Gainward 6800GT Arctic Silver Results

Well I decided to pull the HS for the GPU and the memory and use AS5 on them to see what type of results I could get. The results are impressive I think and more then I expected.

For the GPU I pulled it and cleaned it off well and put Standard AS5 on it.
GPU Before 59c (idle) 51c (AS5) This isn't allowing for curing time which may improve it another 1c or 2. I have hot case temps (FYI) with the Prescott so close by and everything jammed in a small case.

The memory I pulled the plate and cleaned off the stock sheets they use and put some AS5 Adhesive on it and reinstalled. For temps I'm not sure how to get them but looking at the stock setup this HAS to be a vast improvment.

I did a quick test to see how the Nvidia Coolbits "Detect Optimal Frequencies" would react and well it was positive. Before it recommend 400/1.10 now it recommends 420/1.13. I'm not saying this program is perfect but tempature apprently plays into it's optimal settings.

I haven't tried to push it up manually higher yet but may in just a bit. I still plan on going water cooling shortly but for anyone contemplating doing this it's obvious it's worth the 20-30 minutes it takes to do this.

Remember Gainward comes with copper GPU HS and aluminum memory HS from the factory. You mileage may vary on other brands.

Jeff

Very nice. I would agree with you. The paste that the nV cards is really pathetic. That was the very first thing I did.I also took off the thermal pads on the RAM and replaced that too with AS5.

What drivers are you using? That score seems high... much higher than mine. Im thinking its a driver issue, which leads me to ask the question

I'm running the 65.73 drivers. Seem to be much improved over the older drivers Nvidia has released. As of the 66 series they've done some tweaks for the 6800 but I haven't tried them yet.

I just tried it with the stock thermal pad and it recommended 433/1.16. I'll can't wait to try the better thermal compound!

How, may I inquire, did you remove your hs/fan? Anything special I should know beforehand? This sounds like an EASY/CHEEEEAP improvement.

The GPU HS on the Gainward is held on with 4 screws. They are small thumb screws with a slot for a flathead screwdriver. The memory HS is held on with the push through plastic pins. Both were very simple to remove.