GTX460 SLI Overheating Solution?

[andyman30]

Hey everyone, I have recently installed 2 PNY GTX 460 OC Cards, and have been having alot of heat issues. I manually set the fan profiles in MSI Afterburner to compensate, but it gets really annoying as well as disrupting to my roommate when the top card's fan is constantly running at 70% to make up for the heat. I have had no performance issues, which is nice, but is there any way at all to drop the temperature of the top card? With my mobo, the only 2 slots that can fit the cards are right next to each other, with barely any space in between the cards. My case has a side vent, but not a very good one. I'll post a full spec list below, but does anyone make side coolers, or some kind of velcro fan that i can just slap on the inside of my case? I've kinda run out of options at this point, so any ideas are good ones. Thanks so much if anyone can help!

Specs:
CoolerMaster Storm Case
EVGA E757 LE Mobo
2 PNY OC GTX 460 SLI
i7-920
3gb DDR3 RAM
2 WD Caviar Green 2 TB HD's
Corsair 750w Power Supply

 

[jprahman]

Depending on your case you may be able install or turn up a front fan that would blow cool air in the direction of the top card. That would hopefully help to drop temps without having to turn the card fan up too high. Also, depending on your case you could install a better side fan to improve airflow. I could give more specific advise, but I'm not familiar with that case.

I have to say that issues like this are what you can run into when running multicard rigs.

 

[andyman30]

Heres a pic of the case, although it doesnt have that case fan on the side, maybe I'll mount a 120mm fan and hope for the best. If i do mount a fan, should i blow the hot air out or try to blow cool air in?

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/920/1/

 

[jprahman]

I would try each way and check CPU and GPU temps to see which configuration is better. Although, I'm sure someone else knows which way is better.

 

[mactronix]

Yea thats obviously the best aproach but i would say as it has 2 exhaust fans already and a single intake which is at the front and so pushing the air over components, HDD's etc to warm it up before it even gets to the motherboard components, then adding an intake fan to whichever set of holes best line up with the GPU's would be where i would start.

Mactronix

 

[andyman30]

Awesome thanks! Thats what i'll do, I have 2 120mm fans in the mail as I write this, so hopefully that will help to drop the temps a bit! I'll post temps in a few days when I get the fans.

 

[andyman30]

Hey, I installed the two 120mm fans last night, and blowing air on the cards worked much better than sucking the hot air out. However, should 120mm fans sound like jet engines or is something rattling? It sounds just like when i turn the card fans up. If this is normal then I dont mind, but I just wasnt sure how loud the fans were actually supposed to be. Thanks!

 

[mactronix]

How do you have the fans powered ? If they are just plugged straight in then they will be running flat out and if you didnt spend a bit of money on them then the bearings will be of a poorer quality and be adding to the noise.

What you ideally need to do is to hook your new fans into the power circuit for the other fans as they have a speed controller I beleive ? it could just be the front one i guess ?
You would need a pass through Molex connector to do this like the ones in the picture in this link. http://www.more-shop.co.uk/pc-fan-power-adapter-cable-molex-to-3-pin-fan-p-877.html
then obviously you could slow then down and balance noise and performance.


Mactronix

 

[nforce4max]

You couldn't have gotten a worse boot drive for your machine. Green edition drives are terrible quality and are not meant to be used with an operating system and applications installed but are for mass storage and media. That aside you need to force more air between both cards so that their coolers work more effectively instead of making more noise. You can try to get your self a 1U server fan and mod that will drop the temps without having to spend hardly any cash at all. As for the case ditch the side panel unless you got pets and siblings.

 

[mactronix]

You probably dont need both fans either. Test it with a single and bothto see if teh differance is worth it.

Mactronix

 

[andyman30]

@nforce4max: I just havent updated my signature in a while, I have a 3rd boot drive that is a caviar black. And that aside unfortunately I do have 2 hairy dogs that live in my room

@mactronix: I bought the coolermaster recommended fans, since my case is CM, and so are the fans.
Here is a link of the fans i bought: http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-120mm-Case-R4-L2R-20CR-GP/dp/B0026ZPFBG
Also, if I have a water cooled CPU, how would that tie into the fan controller?

 

[mactronix]

@nforce4max: I just havent updated my signature in a while, I have a 3rd boot drive that is a caviar black. And that aside unfortunately I do have 2 hairy dogs that live in my room

@mactronix: I bought the coolermaster recommended fans, since my case is CM, and so are the fans.
Here is a link of the fans i bought: http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-120mm-Case-R4-L2R-20CR-GP/dp/B0026ZPFBG
Also, if I have a water cooled CPU, how would that tie into the fan controller?

I'm not 100% sure how the fans on yours work but a lot of cases I have seen the controller for the fans is for the case fans and not the CPU cooler.
The fans are probably fine themselves but if you don't have then on the same circuit as the others that are using the speed controller they will run full speed and then will be loud.

Mactronix

 

[andyman30]

Ah ok. Well I was just curious if they normally made a decent amount of noise at full bore, which if its normal than I'm fine with it

 

[andyman30]

Best answer selected by andyman30.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey