NVidia GeForce 9800 GTX+ Fan running really fast/loud

[moejoeonline]

Hello users,

Recently the fan on my (EVGA) GeForce 9800 GTX+ has been constantly running at an usually high RPM, similar to the sort of speed you'd only expect on start-up. Here is a list of the things I have tried, without success, to remedy the problem:

1. Un-installed old GFX drivers and installed latest (301.42 - WHQL).
2. Tried manually changing fan speed with EVGA Precision X, MSI Afterburner and nVidia control panel. None of these worked and the card seemed to 'ignore' all changes in fan speed.
3. Removed and cleaned GPU. This was done thoroughly and I have applied a new coat of silica heat-sink gel to the GPU.
4. Applied new coat of heat-sink gel to the CPU (This was a long shot).
5. Searched for new motherboard drivers to no avail.

I don't think it's noise caused by bad/old bearings, and the temperature seems to be fine when idle (around 28-32°C). Does anyone have any idea what could cause the card to be running so fast? Here are my PC specifications just in case they help:

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium (32-bit)
Motherboard: MSI MS-7360 (Intel Socket 775)
Processor: Intel Core (2) Duo E6750 @ 2.66GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM
GPU: nVidia GeForce 9800 GTX +

My currently idle temperatures are:
CPU: 29°C
Mainboard: 56°C
Video Card: 32°C
Hard Disk: 28°C
Fan Speed: 1770 rpm*

*not sure if I believe this...

Any help or ideas would be much appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[moejoeonline]

Unfortunately it appears to be the your first suggestion, porgrammes such as afterburner report it as running at 35% (GameBooster 3 reads it at 1770 rpm) but sounding much louder. Maybe good excuse for a bit of an upgrade as it's a pretty old system now!

 

[moejoeonline]

I may trying flashing the BIOS as suggested in the EVGA thread:

http://www.evga.com/forumsarchive/tm.asp?m=100994116

I will let you know how I get on. Any tips for flashing the BIOS on a GPU?

 

[drums101]

I dont think this is a video BIOS issue...if it was it would have been an issue from the beginning....I have a feeling that is def an issue with the fan getting old...I am not surprised bc the card is geting pretty dated at this point.

 

[moejoeonline]

Yeah you're probably right, I was just running low on ideas. On the bright side the problem seems to have 'fixed' itself and the card has stopped making so much noise. It's a little frustrating as I was unable to find out exactly what the problem was. My guess it that it would be to do with a physical issue such as poor lubrication or bad bearings...

Thanks for the help anyway!

 

[drums101]

yea a pyhsical issue like you said def seems to be the case here....glad it stopped but the question is for how long? it will most likely come back at some point.

 

[moejoeonline]

Hello it's me again (OP - Moejoeonline) Well you were right, It has come back! I think I'll try and disassemble the card and fiddle about with the fan for a bit. Please feel free to leave any further suggestions!