SPCR

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Aren't there any Linux apps that can control fan speed on graphics cards?

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You may be able to do a video BIOS mod to change the fan speeds. I have not done this with an ATi card but using RaBit you can do this for some ATi cards. There are threads on BIOS modding for the X1950:
http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthrea ... 01&page=57

Unsurprisingly many of them have a very different view on hardware modification!

You may also be able to drop the voltages to lower temperatures and therefore cooling requirements.

Have you considered getting an Accelero S1? It should be able to cool it passively. It will take up the second slot but also will stick out quite a long way so it depends on the width of your case.

Hi, I have an X1950pro and can very much control the fan speed with software (ATItool in my case) My card is Sapphire Toxic that came with Zalman VF-900 fitted. I've since changed the Zalman fan for a Noctua NF-R8 and modded the BIOS for different default fan speeds. Use ~20% upto 60C which is only broached under load and then ~30% 60-70C. Steep ramp beyond 70C but it never gets up there. Fan speed isn't reported at 20%, but 30% is ~1000rpm and pretty quiet.
viewtopic.php?t=41942
Regards, Seb

Hi, I had (actually still have but not using) the HIS IceQ 1950pro and successfully used Rivatuner to control the fan speed profiles.

However the noise at idle was never as bad as you seem to be experiencing. I have heard reports of the fans on these cards not ageing well and eventually becoming very noisy, it sounds like your card has been similarly affected.

Due to the resistance of the heatsink and the plastic covering, these coolers don't actually dump that much heat outside the case anyway, so maybe you could get away with a passive aftermarket cooler as long as you have a decent 120mm fan on the back of your Solo. Because of the type of fan used I don't know of any like for like replacements to enable you to keep the heatsink and just change the fan for a new one, although this might be a possibility if you can find such a fan.

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nightmorph wrote:The Accelero S coolers also look a little too tall for my Solo.

Link.

nightmorph wrote:Also, they don't seem to be very effective in the reviews I found, certainly not for cards with the thermal envelope of the X1950.

I ran a X1950 with a passive S1. Idle was around 48C and it loaded (in games) at 70C. And that was with nearly no airflow. Recently I added a fan (800rpm S-Flex) to blow towards the PCI slots and idle dropped to 40C and load to 60C. Also, in the link above, that guy is running a 4850 + S1.

Edit: My X1950 Pro has the revised design without the hot VRMs.

Ok, my card was never the quietest, but it wasn't "freakishly aggravating" either. The fan on yours must be damaged or worn, maybe the previous owner cleaned out the dust and put it back in the box with the unused accessories?

The S1 certainly will fit in a Solo and the manufacturer rates it as suitable for cooling a 1950pro. The only possible fly in the ointment with this passive approach is keeping the VRMs cool enough, I *seem* to remember someone on these forums having great difficulties with this issue on a 1950pro, but others have had no problem (see above ).

Are you running any front fans in the Solo? I run an S1 on a 9600GT with a 120mm at 800rpm in front of it which helps massively. If you were to use an S1 on the X1950 then you might find a set of front fans at 5V would make a big difference to graphics card cooling over no fans.

Yes, the programs we all suggested aren't Linux programs. I find it a real problem too. These programs are financially without obligation but not free which is such a shame. If they were open source then I've no doubt they would be better and would be half way to porting to Linux. Nvclock is the only graphics tweaking program I can think of for Linux but it does nothing like as much as RivaTuner.

If however you are able to get hold of an MS DOS bootable floppy you could grab the BIOS from the card using Atiflash, transfer it to a Windows system, then use RaBit to fiddle with the voltages/speeds/fan speeds before transferring the modded BIOS back onto the floppy and reflashing.

Is the card much good under Linux? My previous experiences with fglrx have been appalling. Is the proprietary driver better now? The general consensus still seems to be that nVIDIA is better under Linux.

If VRM cooling is a concern, I'm sure you can cut something to the right size. I cut off part of my 9600GT stock cooler to cover mine.

maf718 wrote:The only possible fly in the ointment with this passive approach is keeping the VRMs cool enough, I *seem* to remember someone on these forums having great difficulties with this issue on a 1950pro, but others have had no problem (see above ).

That person with the problems would have been me

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