Video card causing temperature problems

I recently replaced my video card (GTX 260) and I am having temperature issues. My son was playing a computer game and the system suddenly rebooted. My system is normally very stable and I can't even remember the last time it rebooted or froze. I checked the case and it seemed very hot, so I removed the side panel and now it runs fine. I figure I need at least a new case because the airflow in my case isn't very good. If I go to newegg and find a case with lots of fans and read reviews would this be enough to keep my system from overheating or could I possibly need to do something else in addition to simply replacing the case? How do others keep these cards cool? I'm not overclocking anything. Thanks in advance for any help.


GIGABYTE GA-MA770-DS3 AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX All Solid Capacitor AMD Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Brisbane 2.5GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core Processor
PNY VCGGTX260CXPB GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
Maxtor Ultra 16 300GB SATA hard drive
CORSAIR Dominator 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD Burner
CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX 520W ATX EPS12V PS/2 MODULAR POWER SUPPLY
MNTR ACER|LCD 22" 5MS X223WBD R
crappy computer case
Windows XP home version

 

Lots of fan may be counterproductive.

I have a Lian Li PC7 Plus II [aluminium] which has a 120mm at front and rear. I also purchased the optional graphics / cards cooler which is a 120mm side fan [running low].

The cpu is overclocked and the system runs very cool. Because the case has positive airflow, more air in than out this keeps the dust out.

Remember that not all fan are created equal. High cfm fans can also be regulated with a fan controller which I would recommend also as this will allow your fans to be maxed for games and turned down for more genteel pursuits.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112099
this is the black one but I prefer / have silver one, with clear side [extra]

http://www.akasa.co.uk/akasa_english/spec_page/control_panels/spec_ak_fc_03.htm
can take 17w / per channel which is good.

Use RivaTuner to control graphics card fan so that the fan is temperature activated and iit's not running at 100% outside of gaming.

I am sure that others will have their own case preferences.

Good Luck

 

Someone mentioned to me that the GTX260's fan was locked at %40 but I couldn't prove that with my GTX-260-216 as the heat maxed out at 73C with the fan @ %40. Load up RivaTuner or PNY's tweaking utility off the install CD if it has one and raise the fan speed say to %60 and then play the game and see how hot it gets.

 

With all due respect, that positive and negative air pressure business is nothing but an old fallacy - it really does not make any sense when you think about it.

Concerning less dust - there is no compressed, filtered air inside your case so any extra air got in normal ways and brought dust with it. If you are getting less dust, that is only because you are moving less air through the case. Less air moving through the case means less cooling. That's bad.

As a general rule, you don't want any pressure, except when fans blow directly onto heat sinks! If there is positive pressure inside the case, it means you have standing hot air waiting to get out, and cool air waiting to get in. That's bad! Negative pressure, when exhaust fans are trying to exhaust more air out than vents and intake fans can supply, starve the heatsinks of cool outside air. Equally bad! Pressure means the flow is being restricted. You want a "balanced" FLOW - LOTS and LOTS of front to back air flow. Front and side fans should draw cool air in, rear and blowhole (top) fans should exhaust heated air out.

Dust is certainly a problem and sadly, many people go for months or longer without checking for buildup. But dust in inevitable, greatly compounded by pets and smoke. I recommend inspecting case interiors monthly, and cleaning when necessary. And for the record, I will never buy another case without a washable, removable air filter again.

I do agree, however, 100% with this, with one caveat - they can be counterproductive if they are not installed in the correct orientation to work as a component of the whole cooling solution. If installed correctly then the main downside to many fans would be all the noise they make.

 

I have spotted a potential cause of at least some of that extra heat, you are using an AMD 770 chipset with an nVidia GPU. I had a 9800GT alongside an AMD 770 and it ran hot all the time. If a new case with better airflow doesn't make the differance then you should probably try getting a new mobo with an nVidia chipset, you will also get better performance out of you're GPU doing so.

I'm not 100% on that though, performace is garentee'd thogh

:major2-Bit-Geek:major

 

Don't think it could be mobo but it could be as AMD and Nvidia don't get along each other

If you say u got a crappy case then yeah get a new one ordered with at least 2 decent fans and that should keep things cool, other then that also try what others have suggested

Dacads

 

A the end of the day I would certainly agree that the pressure delta is not as important as proper airflow patterns.

However I was not advocating to the OP that he should follow my system template just providing some info as regards requirements and more specifically 120mm fans. I chose after much deliberation to engineer a system with proper airflow patterns and which operates with marginal positive airflow.

There have been many articles and tests written about pressure flows within pc cases. Here are some that may be of interest.

http://www.silverstonetek.com/tech/wh_positive.php?area

http://icrontic.com/articles/pc_airflow_heat_cooling_guide

BTW, the following extract is from the article in the first link

　"The idea to use positive air pressure in designing dust-proof chassis comes from the concept of a cleanroom. The cleanrooms are used often in Hi-tech, medical, and food processing industries. All cleanrooms, regardless of their levels and sizes, are built to maintain a positive pressure environment to prevent dust from entering the room."

Good Luck

 

Well, I don't take much stock in marketing "fluff" from the first link. No doubt a cleanroom would suggest dust free to start - and it typically means environmentally controlled too - keeping ambient temps in check. Also from the first link is this (my bold added),

I guess it depends on what you goal is - since heat is the bane of all electronics, I go for better cooling - and that is done via air flow. With a balanced flow, the vast majority of the air coming in comes in is via the intake fan, not via all the cracks. That said, if a balance was not possible, I would take slightly positive over slightly negative.

In the end, even a severely positive or negative pressure system can still have enough flow to provide adequate cooling - and that is the main thing.