XFX R9-390 way too hot, sucking up too many watts doing nothing

[Cartel]

Thanks for the replies.
I've had this case over 7 years now, actually the PS, case and mobo have been going 24/7 since dec 2011.
I like this case cause the whole front is meshed with little holes and a thin foam behind it to trap dust and cat fur.
The side cover inlets are blocked off with aluminum tape so the air comes in the front and straight out the back, never had and issue.

The inside is clean all the fans are clean.
I have a 120mm in the front and a 120mm in the back plus the PS fan and the zalman 9900 blowing right into the rear 120mm fan.

My 6970 used to run 80c pretty much all the time but my ps always blew cold or luke warm.
I never seen the 12 below 11.96 even playing gtav, but this 390 is sucking way too much juice.
Overnight it ran and in the morning it was 28c in here, ps blowing hotter than hell just idling.

That comment about the bios hacked with miners, is that possible?

I'm sorry I didn't get a shot of the gpuz before I pulled the card.

This is what I got right now with the room at 24c

 

[eidairaman1]

Thanks for the replies.
I've had this case over 7 years now, actually the PS, case and mobo have been going 24/7 since dec 2011.
I like this case cause the whole front is meshed with little holes and a thin foam behind it to trap dust and cat fur.
The side cover inlets are blocked off with aluminum tape so the air comes in the front and straight out the back, never had and issue.

The inside is clean all the fans are clean.
I have a 120mm in the front and a 120mm in the back plus the PS fan and the zalman 9900 blowing right into the rear 120mm fan.

My 6970 used to run 80c pretty much all the time but my ps always blew cold or luke warm.
I never seen the 12 below 11.96 even playing gtav, but this 390 is sucking way too much juice.
Overnight it ran and in the morning it was 28c in here, ps blowing hotter than hell just idling.

That comment about the bios hacked with miners, is that possible?

I'm sorry I didn't get a shot of the gpuz before I pulled the card.

This is what I got right now with the room at 24c

View attachment 100294
View attachment 100295

Ok there might be a mining trojan on your rig that is using the card unnecessarily, look at GPU-Z and see what clock speed the card is presently operating at. Do you have 2 monitors running or afterburner?
Afaik Low Power idle state should be 300/150, yours is showing 500.

Heres something else.

https://community.amd.com/thread/205983

 

[Cartel]

Ok there might be a mining trojan on your rig that is using the card unnecessarily, look at GPU-Z and see what clock speed the card is presently operating at. Do you have 2 monitors running or afterburner?
Afaik Low Power idle state should be 300/150, yours is showing 500.

Heres something else.

https://community.amd.com/thread/205983

this 280x came special like that from xfx.
It was a replacement because the normal 280x would flicker at lower clock rates there was a bug or something.

I cant even force the gpu or ram go any lower, 500 is the lowest state and the ram stays at 1500.

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/solved-flickering-crap-on-my-new-xfx-280x.208457/

 

[eidairaman1]

this 280x came special like that from xfx.
It was a replacement because the normal 280x would flicker at lower clock rates there was a bug or something.

I cant even force the gpu or ram go any lower, 500 is the lowest state and the ram stays at 1500.

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/solved-flickering-crap-on-my-new-xfx-280x.208457/

View attachment 100296

Ok so thats the 280 then, whatbout the 390?

 

[Cartel]

The 390 clocked down to 300 core and 150 memory I think.
Did clock down for sure.

Maybe a vrm or something is shorted on it?

 

[PHaS3]

I apologize if this has been asked and answered...

Do you have 2 displays connected running at different res / refresh / colour settings? That will clock the RAM up (leaving the core to idle down), and GDDR5 is a thirsty animal and the power use is made worse by the need for 16 RAM chips on the Hawaii cards.

 

[AsRock]

I apologize if this has been asked and answered...

Do you have 2 displays connected running at different res / refresh / colour settings? That will clock the RAM up (leaving the core to idle down), and GDDR5 is a thirsty animal and the power use is made worse by the need for 16 RAM chips on the Hawaii cards.

