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Cooler upgrade for X1800XT

dewi

dewi

dewi

Associate
Joined
2 Apr 2006
Posts
259
I'm thinking of upgrading the cooler on my X1800XT. I'm more concerned about reducing noise than improving performance. I'm considering:

1. Zalman VF900-Cu
2. Arctic Cooling Accelero X2
3. Thermalright HR-03

I'm concerned that unlike the standard cooler, these coolers don't exhaust hot air outside the case and that they will therefore increase the in-case temperature.

My case is a full tower case that Evesham originally supplied with the PC. There's plenty of space inside the case, but it's under-equipped from a cooling point of view. There are only slots for two exhaust fans. It came with a single 80mm exhaust fan, which I've replaced with an Artic Cooling Fan 8; I fitted a second Artic Cooling Fan 8 at the same time. I recently helped a friend build a new PC around an Antec P180; the Antec is definitely much better equipped than my own case from a cooling point of view.

My Athlon 3800+ X2 overclocks nicely to 2.5 GHz at the moment. Will I have problems with case temperatures, and therefore with overclocking and system stability, if I replace the standard cooler?
 
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I replaced the stock cooler on my X1800XT 512mb with a Zalman VF900-Cu before I sold it and brought a 7900GTO.

My temps were 40c idle & 60c load. The Fan mate was just under half. I had a X2 3800+ with it to. I didnt notice any rise in case temps, but have a good air flow throughout my Akasa.

The Zalman VF900-Cu was very easy to fit, great replacement for the stock leaf blower ;)
 
Iv'e got the zalman and i think its great. Can't hear it over any other components on the highest speed setting and keeps the temperatures below 50 degrees at 730/830 overclock. This is in a P180, so case cooling isn't a problem.
 
Thank you very much for your advice. The Thermalight HR-03 does sound very, very nice, though more expensive than the Zalman, especially if you add a fan.

I'm not necessarily looking for something that cools better than the standard cooler, just (much) more quietly. I'm particularly tempted by the idea of a Thermalight in passive mode.

I'm still a little concerned that replacing the standard cooler will raise the in-case temperatures. The cooling in my Evesham-supplied case is a lot less effective than in a P180. Having said that, temperatures aren't a problem at the moment, so I think I should be OK.
 
I run the Accelero X2 on my X1800XT @100% fan speed. Its totally silent. I have a P180 case and I can hear case fans more than the GPU cooler. I think the fluid bearing on it is great.

It doesn't adversley effect the case's cooling as long as you have reasonable air flow. It does a very good job with temps as well.
 
As said above, if you have good airflow in your case then the Zalman or the Accelero X2 will be fine as your case temps will hardly be affected, may only go up a couple of degrees, or not at all. :)
 
Zalman VF900-Cu ( with as5)


on my x1800xt its ace

stock idel 61c load 89c

100% fan idle 39c load 53c

60% fan idle 43c load 65c whisper quiet !!


get one now awsome and easy to fit !
 
Cyber-Mav said:
forget about the zalman its not good enough
Click to expand...
The Zalman does a superb job of keeping my X1800XT cool and it's the quietest fan in my PC even with my dual 12 cm case fans on minimum (fan controller), and an AC Freezer 64 Pro. I can only think you didn't fit it right or don't have case cooling. It's also small and light weight, so it makes an X1800XT a lot lighter than stock. I just leave mine on minimum fan speed the whole time and even with a significant overclock I've never had any problems.
 
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