So...

[Crotalus]

First post here so, ahem, be gentle but I really need some help.

I have a Ryzen 5 2600 cpu on an MSI Tomahawk B450 Mobo with 16gb Corsair ram @ C14 with an AMD RX580 Red Devil graphics card (yes I have tried undervolting it but it doesn't really help) driving an adaptive sync 24" 2560 x 1440 @144Hz monitor.

I really only play one game of the, relatively, modern era which is Elite Dangerous, I also play AoE which is due an update/upgrade in September and occasionally Football Manager. I have some other games in my Steam account, Witcher 3 and Jurassic something or other but I don't play them due to the graphic demands (cpu/mobo/ram might also be an issue, I don't know).

First of all I know that the RX580 is not capable of giving me 144hz at the above res so I have it capped to 60hz.

The problem I have is that I can only play ED at its lowest settings as well as being capped at 60hz. If I try to go with mid range settings the card gets so noisy it drives me mad. Caveat: I tend to play without sound, so no speakers, headphones or earphones and I am super sensitive to fan noise (any noise really).

I'm desperately looking for a graphics solution and have been for a while now. Are there any suggestions?

I'm prepared to wait for 2020 if necessary but this is killing my gaming.

Basically I want a quiet (silent) set up that's capable of giving 100fps @ 2560 x 1440 @144hz in most games I play.

If I'm asking for the moon then someone say so and I'll flog the pc and go be a hippy somewhere.

 

[Poneros]

I guess the main issue would be to identify what noise level you can put up with, and then work your way up from there. For 1440p >60 fps you're basically looking at anything 2070 Super and above. You'll also probably need to watercool, but that's just my guess. It will depend on what you think of the pump noise and what's acceptable for the fans' RPM.

In short, how fat is your wallet and how willing are you to lighten it? Your requirements unfortunately are costly. Doubly so because you'll have to change the CPU as well, 2600 isn't really a high-framerate capable CPU.

Btw, no need to cap your refresh rate, just cap your frames.

 

[TheRealDeal]

Cheapest card for the job would be the 5700xt red devil from powercolor, Silent and fast, 2070 super would cost a lot more for a few extra fps.

Although there is not much benchmarks out for this game recently so not sure if it favors one company or the other. From those that i have seen it does not look like it does.

 

[Meddling-Monk]

Hmmm, I'm surprised the RX580 can't handle 60FPS for you at 2560x1440. I don't have the full game of Elite Dangerous and its most recent updates and everything. But I just downloaded the combat demo, and I was able to run that all settings on high at 2560x1440 with frames capped in game at 60. Is the Demo so different from the Full game now that even on lowest settings is impossible?

For reference (for your current situation before replacing the GPU), I have the same Powercolor RX580 Red Devil, and I run it on Silent Bios settings (the OC Bios settings isn't worth it because it runs hotter with barely a full 5 Frames difference on high end games), with reduced fan curves and aftermarket fans, and it's not an issue for me so far (other than I can't stand the motion sickness it induces in me in game; it's been a LONG time since I was in Elite 2 and able to handle that movement). Full 60FPS with no drops in 2560x1440 and all settings on (in the Demo version).

Besides undervolting, have you also reduced your fan curve in Wattman to a lower one? Let the GPU run hotter, at a reduced noise level that is produced? I and some others have allowed our version of the RX580 to run up between 80C and 85C (sometimes a tiny bit more), but with the reduced fan noise 45% at most, 40% best as the sound is very tolerable that level, but 45% is still good. 50% and higher is annoying), we felt it was more than acceptable tradeoff (higher temps for performance and noise).

So before you jump and swap GPU's for a newer one, have a go at changing some of the cooling settings first and see if that helps.

 

[Troezar]

Cheapest card for the job would be the 5700xt red devil from powercolor, Silent and fast, 2070 super would cost a lot more for a few extra fps.

Although there is not much benchmarks out for this game recently so not sure if it favors one company or the other. From those that i have seen it does not look like it does.

As an owner I can say it seems very quiet and fast. Impressed so far, paired with a 3700X.

 

[Besty]

First post here so, ahem, be gentle but I really need some help.

I have a Ryzen 5 2600 cpu on an MSI Tomahawk B450 Mobo with 16gb Corsair ram @ C14 with an AMD RX580 Red Devil graphics card (yes I have tried undervolting it but it doesn't really help) driving an adaptive sync 24" 2560 x 1440 @144Hz monitor.

I really only play one game of the, relatively, modern era which is Elite Dangerous, I also play AoE which is due an update/upgrade in September and occasionally Football Manager. I have some other games in my Steam account, Witcher 3 and Jurassic something or other but I don't play them due to the graphic demands (cpu/mobo/ram might also be an issue, I don't know).

