Pushing FX5700U to the Limit

[Slava]

What is tolerable?

I am about to further O/C my eVGA FX5700 Ultra. It is currently at 550MHz / 1.03 GHz and has Aquamark3 of around 37000 - better than FX5900 Ultra.

My question is twofold:

1. About safe temperatures. Detonator temperature monitor has an unchangeable default cut-off setting of 129C. It is not very well documented but it seems that this means that once the GPU temp reaches 129C+ it will auto-downclock to prevent overheating. Still, 129C sounds WAY TOO HGIH to me. Damn, water boils at 100C!

So, currently my O/Ced FX5700U runs at around 70-80C under load. Though it is way below the default cut-off temp I am concerned since ambient temp really goes up too and even my five fans seem insufficient to keep a cool case when it is closed.

2. How can I better cool the card? eVGA stock cooling solution is excellent and I would not want to replace it but I think I need to do something before I push the card to ... eeerrr ... I dunno to the point when I can use it as a cigarette lighter

Any comments/ideas are appreciated.

<font color=green>Stingy people end up paying double. One kick-ass rig that will go strong for three years or one half-decent one every year?</font color=green>

 

[ChipDeath]

Your card is always going to produce the same amount of heat at those settings - it has to go <i>somewhere</i>. If you really can't increase the Airflow through your case anymore, then I can only suggest <b>Watercooling</b> .

---
Epox 8RDA+ rev1.1 w/ Custom NB HS
XP1700+ @205x11 (~2.26Ghz), 1.575Vcore
2x256Mb Corsair PC3200LL 2-2-2-4
Sapphire 9800Pro 420/744

 

[Slava]

Watercooling as in *replace eVGA stock cooler with a (GPU) watercooler*? Or should I attach a watercooler to the memory heatsink on the back of the card? Or both? please explain.

About airflow: I have two fans sucking the air in just under the PSU blowing over my hard drives and two exhaust fans at the bottom of the case mounted horizontally in vacant PCI slots that suck the air in and expel it through expansion card slot openings. Plus, of course, there are the CPU, GPU and PSU fans. That’s seven dammit. I suppose I could hook up another fan inside the front panel of the box to simply re-circulate the air within the case, but I am concerned that this may actually interfere with airflow pattern created by existing fans.

Any thoughts?


<font color=green>Stingy people end up paying double. One kick-ass rig that will go strong for three years or one half-decent one every year?</font color=green>

 

[holliswhy]

Spending all that money to o/c a 5700Ultra, why don;t u get a new geforce.....6800???

I love my pc
but my pc hates me...

 

[Slava]

I have several computers at home. I WILL build a monster around a NV40 card once PCIE compliant components hit the market and, as always, if the right components are available I will build a system without any bottlenecks. 6800U wants dual Xeons? So be it.

However, because I normally build a real monster once in three years or so I never faced the need to overclock anything. By the time my machine begins to strugge noticeably it is time to build another monster anyway. Consequently, I don't have much experience with overclocking/water cooling and such.

I made this FX5700U machine simply to learn.

<font color=green>Stingy people end up paying double. One kick-ass rig that will go strong for three years or one half-decent one every year?</font color=green>

 

[GeneticWeapon]

My eVGA 5700U scored 4,1xx in 3DMark03. The link's were here on this forum, but they're dead now....like the card

<A HREF="http://rmitz.org/AYB3.swf" target="_new">All your base are belong to us.</A>
<A HREF="http://service.futuremark.com/compare?2k3=2216718" target="_new"><b>3DMark03</b></A>

 

[Slava]

I don't like 3DMark. What is your Aquamark3 score?

<font color=green>Stingy people end up paying double. One kick-ass rig that will go strong for three years or one half-decent one every year?</font color=green>

 

[Unolocogringo]

Iget 38500 on Aquamark3 and 5000 on 3dmark 03.

This is running 595 core 1.02 memory Stock cooling with a Intel P4 fan blowing across the card like the Zalman heatsink.

p4 2.6c@3.4
P4P800
512 Corsair PC3500 5/4 @ 2/2/2/5/8
BFG 5700U

I aint signing nothing!!!