thinking about a new cooling mod for my 9800 Pro

[Meteor|WAR]

Pretty sure this can go in this section...I'm currently using a VGA Silencer to cool my 9800 Pro. Not a bad cooling solution since it was very simple to install and i got a decent overclock out of my 9800 Pro with it...430core/371memory. But from my experience so far with it i've come to realize it was designed for silence more than extreme cooling, and since noise isnt an issue that concerns me i want something more powerful to try to achieve higher clocks.

I've got an old Thermaltake Volcano 10 AMD cooler and was looking at it yesterday wondering how well it would cool my 9800 Pro's core. I figured i could drill a couple of holes through it and attach it to my card fairly easy, but how good of a cooling job would it do? So my question here is has anyone out there ever attempted or heard of people that have attempted cooling a 9800 Pro with a Volcano 10 HS/F and if so what results in overclocking did it achieve? I'd like to get some opinions and experienced feedback on this before i try it as it'll be the first time i try a mod like this.

Here's the one i'm talking about:

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=35-106-030&depa=1

thanks.:)

[Farbror]

I have somthing like your ot´s a artic cooling VGA silencer...
I have been thinking about to in someway change the silent fan to a more powerful one ...still working on that :rolleyes:

[Meteor|WAR]

Yeah the fan on the VGA Silencer was definitely designed to be silent...not powerful.

[pkrew]

I haven't tried a valcano 10, but I've had a spark 7 on my card. Worked great with volt mod had it at 537/437. If the hsf will fit I'm sure it'll do a great job.

[oc-rookie]

I've got an intel stock cooler with the copper center on my xt. Very effective compared to the stock cooler. I can imagine how a full copper sink does.

[Meteor|WAR]

Thanks for the replies. I'm probably going to give a try but i want to see if i can get somemore feedback first. Does anyone think the Volcano 10 might be too heavy on a 9800 Pro? Dont want to snap my card out the AGP slot.:eek:

[DeathMonk]

I use a 1u copper hsf :shrug:

[Meteor|WAR]

and what do you get for an overclock DeathMonk?

volt mod or no?

[charlie]

much safer /very effective is an ALPHA PAL6035 HS/F


very nice

C

[Meteor|WAR]

Originally posted by charlie
much safer /very effective is an ALPHA PAL6035 HS/F


very nice

C

What are the advantages/disadvantages to using the PAL6035 compared to the Volcano 10? Will i be able to install it without having to drill? If so that would be great.

[charlie]

Originally posted by Meteor|WAR
What are the advantages/disadvantages to using the PAL6035 compared to the Volcano 10? Will i be able to install it without having to drill? If so that would be great.

You'll still have to drill/tap... but the payoff is BIG. And the Alpha just fits soo well

[Meteor|WAR]

thanks for the suggestion, this one looks good i'll definitely consider it.

[DeathMonk]

Originally posted by Meteor|WAR
and what do you get for an overclock DeathMonk?

volt mod or no?

bbati 9800p

~455/375 no artifacting

no vmods.... yet.

[theEnd]

I assume the alpha will fit on an XT? I'm thinking of doing this mod, but do you need to attach ramsinks once you remove the old apparatus?

[Meteor|WAR]

Originally posted by DeathMonk
bbati 9800p

~455/375 no artifacting

no vmods.... yet.

Not bad, atleast better than what i get with my VGA Silencer.

And that's with the stock bios?

Originally posted by theEnd
I assume the alpha will fit on an XT? I'm thinking of doing this mod, but do you need to attach ramsinks once you remove the old apparatus?

I would think ramsinks are not necessary.

I dont use them on my 9800 Pro.

[DeathMonk]

stock drivers and bios

[Pha_Q]

Originally posted by DeathMonk
I use a 1u copper hsf :shrug:

yup, i have a coolermaster copper 1u sitting here, waiting for a videocard to go on. i'm gonna get a 60<80 fan duct for it and put on a tornado me thinks :-D on a rheostat.

