7800GT owners - pls help

Hifriday · Post by **Hifriday** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 9:46 am

I just picked up a Galaxy 7800GT, however the card is so loud, even by non-SPCR standards. From various reviews and postings, it seems that the fan should slow down during 2D/idle and only ramp up during 3D/load. However I notice my fan seems to be running at a constant speed, probably maximum speed and not slowing down at all. The Galaxy card like most other 7800GT is basically the reference card, even the fan still has the Nvidia label and is marked 12v DC 0.28A.

Can other 7800GT owners confirm if the fan speed is supposed to ramp up/down (ie. loud at boot, quiet into windows, and loud again during 3D). Also which version of the Forceware drivers are you using, and did you have to install any other driver/utility/setting that might be controlling the fan?

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

Hifriday · Post by **Hifriday** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 8:53 am

No other 7800GT owners care to share their experiences?!

It seems my initial install of 77.74 drivers was not properly removed, later trying 77.77 and 78.01 drivers it seemed fan speed finally ramped down. However seems the fan control is still not working properly. Upon first booting up, the fan will immediately slow down when entering windows, however it seems if the card is left on for a 5-15 min (even only in windows 2D idle) it begins to ramp up even though card temps stay in 44-47C. Also if I launch 3D the card will ramp up immediately(expected), but if I exit 3D even after only a few seconds the fan stays locked at maximum speed and never slows down again (not expected). I have contacted mfr support, but so far no response.

I could not stand the noise any longer so I detached the fan header from the 7800 and connected it to a fan controller and slowly turned it down. With a card more expensive than my CPU I was very cautious constantly checking the temps and using my finger probe to double-check. I was very pleasantly surprised this card runs very cool. Even with the fan turned down all the way (assume around 5v) most of the card wasn't even warm. Only the area near the power connector and also where the fan exhausts was a little warm, but not hot. Suprisingly temps remained at roughly the same levels as when the fan was at maximum?!

Have not had extensive gaming sessions yet, but for some brief boughts of looping 3Dmark and reading off the crude Nvidia monitor temp graph seems max temps is only in the high 60s, only slightly higher than with the fan at full. Under 3D the card does get hot, but still cool compared to cards like the 6800GT, 9700Pro.

At this level noise wise the card becomes very tolerable, but still too loud for a quiet system and also the fan noise is not smooth. However since the card runs so cool, it should work quite well with a low-noise replacement cooler.

Dirty-Harry · Post by **Dirty-Harry** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 9:36 am

Hifriday wrote:No other 7800GT owners care to share their experiences?!

That's an expensive card. I doubt many people in this forum own one.

Heck, I'm looking to upgrade mine to a 6600 GT. To me the 7800 is overkill, however, if you have the money... go for it. I have the money, but don't need a 7800.

Mystr_Byrnz · Post by **Mystr_Byrnz** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 9:53 am

I never got to hear the stock cooler on my 7800. I had a zalman vf700 waiting for the vid card to be delivered and that went on as soon as the card left its box. I have the 700 hooked to a fan controller so i keep it ~7v when doing anything other than gaming and crank it to full during gaming sessions.

I too have noticed the fan speed doesn't make a huge difference even when running hard 3d. with the fan at 12v i get about 2c lower temp than having it at low. I'm very happy with the card, and I'm also happy that I shouldn't have to upgrade (at least that part) again for a while.

iatacs19 · Post by **iatacs19** » Wed Sep 07, 2005 6:35 pm

I got the BFG 7800GT and the fan control works. It's loud when booting but as soon as the drivers load I can hear it quiet down. Of course it's not quiet enough, I can hear the whooshing sound, it's the loudest and most expensive piece of equipment in my PC. I am waiting to change out the cooler when some passive cooling solutions start to appear. No sense I getting active cooling yet since the 7800-series runs so much cooler than the 6800-series. Just have to be patient until Zalman makes a custom heatpipe for the 7800.

Hifriday · Post by **Hifriday** » Thu Sep 08, 2005 8:51 am

Dirty-Harry wrote: That's an expensive card. I doubt many people in this forum own one.

It's not cheap, but considering people paid even more for a X850XT/PE or 6800GT/Ultra not so long ago, plus the 7800GT runs cooler (silencing potential) and delivers signifcantly more performance, it is actually a very attractive card especially for people using large screens and running 3D games at high quality settings. Despite being a silent forum, I suspect quite a few readers already have this card. Extravagant and "don't need it" IMO would be running 2x 6800Ultras or 7800GTX in SLI!

Mystr_Byrnz
A few questions for you... Did the VF700 install easily onto the 7800GT? ie did the heatsink holes match up? Do you have it in a quiet rig and is it audible over other components at 7v? Also what idle/gaming temps are you getting?

iatacs19
How quickly does your BFG fan spin down after exiting 3D mode?

Thanks guys for the feedback!

Mystr_Byrnz · Post by **Mystr_Byrnz** » Thu Sep 08, 2005 9:06 am

My rig was built as a quiet rig, not a silent rig. The fan I can hear the most is the noisy little NB fan. Other than that, I mostly hear air passing through my machine.

The VF700 Was very easy to install on the 7800GTX. THe hardest part of the installation was removing the massive stock HSF. Everything lined up perfectly and the 700 works great as a cooler. At 7volts it is just barely audible, but I think my sound levels would be better if My computer were not at head level on the dresser next to my computer desk. Not having much room has forced me to put it there, but once I move and put the machine on the floor the noise level will drop a lot, I'm sure.

As for temps, I'm not sure if they're accurate because the motherboard I'm using is known to report different numbers than most others. For example, at idle my CPU sits right at room temp at 24C. I know that has to be incorrect, because sometimes it even dips below room temp. The sys temp runs a little warmer than most I've seen, at around 38during gaming or load. GPU sits at ~42 idle and the highest I've seen it at load is 72. Well below the threashold.

Hifriday · Post by **Hifriday** » Thu Sep 08, 2005 9:13 am

In looking over the reviews on the net for the 7800GT I was surprised to find so much conflicting opinion on the fan noise. Maybe the misbehaving fan controller has something to do with it.

Anandtech XFX 7800GT OC

we were quite surprised by how loud this card proved to be. In fact, the card was so noisy when we started up the system that it effectively drowned out the CPU fan. While we weren't expecting the GT to get a noise level quite as loud as the GTX, our tests revealed a sound level of 54.7 for the GT, about two and a half times louder than any of the 7800 GTXs that we tested.

Techreport XFX 7800GT OC

These results aren't surprising given how quiet the 7800 GT's cooler is. At idle, the thing is simply inaudible over the sound of the CPU and chipset coolers in our test system. Under load, the cooler is audible on an open test bench, but probably wouldn't be when placed inside of a computer case.

Hexus XFX/Reference 7800GT

Compared to a GTX, the PCB is a touch smaller in width and identical in height. The fan on the single-slot cooler is an ADDA AD4512HB-E01. The 12V DC fan draws less than 4W at full speed. Flat out the volume of air it moves makes, subjectively to my tired old ears, a touch more noise than a full-pelt GTX reference board. The cooler design is the culprit for that. Thankfully it's temperature controlled and rarely hits its maximum speed.

Behardware Reference 7800GT

With a relatively silent 7800 GTX, we didn’t expect the new cooling system. NVIDIA equipped the 7800 GT with a noisier one than the 6800 Ultra. Some of NVIDIA’s partners should fortunately replace it with more silent systems but only after the first graphic cards will be sold. You will have to be patient if you like quiet systems or replace it yourself.

Xbit labs Reference 7800GT

Since the fan of the GeForce 7800 GT cannot regulate its speed automatically, like the GeForce 7800 GTX, the noise level should have a couple of pre-sets: for 2D and 3D, provided that the ForceWare driver supports the GeForce 7800 GT. In fact, even in 3D the fan never works on its maximum speed, which ensures relatively quiet operation. In 2D the GeForce 7800 GT is even less noisy than the RADEON X800 XL.

Beyond3D BFG 7800GT OC

Here we see that there is very little differential in system noise between idle and load scenarios on the 7800 GT OC and the idle system noise level is much higher than that of the 7800 GTX - we note that there were only two wires on the 7800 GT's fan, which would suggest that, unlike the 7800 GTX, there is no thermal monitoring and fan speed throttling.

VR Zone Leadtek 7800GT

Perhaps the only down point on this card is it's fan noise. Being slightly loud (similar to the GTX, the fan spins up when in 3D), and might irritate users who demand extreme silence.

Ackelind · Post by **Ackelind** » Thu Sep 08, 2005 10:31 am

iatacs19 wrote:I got the BFG 7800GT and the fan control works. It's loud when booting but as soon as the drivers load I can hear it quiet down. Of course it's not quiet enough, I can hear the whooshing sound, it's the loudest and most expensive piece of equipment in my PC. I am waiting to change out the cooler when some passive cooling solutions start to appear. No sense I getting active cooling yet since the 7800-series runs so much cooler than the 6800-series. Just have to be patient until Zalman makes a custom heatpipe for the 7800.

Why don't you try the Thermaltake Schooner? I've installde one on my 6600GT and I have great temps. With very low airflow (nexus fans at 5.5V) idle is 44 and load is about 64. I believe the schooner would fit the 7800 since it will fit the 6800. It is also fully adjustable, so the only thing you need is two holes near the core for it to fit. It is a major PITA to install though, I have never installed anything worse in my life!

JonV · Post by **JonV** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 3:33 pm

iatacs19 wrote:Just have to be patient until Zalman makes a custom heatpipe for the 7800.

Their ZM80D-HP with the ZM80D-IK1 mounting kit fits the 7800GT perfectly. Cools it adequately even with very low case airflow, too.

Hifriday · Post by **Hifriday** » Thu Sep 15, 2005 8:32 am

Mystr_Byrnz
Thanks for the good advice on theVF700Cu. It was the easiest CPU cooler I've ever installed, it is significantly quieter than the stock cooler, and seems the GPU temps run just as cool even on 5v fan settings.
However one concern I have is that the capacitors and coils on the end of the card towards the inside of the case does run hot. With the stock cooler, the uni-directional air flow was actually blowing directly over these components, however with the VF700, air flow in this area is significantly less even at 12v as it is diffused in all directions. So far it seems ok though, but just to be safe I decided to add an extra case fan to blow over this area, and it also helps to cool the very hot NF4 nb.

