7970 Vapor-X fan replace

[Aays]

My Sapphire 7970 ghz Vapor-X isn't what it used to be so i thought I'd replace the Vapor-X fans with new ones, maybe a pair of Noctua 90mm. But is this even an upgrade or should I just continue using the card untill it's time to buy a new one? 2 new fans are pretty cheap but I don't know how much better and quiter it will get.

 

[coozie7]

If it's running hot and or noisy, it could just need a clean out and the thermal paste replacing, I'd look into this first.

If you swap the fans over you'll need some way to control them, they won't directly connect to the cards fan header, so they won't be controlled by temperature unless you get a little creative with a soldering iron or find a converter cable.

The old '7970 isn't a bad card, and certainly worth holding on to unless you can move up to R9 390/GTX970 territory (or wait until the GTX1070/unnamed AMD Polaris based parts become available).

Not sure about the Vapor-X, but my HD7950 benefitted hugely from a Gelid Icy Vision replacement cooler, either move the current fans (plus temp control) onto the Icy Vision or control the stock Gelid fans with a simple device like the Zalman Fan Mate.
Bear in mind AMD built that card in at least two flavours: One where the cooler has a flat surface and one where there is a raised square on the cooler surface, any replacement must match the original type.

 

[Aays]

If it's running hot and or noisy, it could just need a clean out and the thermal paste replacing, I'd look into this first.

If you swap the fans over you'll need some way to control them, they won't directly connect to the cards fan header, so they won't be controlled by temperature unless you get a little creative with a soldering iron or find a converter cable.

The old '7970 isn't a bad card, and certainly worth holding on to unless you can move up to R9 390/GTX970 territory (or wait until the GTX1070/unnamed AMD Polaris based parts become available).

Not sure about the Vapor-X, but my HD7950 benefitted hugely from a Gelid Icy Vision replacement cooler, either move the current fans (plus temp control) onto the Icy Vision or control the stock Gelid fans with a simple device like the Zalman Fan Mate.

Thanks for the fast response!
Honestly the card has been running pretty noisy since I bought the card but the temp was OK untill recently so I did what you said. Cleaned it properly and replaced the thermal paste to noctuas that I used for my CPU. The temps got waaay better, but the noise is still bothering me. I have the NZXT H440 low noise chassis but it still gets too loud. That's why I want to change the fans but I realy don't know if it's worth the trouble. I don't know how much dB the Vapor-X fans are making and how much air they are moving around so I can't realy be sure if the Noctuas will help or make it worse..
The control of the fans won't be any problem becouse I found a Y-splitter for PWM fans that can connect to the GPU just like the stock fans do and be controlled by temperature.

 

[Aays]

One other thing I'm a little unsure about is the comment on every after market cooler description. "The compatibility list is based on AMD™ reference board layout ONLY." My card is from Sapphire, does that mean that the cooler won't fit? How am I supposed to know if it's the reference board design or not?

 

[coozie7]

Yes, I had a quick look around but couldn't find one of those converter cables, so kudos to you for hunting one up.

It is likely the Noctua fans will be quieter but don't forget to remove the stock fans first-it's usually a bit of a hassle but with them in place they'll block some of the Noctua airflow and may cause extra noise.
Not sure how you intend to put the new fans on but the old cable tie trick is simple or you can use sticky Velcro pads, either is simple and reversible.

If you're happy with the temps you could always download the excellent Afterburner software and set a custom fan curve, offsetting increased temperature with lower noise, 80C under load is a decent, safe temp so if the card is cooler than that under load you'll have some room for improvement.

This review has pics of the reference PCB layout: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/HD_7970_GHz_Edition/3.html And since you've already taken the cooler off, you'll know if it has the flat or raise square type cooler plate.

 

[Aays]

I saw a video where a guy used zip-ties to put the fans in place, didn't look that dificult. Sapphires Trixx software has the option where you can make your own fan curve so that's no biggie. The Noctuas should give me at least the same temps but with lower noise hopefully. I'll try it out and see what happens, if it dosn't help I'll just put the old fans back and use the new fans for something else. Thank you for your help!