Quick n00b question

[ReverendGadgetBoy]

This is probly a stupid question, but what direction does the fan on a graphics card blow? Does it blow away from the card or onto the card?

 

[Parge]

away

 

[Newf]

Onto.

 

[Blacken]

sideways

 

[ReverendGadgetBoy]

oh y'all are real helpful. come on is there a definitive answer? and i know its not sideways.

 

[Chil]

Most fans blow air from inside the case onto the card. There are exceptions, but that's the rule of thumb.

 

[Blacken]

Pick one

 

[Newf]

Onto.
The idea is to maximize air velocity over the cooling fins. This is best done by blowing air ONTO the heatsink, across it, and then having it exhaust at relatively low velocity. Same concept is always used for CPU fan/heatsinks.

 

[djplanet]

Here's definitive for you. It depends on the brand. High end ATIs (X1800, 1900/50) have fans which pull air from inside the case, suck it through the heatsink, and blow it out the back through a metal grate. The X1950XTX is an exception, it pulls air directly into the fan where its pushed through the heatsink and out the back of the case.

Nvidia 8800 series works like the X1950XTX, I think. The mid cards (7600, 7900/50) pull air through the heatsink and expel it back into the case, not outside of it (Nvidia cards generate less heat, less of an issue here). The 7900GTX pushes air from fan through two heatsinks, one leading out of the case, one leading back in (though it may actually pull air, I'm not entirely sure).

In conclusion, it's not whether air is blown toward or away from a card, it's whether air is being pushed or pulled across heatsink fins. Air is always blowing toward a card regardless. Seriously though, most of this can be inferred simply by looking at the HSF.

 

[lordaardvark2]

Here's definitive for you. It depends on the brand. High end ATIs (X1800, 1900/50) have fans which pull air from inside the case, suck it through the heatsink, and blow it out the back through a metal grate. The X1950XTX is an exception, it pulls air directly into the fan where its pushed through the heatsink and out the back of the case.

Nvidia 8800 series works like the X1950XTX, I think. The mid cards (7600, 7900/50) pull air through the heatsink and expel it back into the case, not outside of it (Nvidia cards generate less heat, less of an issue here). The 7900GTX pushes air from fan through two heatsinks, one leading out of the case, one leading back in (though it may actually pull air, I'm not entirely sure).

In conclusion, it's not whether air is blown toward or away from a card, it's whether air is being pushed or pulled across heatsink fins. Air is always blowing toward a card regardless. Seriously though, most of this can be inferred simply by looking at the HSF.

hey guys, i'm a friend of the Reverend (wow that sounds odd), and he's got a lil bit more of a problem than fan blowing directions. he built a c2d system, with an asus (p5b deluxe wifi i believe?), some ram.... blah blah blah and a 6800. the thing is, he's been having bad trouble with overheating and heat problems. he tells me he's got 4 case fans in his system, and still has troubles. does anybody have any suggestions that could help him? i've been riding him b/c he hasn't got it working after MONTHS, and i really hope that someone can offer a hand and allow him to finally enjoy his well-earned computer!

any ideas? hopefully he can come back and talk about fan arrangement and case and such.

...please?

 

[ReverendGadgetBoy]

well i got everything at least temporarily worked out. all temperatures are now fine, except the gfx card which runs very hot, but within acceptable range. however, id like it to run less hot if possible. i have bad airflow currently, and im gonna work on the cables that block everything. does anyone else have any suggestions for gfx cooling? how much would a new vga fan help? any ideas?

 

[lordaardvark2]

well i got everything at least temporarily worked out. all temperatures are now fine, except the gfx card which runs very hot, but within acceptable range. however, id like it to run less hot if possible. i have bad airflow currently, and im gonna work on the cables that block everything. does anyone else have any suggestions for gfx cooling? how much would a new vga fan help? any ideas?

well i'm glad you came back to your thread. it would only have gone so far without you saying whats really going on. tell them about your artifacting/weirdness in your gfx. i still can't imagine how 4 case fans could fail you (!) 8O

 

[caamsa]

Ok here is a stupid idea. Open your case up fire your computer up and take a tissue and hold it near your GPU fan. If the tissue is pulled toward or is sucked into the fan it is blowing onto the GPU.................if it blows the tissue away from it..................yes you got it! If it does neither then you have a passive cooling system :roll:

 

[Parge]

ok, what case are you using, and where are the various fans mounted?

 

[ReverendGadgetBoy]

well from what ive heard the artifacting is just a glitch of steam. its ONLY in stress test, no matter what temperature, even when i go 5 deg. higher in game i get nothing. so i think the artifacting is not a problem. it was some of the textures turning purple in the stress test, and ive heard people talk about that.

i have a lian li pc-65b case, with 4 80mm fans. the two intake are side by side at the bottom front. the grate blocking them is very annoying because it blocks a lot of the airflow. on the rear of the case at the top i have another 80mm exhaust fan. also in the top middle i have a 80mm exhaust. this one also has a slightly annoying metal grate.

my wiring is very bad, because i have two ide hard drives, and i also have two of the ribbon cables running to my drive bays. so airflwo from the front half of my case to the rest of it is pretty limited. ive tried and tried, and i dont think i can do much improving. i can do a little if someone knows where i could get sata to molex adaptors. not molex to sata, like the standard. also is there a better kind of ribbon cable available? that would be helpful.

my gfx card points down, which is gay, but also standard. the three slots below it are empty and i currently have the slots open at the back for airflow to the card. if anyone knows of a good way to intake air from the back of the case (aka one of the slots) and direct it upward, that would be real helpful. a good pci slot fan should do it, though i want one with a lot of airflow. my current one does not reverse, which is gay, and i tried to rewire it, but the motor will still only spin forward, which means exhaust.

also, how much will a zalman vf900 vga cooler help? that could solve the problem in itself.

and if anyone knows what kind of temperatures its safe to run a xfx geforce 6800GS at, that would be helpful. nvidia tells me 125c, but that seems WAY to high.

i currently have it running and not overheating, but a little bit more safe room would be nice.

 

[lordaardvark2]

Ok here is a stupid idea. Open your case up fire your computer up and take a tissue and hold it near your GPU fan. If the tissue is pulled toward or is sucked into the fan it is blowing onto the GPU.................if it blows the tissue away from it..................yes you got it! If it does neither then you have a passive cooling system :roll:

good idea :lol:

i suggested he do the same with his hand, in close viscinity, but i also warned that i've been bitten by fans doing the same thing before.

125 c is definately quite high, but the gfx should manage to handle it... especially if nvidia tells you so. i've heard of temps of like 140 c (wtf, right?), and all i would imagine is the possibility of lifespan reduction due to the high heat. i'm still kinda unclear on the purple textures, though, is it just in the torture test thing? or randomly in any game? and is it ONLY in couterstrike?

so how many of your pata devices do you have on the same ribbon? a 2 ribbon system is pretty common, so i'm not really sure why you are having so much trouble. if you can't find the adapters that you need (i've looked for you, none showing up for me either), you may consider zip-tying the cables like in the middle, kinda synching them up... see what i mean?

i'd say you could work something out without spending money on the vga cooler... although you may end up needing it.... i just want this to work out for you without any more expendature!

 

[ReverendGadgetBoy]

well im sure my fan is an intake. ive already worked that out. its also currently usable. the max temperature i hit under full load is 80c, which is high, but ill use it. if anyone knows where i can get a pci slot fan that will work as an intake, then i might be able to lose a few degrees.