XFX HD4870 fan died

[milnyckyj]

The fan on my XFX HD4870 died (it still spins, but it starts making a loud grinding noise after running under load for a little while). The card isn't covered by warranty (protip: register within 30 days of purchase) so I need to either replace the heatsink/fan or buy a new card. The system its in is pretty old, so I don't really want to spend much money on it, but any replacement card should be roughly similar in performance and power consumption.

Any suggestions for a low cost solution?

 

[purple stain]

What are your full system specs?(CPU,RAM,etc.)

What is the make/model of your PSU?

What is your budget?

A 6670 would equal to performance with a 4870 but I suggest going for something with a little more power so the money spent is well justified.Something like a 6850 would work well.

 

[milnyckyj]

Asus P5b-e Intel c2d e6400, 4gb ram, 400w coolermaster psu. The current card is probably close tho the limit of what the psu can support, so any replacement would have to be equal or less power consumption. I'm probably bottlenecked by my cpu anyway, so I don't think I'd benefit from something faster.

Aftermarket vga coolers are $25-$50, so the high end of that would be the limit for a new card.

 

[blade061188]

A 6670 would equal to performance with a 4870

I think you mean 6770:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/fastest-graphics-card-radeon-geforce,3067-7.html

Aftermarket vga coolers are $25-$50, so the high end of that would be the limit for a new card.

You won't be able to find a new card of comparable performance for $25-$50.

I would suggest, since you will have to take off your current cooler to attach a new one, take it off first, and see if you can clean it out. You may find dust caked in the fan crank or something else that will be an easy fix. if you are able to fix it that way, you will avoid having to spend money at all.

If you find that you can't save your current fan, no harm done, you were going to buy an aftermarket cooler anyway

 

[milnyckyj]

A 6670 would equal to performance with a 4870

I would suggest, since you will have to take off your current cooler to attach a new one, take it off first, and see if you can clean it out. You may find dust caked in the fan crank or something else that will be an easy fix. if you are able to fix it that way, you will avoid having to spend money at all.

If you find that you can't save your current fan, no harm done, you were going to buy an aftermarket cooler anyway

I can't do this without reapplying thermal compound, right?

I'll try to see if it lasts until until Black Friday before making a final decision. So far, at zero gpu load, there is no problem whatsoever, so I'm thinking something starts rubbing as the card heats up, things expand, and close gaps get much closer rather than a failing fan.

Thanks for your ideas.

 

[blade061188]

No Problem.

Yes you would have to reapply thermal compound if you take off your current heatsync.

Do you need anything else?