GTX 980 idling hot, should I run the fans all the time?

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jbkly

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Nov 9, 2013
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I know there are a zillion answered questions about GPU idling temperatures on here, but I haven't found the answer to my specific question:

My GPU idles kinda hot with the fans off (50-55 C). Just turning the fans on at 10% brings me down to around 30-32 C. For the longevity of my graphics card is it better to run the fans at a low speed when I'm idling to keep it cool, or do high idle temperatures not really matter as long as it stays within a safe range at load?

I've got an EVGA GTX 980, and the default fan profile doesn't even turn the fans on until it hits 60 C. That's nice for quiet but a little fan noise doesn't bother me, I'm more concerned with maximizing the life and performance of my system. The temperatures at load don't go over 80-85 C with the fans on, so that's not a problem. I've got it in a Cooler Master HAF X case with good airflow (3 fans currently, but I've ordered a couple more). The GPU is driving a single 2560x1440@144Hz monitor. In an attempt to reduce the load when idling I've set it down to 120Hz in Windows, but I'm still seeing the high idle temps. Ambient temperature in the room is around 22 C and I've thoroughly cleaned the interior of dust. My Nvidia drivers are up to date. Power usage sits around 12% at idle according to MSI Afterburner. My CPU is idling at 30 C, for reference.

I can drop the GPU idle temperatures down to a nice 30-32 C by just running the GPU fans at 10%. Basically, I'm trying to determine if that's a good long-term solution to treat my graphics card right, or if should just let it idle higher and not worry about it.
 
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J
lot of guys do to get rid of the -0- fan deal on todays cards use a utility like msi afterburner or that evga tool precision x and set up you own custom fan profiles to me I think its sill to let a card get 60c before the fans spin up [opinion]

should be a few things on this at the evga forums to look at as well

http://forums.evga.com/Question-regarding-fan-curves-with-the-980-ti-ACX-20-m2353571.aspx

just use the utility and set them up as you like maybe that 10/20% at idle to keep it cool and 60% or what ever you need / want at full load
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junkeymonkey

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Nov 11, 2013
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lot of guys do to get rid of the -0- fan deal on todays cards use a utility like msi afterburner or that evga tool precision x and set up you own custom fan profiles to me I think its sill to let a card get 60c before the fans spin up [opinion]

should be a few things on this at the evga forums to look at as well

http://forums.evga.com/Question-regarding-fan-curves-with-the-980-ti-ACX-20-m2353571.aspx

just use the utility and set them up as you like maybe that 10/20% at idle to keep it cool and 60% or what ever you need / want at full load
 
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jbkly

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Nov 9, 2013
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Ok that's good to hear, I do feel better keeping the temps down and the slight fan noise doesn't bother me. I've set my fan profile in MSI Afterburner to run at 10% minimum and that keeps it nice and cool at idle.

I was just concerned that maybe it's not good to run the fans 24/7 even at a low rpm.
 
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jtk2515

jtk2515

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* Sleeve bearings use two surfaces lubricated with oil or grease as a friction contact. They often use porous sintered sleeves to be self-lubricating, requiring only infrequent maintenance or replacement. Sleeve bearings are less durable at higher temperatures as the contact surfaces wear and the lubricant dries up, eventually leading to failure; however, lifetime is similar at relatively low ambient temperatures. Sleeve bearings may be more likely to fail at higher temperatures, and may perform poorly when mounted in any orientation other than horizontal. The lifespan of a sleeve-bearing fan may be around 40,000 hours at 50 °C. Fans that use sleeve bearings are generally cheaper than fans that use ball bearings, and are quieter at lower speeds early in their life, but can become noisy as they age.

* Rifle bearings are similar to sleeve bearings, but are quieter and have almost as much lifespan as ball bearings. The bearing has a spiral groove in it that pumps fluid from a reservoir. This allows them to be safely mounted with the shaft vertical (unlike sleeve bearings), since the fluid being pumped lubricates the top of the shaft. The pumping also ensures sufficient lubricant on the shaft, reducing noise, and increasing lifespan.

* Ball bearings: Though generally more expensive, ball bearing fans do not suffer the same orientation limitations as sleeve bearing fans, are more durable at higher temperatures, and are quieter than sleeve-bearing fans at higher rotation speeds. The lifespan of a ball bearing fan may be over 60,000 hours at 50 °C.

* Fluid bearings have the advantages of near-silent operation and high life expectancy (comparable to ball bearings), but tend to be the most expensive.

* Magnetic bearings or maglev bearings, in which the fan is repelled from the bearing by magnetism.


Google plus cut/Paste got me thru CC
 
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J

jbkly

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Nov 9, 2013
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Sounds like keeping temps down might extend the life of the fans too, though probably balanced by running them more of the time.
 
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