A couple questions about GPUs

[newbie1992]

Alright, I've been reading a lot online the difference between Reference and Non-Reference, which are better for the Raven and FT series from silver stone due to the vertical mounting of motherboard?

Reference cards?
1) Where air is sucked in by 1 fan and blows air through the GPU heat sink and blows the hot air directly out of the case?
2) I've read that it's loud and cards run a lot hotter than non-reference cards. Is this true?

Or maybe non-reference cards?
1) These cards tend to cost more... due to aftermarket coolers and often have big fans blowing air through heat sinks but sends heat into the case instead of directly out of the case, will the heat dumped into the case have a negative effect?

So which is it? Raven02-e and Raven03 have excellent airflow inside the case, so why do the manuals recommend reference cards instead of non-reference? I was thinking the AP181s are strong enough to push the hot air expelled into the case easily.

 

[starravier]

From what i know people recommend reference because After-market coolers only work for reference cards.

1) It really depends on the case. Like where there vents are etc. but most GPU's dont blow air directly out of the case. As for the noise and heat. it depends on which card you plan on getting. Nvidia or AMD, then it depends on which series.

For non-reference questions

They cost more because they're usually the overclocked verison on top of having a non-reference cooler. As for heat, they generally produce less heat then the reference version but as for the effect on the computer, none that you will notice.

 

[newbie1992]

From what i know people recommend reference because After-market coolers only work for reference cards.

1) It really depends on the case. Like where there vents are etc. but most GPU's dont blow air directly out of the case. As for the noise and heat. it depends on which card you plan on getting. Nvidia or AMD, then it depends on which series.

For non-reference questions

They cost more because they're usually the overclocked verison on top of having a non-reference cooler. As for heat, they generally produce less heat then the reference version but as for the effect on the computer, none that you will notice.

From my understanding a reference card looks like this:

Where hot hair is blown directly out the back of the case through the expansion slot.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0047ZH7GE/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_d0_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1QJVNH6CB5GKRXY6TT4M&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846

And a non-reference looks like this:

Where hot air is blown directly into the case.

http://www.amazon.com/MSI-PCI-Express-N560GTX-TWIN-FROZR/dp/B004JLNZXU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1312699626&sr=1-1

 

[jyjjy]

What is a "reference" cooler varies widely depending on what card you are talking about. You can't make blanket statements like you have made.
What you are talking about is whether a card has an "open" or "closed" design. In general open cards will be better if your case has good airflow while closed is probably a good choice if your case airflow is questionable. It seems like you should be looking for a card with an open design. The MSI Twin Frozr cards or the Asus DirectCU models are some of the best.

 

[starravier]

AGain it depends on the card you are getting.

 

[newbie1992]

What is a "reference" cooler varies widely depending on what card you are talking about. You can't make blanket statements like you have made.
What you are talking about is whether a card has an "open" or "closed" design. In general open cards will be better if your case has good airflow while closed is probably a good choice if your case airflow is questionable. It seems like you should be looking for a card with an open design. The MSI Twin Frozr cards or the Asus DirectCU models are some of the best.

I am not trying to make blank statements, it's something I've read online and want to reconfirm here.

Okay, I understand closed/open design air cooling on GPUs, but my question is, which would be better for the Raven02-e/Raven03 cases? They seem like they would be fine with cards like MSI Twin Forzr cards, but the manuals for those cases say use a closed(blower) design cards for better cooling and I didn't see the logic in that since closed designed cards tend to run hotter and louder.

My logic is, if hot air is pushed out of the cards through multiple directions, wouldn't the AP181 fans be able to push all the heat out of the case easily through the vents on top of the case?

 

[starravier]

We cant "fully" answer that until u tell us what card(s) your looking to buy. Honestly you wont notice much 1-3 degrees at most. Then again u don't have anything to compare it too.

 

[newbie1992]

We cant "fully" answer that until u tell us what card(s) your looking to buy. Honestly you wont notice much 1-3 degrees at most. Then again u don't have anything to compare it too.

I'm looking at the gtx 570s and hoping to run them SLI

 

[jyjjy]

That case doesn't look like it should have any problems with airflow. An open card should be fine.

 

[jyjjy]

I'm looking at the gtx 570s and hoping to run them SLI

Have you considered Crossfiring two 2gb HD6950s instead?
Here are some numbers;
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/crossfire-sli-3-way-scaling,2865-9.html

 

[starravier]

Well in that case. It would come down to which manufacturer. Oc'ed or not etc. But most are typically the same so reference or not you wont have a problem. Regardless of which you choose. It comes down to preference. But the heat will not have a negative effect on your computer

 

[newbie1992]

Have you considered Crossfiring two 2gb HD6950s instead?
Here are some numbers;
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/crossfire-sli-3-way-scaling,2865-9.html

Wow those numbers are awfully close... which brand would you recommend? Is there a twinfrozr versionof amd cards?

Also, how difficult is it to flash the cards to 6970s? And is there a drawback?

 

[starravier]

You could always brick your card. if you flash. things go wrong etc.

 

[starravier]

And there is a twin frozr version of the 6950

 

[jyjjy]

It was rather simple and safe to unlock the reference model of the HD6950 but those are rather hard to find now. It is possible on some of the newer models but it varies I believe.
Here is an exhaustively long thread on the subject if you want to dig through it;
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=137136
The HD 6950 has both a Twin Frozr II and III model;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127562
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127575
If you would prefer to save a bit of money this Sapphire card is supposed to be pretty nice and is a good deal;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102945