of changing the TIM and cleaning off the dust of the cooler..

This post has been edited by akachester: Jul 18 2007, 08:26 AM

I will get the 8500GT gDDR3 at any time. Its better than any DDR2 ones and newer technology than 7300GT...Price isnt too expensive either..


Anyway, i decided to take out my 8800GTS. Cant really accept the heat generated yesterday. Shot as high as 72c during idle ....Will revert back to my old and trusted 7300GT until i really get a patent side panel fan coupled together with an incredible high CFM fan to blow at the GC. Wonder if there is any problem with the card as off now or would ATI's similar offering will generate lesser heat?

This post has been edited by akachester: Jul 20 2007, 08:32 AM

My plan is to get another SS fan just to cool down the GC. Or else, maybe i should look for Delta ones but they are too noisy to be accepted..

For now, reverting back to the 7300GT would be my best option as i could not stand the heat already..LOL..

Well, it had not really make my room really hot but my computer is really near to my feet area where i can really feel the heat. Besides, i am starting to feel some trouble with the card idling at such high temperature (from 58c to 70+c). Thats a jump of over 12c just in idling mode. I am also starting to have an indication that the card is one of the cause of my LCD going to power safe mode due to the temperature..

Well, all of these are my assumptions. I guess i need to clarify this later when i get the Side Panel fan and see how low can the temperature goes...LOL...

Well, i do not want that to happen though. I went to scratch my head on what to do in the meantime until i get my side panel fan. Realised that i can put back the "ugly" 25cm fan of my LL to cool it off but heck, i went with a DIY 2 * 12cm LL fan i have spare to cool them off. LOL..Just tied them using wire to the side panel to cool off the GC, nb and sb..

Just need to wait and see how it goes..Only worried about dust problem as off now...As a start, its idling at 54c now when i just switch on my PC. Normally, it will be at around 58c.

Ok, after turning on the PC for more than one day already, i am really surprised at how the temperature goes with 2 side panel fan. Normally, it will be idling at about 70c in a fanless environment. Just now, when i check the temperature using Nvidia Monitor, its only 57c also in fanless environment which is only about 4c increment when i startup my PC. If there is no side fan, my card temperature will jump from 58c to 70c on idle. I was shock on how thing goes and like what bro shawty said, it might be due to the heat of the sb and nb causing my GC temperature to rise so high..

What surprises me even more is that the fan i am using are only those LL fans which are not up to my expectation. Wondering would pairing 2 SS fans at the side even help things more..

I will test out the load later when i install some games or benchmarking..

GT does not have power connectors unless its a GT Ultra. I will check out your combination later and see if i have any more idea in mind..


EDITED:

This is what i did to the side panel in order to cool the GC off. Very good and cheap method for the time being and a recommendation to those who cant stand the heat of the GC. I am getting 57c constant with this setup









This post has been edited by akachester: Jul 22 2007, 04:07 PM

They are LL stock casing fan. Doesnt push alot of air for me but still good enough as a temporary solution..

AFAIK, yes there is 8600GT Ultra version. It is a lower version of the 8600GTS with slightly downclock in core/memory speed and yet, still have the 6pin PCIE converter. If you are refering to the Colorful bulk, yes, it is the 8600GT Ultra version. Dont think its an OC ver. though as 8600GT OC is still not capable of reaching the 8600GT Ultra version..

No. They are 128bit. The 256bit is the GPU Core. Memory bits are more important which is only 128bit on the 8600GT Ultra..

Now, this is what i call high ..There is obviously some problem somewhere. I guess you can try checking your casing airflow, cable management and GC cooling. Make sure everything is fine. Try adding side panel fan to help things out..

Wow, in that case, i think there might be something wrong with your GC. Poorly applied TIM maybe?

You mean covering the vent holes can drop the idling temperature by 7c? I am tempted to do that though and force the card temperature to go even lower...

About the modding one, i will give that a pass. Really do not want to try something that much to a 1k card which i saved so long for it..Anyway, i will try to cover the venting holes and see how the temperature goes. Really wanted to reapply the thermal paste as well but worried i might damage the card when taking the HSF off..LOL..

Well, i would try covering the vent holes and see how it goes. Experiment might be done during the weekend when i am free. For now, the 2 side panel fan is really serving me extremely well. Almost 4 days without turning the PC off and its still idling at 57c constant. Never went higher than 58. LOL..

ABout the ugly thermal pads, well, maybe if one day i could not stand it anymore, i might just peel it off and reapply MX1 onto it. Not sure how much temperature drop it will affect though..LOL..

XFX 8600GT XXX version AFAIK is about RM550 while Galaxy 8600GT OC is about 480 the last time i check.

Galaxy Pros:
- Cheaper price
- Almost the same performance as the XFX
- Better cooler, lower temperature

XFX Pros:
- According to review, supposingly slightly better than the Galaxy
- Better design, more beautiful
- Black PCB
- Better warranty i assume IF the dual owner lifetime exist in Asia region


From there, take your pick. If you do not mind buying the colorful one, of course, that is going to be your best pick as off now. Low price, better performance. However, i do not like colorful though..Not sure why..LOL..

Well, its just that i am not too confident with the brand unless i tried one in some day (which i doubt). I do not like the brand itself (not related to the product) and the way it was packaged. But to be honest, the price is tempting, the product seems good as it comes with solid caps, good coolers etc..Heck, still not interested in it though..

May i know the source of the confirmation?I have yet to hear anything on this though...

512MB 256bit seems promising but i think the price is going to be hefty. My best guess is that they will reach the range of the 320MB 8800GTS range though but slightly cheaper...

Care to share your idle and load temp?

IMO, if you are talking about performance of the cards in stock, all are basically the same with only slight negligible differences. The price difference are due to several differences in their packaging, mainly including games, softwares, warranty etc. In term of performance, they are basically the same except for those that are pre OCed like Evga Superclocked series, MSI OC, etc..

If i were you, i would ask myself several questions first :

- Do i need those bundled stuff
- Am i fussy about warranty issue
- What budget do i have and what do i need

These are the recommendations from me :

EVGA 8800GTS superclocked
Arguebly, one of the best performer in the 320MB series. Pre-OCed, and have better performance when compared with other brands. Bad thing about this is that you will need to get from overseas or bulk. This translates to a problem to RMA the product in case any problem happens..

PALIT 8800GTS
Cheapest one available for the same performance. Heck, you are saving almost RM200 by getting something that has less bundle but performs the same.

ASUS 8800GTS
Best warranty around with 3 years International warranty. 3 years is very good and coupled with International warranty where you can send to RMA wherever you are, this is a plus point in Asus products. Come with a good bundle as well but some are saying Asus is a tad hotter than other 8800GTS around.

MSI 8800GTS OC
IINM, this might be the cheapest Pre-OCed 8800GTS available at LYP at roughly about RM1.1k or lower. Good performance, quite a good bundle and 2 years warranty might be a plus point.


Just take a pick from there on what you need and see how it goes...

Opps...Forgot about that as well. BFG is good as well but need to be gotten from overseas - troublesome RMA process. LOL..Anyway, AFAIK, BFG have lifetime warranty which is very good indeed. And a very good bundle as well..

LOl..They will pursue you to buy whatever leftover stocks they have. Not just XFX..

Couldnt see the picture there..

Its fine there at those temperature. Heck, on raining day + 2 side panel fan, my MSI cant even drop below the 50c mark. At least you are having 40+ on idle during raining day..LOL...

Dont worry about the load going up that high. Its perfectly normal AFAIK. Even my Idle temperature is at around 70+c last time.

The one you posted earlier ..Anyway, i can see it now already..Can it really work as its so small?Even those big reference cooler is having a hard time cooling the GC itself..LOL..

I still prefer the TEC cooler from Calibre though..Looks nice to me..LOL..

The Zalman one looks good and promising. It does look fairly similar to the 7800/7900GTX cooler though minus the cover for the fins..LOL..