Nvidia 8800 questions

[maxmcleod]

Anyone have one, which one do you have and how loud are they?

Having some more time to play games, and just want a little performance boost, but don't want to compromise the quiet HTPC setup I have too much

Any recommendations for brand or model of 8800 that you know to be fairly quiet is greatly appreciated.

[JTK]

I have an 8800GT. Awesome card, quiet, great performer.

IMO, the 8800GT is the current king of value/price/performance all the way and I couldn't recommend it enough.

I went with an evga 512mb 8800GT. I've had good experiences with evga although all the brands are good. EVGA has the 90 day "step up/upgrade" program in place with their products which is a nice bonus.

I think I saw places like Newegg and some others have some compelling deals.

[owa]

I have an 8800GTX and it's not very loud but I'll double check the noise levels tonight to make sure. I usually get BFG and occasionally EVGA but I've never had any issues with any of the brands (e.g. even though PNY is rarely recommended, I've never had any trouble with any of theirs either).

[Kairav]

8800 Ultra OC is the best. Made by BFG.

[maxmcleod]

Has anyone tried one of the GTS cards? the 640mb
Just wondering if the fans run harder on those than the regular GT or not...
I mean I have a pretty solid case, its a Silverstone Grandia, with very thick outer walls, and very little vibration at all, the case is chocked full of rubber washers, and foam linings on all the parts, just wondering about the noise coming directly out the exhaust end

I'm thinking of this card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130299
its about 30 bucks cheaper than tigerdirect and that's not including the 30 buck mail in rebate...

just worried about the noise from the exhaust...

[maxmcleod]

Originally Posted by Kairav

8800 Ultra OC is the best. Made by BFG.

...but how quiet/loud is the card?

[Mathus]

I have an ultra aswell, i cant hear a thing from my computer while using it.

Graphics cards are not necessarily what you have to worry about on a computer when it comes to noise.

[maxmcleod]

well the reason I am worried about it, is because I literally have everything else running VERY silent
I have super quiet case fans, the enermax fans, that say they run at 14 db, but from my meter they run closer to 10db
My CPU fan is running around 21db, and I have two hdd fans that are dead silent by the time the sound finds a way out of the case
So you can't even tell the case is on until you look at the light on the front...
Just dont want to spoil that too much

[maxmcleod]

the 8800 ultra oc seems a bit out of the price range im willing to drop for a video card

[Kairav]

Originally Posted by maxmcleod

...but how quiet/loud is the card?

The card is pretty quiet for its size and performance.

[glogrono]

Originally Posted by maxmcleod

well the reason I am worried about it, is because I literally have everything else running VERY silent
I have super quiet case fans, the enermax fans, that say they run at 14 db, but from my meter they run closer to 10db
My CPU fan is running around 21db, and I have two hdd fans that are dead silent by the time the sound finds a way out of the case
So you can't even tell the case is on until you look at the light on the front...
Just dont want to spoil that too much

If you use your HTPC for movies and tv only. Take a look at the ATI HD-3xxx series. I have the 3450 and it's passive so no fan and of course no noise. This card has played every blu ray I've thrown at it without any stuttering and amazing picture. The 3450 is only $49.99. Also, what cpu fan are you using?? I'm looking to get a quieter one. Thanks.

[maxmcleod]

my cpu fan is
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...?Sku=M333-3003
right now, I have it cranked and like I said its only about 21db im using it on a dual core 2.33 intel

I plan on upgrading the whole system to a quad and getting one of these

http://www.ncixus.com/products/27031...LC-KIT/Asetek/
Low Cost Liquid Cooling, they got great reviews, and you never need to refill, they are prefilled and resistant to evaporation
and of course Virtually Silent....

I guess im going to go with the
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130299 though, unless anyone thinks it would be overpaying or has a better suggestion for the same price...

[Obiit]

If your looking for quiet then try for a passive cooled or the option to add the GPU to the liquid cooling set up.

They say their stock fans are quiet but they are not. My ATI HD2600 XT had a quiet fan according to reviews but it was like a jet taking off!!

I have a very quiet HTPC and in the end i added one of these http://www.zerotherm.net/eng/product/GX810.asp to cool and quieten it. Not as quiet as i would like but almost there.

Best choice is (and if your case can accommodate it) get a passive cooled card

[maxmcleod]

well i have a passivly cooled card right now, but want something a little beefier but as quiet as possible... i think a lot of it has to do with the case the cards are in... that's why im only concerned with the sound from the rear exhaust...
internally I could add some dampening to the top portion of the case to stop some vibrations if needed

[Obiit]

I have a Silverstone Sugo case and it vibrates like mad with my hard drive. I dampened it with this http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/pro...cmaterials/aps but it still didn't totally shut the noise out.

If your after beefier then you could try this http://uk.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=...20&modelmenu=1 or this http://www.giga-byte.com/Products/VG...=GV-NX96T512HP but that all depends on your budget

Unless your a mad gaming person who must play the latest games at full resolution i'd go for a silent but slightly more powerful card than your present one. To be honest the old addage - "If it ain't broke don't fix it" comes to mind

[maxmcleod]

the sugo case is a lot different than the grandia though...
the grandia has foam padding in the hard drive cage, rubber washers all throughout, and the panels are very thick compared to most cases you find today. I hear absolutely no sound from my harddrives...

I think im just going to give the 8800gts a try, and hell if its too noisy, I'll RA the thing and put the 8500gt back in

[Obiit]

Yes it is. I tried one of these http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/pro...ons/quietdrive and it didn't make a blind bit of difference! I then found out it was the vibration of the case caused by the hard drive that was causing the noise.....

To be honest the Sugo is a bit crap - none of the cards line up with the slots and it is way too flimsy for my liking - but it is the only case i have found that fit's where i need to have my HTPC

AH distance selling laws aren't they grand

[maxmcleod]

yeah i know how it is with tight spaces, I'm pretty lucky this time, my HTPC had plenty of room to breath, so I got a nice large case...
Still haven't filled up the 6 HDD spots

[DimebagCFH]

I have the 8800 GTX OC2 by BFG it is as good if not a little bit better and it is almost silent

[maxmcleod]

awesome thanks for everyones responses, in a couple weeks when i get paid, ill order it up and let you know what i think