8800 GT overheating

[gss03]

My 8800GT graphics card has started to overheat when playing Portal 2 which is now getting annoying!

I thought the airflow in my case was OK, but with frequent freezing it's obviously not the case. Given the card is a couple of years old and there will be little chance I can get an aftermarket replacement cooler what can I do to cool this thing down?

Speedfan is showing the GPU in windows sitting at about 73oC on idle.

Surprisingly my CPU (E6600) is idling at 62oC.
Currently the side of my case is off to help with airflow, but after only a few minutes of heavy gaming it will freeze again.

Any and all advice appreciated.

[mrt9888]

The heatsink should keep it cool enough to not freeze after a few minutes so you could have dust in the heatsink, you could also replace the heatsink paste, if that does not fix it you might have a problem with something. Listing the rest of your hardware would help.

[Bagnaj97]

Is the fan on the heatsink running? If it is then I'd try replacing the thermal paste and reseating the heatsink.

[Phage]

My guess is fluff inside the card heatsink. Can you take it apart ?

[gss03]

Not in front of this machine at the moment.
Will dis-assemble tonight and see whats going on and report back.

[gss03]

Right well I've taken the shroud off the card and there is no dust in there.
Removing the heatsink revealed the thermal paste - all in OK (non-dried) condition.
So, I think the fan is a bit asthmatic and not up to the job. Looking about I could get a Zalman VF900 Cu for the card, but I can't find it at a retailer I've heard of (scan, aria, ebuyer etc) - anyone got any recommendations?

[shaithis]

No one that I could recommend, plus prices look so high I would go with the Arctic Cooling Twin Turbo Pro.

[Jasp]

What about a Akasa vortex neo, you can pick them up for about 13-14 pound on scan or less on ebay.

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/akasa...e-blue-led-fan

Review: http://www.hardwareheaven.com/review...-contents.html

[camalbitboy]

The default heatsinks on 8800GT's should be fine. I had a single and a double space version and both idled around 40-45, going to 75 or so under load.

I'm pretty sure that the issue isn't the heatsink or there would have been thousands of returns.

Is the fan running at a constant speed or does it ramp up under load? There are some free apps that may allow you to monitor the fans depending on the make. MSI have an app called afterburner for example that some functionality works on other brand cards eg fan speeds. Try having a look at monitoring software on MajorGeeks.com

Feel how hot the cooler gets by touch, if its really at 75 at idle it will be too hot to touch, if it merely feels warm the temp chip on the card is bust.

My money would be on a fault on the card itself though. Random freezes after a couple of years sounds like a dead card. I'd save the money and grief of fitting a new cooler and just go for a new card.

If you really wanna swap the cooler out the best thing to do is search ebay for a bust 8800 GT and swap the coolers, it''ll be way cheaper. Get a double width one to be on the safe side.

[gss03]

Thanks for this!

It was pretty much what I was thinking - so, what graphics a good card to get these days?
I've kinda lost track of what's best at this moment in time.

The default heatsinks on 8800GT's should be fine. I had a single and a double space version and both idled around 40-45, going to 75 or so under load.

I'm pretty sure that the issue isn't the heatsink or there would have been thousands of returns.

Is the fan running at a constant speed or does it ramp up under load? There are some free apps that may allow you to monitor the fans depending on the make. MSI have an app called afterburner for example that some functionality works on other brand cards eg fan speeds. Try having a look at monitoring software on MajorGeeks.com

Feel how hot the cooler gets by touch, if its really at 75 at idle it will be too hot to touch, if it merely feels warm the temp chip on the card is bust.

My money would be on a fault on the card itself though. Random freezes after a couple of years sounds like a dead card. I'd save the money and grief of fitting a new cooler and just go for a new card.

If you really wanna swap the cooler out the best thing to do is search ebay for a bust 8800 GT and swap the coolers, it''ll be way cheaper. Get a double width one to be on the safe side.

[Phage]

Depends on the budget, and what resolution you're gaming at.

[cub1061]

I use to have a 9800gtx and replaced the stock cooler with the Akasa Vortex Neo.
Kept the card cool and a lot quieter than stock cooler.

I still have the stock cooler for the 9800gtx, not sure if it will fit or not, but you are welcome to it and see if it works.

[gss03]

Thanks for your help.
Going for a replacement cooler as money is tight at the moment - free scan shipping helps though!

[OilSheikh]

I have an Arctic Cooling Accelero S1 with a Scythe 12cm fan attached to it. Am willing to sell it, if you want.