XFX R9-390x-8256 - Extreme heat issues

[Irlvexed]

System Information
CPU: I5 6600k
CPU Fan: Cryorig H5A Universal
Mobo: Asus Z170-A
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws V series 8gb 2133mhz
Case: Corsair 200R
GPU: XFX R9-390x-8256
PSU: Corsair CX750M
Case Fans: 4x Noctua NF-F12 PWM
Fan Orientation: 1x Front Intake, 1x Rear Exhaust, 1x Top Intake, 1x Bottom Exhaust

I've tried about everything I know to do in the attempt of getting this GPU's temperatures under control, I've tried about every fan orientation in the book 3x Intake 1x Exhaust etc etc... My cable management is very good. I've been in talks with XFX and we've been trying to figure out what's wrong with the card, so far the only thing that they've told me that I can do to fix it is either RMA the product or replace the thermal paste on the chip, I don't know how to remove the XFX heatsink.

This card idles in the 60c range and when running FFXIV it hits 94-95c CSGO gets this thing up to 90c and LoL gets this thing in the 80c range.

Did I spend 400$ on a glorified space heater? and then another 75$ on case fans to try to keep this thing out of the 90c-95c range.

I should also note that I've got this card underclocked from 1060 mhz to 1000mhz.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated

 

[imrazor]

You've got PWM fans, so you should be able to control and monitor them with appropriate software. Get some fan control software (Speedfan comes to mind) and check out what speeds those fans are running at. Speedfan can control your case fans (provided they're connected to your motherboard, and not directly to your PSU.) If, on the other hand, those fans are connected to the PSU, typically they'll run at full speed.

What's your ambient temperature in your case? How about the CPU temps? Have you tried GPU software that can control the GPU fan? I usually use MSI Afterburner, but that might not work for an AMD card.

 

[Irlvexed]

I'm currently using MSI Afterburner to control my GPU fan, CPU Temps are 26c, all fans are connected to the motherboard, Not sure how to check what my cases ambient temp is, also would idle or load temps work better for you?

 

[DustinV]

ambient temperature means the room temp. where your pc is. so is the room already very hot?

 

[imrazor]

If your CPU temp is 26C, then your ambient temperature is almost certainly lower than that. Have you tried setting your GPU fan speed to 100% and just leaving it there? Have you checked to make sure there's no dust in your case and in the 390's heat sink?

If that doesn't work, you may have to repaste the heatsink. Bad thermal interface does occur from time to time. Back in the day, I had to repaste the fan on an XFX 8800GT. They provided pretty good instructions on the process and it was relatively painless, so I think you wouldn't have much trouble.

 

[Irlvexed]

it's usually about 70F in my room

 

[Irlvexed]

I bought the GPU on 2/3/16 and built the whole system on 2/29/16, so I've only had it up and running for 10 days or so, there's not much if any dust in the system as of now, when I'm playing FFXIV and the GPU is being pushed to 95c the fans are running at 100%, I'm unsure how to take the cooler off of the card itself, they've provided no instruction, and I don't want to void my warranty.

 

[imrazor]

In my case, they provided the instructions and indicated the warranty wouldn't be voided. If you should decide to take that route, make sure you they specifically tell you to try it and get it in writing through their technical support ticketing system. If it makes you nervous at all, then I'd go ahead and RMA the card. Disappointing, I know.

 

[Irlvexed]

If they're willing to give me a refund on the card then I'll never buy any XFX/AMD product again, not only have they made themselves look bad, their design has made amd as a whole look bad, at this point I will most likely use this card until I get an answer from XFX about a potential refund or I will buy a GTX 980/980TI and just sell this overpriced space heater on ebay. Better off taking a 100$ loss than sitting here literally not able to play certain games because this thing will die if I do... At this point I'm not really interested in an RMA, I want a refund.

 

[imrazor]

If you're after a refund, you might be better off going through the retailer you bought the card from instead of XFX. Newegg has a 30-day refund policy, so you might be out of luck if you bought from them. Other retailers may have longer return windows.

 

[Irlvexed]

Unfortunately I did order it from newegg on 2/3/16, I am hoping that they will make an acception to the rule

 

[Irlvexed]

And they didn't so either XFX will come through and actually help me reduce temps to under 80c or I'll be taking a 100$ loss and selling this thing on ebay.

 

[Irlvexed]

FIXED--------------
The problem was running certain games @ 144hz while also playing on ultra, FFXIV @ ULTRA @ 144hz was easily getting this card to 95c, lowered to 100hz and now I'm barely cresting 80c, still runs cool enough to play League/CSGO @ 144hz

 

[imrazor]

I'm glad you found a fix. It's a shame though that you have run at a lower refresh rate. Can you tell a difference in the image quality?

 

[Irlvexed]

No difference in image quality, unfortunate that I kind of have to lower it but, I knew what I was getting into when I bought an AMD card, I just didn't figure that I'd see temperatures high enough to fry an egg =/