[Deldrice]

What are your ideas on aftermarket coolers for the 4870? I know it voids the warranty but the current temps are idle at around 80 C which is a bit high for my liking. I have a list of all the compatible coolers for the 4870, but these 3 stood out.
Thermalright HR-03 GT http://www.hardwarec....review-21.html

Thermaltake DuOrb http://www.newegg.co....82E16835106112

Zalman VF1000 http://www.zalman.co....ad.asp?idx=276

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The Thermalright is the best but it is HUGE check out the reviews, it also needs zip ties to mount a fan if that is what you want to do, you will also need to order new ramsinks for use with the 4870.

The main problems with the newer cards at the moment is that there are not any coolers designed specifically for the cards yet, 4870s especially if you look usually aren't on the compatibility list even if 4850s are. The Voltage modules are the ones that are getting really hot for allot of people because where the stock cooler cools the whole card with a bigger contact plates aftermarkets specialise on cooling the GPU and the rest is left to its own devices with a few ramsinks at best which is not enough on a 4870. The consensus seems to be that the stock cooler is better because while it is hot it cools the whole card and it blows it outside the case at least for the short term until the new coolers come out as the existing ones will work as well or better than the stock but they need allot of very fiddly work to get them installed properly and you need to have no fear of a file and a pair of pliers. Its a tricky decision I like the added peace of mind of an aftermarket as they are usually better but the 4870 seems to require that little bit of extra work to get things fitted at least with this generation of coolers.

The arctic Accelero S1 rev2 is one of the others that are compatible.

Personally I would go for the VF-1000 I am partial towards zalman but the price is high and the performance apparently isn't as good as Thermalright but its not bad and they are quiet.

If you want to try and lower the temperatures without the need of an added cooler replacing the standard thermal compound with MX-2 is a good way to do it especially if the card was from one of the cheaper companies. Apart from that I would say wait it out till the newer coolers like the latest thermalright which is coming out soon and most other companies should be bringing out new coolers as its been a year since the last big influx of new coolers.

And all your links are broken as well.

Edited by warriorscot, 22 September 2008 - 04:51 AM.

[warriorscot]

The Thermalright is the best but it is HUGE check out the reviews, it also needs zip ties to mount a fan if that is what you want to do, you will also need to order new ramsinks for use with the 4870.

The main problems with the newer cards at the moment is that there are not any coolers designed specifically for the cards yet, 4870s especially if you look usually aren't on the compatibility list even if 4850s are. The Voltage modules are the ones that are getting really hot for allot of people because where the stock cooler cools the whole card with a bigger contact plates aftermarkets specialise on cooling the GPU and the rest is left to its own devices with a few ramsinks at best which is not enough on a 4870. The consensus seems to be that the stock cooler is better because while it is hot it cools the whole card and it blows it outside the case at least for the short term until the new coolers come out as the existing ones will work as well or better than the stock but they need allot of very fiddly work to get them installed properly and you need to have no fear of a file and a pair of pliers. Its a tricky decision I like the added peace of mind of an aftermarket as they are usually better but the 4870 seems to require that little bit of extra work to get things fitted at least with this generation of coolers.

The arctic Accelero S1 rev2 is one of the others that are compatible.

Personally I would go for the VF-1000 I am partial towards zalman but the price is high and the performance apparently isn't as good as Thermalright but its not bad and they are quiet.

If you want to try and lower the temperatures without the need of an added cooler replacing the standard thermal compound with MX-2 is a good way to do it especially if the card was from one of the cheaper companies. Apart from that I would say wait it out till the newer coolers like the latest thermalright which is coming out soon and most other companies should be bringing out new coolers as its been a year since the last big influx of new coolers.

And all your links are broken as well.

Edited by warriorscot, 22 September 2008 - 04:51 AM.