[lalPOOO]

I put an OCZ Gladiator 2 on my geforce2 a couple weeks ago and the process is fairly simple. I drilled and tapped it (with my fathers help, never tapped anything before :D) It shouldn't be too heavy and will work a lot better then stock. Only problem with the drilling and tapping method is you need something to stop the card from bending when you try to put a lot of pressure on it. I know theres a really simple solution to this problem, but I can't seem to think of it. (see pic)

[macsean13]

I put a copper heatsink and fan assembley for amd cpu on my 9800 pro, and it kicks ass. The thing is that I am only ocing it to 430/370, the reason being that when I go any higher I get artifacts (specifically little white dots) that annoy me. It looks great and works wonderfully. It's not loud and its probably just overkill. It sounds like your silencer is already doing the trick. If I were you I would just keep it, unless you want to go the water cooling route. but that = $$$
But if you are think of doing this mod this is what i bought:
http://images10.newegg.com/productimage/35-114-011-05.JPG
I also put ram sinks on it, don't know if they help or not. that hsf that your looking at is perfect, just like mine but it pushes more air and costs more. I just might have too pick up a better fan for my hs now.....

This is what it looks like: (this is after my faulty psu fried it GGGRRR!!!)

[gkiing]

Originally posted by lalPOOO
I put an OCZ Gladiator 2 on my geforce2 a couple weeks ago and the process is fairly simple. I drilled and tapped it (with my fathers help, never tapped anything before :D) It shouldn't be too heavy and will work a lot better then stock. Only problem with the drilling and tapping method is you need something to stop the card from bending when you try to put a lot of pressure on it. I know theres a really simple solution to this problem, but I can't seem to think of it. (see pic)

put the screws through a small plate of steel or plexiglass on the back of the card, that will stop it from bending, but make sure that the plexi or steel isint touching the card.

[Meteor|WAR]

macsean13, that HSF does look a lot like the size of the Volcano 10 i have. And seeing that it fit your card reassures me that'll it'll fit mine. I think i've decided to go ahead and try it with the Volcano 10 (http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=35-106-030&depa=1) and if it doesnt help much i'll try another, possibly the ALPHA PAL6035 that charlie suggested.

[macsean13]

You gotta be careful what size you get, if you get any thing bigger than a amb hsf 60mm assembly than you risk it not fitting. Some things to take note of is small chips or whatever sticking up above and around the gpu, also take note, if your going to put ram sinks on, you don't want get any kind of over lap on it. that volcano 10 looks like mine (60mm) thats why i said it looks perfect, but i don't want you to waste 30 bones if its not the same size. Hope it works out for you. I was thinking of replacing my 60mm fan with this.
http://www.frozencpu.com/cgi-bin/frozencpu/fan-03.html
but I already have a tornado on my side panel blowing on my VC and through the fins of the hsf, And that little fan could be really noisy, but then again I already got 2 tornados in my system.....:toast:

[pkrew]

You can put bigger than that. You just have to make sure it fits first. The spark 7 has a 70mm fan and fits just right. I've also had a 947u on my card with a 80mm fan, has more clearance than the spark 7. I'll try it one of these days with a 92mm tornado. Hmm, I wonder if a sp-94 will fit I have one comming in for my second rig. I'll let you know

[st0nedpenguin]

Originally posted by macsean13
http://www.xtremesystems.org/attachment.php?s=&postid=405705

Damnit, that pic just made me snort like a pig here at work, too funneh!:mad:

[Stang_Man]

526/425

2.1VGPU, 3.1VDD

highest i've gotten out of it without crashing.

[gkiing]

Stang_Man, what heatsink is that? How did you attach it to the card?

[Stang_Man]

Originally posted by gkiing
Stang_Man, what heatsink is that? How did you attach it to the card?

i think it's a thermaltake of some sort. i drilled holes and then tapped it with a 4-40 thread.

[dexx]

The heatsinks shown here are very tall. You'll loose alot of PCI slots. How about an old Slot 1 P2/P3 heatsink? There used to be some big ass versions that could be modded to fit a 9800 nicely.

[Hell-Fire]

Question:

Anyone know whats the heaviest a sink can be without becoming a problem with it pulling downward on the card with the motherboard mounted vertically opposed to sitting flat on a desk?

Wasnt sure how much weight the card or agp port could handle without there being a problem.

I would assume it could handle a significant amount of downward force. If its clipped in with the retension clip on the agp port and secured with a screw into the case....then should be fine with most heatsinks....the real big boys not withstanding.

[pkrew]

Originally posted by Hell-Fire
Question:

Anyone know whats the heaviest a sink can be without becoming a problem with it pulling downward on the card with the motherboard mounted vertically opposed to sitting flat on a desk?

Wasnt sure how much weight the card or agp port could handle without there being a problem.

I would assume it could handle a significant amount of downward force. If its clipped in with the retension clip on the agp port and secured with a screw into the case....then should be fine with most heatsinks....the real big boys not withstanding.

Like I said before, I've had a 947u on mine and it didn't cause any problem. I'm sure they make them heavier, but that a pretty hefty one.

[gkiing]

a 947U on a 9800pro...lol xtreme :D

[macsean13]

If you guys have ever heard of a thermaltake giant heat pipe cooler, I am using the backing plate from it and it seems to give the video card and heatsink alot more support. before i used it the copper hsf was bending my vc and making it bow. but with the backing plate its strait as an arrow. btw those giant heat pipes are garbage. It made my 9500np into a paper weight.:mad:

[Meteor|WAR]

Well the mod has been delayed a few days since my local hardware store and home depot didnt have the right sized screws to fit through the tiny holes on my 9800 Pro. A buddy of mine suggested checking Sears hardware for metric sized screws that should fit, i might go tonight. Anyways since i didnt want to waste the time it took to uninstall my VGA Silencer, i decided to do something i didnt bother doing when i first installed it...remove the shim. Came off pretty easy.:)

http://forum.skill-club.com/attachment.php?s=&postid=280229

[macsean13]

Just make sure that you put on nylon washers on the back side!!!
Are you putting on ram sinks?

[muzz]

Originally posted by Meteor|WAR
Well the mod has been delayed a few days since my local hardware store and home depot didnt have the right sized screws to fit through the tiny holes on my 9800 Pro. A buddy of mine suggested checking Sears hardware for metric sized screws that should fit, i might go tonight. Anyways since i didnt want to waste the time it took to uninstall my VGA Silencer, i decided to do something i didnt bother doing when i first installed it...remove the shim. Came off pretty easy.:)

http://forum.skill-club.com/attachment.php?s=&postid=280229

I'm ALMOST positive the size I use is 4-40.

[gkiing]

I'll check, it says on the label for the swiffy waterblock i have.

[pkrew]

Originally posted by gkiing
a 947U on a 9800pro...lol xtreme :D

Worked great, one of these days I'll put it back on and try it with a 92mm tornado. With a smart fan I had it up to 548 on the core. Not bad for air

[Meteor|WAR]

Originally posted by macsean13
Just make sure that you put on nylon washers on the back side!!!
Are you putting on ram sinks?

No, i wasnt planning on putting ramsinks.

Didnt think they helped much enough to be worth the effort.

[Meteor|WAR]

Well for those of you that are interested, i finally got the right sized screws and got around to doing this. Everything seemed to go pretty well. Right now i'm still at default clock speeds but i'm planning to see what it'll do for overclocking tomorrow morning, i'll update here with my results. And here's some pics i took:

I used my brother's drill press. Basically what i did was i put the 9800 pro on the HS, had my brother hold it steady for me and i banged in a couple of marks with a hammer where the holes were so i'd know where to drill. Then i brought it down to the basement and used 3 different drill bits in the drill press (starting from smallest) and little by little worked through the copper. Here's a pic of the drill press....

http://members.skill-club.com/Meteor_of_War/AMD%20cooling%20mod/drill%20press.JPG

The holes. Doesnt look too bad.;)

http://members.skill-club.com/Meteor_of_War/AMD%20cooling%20mod/drill%20holes.JPG

The Volcano 10 HS rests perfectly on the core without anything obstructing it.:up:

http://members.skill-club.com/Meteor_of_War/AMD%20cooling%20mod/mod3.JPG

The screws coming through the other side...

http://members.skill-club.com/Meteor_of_War/AMD%20cooling%20mod/mod2.JPG

And the card with the cooler mod...

http://members.skill-club.com/Meteor_of_War/AMD%20cooling%20mod/mod1.JPG

If i can do it, anyone can.:D