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[Kals]

So I currently have an HD Radeon 6850. The fan is starting to go on it, in that it's making an incessant buzzing noise when under decent-heavy load (D3, Tera, Battlefield).

I've tried lubricating the bearings but it didn't seem to help; and as it runs a little hotter than I'd like (not dangerously hot, but less noise from a fan being on would be nice) I'm looking into getting an aftermarket fan for it.

I've not really had to replace this before so wasn't sure if any of you who have done it or looked into it could suggest one to me; I'm not really sure if they're 1 size fits most or what. 

My budget is about 80-100 but if cheaper can be just as efficient that's fine by me. 

[Rookey]

You gave no info on your manufacturer brand or whether the pcb board and cooler is of reference design. But here is some board info on what you need...

An old thread on subject:
http://www.overclock.net/t/850451/6800-series-aftermarket-cooling-thread

Examples of replacement fans for reference coolers:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/75mm-VGA-Video-Card-Fan-For-HD-5850-6970-6850-FD9238H12S-4Pin-0-8A-190-/110883747970?pt=US_Video_Card_GPU_Cooling&hash=item19d12fb882
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATI-Video-Card-6990-6970-6950-6870-6850-5850-75mm-fan-read-inside-/280840136761?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item4163606839

An Arctic Cooling solution for you within your budget assuming a reference 6850 pcb:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186064


If you install an after market cooler, be sure to cool the ram too. They need mini heat sinks and quality thermal paste. If you end up just replacing your busted fan, do your self a favor and redo the thermal grease on all contact points. Reference coolers usually end up getting the cheap treatment with low grade thermal paste and shoddy assembly.

Next time, start off with a decent cooler. A few of the gpu manufacturers have excellent non-reference coolers on their gpus. I recommend ASUS's DCU gpus if you dont mind the size, or MSI's Twin Frozr gpus is you dont mind the slightly higher price. Both perform excellently, easily disappearing the gap between gpu manufacturor custom coolers and aftermarket coolers of the same class. Dont be fooled by other non-reference coolers that have a similar appearance. XFX's dual fan solution is not much better than reference designs.

[Kals]

First off thanks for taking the time to help me out Rookey.

I'm only PC savvy enough to put together a computer from basic design into a case, so half of what you said was wasted on me.


I do feel rather dumb for not listing my exact card, but alas late at night = not thinking very straight and annoyed from having to do this in the first place. :p

My card:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161384&Tpk=HIS%20H685FN1GD%20Radeon%20HD%206850%201GB%20256-bit%20GDDR5%20PCI

It's a fantastic card and I did a fair bit of research on reviews (both positive and negative) before buying it; newegg had it on a decent deal at the time.

Like I said, never really had to do this before so I'm sort of treading into deeper water than usual. If necessary I have a few tech savvy friends who can help me out with installation, just hard to get a hold of them.

[Lorn]

pro tip: Don't buy AMD or ATI

[Rookey]

So, if I had $80 to blow on GPU cooling, this is what I would do...


















$60 for cheap Corsair or Antec cpu water cooler (h60 or 620 respectively)
$18 for VRM heat sinks (those copper pillar things)
$8 for thermal adhesive for the VRM sinks (i already have thermal grease for the water block)
>$1 worth of zip ties (or maybe around $8 if you dont already have a pack of them)

And it will knock the socks off of any air cooled solution in cooling performance and noise.

[Lorn]

I'm confused as to where the heat from the radiator is being blow. Straight up through the case or is there some grating on the bottom of the case it is being blown through?

[Rookey]

I'm confused as to where the heat from the radiator is being blow. Straight up through the case or is there some grating on the bottom of the case it is being blown through?

Most midrange and higher cases now days have vent grill at the bottom of the case sized for 120x240 or 120x360 radiators for large water loops. The PSU usually covers up some of that vent. So to answer your question; the heat is blowing down under the case which probably has an inch of clearance due to base pegs. If your case does not have this feature, you can fairly easily DIY if you have a dremel or something similar.

Heres a few examples of modern style undercarriage vents.



The pictures of the GPU mods I posted only show a few possible mounting configurations. Some use the front HDD drive bay fan slots. Some double sandwich with the CPU radiator at the CPU exhaust slot. Some use brackets to hold the fan and rad outside the case, attached to the back near the expansion slots like many old school water cooled configs did in the past. Although it is probably a bad idea, you could also use the side fan slot. The second config shown in the pic has the cpu rad exhausting up top slot, with the gpu rad exhausting rear at the cpu exhaust slot.