Yes i forgot all about that one, it's why i don't use more than one my self. how ever i cannot see it making the PSU hot or any thing.


Maybe buy a Kill-a-Watt or Zalman MFC2 or alike. o yeah if you have a browser open it's probably jumping 3D clocks too unless you have disabled it.

Lets face it and said before by others, software cannot be 100% trusted if even more so in power usages.

 

[Durvelle27]

Thanks for the replies.
I've had this case over 7 years now, actually the PS, case and mobo have been going 24/7 since dec 2011.
I like this case cause the whole front is meshed with little holes and a thin foam behind it to trap dust and cat fur.
The side cover inlets are blocked off with aluminum tape so the air comes in the front and straight out the back, never had and issue.

The inside is clean all the fans are clean.
I have a 120mm in the front and a 120mm in the back plus the PS fan and the zalman 9900 blowing right into the rear 120mm fan.

My 6970 used to run 80c pretty much all the time but my ps always blew cold or luke warm.
I never seen the 12 below 11.96 even playing gtav, but this 390 is sucking way too much juice.
Overnight it ran and in the morning it was 28c in here, ps blowing hotter than hell just idling.

That comment about the bios hacked with miners, is that possible?

I'm sorry I didn't get a shot of the gpuz before I pulled the card.

This is what I got right now with the room at 24c

View attachment 100294
View attachment 100295

So you further decreased the ventilation by blocking off the side ports.

I’m positive all of the problems you are having are heat related due to a poor case design and airflow.

You also have to stop comparing old tech to your 390. Hawaii TDP and volatage range is completely different from that of Tahiti and Cayman. So results will never directly corridinant. So is temps

 

[Vayra86]

Looking at 46 W idle/desktop usage on a 390 isn't too weird is it? Especially with 2 displays. I see 71W (!) here...

https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapphire/R9_390_Nitro/21.html

Other than that, ambient & airflow provide the other answers. Not seeing a problem here.

 

[Basard]

With an rc330 case, a 120 in front and 120 in back and psu fan aren't really enough for good airflow with that cpu/gpu.
More airflow isn't going to help with your room's temp though, it will help your case temps though.
I used to have a 9590 underclocked and my wife has the 8350, we run GTX780 gpus, but have way more airflow than you, still the case temps get up there.

 

[Divide Overflow]

The side cover inlets are blocked off with aluminum tape so the air comes in the front and straight out the back, never had and issue.

I'm sorry I didn't get a shot of the gpuz before I pulled the card.

Blocking off airflow to your case may not have been a problem with lesser cards, but it sure can be an issue with your 390.
We'll need GPUZ screenshots with your 390 installed to be of any help. That first wattage figure you posted sounds high for idle, so we'll need a better picture of what's going on.
What dirver version are you using? Have you run a Malwarebytes scan of your system recently?

 

[Cartel]

Heres what everything looks like this morning, room is 25C

So you further decreased the ventilation by blocking off the side ports.

I’m positive all of the problems you are having are heat related due to a poor case design and airflow.

You also have to stop comparing old tech to your 390. Hawaii TDP and volatage range is completely different from that of Tahiti and Cayman. So results will never directly corridinant. So is temps

I think over 7 years using this tower I figured out what works, and what doesn't.

I want air in the front, past the drives over the MB heatsinks.
Not in the side and out the back, thats useless.

I apologize if this has been asked and answered...

Do you have 2 displays connected running at different res / refresh / colour settings? That will clock the RAM up (leaving the core to idle down), and GDDR5 is a thirsty animal and the power use is made worse by the need for 16 RAM chips on the Hawaii cards.

yes I do..the 2065 at 1600/1200 and a sami at 1280/1024.

I'll unhook one and see if it makes a difference

OP, we'll need GPUZ screenshots with your 390 installed to be of any help.
Blocking off airflow to your case may not have been a problem with lesser cards, but it sure can be an issue with your 390.

at idle?
The heatsink on this 390 sucked right off the bat. Temps went up/down instantly which told me the heatsink wasnt making contact with the gpu die worth a lick.
I pulled the cooler off and the heatsink surface was concave

very badly.
Plus the surface was very rough, like someone combed the metal with a fine comb. I scrapped the outside edges with a razor then lapped it with 600, then 2000 and reinstalled it. Temps were much lower and went up and down slowly, not instantly like before.
I see lots of complaints about the 390 being hot, probably the solution right there.

