Zotac GTX 980 TI AMP! Fan Control Issue

[sjmikalonis]

I have recently built a new machine with the following specs:

i7 4790k
Gigabyte Z97x Gaming 7
EVGA 16GB DDR3-2400 (PC3-19200) CL 11 Desktop Memory Kit (Two 8GB Memory Modules)
Zotac GTX 980 TI AMP! Edition
Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower
Corsair RM750 Series 750 Watt ATX Modular Power Supply
Corsair H100i GTX Liquid Cooler
Samsung 850 EVO Series 250 GB SDD (Boot Drive)

Everything appears to be running normally expect the GPU fans do not automatically run.

Upon starting up, the fans spin briefly and then turn off. My idle temps increased to 59 C and stayed around there for idle. I know that this is very high for idle temps so I went into my Corsair Link and saw that the GPU had not fan speed showing and it was flashing red.

I realized I forgot to download the Zotac OC software (Firestorm). After I did that and opened it up, I went into advanced settings and the target temperature was set to 85 C and it showed zero fan activity. I manually set the fan speed to 40% and the temp quickly went down to normal ~ 30 C idle temp.

The question I have is, why was the GPU not automatically engaging the fans when it began to get hotter and why did I have to manually set the fan speed in order to get them to turn on. Once I did that, Corsair Link recognized a healthy fan RPM and showed the temp now at normal idle temperatures.

Is this an issue with driver software or was it simply because I hadn't installed Firestorm?

Please advise. I don't want to cook my GPU if I forget to open Firestorm when I login.

 

[blasc]

the card will only "fry" after the 100ºC or so. the usual temps are 70~75 with 100% usage and power.

Check if the card only turns on after the temps get to 65ºC. some cards have a "silent" mode in their BIOS, where they only turn on the fans automatically after reaching 65ºC (because until then, is like 25ºC for a human. pretty much normal temps).

My advice is to use MSI afterburner or GPU-Z to monitor your GPU temps.
Then get Furmark or start playing some very heavy game.
Check the max temps the GPU reaches

all this with "Firestorm" turned off, in order to see how it reacts without any add ons.

And don't worry, I play with my GTX 970 G1 overclocked, with it reaching 75ºC, which is still normal temp while on load.

Everything below 90ºC is safe for a GPU.


Edit:
guess I was right:

http://www.zotac.com/en/z-zone/gtx980ti.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/zotac-gtx-980-ti-amp-edition-review.214126/
"Continuing some settings, I want to talk about their Freeze tech setup which allows for the fan to stay off until load seems to start the fans at around 65c, while it turns off at around 55c."

 

[sjmikalonis]

the card will only "fry" after the 100ºC or so. the usual temps are 70~75 with 100% usage and power.

Check if the card only turns on after the temps get to 65ºC. some cards have a "silent" mode in their BIOS, where they only turn on the fans automatically after reaching 65ºC (because until then, is like 25ºC for a human. pretty much normal temps).

My advice is to use MSI afterburner or GPU-Z to monitor your GPU temps.
Then get Furmark or start playing some very heavy game.
Check the max temps the GPU reaches

all this with "Firestorm" turned off, in order to see how it reacts without any add ons.

And don't worry, I play with my GTX 970 G1 overclocked, with it reaching 75ºC, which is still normal temp while on load.

Everything below 90ºC is safe for a GPU.


Edit:
guess I was right:

http://www.zotac.com/en/z-zone/gtx980ti.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/zotac-gtx-980-ti-amp-edition-review.214126/
"Continuing some settings, I want to talk about their Freeze tech setup which allows for the fan to stay off until load seems to start the fans at around 65c, while it turns off at around 55c."

Thank you!

This makes complete sense now.

I will go with another OC tool and delete Firestorm and set a profile I am more comfortable with.

Great answer.

 

[blasc]

msi afterburner is one of the best (if not the best).

go for it, and have fun 😉