TouchMyUnicorn
New Member
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2013
As you know, the 79xx series Radeons have a metal frame around the GPU that prevent 99% of aftermarket coolers from being able to cool it.
I didn't want to pay $80 for the Arctic Accelero 7970, and heard about the 4$ Copper Adapter (EK-VGA Supreme HF HD7970 Cu Adapter) that you can use to raise the heat surface above the level of the frame.
You end up with a lot of layers (GPU - thermal compound - Copper shim - thermal compound - heatsink). Another website reviewed the adapter and said that it raised the load temperature over 10 degrees using this adapter compared to directly touching it with the heatsink (they compared the AA 7970 with the AA Xtreme 3, which are identical except how the heatsink is shaped).
Well I thought $80 was too much, and $4 + 4 shipping + a normal cooler. So I bought the Arctic Accelero Twin Turbo II for $30 on newegg, and a copper shim (.8mm) from China on ebay for $1 (comes with two shims).
I was doing a really good job of taking pictures at every step, but then just forgot and stopped at a certian point. If you have specific quesitons, just ask.
VRM cooling was excellent unlike every review of the product out there, I had pre-mixed stuff so maybe that was the difference. Didn't see above 65 deg.
GPU cooling was at 95 deg C after 5 min of Bioshock. Took it apart and looked at the metal sandwich setup, realized that the copper shim had a slight lip on the edge that raised it on one side, allowing only 20-25% contact with the heatsink. Turns out that my 50 cent piece of copper from China wasn't machined well. I used 400 and 800 grit sandpaper to lap both sides. You're supposed to do this for at least an hour, and also with 1200 grit as the last step. I did it for about 5 minutes cause it started to feel smooth at that point already. I also didn't use the spacers recommended for the 7870 (I guessed this was the closest model to the 7950).
Anyway, in the end I got 58 in the Kombuster stress test after 30 min. The fans were at 30-35% (Auto) during the test so it was pretty quiet. If you have questions on your own modding, feel free to post. I really wish I had more pictures for you guys, but I'm not taking anything apart at this point.
I didn't want to pay $80 for the Arctic Accelero 7970, and heard about the 4$ Copper Adapter (EK-VGA Supreme HF HD7970 Cu Adapter) that you can use to raise the heat surface above the level of the frame.
You end up with a lot of layers (GPU - thermal compound - Copper shim - thermal compound - heatsink). Another website reviewed the adapter and said that it raised the load temperature over 10 degrees using this adapter compared to directly touching it with the heatsink (they compared the AA 7970 with the AA Xtreme 3, which are identical except how the heatsink is shaped).
Well I thought $80 was too much, and $4 + 4 shipping + a normal cooler. So I bought the Arctic Accelero Twin Turbo II for $30 on newegg, and a copper shim (.8mm) from China on ebay for $1 (comes with two shims).
I was doing a really good job of taking pictures at every step, but then just forgot and stopped at a certian point. If you have specific quesitons, just ask.
VRM cooling was excellent unlike every review of the product out there, I had pre-mixed stuff so maybe that was the difference. Didn't see above 65 deg.
GPU cooling was at 95 deg C after 5 min of Bioshock. Took it apart and looked at the metal sandwich setup, realized that the copper shim had a slight lip on the edge that raised it on one side, allowing only 20-25% contact with the heatsink. Turns out that my 50 cent piece of copper from China wasn't machined well. I used 400 and 800 grit sandpaper to lap both sides. You're supposed to do this for at least an hour, and also with 1200 grit as the last step. I did it for about 5 minutes cause it started to feel smooth at that point already. I also didn't use the spacers recommended for the 7870 (I guessed this was the closest model to the 7950).
Anyway, in the end I got 58 in the Kombuster stress test after 30 min. The fans were at 30-35% (Auto) during the test so it was pretty quiet. If you have questions on your own modding, feel free to post. I really wish I had more pictures for you guys, but I'm not taking anything apart at this point.