JonV
Did you manage to get your card working again? Do you think it could possibly have been something that overheated in the cap/coil part of the board? One of my RAM sinks also dropped off, I guess Zalman's thermal tape solution is really not that great.

JonV · Post by **JonV** » Thu Sep 15, 2005 8:47 am

Hifriday wrote:Did you manage to get your card working again? Do you think it could possibly have been something that overheated in the cap/coil part of the board? One of my RAM sinks also dropped off, I guess Zalman's thermal tape solution is really not that great.

I bought a new one, and I also RMA'd the dead one, so I may be running two in SLI soon

(Nah, I'll probably sell the replacement, if they give me one.)

Since it happened between bootups, while I was fiddling with the card, I doubt it was just simple overheating. But I'm thinking the memory chips may have gotten so hot they were extra vulnerable to physical damage - I had just been stress testing it, so they were very hot. Anyone know if that's a plausible explanation?

This time around I've removed the thermal tape and used Arctic Silver thermal adhesive to attach the ram sinks. It's pretty cool stuff, fun to work with

TMonte · Post by **TMonte** » Thu Sep 15, 2005 6:39 pm

Hifriday: Did you install the ramsinks with the VF700?

I just picked up an XFX 7800GT and happen to have a VF700 laying around from my old 6600GT. I'm definitely going to make the change soon...this stock cooler is driving me nuts!

Tom

PositiveSpin · Post by **PositiveSpin** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 4:57 am

My 7800GT is loudest at boot, and ramps down when the Windows drivers load (with both 77 and 78 drivers). Idle and 2D are considerably quieter than boot.

TMonte · Post by **TMonte** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 10:20 am

I put the VF700 on last night with some AS5 and left the RAMsinks off. It's at 5v, and idles 1C lower than with the stock cooler. I even have it overclocked to 480/1200 in 3D and it still doesn't get much past 65C (using the 'check it quick' method

).

I'm definitely satisfied - same performance, with nearly zero noise.

Tom

clarkkent333 · Post by **clarkkent333** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 10:47 am

My BFG 7800GT is a screamer. I've got a VF700 on the way and hopefully it will be able to solve the problem. I'm disappointed that the Thermalright V-1 doesn't fit because the Zalman isn't the quietest solution out there.

TMonte · Post by **TMonte** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 6:11 pm

The VF700 is damn near silent at 5v...I think you'll be happy.

cotdt · Post by **cotdt** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 6:49 pm

Ha! i'm happy with my cool-running 6800GT. i chuckle whenever i hear people buy the new expensive cards when i think about the crappy upcoming games. is it me or are games becoming lamer?

TMonte · Post by **TMonte** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 6:55 pm

I figure the 7800's should be good for two years, easy. (Unless there's a mind-blowing game secretly in the works right now). If I had a 6800, I would have stuck with it, but I went from a 6600GT (essentially just a high-clock 8-pipe card) to the 7800GT

UT2007 looks like it will be impressive - and I'm a UT fanatic.

Tom

cotdt · Post by **cotdt** » Fri Sep 16, 2005 7:11 pm

don't leave the ramsinks off because the ram also needs to be cooled, or over time the ram will degrade and problems will occur. it takes a long time but eventually it will happen and has happened to many.

UT2004 was perfect does there really need to be another new version?

iatacs19 · Post by **iatacs19** » Tue Sep 20, 2005 5:43 pm

good news.

I installed the RivaTuner utility and you can control the fan RPMs for the 7800-series. The default speed is 43% the lowest you can set it at is 25% which reduces the noise a great amount. I also clocked my core to 200MHz when doing only 2D stuff to offset the slower fan speed. The original was 425MHz, there is no difference in temperature @ 200MHz. The 3D speed I left untouched @ 425MHz and 1.05GHz for the RAM.

Rivatuner is good because it changes registry settings and does not need to be run everytime windows starts like a "TSR", it just becomes part of the drivers.

So, now I hear my fan spinning down 2x. First when it starts to load windows and 1x when after logging on.

It is a good free way to quiet down the system before you go out and buy a Zalman or something like that. I don't have any tools to measure the db, but just from sitting near it, it is much much more quiet. Quiet enough to make me forget about replacing the HSF.

http://www.guru3d.com/rivatuner/

http://content.guru3d.com/index.php?page=rivatunerfaq

jermaink · Post by **jermaink** » Wed Sep 21, 2005 9:10 am

Is the Arctic Cooling NV Silencer 6 Rev. 3 available yet? I'd like to know how effective/quiet this fan can be, when the fan is slowed down (by software). I know that ATI Tray Tools is a good software GPU tweaker for ATI cards, but what's the equivalent for Nvidia cards?

7800GT owners - pls help

7800GT owners - pls help

Leadtek Winfast 7800 GT