First of all I know that the RX580 is not capable of giving me 144hz at the above res so I have it capped to 60hz.

The problem I have is that I can only play ED at its lowest settings as well as being capped at 60hz. If I try to go with mid range settings the card gets so noisy it drives me mad. Caveat: I tend to play without sound, so no speakers, headphones or earphones and I am super sensitive to fan noise (any noise really).

I'm desperately looking for a graphics solution and have been for a while now. Are there any suggestions?

I'm prepared to wait for 2020 if necessary but this is killing my gaming.

Basically I want a quiet (silent) set up that's capable of giving 100fps @ 2560 x 1440 @144hz in most games I play.

If I'm asking for the moon then someone say so and I'll flog the pc and go be a hippy somewhere.

either a watercooled 5700XT or 2070Super with an external, thick triple radiator and pump with 800rpm fans will give a big up tick in performance and will run elite dangerous at the speed you need. no need to bin the pc

 

[Gandahar]

I'm sure people will be gentle with you and no need to become a hippy, there's lots of experience and knowledge on here, and the odd interesting left field person

My initial thought would be that just because you have a monitor that does 144Mhz doesn't mean you are losing out with only 90 or 120 or whatever frame rate. I would suggest either the 5700 card with AIB cooling solution or nvidia 2060Super. I wouldn't spend too much on the graphics card to get 144Mhz, I'd put the money saved towards the cpu and motherboard to match up with your new midrange card at some point.

The 5700 is cheaper than the 2060 currently and has slightly better performance, everything is quite new at the moment so it might be worth waiting a month or two to see if things settle price wise.

All the best. I must try Elite Dangerous now you mention it, it passed me by and I loved the original.

 

[McPhee]

Hmmm, I'm surprised the RX580 can't handle 60FPS for you at 2560x1440. I don't have the full game of Elite Dangerous and its most recent updates and everything. But I just downloaded the combat demo, and I was able to run that all settings on high at 2560x1440 with frames capped in game at 60. Is the Demo so different from the Full game now that even on lowest settings is impossible?

The OP isn't stating that the RX580 can't do 60fps at 1440p. The problem is the noise; dial up the settings and the fan ramps up. As a result, the game is left on low settings.

Guru3D has the PowerColor Red Devil RX580 down as 30dB ambient, and 40dB at load, so it's already a quiet card. Assuming there's nothing wrong with the OP's card, it seems like there are two options here:

1. Watercooling.

2. Using a really overpowered graphics card that will handle the OP's requirements without getting hot.

Buying a "quiet" card that's capable of playing Elite Dangerous on max settings at 1440p/100fps isn't going to cut it here as it'll likely still be too loud (assuming the current 580 isn't simply broken).

Though I'm curious as to what the rest of @Crotalus spec is. Is it definitely the GPU that's making the noise, as opposed to the CPU cooler? Would swapping the case to one focused on "silence" (like the BeQuiet Silent Base series) fix the problem for far less?

 

[bru]

If your that sensitive to noise, another suggestion would be to move the PC and use extension cables for the monitor and peripherals.
Move it far enough away,(another room) and you definitely wont hear it.

 

[tyler_jrb]

If your that sensitive to noise, another suggestion would be to move the PC and use extension cables for the monitor and peripherals.
Move it far enough away,(another room) and you definitely wont hear it.

+1 I’ve done the same and don’t know why I didn’t do it 5yrs ago. Much much better.

The best suggestion would be to get a good quality AIB 5700XT (best value for money).

Although it’s possible that the Ryzen 2600 is going to hold it back somewhat. You’d be much better off with say a 5700XT and a Ryzen 3600/3600x/3700x

 

[TrojanWhore]

a third option if the noise is that much of a concern, would be to relocate the computer somewhere further from OP (such as another room, with HDMI an USB cables through the wall), or watercool the whole system and mount the radiator and pump outdoors

Yes I like drilling holes in things

Edit: Ok the last two posters beat me to it while I was writing that!

 

[Meddling-Monk]

The OP isn't stating that the RX580 can't do 60fps at 1440p. The problem is the noise; dial up the settings and the fan ramps up. As a result, the game is left on low settings.

That's the thing, I have the card, and know the stock fans are loud from 45% onwards. 45% just about tolerable for someone with sensitive hearing. 40% or less should be acceptable, if you are on the Silent Bios option. The normal OC Bios option spins the fans up to much louder levels and definitely not sensitive hearing friendly.

Guru3D has the PowerColor Red Devil RX580 down as 30dB ambient, and 40dB at load, so it's already a quiet card. Assuming there's nothing wrong with the OP's card, it seems like there are two options here:

1. Watercooling.

Not an option I'm afraid, at least, not normal Watercooling options anyway. The PCB on the Powercolor Red Devil RX580 has the vrms on the left (closer to the connecting ports on the PCI bracket), meaning all standard AIO brackets won't cool the vrms at all. So you can easily fry your card in a badly vented hot case in that situation. Only going custom will this option be possible. Or do some crazy modding of the modding piece you bought and add a fan in an awkward position to cool the vrms. But in that case, a custom setup will probably be better.

