Is XFX Radeon HD5850 stock cooler good enough?

[greeky510]

I just got this hd5850 a couple of days ago. The stock gpu cooler looks a bit small for this card. What do you guys think, should i buy an aftermarket one?
Will dropping the temps extend the life of the video card?

 

[borisof007]

If you're referring to this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150491&Tpk=xfx%205850

That's a non reference cooler already. It has what looks like to be a few copper heatpipes leading to either an aluminum or copper heat sink and a fan. The only problem with this cooler that some don't like is that it's spitting the heat inside the case instead of outside the case as the reference ATI cooler does.

Dropping the temperatures on your video card will ensure greater stability over the life of the card, yes. It can also allow for safe overclocking for increased performance too.

 

[wa1]

well, let's just see, install the card and play some games, see what temps do you get...

Just make sure it doesn't above 95'C at full load.

 

[greeky510]

Yes borisof007 thats the video card i have.

Wa1 i get 40c on normal computer use/internet surfing and it hits 67-70c when gaming (alien vs predator).
My research turned out that 67c is normal for a video card but i was wondering if its worth it spending like $60 on a new heatsink in order to drop the temp a few degrees and the video card life.

 

[Bluescreendeath]

Nope. Nvidia fermi cards go into the 90s'C during load.

The 5x00 already runs very cool and uses less energy, so even the stock cooler is more than enough. This XFX custom cooler is even better:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037YOIMC/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B002Q4U5EY&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1YJFRTDNR1GCXYSVFBWE

(there are a few in stock at other websites. I got mine at tigerdirect for $300)

The other XFX cooler is probably about the same as the stock cooler. There is really no reason for you to violate your warranty because their coolers are more than enough.