GPU fan broke. Do I even need one?

tolley

Honorable
Apr 14, 2013
10
0
10,510
I broke a fan blade on my MSI GeForce GTX 650. I looked for a replacement but I couldn't find the same one. I read that I might not need a fan and just the heat sink is enough, I don't run it too hard. Do I need a new fan and how do I find one that fits? My old fan was 90mm in diameter and it snapped over the edges of the heat sink which is 92 x 107 mm.
 
Solution
I might be possible to buy a replacement 90mm fan if the clips can be removed from the old one. If not you can try looking on ebay or some such site for an identical card that is broken and buy it for cheap just for the heatsink/fan.

4745454b

Titan
Moderator
I might be possible to buy a replacement 90mm fan if the clips can be removed from the old one. If not you can try looking on ebay or some such site for an identical card that is broken and buy it for cheap just for the heatsink/fan.
 
Solution

RunLuke

Reputable
Dec 8, 2014
949
0
5,360
If it still cools adequately and doesn't cause vibrations because of unbalance I wouldn't switch it. If you need to get the heatsink of there you risk destroying the card.

But as Mcnumpty says you need to keep the fan on there.