C.Jackson

This isn't your typical "I need a G92 cooler" thread. My motherboard is mBTX meaning that the video card faces right side up. The CPU heatsink is covering part of the card, which is demonstrated in the pictures below. I plan on using the iandh memory and VRM heatsinks, but I need a solution for gpu. I'm not sure exactly which heatsink would work, but it should be fairly compact so it'll fit without hitting the CPU heatsink. I looked at the Zalman VF950 and it looks like it could possibly work, but I'm not 100%. I'd also like to know what kind of thermal paste I'd need for the iandh sinks. Any suggestions are welcome.






Yes, it's a bit on the dusty side, but I plan on cleaning out the case and adding some filters and better fans when I replace the cooler.

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Martkilu

You could do what I did when my old 8800gtx was overheating.. Take the shroud off and use zip-ties to hold down a fan onto the fins. I used a old fan from an amd stock 'sink and it dropped temps by quite a bit.

Edit: Looking at the pic again, the fan would be on the opposite side from the CPU cooler so I'd try this if I were you

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C.Jackson

I thought about doing this after reading about it somewhere online.
Does anyone know if I have to remove the heatsink or how exactly I go about removing just the shroud? The 8800GT's fan drives me insane at 100% while gaming, that would cure that too.

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Martkilu

There are screws in very small holes around the outside of the shroud, just undo the screws and it should come right off. You do -not- have to remove the 'sink. I always replace my GFX cards with new TIM though, helps a bit

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aksthem1

The VF950 might be a tight fit, but the VF900/FC-ZV9 I'm 99.98% sure that it will fit. Since that card has a reference PCB, the VF900 will have the same width as the PCIe slot.

You can use thermal tape for the iandh heatsinks or OCZ Freeze, MX-3, well pretty much any thermal paste of your liking. Just don't over do it for the thermal paste.

Edit: I meant to say it will align with the PCIe slot.

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C.Jackson

I'm thinking really hard about just adding a 120mm, but I know I'd never be satisfied with the temperatures if I did. What kind of thermal pads would you recommend? Or would paste be better? Is the VF900 a fairly good cooler? How does it compare to the others?
As it stands it hits 108C and downclocks itself while playing Crysis or GRID. So I'm just looking for a way to cool this thing off. I would buy a new video card, but I paid $280 for this one at launch and it still does everything I need it to.
I'm hoping after a new cooler I can do the bios volt mod and send this thing to 750/1836/999.

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Sethy666

I had a Thermalright T-RAD² VGA Cooler strapped onto my old 8800 GT with twin 92mm fans - worked a treat.

The fans may cause you an issue unless you can get a couple of slim 92s or one slim 120mm.

From your pic, it should fit.

This is the newer GTX model, but the one I used is almost identical,

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"Men in general are quick to believe that which they wish to be true". Julius Caesar


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Nelson2011

You could one of those coolers where the fins are on the other side.

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aksthem1

Eeek. That is too high for that card. Well my when I had my VF900 on my 8800GT it loaded at 52C. Then again I have good airflow through my case, but it should still be MUCH better.

The stock cooler idles at that same temp at the max fan speed. So this was a massive improvement.

This is also an option. The HR-03 is superb cooler, much better than the VF900 and you can mount it both ways. Though you might have clearance issues with a regular 25MM fan. You might need a slim fan to properly ensure that it won't touch your sound card.

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C.Jackson

Do you think the Zalman FS-V7 or the Zalman VF700-ALCU would be better fits?
I found a picture of an 8800GT with a VF900 installed and it looks close, but it just might fit. I also found a picture of the ZV9 installed on an 8800GT and it almost looks perfect, but it could be the angle making it look that way. I don't want to buy something and have it unusable, but this is no exact science because of the mBTX board.

I had been thinking about the HR-03 myself and wasn't sure whether it would hit my crappy sound card. Well crappy as in close to 10 years old, but amazingly it's still better than my onboard . Anyway the HR-03, now that I look into it, says it's mountable two different ways for compatibility with ATX and BTX form factor cases so it's actually made to work with my case/board. I found it online for $40, which is probably a good price, but that puts me at spending ~$70 on a cooling upgrade and that's kind of expensive. What kind of sinks does the HR-03 include for cooling the memory and all? I'd like to try and just pick up the HR-03 without the iandh sinks for now. I don't want to leave anything uncovered that was previously cooled (lol, warmed is more like it) by the stock cooler.

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