Any official word on the GTX 970/980 coil whine?

[Gibbo]

Why is it coil whine only seems to be something noticed in the last few years? I can't recall it being an issue past that period of time. Just the card complexity getting higher?

In years gone by FPS in games was not reaching crazy amounts.

So many people are still playing games using engines that are not pushing hardware, as such with Vsync off it is not unusual to have 300fps+ at this point you will get coil whine on pretty much any card.

This is why dual-GPU cards suffer it most, simply because they are capable of insane FPS in games due to raw power, all 7990's for instance suffered coil whine under benchmarking or menu areas in games simply due to the FPS. Think of it like frequency, the FPS being frequency, the higher the frequency the more audible it becomes. Hence why on a 7990 Vsync is a must, on 295 X2 AMD seem to have kept it under control somehow or they were simply built to a high standard, likewise for TitanZ, it does not seem to suffer.

I guess 295 X2 and TitanZ were never mass produced products, like just a few thousand world wide, whereas with 7990 we sold more units at OcUK than AMD have built on 295 X2.

 

[smogsy]

just to add i have 2 reference 980s no whine at all (bought release day) im very picky about my whine all my 7970s had it this has 0

 

[Gibbo]

just to add i have 2 reference 980s no whine at all (bought release day) im very picky about my whine all my 7970s had it this has 0

From our data, 980 reference the cards most unlikely to suffer it percentage wise, as these were all built to NVIDIA spec using NVIDIA specified components.

Of course our own 970 won't suffer it either as we've paid to have the capacitors put in containers and glued.

 

[KingDazza]

2 x MSI GTX 980's here with no whine thankfully.

 

[shatpank81]

I am taking mine in the store on saturday (agreed with bailey got an rma number etc)

Just a question, if you say there is buzzing etc but its within its tolerances etc
But i disagree and say i am not happy with the card, will i be liable to the 25% off for restocking/b grading or is the restocking fee etc value at the stores discretion
i.e. Yes there in noise but we will take it back and charge 15%
Or is that 25% non negotiable?

I ask because im not happy with mine, but obviously everyones hearing is different and testing conditions are different to my setup etc

Would like a reference card aswell, cant wait for the 970 ref, so would stump up the extra for a 980 ref

 

[Wilkeh]

Not sure how people are getting their RMA's approved? Anyone help?

 

[shatpank81]

Not sure how people are getting their RMA's approved? Anyone help?

Have you sent yours in for testing?

 

[stooeh]

Why is it coil whine only seems to be something noticed in the last few years? I can't recall it being an issue past that period of time. Just the card complexity getting higher?

I had it pretty bad on my GTX 295 but not on any other cards I have had.

Pretty much all of my cards squealed during certain 2K+ fps loading/menu screen such as in GTA4 and crysis 1.

 

[neilwhiteley]

2 x MSI GTX 980's here with no whine thankfully.

Ref Design?

 

[Besty]

So many people are still playing games using engines that are not pushing hardware, as such with Vsync off it is not unusual to have 300fps+ at this point you will get coil whine on pretty much any card.

What he said !

 

[Simon Belmont]

I've never have a gpu with coil whine.

2 Reference 980's here all is quiet. Very happy with mine

 

[Dave2150]

My radeon 7950 whined like a pig during 2d and 3d, on my older enermax galaxy 1KW PSU.

I always considered it a fault of the card, until I upgraded to a Superflower 750w Gold Leadex PSU. The coil whine disappeared completely, in 2d and 3d

 

[KingDazza]

Ref Design?

No mate, the Gaming Edition.

 

[CraigN]

my reference 980 has slight coil whine under heavy load.

but only under load in gaming or benching. I usually have sound through speakers or headphones so don't usually notice.

Every GPU ive had since a 4870X2 has had some form of buzzing/whine

 

[Gibbo]

My radeon 7950 whined like a pig during 2d and 3d, on my older enermax galaxy 1KW PSU.

I always considered it a fault of the card, until I upgraded to a Superflower 750w Gold Leadex PSU. The coil whine disappeared completely, in 2d and 3d

Superflower do best in ripple test on PSU round ups typically always winning, hence why they can help reduce coil whine in some cases.

 

[Trustdesa]

Just to add that the Distance Selling Regulations (DSR) no longer exists and has been replaced by the Consumer Contract Regulations (CCR). The online shop can now deduct a fee from your refund, if they don't find any fault.

That is what is specified on Overclockers UK Terms and Conditions so I see no 15% Restocking Fee!

14 Days / Satisfaction Guaranteed
If you wish to cancel your order and return it for a full refund, you have up to a total of 14 days to contact us after the final receipt of your order.

You must inform us in writing if you wish to cancel your order. This can be done through the forums, by webnote, fax or post.

You must return the goods within 14 days of notifying us of the cancellation. We will reimburse you within 14 days of receipt of the goods using the same means of payment as you used when placing the order.

Unfortunately we cannot cover all unforeseeable costs and you will have to pay for the return of any unwanted goods you are returning. Please package the goods properly and ship them in a separate outer box, including all packaging, cables, manuals, drivers and protective bags, however small.

You are liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods. For example, if it goes beyond the sort of handling that might reasonably be allowed in a shop. We will deduct this amount from the value of the refund.

We regret that we cannot accept cancellations of computer software if it is unsealed. Accessories and promotional items are part of the order and must be returned to ensure a full refund is given. Free games codes should be unused and still hidden.

 

[Darujhistan]

Funnily enough, there was a thread the other day asking whether the 970 was the 'best card ever'.

'lolz'.

 

[Silent_Scone]

Funnily enough, there was a thread the other day asking whether the 970 was the 'best card ever'.

'lolz'.

And that's funny because of what, coil whine?

Some people....

 

[AtticusFinch]

It doesn't really matter what Overclockers says it considers RMAble coil whine. Unless the product is sold as explicitly stated by the manufacturer to have coil whine then it is a defect, not a part of the items itself. The fact that there appear to be cards that suffer from no coil whine at all illustrate that point - it is not a expected feature of the card to have coil whine - it is an unfortunate and unacceptable side effect. If people want to put up with some whine that's a choice, stating that only cards with "extreme" coile whine are returnable is a nonsense.

 

[Trustdesa]

And that's funny because of what, coil whine?

Some people....

Well... keeping a card with loud coil whine it is very very sad... and in this case there are far too many cards not just a "bad card" so yes at the moment about quality they are a piece of c... about performance they are not...

However I feel amused when I read nerdy (in a bad way) comment of people saying "I will keep it and play with my headphone"...that is sad