Sapphire Nitro noise: driver/profile problem or cooler design?

Well, gentlemen, looks like prices have just started falling overnight for Radeons (GeForces still won't budge). That Gigabyte was merely a first. I think I'll wait a couple of days to see, at least. Red Devil 8GB sits at PLN 1137 right now, which is well within premium 4GB range. A week ago it was 100 more at least. Also, the 4GB version of MSI has fallen to the level of any other 480 pretty much overnight as well (PLN 1029), which means it's back in the game for me. I hope the 8GB MSI will adjust too, in which case I'll grab it, otherwise I'll have to make the hard choice between the MSI 4GB and a Gigabyte, or, well, just fork out the extra cash. Nitro 4GB is down to PLN 960, though, so one more source of headache for me. But I'm focusing on higher memory more.

Just cleaned out my case for the first time in a long while. Fairly cool night for summer.

Nitro at 1400mhz with power limit +50% and +24mV, not going over 68C with a 40% fan speed. Pretty quiet and I was starving it of air with so much dust in the front and side panels.

Playing Rust.

100% GPU utilisation
100% D3D usage
3.6GB Vram used on highest settings.

VRM temps 76C.

Saul Goodman said:

Just cleaned out my case for the first time in a long while. Fairly cool night for summer.

Nitro at 1400mhz with power limit +50% and +24mV, not going over 68C with a 40% fan speed. Pretty quiet and I was starving it of air with so much dust in the front and side panels.

Playing Rust.

100% GPU utilisation
100% D3D usage
3.6GB Vram used on highest settings.

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That's looking good!

Alaric said:

That's looking good!

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I'm actually quite impressed with the nitro now. probs should've got rid of some of the dust when I installed the new card

I do have a lot of airflow in my case. There was basically tumbleweeds flying out of my case when I blew the thing out with one of those mini air compressors.

Intake
Front 200mm
Side 200mm

Exhaust
Top 200mm
Rear 140mm

My reference 480 tended to get warm when I leaned on it, and it wouldn't touch your numbers. I have a 200mm in the front, a 140mm in the bottom, a 140mm at the back panel, and three 120mm fans on the radiator up top. I have airflow but the early release blower style card just wouldn't shed heat like the Sapphire unless I turned a hose on it. LOL

Alaric said:

My reference 480 tended to get warm when I leaned on it, and it wouldn't touch your numbers. I have a 200mm in the front, a 140mm in the bottom, a 140mm at the back panel, and three 120mm fans on the radiator up top. I have airflow but the early release blower style card just wouldn't shed heat like the Sapphire unless I turned a hose on it. LOL

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The reference cooler looked average at best. Story of AMD's life I guess!

Yeah, it wouldn't have been a problem, just hot. I needed a card when they came out and I found a 8 GB card for suggested retail, so I jumped on it. It's still a good card, but in October it was a great card for $250. It handles 1080p no problem. I could have gamed with it happily, but I had my heart set on a HOF. Aesthetics were important and it will max out anything I want on my display.

I've decided to go with the MSI or nothing. It seems I needed some time for the conclusion to settle, but for once let's just buy something that's practically certain vs experimenting. If I need to pay a little extra for this extra comfort, then be it.

Meanwhile prices have fallen so that 4GB no longer costs an extra compared to other manufacturers/coolers. There's a bunch of offers between 1025 and 1040 now. So basically have to decide between this and something to the tune of 1230 for the 8GB version.

Might go with 8, especially because it looks like the memory might be better. The clocks are different: 7000 for 4GB and 8000 for 8GB. I might even downclock the memory anyway, but better quality of the chips could mean a longer lifespan under heavy use in 1080/1400 @ all ultra while perhaps not being completely hopeless for my first 4K monitor several years down the line, especially in CF. So yeah. At this point I just need to man up and fork out, I guess.

MSI is a known worse card?

cdawall said:

MSI is a known worse card?

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How so? Everything seems to suggest it's one of the best and possibly the no. 1. I'm not really even giving much thought to the manufacturer's claims about durability etc., but it seems the cooler is best in class.

NewbieOneKenobi said:

How so? Everything seems to suggest it's one of the best and possibly the no. 1. I'm not really even giving much thought to the manufacturer's claims about durability etc., but it seems the cooler is best in class.

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Weaker VRM...similar cooler, lower factory OC.

cdawall said:

Weaker VRM...similar cooler, lower factory OC.

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Can't speak of make — although I'm familiar with 'missing something inside' — but that cooler seems to be getting the best results so far. Heard some praise of the VRM too. Have some more info about that? VRM makes me nervous. Power grid in my old block of flats is far from optimal, and I'm not really good at judging or making airflows (really not my forte), so I tend to want a strong power section, just so it wouldn't die on me after two years of bachelor-style gaming.

On the other hand, I've got those nasty problems with sensitivity to sound. Loudness itself isn't the worst deal — for example something that sounds like a vacuum cleaner in good condition is vaguely tolerable if not ideal — but vibrations and fluctuations and repeating echo in the case and everything else 'extra' is just too much.

Incidentally, this is why I might be tempted into removing the fan shroud and installing my own hand-picked large fans (been there, done that, my 4850 of 2008 was inaudible). However, in this price range I'd rather not give up warranty, especially if I get 3 years, which is longer than some of my previous cards have lived. I'd probably need a sure pick or a manufacturer whose warranty isn't voided by tampering with the cooler.

The XFX GTR cooler and Asus cooler are the two best for noise and design right now. The sapphire and MSI seem to be very similar in performance from testing I have seen and playing with the card first hand. The VRM I have never receive praise other than its better than some cards that suck (Gigabyte, XFX RS, powercolor), I would call it adequate for air/water...

cdawall said:

The XFX GTR cooler and Asus cooler are the two best for noise and design right now. The sapphire and MSI seem to be very similar in performance from testing I have seen and playing with the card first hand. The VRM I have never receive praise other than its better than some cards that suck (Gigabyte, XFX RS, powercolor), I would call it adequate for air/water...

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So Strix would be better? I remember those cards had coil-whine issues a year or two ago.

I haven't heard coil whine issues with the current ones. They are by far the best VRM design of any of the cards.

NewbieOneKenobi said:

So Strix would be better? I remember those cards had coil-whine issues a year or two ago.

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The Strix 480 didn't exist a year or two ago, you can't analyze components like that.

Saul Goodman said:

The Strix 480 didn't exist a year or two ago, you can't analyze components like that.

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Same factory/vendor, similar design and standards?

NewbieOneKenobi said:

Same factory/vendor, similar design and standards?

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This GPU consumes about half the power of the last cards...

NewbieOneKenobi said:

Same factory/vendor, similar design and standards?

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It's like me saying I had a Gigabyte Windforce card that had coil whine, so all windforce must be prone to having coil whine.

To find out such things about a certain series of cards, one has to research user reviews of said series.

Argh, I hesitated again. Just realized I'm still not 100% sold on 480X vs 1060. :/