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Aftermarket VGA cooler installation

OrbitzXT

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I've never dealt with aftermarket coolers for VGA cards before but in this day and age where cards get hot I'm considering getting one. I always get a little uneasy installing something for the first time when I have no experience. Is it a hassle setting it up? I'm not interested in water cooling, but could someone direct me to one of the better air coolers for an EVGA 8800GTX, and maybe a guide to installing a cooler so I can feel better about it?
 
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The 8800GTX is one hot card, and is hard to cool with some of the smaller coolers around today. If I were you, I'd wait for one of these:
Zalman to launch two new VGA coolers
The second one can supposedly cool an 8800

As to the hassle, it can sometimes be a little fiddly, but not too difficult. For the 8800, simply unscrew the current heatsink (maybe clean off the paste already on there, recomended, after which, put on the new paste), put the other one on, then flip over the card, and screw the new heatsink into place (watching out for order you screw each one in by, just so you don't crack the die on the core, which would suck)
It's a little fiddlier than a CPU heatsink, basically
 

ARTOSOFT

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Zalman provided good installation procedure to help you install new GPU cooler.

I am using VF900CU since last year and found it not too difficult to install. Bare in mind, your card may have something that protruding out that prevent smooth installation. I need to relocate the capacitor on my vga card in order to install the VF900 perfectly.

Regards,
Arto.
 

randomperson21

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Zalman, imo, makes some absolutely brilliant coolers. They come with all the parts you need, plus they really aren't too hard to install. For the 8800GTX, i'd recommend a vf900-cu, or the new vf1000 if you can get your hands on one.
But remember to check your card model for compatibility on Zalman's website first. then you won't run into the problems Arto had.
 

ARTOSOFT

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But remember to check your card model for compatibility on Zalman's website first. then you won't run into the problems Arto had.
Hehehe...., I check compatibility first when I decide to buy VF900CU for my x1600pro AGP 512MB. I found no compatibility issue until I install the cooler :ohwell: . Anyway, it is not too hard for me as I know electronics as well.

Regards,
Arto.
 

randomperson21

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well, thats no good!
 
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