Plus it exhausts zero out the back of the card, it all goes right into the case which is crap.

It doesnt explain the voltage drops just having the card installed and idling and the power supply working that hard "doing nothing".
Something is amiss.

I apologize if this has been asked and answered...

Do you have 2 displays connected running at different res / refresh / colour settings? That will clock the RAM up (leaving the core to idle down), and GDDR5 is a thirsty animal and the power use is made worse by the need for 16 RAM chips on the Hawaii cards.

I removed 1 monitor. wow I think you got it.

 

[thebluebumblebee]

I think over 7 years using this tower

is long enough.

it exhausts zero out the back of the card, it all goes right into the case

Which is why you need a better case.

Something like the Corsair 400C/Q, Fractal Design Meshify C, Phanteks Enthoo Pro M, NZXT S340, you get the idea, something with 2 to 3 front 120 mm fans.

 

[PHaS3]

I removed 1 monitor. wow I think you got it.

Great Been an issue with AMD for a while. If refresh, colour (talking 10bpc/8bpc), or resolution dont match, the RAM clocks up. GDDR5 is thirsty

 

[RealNeil]

So it was having to display separate resolutions on dissimilar screens and choking on that?

I would ~still~ consider getting a high airflow case for your system. I sense that you believe in your configuration, but maybe it's just barely doing well enough.

There is a collective Hive-Intelligence here when we're all solving problems together.
We speak from experience.
All of my PCs have at least two GPUs inside of them. By using high-airflow cases with high-performing fans there are no problems with heat.
This system uses a 27" 1080P screen next to a 28" 4K screen with no issues.
______________________
There is a way that many of us route air through our PCs.
Front, bottom, and side fans blow air into the case.
Rear and top fans pull air out of the case.
This works the best, and 'side' air really does help.
______________________

I'm glad that you're back up and running.

 

[Durvelle27]

So you further decreased the ventilation by blocking off the side ports.

I’m positive all of the problems you are having are heat related due to a poor case design and airflow.

Heres what everything looks like this morning, room is 25C

View attachment 100304




I think over 7 years using this tower I figured out what works, and what doesn't.

I want air in the front, past the drives over the MB heatsinks.
Not in the side and out the back, thats useless.



yes I do..the 2065 at 1600/1200 and a sami at 1280/1024.

I'll unhook one and see if it makes a difference


at idle?
The heatsink on this 390 sucked right off the bat. Temps went up/down instantly which told me the heatsink wasnt making contact with the gpu die worth a lick.
I pulled the cooler off and the heatsink surface was concave View attachment 100305 very badly.
Plus the surface was very rough, like someone combed the metal with a fine comb. I scrapped the outside edges with a razor then lapped it with 600, then 2000 and reinstalled it. Temps were much lower and went up and down slowly, not instantly like before.
I see lots of complaints about the 390 being hot, probably the solution right there.

Plus it exhausts zero out the back of the card, it all goes right into the case which is crap.

It doesnt explain the voltage drops just having the card installed and idling and the power supply working that hard "doing nothing".
Something is amiss.




View attachment 100307



I removed 1 monitor. wow I think you got it.



View attachment 100308

airflow from the right directions is never useless

 

[Aquinus]

Memory staying clocked up will consume an easy 50-80 watts off the wall on my machine. My MSI is fairly quiet at idle though, even when I force max clocks. 45*C is pretty low for a 390 idling. I suspect your XFX is either forcing fan speeds via a fan profile or doesn't support turning the fan off under a set temperature (I think mine is 60*C.) If your PSU is blowing like a blow dryer, something else is likely going on. While the 390 can eat a lot of power under load, it doesn't do too bad at idle. Certainly not enough to make the PSU work hard. If you've had the PSU for a while, it could be full of dust, in which case it's not being cooled well. It's also possible that the GPU is exhausting heat right by your PSU and that the PSU is being cooled with the already heated air from the GPU. If this is the case, you need better airflow.

With that said, even when with 650-watt draw off the wall, my PSU is nearly silent (granted it's rated 1kW and is 80-PLUS Platinum.)

airflow from the right directions is never useless

This. This, this, this, and this. You would be amazed at how much a difference where the air is coming from impacts temperatures.

 

[eidairaman1]

So it was having to display separate resolutions on dissimilar screens and choking on that?

I would ~still~ consider getting a high airflow case for your system. I sense that you believe in your configuration, but maybe it's just barely doing well enough.

There is a collective Hive-Intelligence here when we're all solving problems together.
We speak from experience.
All of my PCs have at least two GPUs inside of them. By using high-airflow cases with high-performing fans there are no problems with heat.
This system uses a 27" 1080P screen next to a 28" 4K screen with no issues.
______________________
There is a way that many of us route air through our PCs.
Front, bottom, and side fans blow air into the case.
Rear and top fans pull air out of the case.
This works the best, and 'side' air really does help.
______________________

I'm glad that you're back up and running.

Yeah cards up the ante slightly when running 2 monitors, hence the link I provided earlier.

Get yourself a Coolermaster HAF, your parts will thank you later, Your GPU voltage on 12V is within tolerance, just run a game in the back ground post your results.

 

[Cartel]

OK I brought out my backup 2065 and now running them both, the issue is resolved.

I guess the 390 ramped up sucks alot of juice.
I will reinstall it and report back.

Wow all that hydro and heat for the last few years because it cant have 2 different monitors....what a joke hahha

 

[AsRock]

Yeah i actually had forgot about my 290X doing it, and never thought of my 390X doing the same as i never tried which of course would do the same.

Anyways glad you got t resolved.

BTW if your original purchaser of the card might want to contact XFX for the bad contact on the GPU.

 

[eidairaman1]

OK I brought out my backup 2065 and now running them both, the issue is resolved.

I guess the 390 ramped up sucks alot of juice.
I will reinstall it and report back.

Wow all that hydro and heat for the last few years because it cant have 2 different monitors....what a joke hahha

View attachment 100311

Yeah i actually had forgot about my 290X doing it, and never thought of my 390X doing the same as i never tried which of course would do the same.

Anyways glad you got t resolved.

BTW if your original purchaser of the card might want to contact XFX for the bad contact on the GPU.

Both Nvidia and AMD cards do it, its to prevent instability/sluggishness

 

[Cartel]

LULZ
1 mis-matched monitor caused me alot of grief.
Thanks everyone for the help.

 

[eidairaman1]

LULZ

View attachment 100319

View attachment 100320

But what about it?

 

[revin]

Yeah cards up the ante slightly when running 2 monitors, hence the link I provided earlier.

Get yourself a Coolermaster HAF, your parts will thank you later, Your GPU voltage on 12V is within tolerance, just run a game in the back ground post your results.

I agree about an HAF also. I had very similar issues years ago tried an Antec then a Tt V6000 and just had constant heat issues, and I prolly had some of the most Wild fan setup's ever seen on TPU and they all told me the same thing, Get a dam case that will move more air so the most likely case to keep noise down was to get one with 200, 230 MM fans. LOT's of air moved slowly thus very quiet.
All 3 of mine including the top blow in and using the rear 140 plus all the vents to exhaust the air. Still using my old 2007 Ninja cooler on the 2600K 5.0-5.2, and a newly added Titan and temps have been insanely good for being on air. Also my main reason was that my tower sit's inside a cherry desk so the 932 was a perfect solution although I added CM 4in3 cage since I have 8 HDD's so adding a San Ace 1011 on 7v in the front was needed for me.

 

[Cartel]

So basically you can fry your card or burn your house down because the monitors dont match!

I hope XFX and AMD looks carefully at this thread because thats frigging BS.

There is nothing wrong with my case, its the card cooking away and setting off a thermal runaway because even though they have 2 monitor ports, it says nothing about must have matching monitors.

THAT'S RIDICULOUS!