the new xfx 7800gt

I got the XFX 7800 GT last week and am very happy with it.

About the fan noise, it makes a lot of noise when the computer is turned on and while it is not driver controled, but once the driver is functional/installed, the fan is in fact pretty silent.

At first I got scared too about the noise, but installed the driver and it got silenced.

Very good card

You get a CD with drivers which are usually the ones before the latest ones.
I now have 81.89.

This driver

http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_2k_81.98.html




8)

There are issues with this card. For those who have bought it, I hope you were lucky. For those who are thinking about it, caveat emptor.

The 100% fan speed issue seems common on versions of the XFX 7800GT Extreme Noise Edition...oops, Extreme LED Edition with model numbers ending in UDF3, UDE3, UDE7 and UDER. UDF7 seems a far better model. The UDE* models use a 4-pin molex instead of the standard 6-pin PCI-Express power connector, which might or might not be related.

There is even dispute about whether the LED edition has fan speed control at all. People are reporting that the LEDs are powered off the same wires as the fan. The LEDs require 12V. This seems to have been confirmed by using a Zalman Fanmate to change the 12V from the power header on the card to 5V (i.e. disconnect the power cable on the card, connect the Fanmate to the card's power header, connect the card's power cable to the Fanmate). This solves the fan noise issue, but results in very dim LEDs. I haven't tried it myself, I'm just passing on a report from XFX's forums.

There used to be a thread on the 100% fan speed issue there, but it was deleted by the mods. The issue is covered in other threads and there's a steady stream of new posters with the same problem.

There is no known fix. People have tried new PSUs, new motherboards, complete new PCs (some posters have a shop or access to one), at least 4 different fan control programs (RivaTuner, Expertool, etc), multiple drivers (I've tried 81.95, 81.98, 82.12 and 82.65), with the full monty install (uninstall, disable all autoloading software and all non-MS services, reboot to safe mode, CAB cleaner, driver cleaner, reboot, install new drivers, still with everything bar MS services disabled).

You can RMA the card to XFX...and you'll probably get a second-hand card in return (that's normal with manufacturer RMAs) that might or might not work properly.

I haven't RMA'd mine because of the reports of instability at stock speeds. Mine works fine.

I've also spoken online with some people who aren't bothered by the noise, therefore don't consider it a problem, and quite a few others who just modded the card's cooling anyway. Of course, bang goes your guarantee if you do that.

For anyone who is buying this card, my advice is to make very sure that the shop you buy it from will take it back if the fan speed is stuck at 100% and, if at all possible, make sure that you buy a UDF7 model and not a UDE7 or UDER, let alone a UDE3 or UDF3 (which probably aren't on sale any more). Despite being newer than UDF7, UDE7 and UDER are, IMO, a flawed design.

i read this message just to late i have now got the ued7 version of this card but i have not opened it yet
i dont wont a noisey pc at all so do you reccomend i send it back while i have the chance or give the card a go

i can get a BFG 7800gt cheaper than the xfx would the bfg be quieter

I have seen reports of the same fan speed issue with BFG cards, and I have seen a quoted reply from BFG tech support stating that the fan is intended to spin that fast all the time. That is not true, but it is extremely shoddy support if it's a genuine quote.

The stock cooler is fine, but when companies fit their own coolers, there seem to be more problems. It isn't just XFX, though there seem to be more problems with their 7800GT cards (except for UDF7 model, which doesn't have the LEDs)

It might be worth asking the shop if they'll exchange it for a UDF7 model, if they have one. There was an issue with UDE7 cards in boxes marked as UDF7, but that seems to ave been a short-lived packaging error a little while ago. XFX, to their credit, posted a sticky in the 7xxx series forum explaining the mistake.

You might be lucky and have a UDE7 model with working fan control. I haven't seen any evidence that such a thing exists, but who knows? Maybe people have them and just haven't posted anything about them because they are working properly.

YO ashiplikethat

I have a gt6800
but i just go to the bios and change the speed there, and theres a silent option for the fan as well. works great 4 me, hugh diff.