GTX 470 heat + monitor issue

[namelessonez]

I'm currently running an MSI N470GTX (not the twin frozr) on a 19' LG@ 1366x768 res. The rest of my specs:

intel i5 760i@2.8Ghz
MSI H55M-P33 Mobo
4gb DDR3 Kingston RAM
CoolerMaster 700W Real Power PSU
CoolerMaster Elite 335 (2x120mm fans)
CoolerMaster Sentinel Advanced Gaming Mouse
Razer Carcharias Headset
Windows 7 Ultimate

Let's get the obvious out of the way! I know that the 470 is wasted on the existing Monitor/ resolution. I have full plans of upgrading to a 1920 Res monitor soon. The idle temp's are anything between 44-50.

Now, my concern. While playing games like AvP, Mafia II, GTA 4, COD4MW2, BFBC2, L4D2, MOH, etc the heat shoots up to 92 and ultimately settles at 90. I am also aware that the threshold for the card is 105 and anything under 95 should be considered ok. Ambient temp's are around 18-22 Deg Celcius.

But this is happening at a low res monitor!

What happens once I upgrade to a higher res monitor? Are these temp's likely to shoot up further? Does the resolution have a direct impact on the amount of power sucked in by the GPU? And does the same effect the temp's of the card? Shouldn't a lower res monitor take less power/ lesser heat?

Wanted to clear these apprehensions. Since I've recently bought the 470, I wanna rule out any possibility of a faulty card.

As always, appreciate the response.

 

[jay2tall]

Even if you are at a lower res the card is still kicking up in 3d mode and rendering graphics. Lower resolutions usually equate to being able to turn up image detail settings. The 470 and 480 cards do run hot. See the below link from Tom's, their test show the 470 at 96C under load, so I would not worry. Your 470 at your current res is not a waste. You should be able to turn up all the eye candy. I'm running a gtx580 at 1680x1050. I like all the details cranked for the best experience. My comments are, your card is fine, will be fine, and game on.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-480,2585-15.html

 

[bystander]

Often times, lower resolution results in higher temperatures due to higher FPS. Rendering more frames seems to make things hotter than the computing it does to render a single frame.

One way to lower temps in extremely high FPS situations, is simply to turn on v-sync. Your card will no longer be able to render more than your monitors refresh rate, which is usually 60. Your monitor can't display more than it's refresh rate anyways, so all you end up doing is prevent your GPU from working harder than needed.

 

[swifty_morgan]

I looked at that case. Doesn't look like it dissipates heat very well. Try popping the side off.

 

[namelessonez]

@Jay2tall:
Thanks for that man, was kinda what I was hoping to hear. The reason why I raised the issue of the card being wasted was that too many people here at Tom's seem to follow the view that unless you're gaming at a res of 1920 or above, you're not utilizing the card (470/ 480) to its potential. That article was a good read, cheers'!

@bystander
I run my games with v-sync turned on. The statistics quoted in the OP are those with v-sync on. Would turning v-sync off affect the quality/ performance at that resolution?

@swifty_morgan
Yeah man, that case ain't the best deal to go for. But I was kinda strapped for cash after the new rig. GPU's are far more expensive here in India than what newegg offers.....about 40% more. My GPU cost me around 21,000 Rupees which was equivalent to app. $464 about 40 days back (don't even get me started on the price tag of the 480!). The rest of the parts were almost the same price as newegg though. I also tried running the rig with the side panel off and the difference was about 2 deg's. I didn't wanna risk running it at the cost of accumulating dust so I've put the cover back on. I do have space for an 80 mm fan on the side panel....wondering if that'll be of any help though.

So I guess it's safe to assume that the card is fine and upping the monitor won't make matters worse? Also, is it a good idea to get a pair of aftermarket fans on the GPU in place of the MSI ones? I've seen some of them Zalman's but am apprehensive that peeling the MSI fan off might damage the card.

Again, thanks!

 

[bystander]

@bystander
I run my games with v-sync turned on. The statistics quoted in the OP are those with v-sync on. Would turning v-sync off affect the quality/ performance at that resolution?

If those are with v-sync on, then you aren't forcing the card to run any hotter than it needs to.

Now on to the reality of the card. They actually have the automatic fan settings set to run only high enough to prevent the temps from going beyond 90C with a minimum fan speed which will cause idle to be a bit lower.

Unless you manually set the fan to run faster, your card has been tuned to run at 90C in the software.

MSI Afterburner can let you design a fan curve allowing you to lower it a bit if you like. However, 90C is perfectly normal for a 470.

 

[23dexter89]

Hey, I'm from neighboring Sri Lanka......
I have the same fears of the System Temperatures going through the roof.
Hope you find a good Solution to your issue !!

 

[namelessonez]

Best answer selected by namelessonez.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey