bfg gtx280 loads @107c need advice?

hey,
as everyone knows alot of bfg gtx280 oc versions are overheating to 107c.
this is fact according to bfg .
im on my 3rd rma card from bfg and they just informed me that they will no longer accept my rma even though its reaching temps of 107c in wic and is missing dvi screws. 3rd rma card and all of them were overheating ! anyway ill never buy bfg again. :down:
i did contact the accc in australia and the federal trade commision in the usa.
both told me that these warranties are based on good will and they are not legally obligated in anyway to honour them.
so im stuck with this card.
my question is , will fitting a w.b fix this issue? or will i be wasting more cash on something that cant be fixed?
has anyway fixed this issue by fitting a w.b?
or is there another way of fixing this? any ideas?
thanks ,adya.

Bollocks.

Take the card back to the shop you bought it from and demand a full refund. They're legally obligated to accept the goods back within a reasonable period if they're not performing to a level that one would reasonably expect, considering the nature of the product and the price paid. Then spend your money on a 4870 1GB, problem solved.

If you really want to stick with this particular card, I'd suggest looking around for a fan speed hack to run the fan at a higher speed and thus lower card temp. An aftermarket cooler will certainly help here, if it's not already irreparably damaged.

If you want to keep your warranty, I quote the BFG Warranty policy:

Quote:

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BFG Technologies warrants to the original purchaser of the graphics card included in this package ("Product") that the Product will be free from defects in material or workmanship for as long as the original purchaser (residing in the United States or Canada) owns the product, when given normal wear and proper usage. For original purchasers residing in areas outside the USA or Canada, the limited warranty for graphic cards shall be for a period of ten (10) years from the date of purchase.

In connection with such Limited Lifetime or Ten Year Warranty, all BFG graphics cards introduced on or after February 21, 2008 must be registered on www.bfgtech.com within thirty (30) calendar days of the original purchase date to activate the limited lifetime warranty or limited ten (10) year warranty. Products not properly registered will be covered from the date of purchase by a two (2) year limited warranty in Europe and a one (1) year limited warranty in the US and other countries. Proper registration includes submitting proof of purchase to BFG.

---

If you've registered your card, you have a 10 year warranty. No mention made of limitations of replacement or any other restrictions on how many times you can RMA. Point this out to BFG, and if the support drone you're talking to doesn't accept it then escalate. Ask to speak to a manager, then ask to speak to their manager. CC any contact with you to their customer service department, not just the RMA department. Link people to this thread, and to other threads on other forums.

Basically, don't buy this crap from them. If you keep at it, you'll eventually get in touch with someone with a brain in their head.

yeh i tried this already. becuase the card is under manufacturers warranty with bfg . the retailer wants me to rma it with bfg,they dont want to know about it.
i told this to the accc when i phoned them. they agreed saying its under warranty so rma it . problem is theres no way of making bfg rma it if they dont want to. its a dodgy circle where everyone blames everyone else and im stuck with my 3rd rma card.
anyway, im looking at watercooling it, just want to see if anyone else has done this with a card that overheats. once im sure ill go ahead and buy one of those danger den blocks.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

yeh i tried this already. becuase the card is under manufacturers warranty with bfg . the retailer wants me to rma it with bfg,they dont want to know about it.
i told this to the accc when i phoned them. they agreed saying its under warranty so rma it . problem is theres no way of making bfg rma it if they dont want to. its a dodgy circle where everyone blames everyone else and im stuck with my 3rd rma card.

---

That's the thing, though - a retailer has to honour returns themselves, even if the manufacturer won't accept it back. It's a risk they have to take, although they can (and as you can see, do) try and palm people off to the manufacturer.

Basically, you're rolling over and taking it. You bought a card with a lifetime warranty. The card has broken. You want it replaced. Keep at them. I've dealt with these kinds of situations before, you basically have to tell them that this is what is going to happen - I'm going to send this card in to you and you're going to replace it. If you're losing money because your cooling is too poor and you're having to replace cards too often, too bad. Publicity is your friend here. Point out lifetime warranty, and how they're not honouring it. Escalate to managers and customer service departments. Be polite, but be persistent and make it clear that you're not going to be fobbed off. Make it clear that you bought the card because of their warranty policy and reputation for customer service, and you're surprised and upset that you're basically being told to take a hike.

Also, whoever you spoke to at the ACC is wrong. You can legally compel them to honour their warranty policy, because when you bought their card you entered into a contract with their agent (the retailer), of which this is one of the terms.

Quote:

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anyway, im looking at watercooling it, just want to see if anyone else has done this with a card that overheats. once im sure ill go ahead and buy one of those danger den blocks.

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Look, by all means, if you want to WC the card go ahead, and this will certainly solve your cooling problems. But the point here is that you shouldn't and don't have to - you're not left with no other option, if you don't want to be.

yeh i know what ur saying. i did go threw all that already. this has been ongoing for many months now , like i said its the 3rd replacement card and the 4rth bfg card.
bfg are not easy to get in contact with if they dont want u to be . trust me they havent replied to my emails now for a long time . and they told me my rma is over and they will not rma my card again.
accc put me in contact with the federal trade commision in the usa since its an international company and out of the accc"s duristiction . ftc contacted me today and told me they cannot intervene becuase bfg are not legally obliged to honour there warranty and warranties are offered in good will not law. whatever that means lol
i could persue it further and try and get the retailer to replace it but hell prolly just rma it and ill end up with another dodgy bfg card lol
anyway i emailed danger den to get there opinion on wether it would fix the issue. if so ill just w.c it.
i totally aggree with u though. and a few months back i thought exactly like u do. but now i realize the law is on the big gys side not the consumer. they just pretend to be on our side so we keep on buying.

Have you considered where the overheating problems are coming from?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Yukon Trooper

Have you considered where the overheating problems are coming from?

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ive read its related to the heatsink type there using. but not sure.
all i know is a large % of bfg gtx280 oc versions overheat like this.

http://www.nvnews.net/vbulletin/show...=114925&page=2

http://www.evga.com/forums/tm.asp?m=475440
thats just a couple of links , ive read through atleast 20 threads regarding this issue. im suprised its being so widely ignored.

Oh, I see. I thought it was possibly poor airflow, bad external temps, low fan speed etc., but I also thought it likely that you had all those bases covered.

Sounds like you got shafted, mate. BFG will likely tell you, "We test cards that go up to 105 degrees on a regular bases. We also test all RMA cards, and if your card does not have a temperature problem, we will not replace it."

So it's the heatsink design, and not a poor mounting job?

I've read that the GTX 280's had a problem with the IHS not making good contact with the core. My PNY GTX 280 also heats up and I had another one before and it ran perfectly. The only solution I can think of is to lap the IHS, I think trying to remove it would be too dangerous. But then you'd have to find a thin copper plate to compensate for the lapped IHS, and lapping it all the way to the core is easily going to take you 12hs+ since you have to be careful not to knock anything out.

It sucks but those are your choices, I'd insist on another RMA or atleast trade it for a GTX 260 which don't seem to have this problem, or at least it isn't that common.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mati87

I've read that the GTX 280's had a problem with the IHS not making good contact with the core. My PNY GTX 280 also heats up and I had another one before and it ran perfectly. The only solution I can think of is to lap the IHS, I think trying to remove it would be too dangerous. But then you'd have to find a thin copper plate to compensate for the lapped IHS, and lapping it all the way to the core is easily going to take you 12hs+ since you have to be careful not to knock anything out.

It sucks but those are your choices, I'd insist on another RMA or atleast trade it for a GTX 260 which don't seem to have this problem, or at least it isn't that common.

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mate , i dont know how to lap the ihs or anything else thats out of my league and i wouldnt know where to start.
but would fitting a w.b be enough to control the temp? seems like u know afair bit about this so it would be good to hear ur opinion.

the temp doesnt slowly rise to 107c either. its like there in 5 seconds ! lol its crazy. does it on wic but abit slower but still reaches 107c in wic. on bf2 it doesnt heat up that much around 90c
my case has around 7 high quality fans ,both pulling and pushing. sflexs and noctuas etc its does a great job of extracting heat and the case temp has never exceeded room temp by much at all.
im still not sure wether i should watercool it or not. id be so pissed off if it made no difference ,thats what im scared off.

so what reasons are you RMAing your cards on
that they are unstable as they overheat? or they just run hot??

what happens if you increase the fan speed
does it still run hot

i don't know what some of these manufacturers are thinking.......ati 4870X2 was idling at like 80C+ which i thought was ridiculous as well but the fan is set to run at lowest possible speed to reduce noise i guess

trying bumping the fan a bit man and see if that fixes it

Make sure your heatsink is tightened properly, and turn up the fan like the man says.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dinos22

so what reasons are you RMAing your cards on
that they are unstable as they overheat? or they just run hot??

what happens if you increase the fan speed
does it still run hot

i don't know what some of these manufacturers are thinking.......ati 4870X2 was idling at like 80C+ which i thought was ridiculous as well but the fan is set to run at lowest possible speed to reduce noise i guess

trying bumping the fan a bit man and see if that fixes it

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idle without fan on 49%
http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/m...nShot001-1.jpg

load with fan 100%
http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/m...eenShot002.jpg

dinos, with all 3 replacement cards ive had the fan @100% at stock.
after the second rma they told me 105c is fine. so i ran it at that temp for a while , not long either. result was my system shut down.
i know some people are saying 107c is fine , i disagree, ive teste wic @80c its fine then as soon as it hits around 105c it artifacts and kind of stutters and freezes up for a second or so at a time.
so should i w.c it? i dont mind paying for a w.b as i just want this over and done with its being months and i still cant play my fav games.

it shouldn't be that hot

i think nvidia told me there is an automatic throttle when cards reach a critical temp which should be around 110 or 120C mark

i think your contact must be poor on the core

have you tried to take off the HS to see wtf is going on under there man

i was getting around 50C load in my benchmarks recently which should be the temp with 100% fans but my ambients were around 15C during this bench

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=201837

even so if you have say 30C ambients you should not be seeing more than 65C load on the card with 100% fan :confused:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ownage

Hmm, those card easily die at 110-120c.
I would AS5 the card, that should help a bit.

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no they don't die
they throttle though

Hmm, those card easily die at 110-120c.
I would AS5 the card, that should help a bit.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dinos22

it shouldn't be that hot

i think nvidia told me there is an automatic throttle when cards reach a critical temp which should be around 110 or 120C mark

i think your contact must be poor on the core

have you tried to take off the HS to see wtf is going on under there man

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ive never pulled a gpu apart before, and with the other cards i didnt want to void the warranty. i know the warranty means :banana::banana::banana::banana: now,but still i dont want to make it worse since i know very little about gpu heatsinks etc.
i mean if the bfg techs cant get it right how will be able to ? lol

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ownage

Hmm, those card easily die at 110-120c.
I would AS5 the card, that should help a bit.

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As5? whats that mate?

yeah i see what you mean

well the product is unacceptable
you should have a case with Dept of Fair Trading no matter how much i dislike them myself as i'm in retail business

make your case and the retailer will most likely have to take it back and give you a full refund

make sure you are well informed when you sit in front of the judge and explain it to the judge in easy to understand terms

there is no way they can get away with it if you;ve had this problem with these cards from day one

if this retailer has any gray matter i would approach them first and explain what my plans are with DeptofFairTrading. Most stores would have had experience and they will avoid hassle and give you an alternative product. That's what i would do to avoid those grrrrrrrrrr people as we've had a few cases against us which were really unfair to the retailer but what can you do...just cop it on the chin and that's it

Dino

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dinos22

yeah i see what you mean

well the product is unacceptable
you should have a case with Dept of Fair Trading no matter how much i dislike them myself as i'm in retail business

make your case and the retailer will most likely have to take it back and give you a full refund

make sure you are well informed when you sit in front of the judge and explain it to the judge in easy to understand terms

there is no way they can get away with it if you;ve had this problem with these cards from day one

Dino

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wow its amazing how much faith everyone has in the dept. of fair trade and accc.
i did as well until recently. dinos believe me ,dft and accc are totally useless ive spent alot of time on the phone to them and emails etc
they cant do anything.

this gy on ocau has the exact card as me bfg 280gtx oc.
he ran furmark on same setting as me with fan 100%
this is his load temp.
http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/m...ef7ecc0jpg.jpg

oh yeh forgot to ask lol dinos what do u think? should i w.c it? would one of those tieton dd blocks fix it?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

ive never pulled a gpu apart before, and with the other cards i didnt want to void the warranty. i know the warranty means :banana::banana::banana::banana: now,but still i dont want to make it worse since i know very little about gpu heatsinks etc.
i mean if the bfg techs cant get it right how will be able to ? lol

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It's actually very straightforward. Look at some photos and start taking it apart. It's easier than Lego. I'm serious about that. :up:

I imagine their "techs" simply put it on a testbed, fired it up, saw 105 degrees, and said it was A.O.K.

i had trouble pulling apart my GTX 280 cards before.....aparently you have to have some really small flat screw driver to push one part of the heatsink to separate properly.....so this card is not the most straightfoward card to disassemble hehehe

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

wow its amazing how much faith everyone has in the dept. of fair trade and accc.
i did as well until recently. dinos believe me ,dft and accc are totally useless ive spent alot of time on the phone to them and emails etc
they cant do anything.

this gy on ocau has the exact card as me bfg 280gtx oc.
he ran furmark on same setting as me with fan 100%
this is his load temp.

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ok so basically what you have to do now is pull it apart like suggested

have a look on the forum here and see what is required to pull it apart properly and then just make sure the core is making contact as well as other parts of the card :up:

reseat it and try again

otherwise W.C will fix it 100% unless it's some weirdo problem with the cards themselves

I've read about a user using a w.b. and he had the same problem, that's where I read that the IHS is the problem. I have the card folding and I can play wic, but I've read that to some people it just dies after 7 days, mine are up on friday, when my GTX 260 replacement comes jeje.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mati87

I've read about a user using a w.b. and he had the same problem, that's where I read that the IHS is the problem. I have the card folding and I can play wic, but I've read that to some people it just dies after 7 days, mine are up on friday, when my GTX 260 replacement comes jeje.

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oh farrrkk ! after reading dinos post about w.b fixing it 100% i was like yes cool thats the solution.
then now u tell me someone tried fitting a w.b and the problem remained? man, theres no end to this lol

found this on nv forums-

"Cards that have properly seated heatsinks still overheat... The shim must not be making contact with the core or something, thus it overheats terribly quickly. The fan speed increase makes no difference since the shin probably isn't making proper contact... In my case it took 4-5 seconds to exceed 100C, 20-30 second to shut down from overheating."

man i keep finding more and more threads with this problem, i didnt realize it was so widespread. how can they get away with doing something like this?
this card cost me almost $1k !
ill pull the card apart later ,but i first have to do some research, ie -what the hell is a shim? IHS? etc :confused:

IHS stands for Integrated Heatspreader. It's the bit of metal that sits over the actual silicon of the core to protect it from damage by the high mounting pressures used in modern heatsinks. Found mostly on CPUs, but also on modern VGAs.

A shim serves a similar function - it's the raised bit of metal around the core that serves to prevent uneven pressure from occuring and damaging the core. Obviously, if the shim isn't perfectly level with the top of the core (or IHS), it can prevent the heatsink from coming into contact with the core (or IHS), and thus affecting temps.

If it's a shim/IHS issue then no amount of aftermarket cooling will fix it, unless the heatsink you use has a custom stepping (the amount that the contact surface protrudes from the bulk of the metal of the heatsink, and thus would sit inside the SHIM/make tighter contact with the IHS) - which would mean you'd have to get a custom block made up.

@ adya: please do divulge which e-tailer/retailer u bought from, so that ppl can avoid! :up:

thanks mate. thats a good explanation . and from what ive been reading so far it looks like that is the main cause. im fairly convinced as well that no waterblock or heatsink adjustment can make a difference. every thread i come accross seems to blame the shim and ihs.
i might just sell it cheap and buy a cheap gt . im over it, its not worth the stress just to play games.
bfg wins i loose.

tiro-
the retailer says its under warranty . according to the warranty it has to be returned to bfg. its bfg who are the rogues here. and imo they should be avoided.
by the way. after the second rma , bfg appologized for sending me two faulty cards and assured me the nxt replacement will be personally tested by the warehouse manager.
the thing is the 3rd replacement is the worst of them all. this one overheats to 107c in seconds. and is missing dvi screws and is scratched on the side panel.
obviously , the warehouse manager thinks this is a big joke and im just some dumb aussie. this is how these butholes think.
they wont reply to my emails anymore and even though they emailed me saying i was eligible for that rebate. they wont send it to me or answer my emails inregards to my rebate .
its bfg that needs to be avoided imo. sorry for the rage lol

As I said to start with, get a 4870 1GB and problem solved ;)

Sorry to hear about your loss, although rest assured BFG are going to lose sales from the people viewing this thread. I still say attempt to return it to the store for a refund - as both dinos and I are saying, you can actually do this and they're legally obligated to take it back.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

thanks mate. thats a good explanation . and from what ive been reading so far it looks like that is the main cause. im fairly convinced as well that no waterblock or heatsink adjustment can make a difference. every thread i come accross seems to blame the shim and ihs.
i might just sell it cheap and buy a cheap gt . im over it, its not worth the stress just to play games.
bfg wins i loose.

tiro-
the retailer says its under warranty . according to the warranty it has to be returned to bfg. its bfg who are the rogues here. and imo they should be avoided.
by the way. after the second rma , bfg appologized for sending me two faulty cards and assured me the nxt replacement will be personally tested by the warehouse manager.
the thing is the 3rd replacement is the worst of them all. this one overheats to 107c in seconds. and is missing dvi screws and is scratched on the side panel.
obviously , the warehouse manager thinks this is a big joke and im just some dumb aussie. this is how these butholes think.
they wont reply to my emails anymore and even though they emailed me saying i was eligible for that rebate. they wont send it to me or answer my emails inregards to my rebate .
its bfg that needs to be avoided imo. sorry for the rage lol

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mm ok, fair enough :)

it that case, go u know u want to.... email BFG with a link to this thread :D

Quote:

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Originally Posted by tiro_uspsss

mm ok, fair enough :)

it that case, go u know u want to.... email BFG with a link to this thread :D

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yeh i did already and that link to nvforums that has 18 pages of people complaining about bfg and evga 280s overheating. and one other link i sent also .
they dont care there so arrogant. they would just delete it and move onto the nxt rma lol
i just emailed the gy i bought it from , ill try that avenue again.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

yeh i did already and that link to nvforums that has 18 pages of people complaining about bfg and evga 280s overheating. and one other link i sent also .
they dont care there so arrogant. they would just delete it and move onto the nxt rma lol
i just emailed the gy i bought it from , ill try that avenue again.

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Don't give up dude...

I feel like returning mine for a refund on principal!

......although it does only ever get to 77 degrees:rolleyes:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wez3570

Don't give up dude...

I feel like returning mine for a refund on principal!

......although it does only ever get to 77 degrees:rolleyes:

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hahaha thanks man, but no dont rma ur card. theyll end up sending u a refurbished ,scratched card that overheats and has missing hex screws :rofl:

Although mine doesn't seem to be overheating, I think I will put it under water.

The D Tek GFX2 & unisink will be my block of choice once they're both available in the UK.

Let us know how you get on...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wez3570

Although mine doesn't seem to be overheating, I think I will put it under water.

The D Tek GFX2 & unisink will be my block of choice once they're both available in the UK.

Let us know how you get on...

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yeh well actually i do have some news. wasnt going to post until the replacement card is infront of me and furmarking away @85c.
but ,i went onto hardforum, to follow a link inregards to the overheating gtx280 issue. and there i found a thread run by bfgs technical support analyist gy.
it also happens to be the gy that tested my last replacement card.
so i managed to get in touch with him, and i let him know what i thought of all this .and to tell the truth ,he was very apologetic and willing to solve the problem.
he found a replacement and is testing it now on furmark for 4 hours i think he said .And it hasnt exceeded 85c ! so it shouldnt be long until i have this dud card replaced.
i do feel like i was burned by bfg , but i dont think he did it on purpose. there must of being some mix up there in the warehouse. i doubt he would of sent off a card thats missing hex screws etc and overheating so bad on purpose.
he doesnt sound like that kind of person.
so, im not one to keep a grudge, if this card works fine, ill be happy to be a bfg fan again. i just hope im not celebrating too soon though lol

edit*wanted to ask u, why did u go for the Dtek over the dd tieten or ek? just asking becuase eventually , id like wc it as well. id like to know if theres much difference between the 3?

Generally there's bugger all difference between the EK, DD, VJ or Swiftech FC blocks in terms of temps. EK and DD have a consistent reputation for quality, as do Swiftech (although they're not really known for making FC blocks) but provided you get a working block there'll be little difference in temps.

Great to hear you got your issues resolved the way they should be.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

yeh well actually i do have some news. wasnt going to post until the replacement card is infront of me and furmarking away @85c.
but ,i went onto hardforum, to follow a link inregards to the overheating gtx280 issue. and there i found a thread run by bfgs technical support analyist gy.
it also happens to be the gy that tested my last replacement card.
so i managed to get in touch with him, and i let him know what i thought of all this .and to tell the truth ,he was very apologetic and willing to solve the problem.
he found a replacement and is testing it now on furmark for 4 hours i think he said .And it hasnt exceeded 85c ! so it shouldnt be long until i have this dud card replaced.
i do feel like i was burned by bfg , but i dont think he did it on purpose. there must of being some mix up there in the warehouse. i doubt he would of sent off a card thats missing hex screws etc and overheating so bad on purpose.
he doesnt sound like that kind of person.
so, im not one to keep a grudge, if this card works fine, ill be happy to be a bfg fan again. i just hope im not celebrating too soon though lol

edit*wanted to ask u, why did u go for the Dtek over the dd tieten or ek? just asking becuase eventually , id like wc it as well. id like to know if theres much difference between the 3?

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Full cover blocks are more restrictive. I only have 1 loop with my CPU and NB under water already, so the GPU only block is more suited to my loop, thats all.

Great news BTW, glad BFG have stepped up to the (fur)mark!! lol

Faith restored!

full cover as in they cover ram chips as well ? yeh thats a good point. i only have one loop for cpu atm so i might go for dd since i really want the whole card covered . if this card has good temps ill definatly overclock it somewhat.

i suggest that if you buy a waterblock that you should seat it first and then remove it again to check for contact.
That should save you from messing up your card if there is bad contact.
if there is bad contact you could try adding a small sheet of copper to it..be carefull that its not to thick though so that you dont bend the card..

in the meantime i suggest you dont stress your card at all until something is done..

just reading about your experience with BFG is annoying me..how can they be so ignorant? :S

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adya

full cover as in they cover ram chips as well ? yeh thats a good point. i only have one loop for cpu atm so i might go for dd since i really want the whole card covered . if this card has good temps ill definatly overclock it somewhat.

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The benefits of using the D-Tek GFX2 with a GTX 280/260 is that you can use their own 'unisink' which fits under/around the waterblock, covering the RAM chips and VRM's etc.

Look here http://tinyurl.com/4s6mdg

Are these available yet where you are?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wez3570

The benefits of using the D-Tek GFX2 with a GTX 280/260 is that you can use their own 'unisink' which fits under/around the waterblock, covering the RAM chips and VRM's etc.

Look here http://tinyurl.com/4s6mdg

Are these available yet where you are?

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that looks pretty good actually. i might go with Dtek then , depending on price/availability. there not quite here yet, but im sure it wont be long.
let us know how u went with installation. ;)

thanks Giannis86,
it has being a bad gtx280 experience for me, but ,like i said ,this gy is really trying hard to get this nxt working replacement to me asap. so im appreciative. he also tested this card on furmark this time.
thanks for the advice ,i read the same on dangerden ,about seating it first to test for contact. its a good tip.

This might be another possibility


http://tinyurl.com/4wm6wp

just got my replacement in this morning. :up:

i thought id post the results just for others trying to find out why there gtx280 overheats.
i had alot of people tell me it was my case and bad airflow. or that its normal for these cards to run at 107c.
so heres some proof that a normal working gtx280 shouldnt exceed temps of 85c.

i ran furmark for 30min. on 8x AA @1920x1200 res .same as my other gtx280 that overheats.
during load it never exceeded 80c with fan 100%
just want to mention also ,that i dont know where bfg went wrong with my other replacements, but jeff who personally tested this replacement was extremely helpful and apologetic. so im very grateful for his help.
and glad i can get back to gaming after 3 months of this lol

http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/m...eenShot042.jpg

Great news mate!

Those temps are virtually the same as mine.

Like you say, it goes to show it had nothing to do with your case cooling.

Tried an OC yet?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wez3570

Great news mate!

Those temps are virtually the same as mine.

Like you say, it goes to show it had nothing to do with your case cooling.

Tried an OC yet?

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thanks mate,
although temps are great , i cant get it past 700mhz ,well if i keep shaders under 1400 i can up that abit . seems to not like shaders past this.
funny thing im trying to work out , is both rivatuner and precision keeps reseting itself . not to stock setting but to to previous saved setting?
its kind of weird ive never had that before. i think it might be a driver issue.
i am fussy though, the smallest artifact will convince me to lower the clock setting.
temp wise , i think it could handle 730mhz without overheating on air.
just wish i could get there. lol

i would advise you not to use furmark as there have been reports of that program frying cards over the past year. mainly on 8800gt's but could maybe fry other cards. just my 2 cents and i have never run it and havent had any problems. just letting you know if you didnt even though your on a totaly different card.

Hi all

ok... I have the following rig;

QX9770 @ 4.05GHZ (1800FSB)
Corsair Dominator 4GB (1800FSB)
3 x GTX280's Gainward
2 x 500GB Stripe + 2 x 1GB Mirror
OCZ SSD 120GB v2
Xifi sound card
Striker II Extreme 790i Ultra
Watercooling, 1 loop for CPU and northbridge and one separate loop for the 3 Way SLI

Now... I was running the system on air as i was waiting for my watercooling case to arrive, although i couldnt sustain a very good overclock I could run the system without issue and play Crysis etc...

I got my new case (Lian-Li 343b) and assembled the watercooling kit to my rig, one of the GPU's now I have out the waterblocks on is idling 10degrees higher that the other 2 and shooting up to 80 degrees after about 5 minutes of gameplay in Crysis... I tried swapping the card from the third slot (thought the water was warm by the time it got to the 3rd card) to the first and also re applying some thermal paste (I actually ran out of paste as I was finishing but spread it thinly over the chip) but temps doing exactly the same...

Now i'm sure it ran ok on air but I honestly can't remember if i really tested it

does it sound like a faulty card? I went and brought some silver today and will reapply later... the other 2 sit idle at 32degrees and barely hit 50 under load!

lots of threads about the 105degree issue after seconds but thankfully i'm not getting that...

thoughts anyone?

when it hits 80c during load ,what temps are the other cards? if it sits around 80c during load i wouldnt worry , since its not that high.
i know its a trip ,but if theres a significant temp difference between the 3 cards, id prolly pull it all apart and check that the blocks sitting ok and reapply thermal paste.
nice rig u got there, did u win lotto to buy all that gear? thats amazing . looks great as well, with the colours etc. i have two 280s but one hits 107c in 8 seconds flat so sli is out of the question. but its still good for anything dx9.