GPU and Sound Card overheating - help please

nicnac1

nicnac1

nicnac1

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Joined
15 Dec 2008
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Just recently bought an Asus Xonar Essence S/C from OCUK which slots into the only PCI1 slot on my Abit motherboard. Unfortunately it sits directly above my Zotac 260's fan meaning it's not getting any cool air.
Subsequently both cards stop working when they get too hot. I don't think i'd be able to put a bigger fan on my GPU because then i wouldn't be able to get the S/C in.
I'd really appreciate any suggestions.
Many thanks
p.s. currently got a desk fan pointing into the open case to stop it from crashing!! :(
 
sorry... just realised looking at it again that the fan is on the opposite side... even still, it's still overheating both it and the sound card... would an upgrade from the GPU stock fan make a difference?
 
just trying to find the usb lead for the camera... never know where that damn thing is! will pop some pics on here when i find it
 
right... sadly, i can't find my digital camera cable so i can't post any pics. however, i can try and decribe it. GPU is in the PCIe slot with the sound card in the PCI1 slot above that. there is virtually no room between the 2 of them. I was wrong about the fan though, the fan points downwards so is not obstructed. CPU HDD etc stay nice and cool under load whereas the GPU and soundcard boil up. any ideas how i can cool them? (already got 5 fans in the case)
many thanks
 
hey PwnDirect. thanks for your help with this.
mb is abit ip35 pro
idle temps for gpu are 55-60C
load temps are 80+
without S/C heat is not an issue...
Many thanks
 
Last edited:
Ok there one possible solution

Stick your soundcard into your second pci-e x16 & in the bios set it to auto or forced x1.

Sadly Ive been unable to find a

pci to pci-e x1 converter

I can of course find a

Pci-e x1 to pci converter

Typical.

If this doesn’t work & you cant find a coverter sadly your left with 2 options

1: send your soundcard back & get a pci version.

2: get a new mobo.
 
thanks.
yeah i've looked for a pci to pcie converter but i'm not sure they exist...
my mobo is next on my upgrade list but funds etc has put that on hold. Would a GPU fan upgrade make a difference? could keep the GPU cooler and, in turn, the sound card... would hopefully be a cheap stop-gap for the time being.
on the plus side CPU is a chilly 40C under load :)
 
nicnac1 said:
Would a GPU fan upgrade make a difference?
Click to expand...

No

Might last a bit longer before the sc forces a reboot 2 stop itself from frying

The problem is the air pocket between the gfx & the sc & theres no fix for that.

have you tried putting the sound card in the second pci-e x16 slot & forcing the bios?
 
nicnac1 said:
i haven't tried that... wouldn't know where to start...
i think the second PCIe slot is x8
is it a viable option?
Click to expand...


very simple uninstal your soundcard drivers
switch the sound cards slots
power on go into bios have a look around for pci settings
set it to auto or x1.
reinstal drivers problem solved.

& your soundcard currently running in a x1 slot so a x8 slot is fine :D
 
i had a similar issue a while back , all i did was uninstall the s/c and use the mobo"s again untill i got a new .

a pain but it got me out of trouble :(
 
aha! PwnDirect, thanks! moved the S/C to the PCIe slot (didn't know you could do that) and now it's lovely and cool. :) The top of the graphics card is really hot so being sat on that obviously wasn't helping! thanks for helping me with that!
under stress the GPU is still pretty hot though even though there's plenty of room around it. is 80C acceptable for this gfx card?
thanks again :)
 
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