2. Using a really overpowered graphics card that will handle the OP's requirements without getting hot.

Buying a "quiet" card that's capable of playing Elite Dangerous on max settings at 1440p/100fps isn't going to cut it here as it'll likely still be too loud (assuming the current 580 isn't simply broken).

Though I'm curious as to what the rest of @Crotalus spec is. Is it definitely the GPU that's making the noise, as opposed to the CPU cooler? Would swapping the case to one focused on "silence" (like the BeQuiet Silent Base series) fix the problem for far less?

Agreed. Which is why I was starting the steps to run OP @Crotalus through to check their current GPU first. Had a family member who had a system that became noisy as heck the moment they started gaming, we thought it was the GPU, and it turns out some plod screwed up their BIOS fan profile and had their CPU fan running at a searing height fan curve (a wall to be more precise, rather than a "step"). So if we find that the other cooling isn't the issue here, we can see if the current GPU is causing the noise and what part of it is causing the noise. Because as I said, I got the Demo of Elite Dangerous running, and was able to do it with my current modded settings (aftermarket fans, undervolted and with a fan curve that let it run hotter) at at least 60fps on all settings at max (manually capped it, and it looked like it could easily go higher, although I'll admit that the Demo was largely space bound, I didn't try going planetside yet and that might have tanked the frames). And if the Demo isn't too far from the full game graphics intensity wise, then OP may find that they could get away with playing ED with what they have right now at settings they currently can't use (and with acceptable frame rates) without the fans going on high and causing a stir.

Or, they can do what the other posters above me (this post) have suggested and move the box and use long cables. But it might be better to see if they can isolate the exact issues first. Since there may be alternative solutions available for their situation.

 

[LePhuronn]

If you intentionally play games without sound then just wear some ear plugs to drown out the GPU fan noise and crank that sucker up to get your quality back.

Or run massive extension cables and put the case in a different room to your peripherals.

 

[GuruJockStrap]

I'm surprised undervolting didn't help.

I have the Powercolor RX580 8GB Red Dragon and must admit that when I first plugged it in and ran some benchmarks, the noise and temperatures were higher than I would have like. The card struggled to maintain the maximum boost clock due to thermals. I have a Micro ATX case, so not ideal.

Got the voltage at 1000mV and temp hover around 70 degrees when loaded. As a result, the maximum boost clock is maintained with no drops but crucially, the fans don't ramp up to noisy levels. I didn't even have to muck around with the fan curves. It dropped my load temps by about 10 degrees.

 

[melmac]

First post here so, ahem, be gentle but I really need some help.

What's your budget? That would be the best starting point.

 

[bru]

People have to remember that sensitivity to noise is a subjective thing. What is quiet to one of us might be ear splittingly loud for someone else.

 

[greatash]

If you want something cheaper, the pulse Vega 56 is a good buy.
You'll have to undervolt it to get it silent, I put mine at 1v 1500/950 and the fan speed barely reaches 28% (1200rpm) at 63-65c. Dead quiet, can't hear it at all over the case fans.

 

[Meddling-Monk]

People have to remember that sensitivity to noise is a subjective thing. What is quiet to one of us might be ear splittingly loud for someone else.

All true. However, even those with direct comparisons (myself, and probably a few others, but definitely myself in this thread at the moment) can't really tell where OP is in terms of where their sound issue is. As they have said that they are OK with ED on lowest settings (and hence suggests OK with sound produced for those settings; experience suggests something up to around 1300rpm or around 45% or less on the stock fans), but sound ramps too much on Medium (roughly; experience suggests its gone past the 45% mark on the stock fans, if not more) and that's too much for their liking. Which would indicate the stock fans still in use on the Red Devil, but we don't know how far they undervolted, or their current fan curve in use, max temps, as well as general airflow in existing case. So we really need more info somewhere to start off with as a base point to really give advice on what to do next to see if things help before trying to grab another GPU. Simply grabbing the most powerful GPU available and running it at less stressful settings for the GPU but having near zero general airflow is pointless and would be better off going water in that case (as well, or instead of).

 

[varkanoid]

Has anyone asked the question why on earth would you play without sound it removes part of the atmosphere ?

Just get some noise cancelling headphones that locks out external sound and away you go.

 

[Meddling-Monk]

Has anyone asked the question why on earth would you play without sound it removes part of the atmosphere ?

Just get some noise cancelling headphones that locks out external sound and away you go.

*shrugs* Immersion? No sound in space? *shrugs some more*