Accelero S1 Rev2 VGA cooler experiences?

[v0id]

So, for a while now I've been experiencing system freezes when playing games. The system is totally Prime 95 and MemTest stable (both left on overnight), so I'm pretty sure the problem has something to do with graphics subsystem. The system also freezes after running the OCCT GPU test for a little while, which I think confirms my suspicions.

I'm running 2x Radeon 4850s (512 Mb). One is a HIS card with some sort of custom cooler (link here) and one is a PowerCooler card with a crappy orb cooler instead of the full-slot reference design (link here). I originally installed the PowerCooler card right next to my PCI wireless NIC, so I thought that might be the problem and recently switched the location of the two cards and made some other minor tweaks to clear up air flow in my case. Unfortunately games still make the system freeze, so I'm thinking my next step should be to replace the crappy cooler on the PowerCooler card with something better. I don't really know what else to do at this point.

I've been looking at the Arctic Cooling Accelero S1 Rev2 (here), which a lot of people seem to recommend for the 4850. I'm worried about clearance between the two cards, though. The height of the Accelero is listed as 33mm. There is about 6cm clearance between the PCBs of the two GPUs. Here's a picture:

Is that enough room to get some airflow between the two cards and over the Accelero from the 120mm fan at the bottom front of the case (on the right side of the picture)? Anybody have any other experiences of note with this particular cooler, or with other GPU coolers?

 

[bunnyfubbles]

What kind of temps are you getting?

Mounted properly it should be able to passively cool a 4850 with ease with such a setup.

Have you ever thought about removing that hard drive cage that is in the way?

 

[v0id]

Here are the temps when the system froze last night (playing Mass Effect for about 20 minutes):

GPU 0 (the PowerCooler w/ orb cooler):

Core temp - 70 C
Memory/IO temp - 72.5 C

GPU 1 (the HIS w/ slot cooler)

Core temp - 69 C
Memory/IO temp - 78.5 C

They don't really seem that high... but who knows.

Unfortunately I think that drive cage at the bottom is riveted to the case and can't be removed.

 

[poohbear]

da accelero takes 2 slots without the fan, 3 slots w/ da fan, its huge! besides those temps dont see that high. Why not open the side case and blow a big fan over both video cards to see if it doesnt lock up? if it still locks up then u can rule out overheating.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

those temps are well within the threshold leading me to believe something else is causing your problem :\

try using just one video card?

 

[RallyMaster]

4850s run hot if you run the S1 R2 passively. I only run it passively during the winter, otherwise the heatsink is hot to the touch even at idle.

 

[nonameo]

hmmm, I wonder if you could get a couple 120mm fans to blow down on them from the top? (side of case)

 

[Danube]

I put an Accelero S1 V1 (yes the older version) on my 4850. Before Accelero I was running 80 - 85 c at idle. Then I went down to low 50c's after Accelero (and it was sooo quiet).

What I also did was take a saw and cut off the rear portion of the stock cooper colored heat sink - the portion that covered the VRM chips in the back of card. Then I just screwed the sawed off portion back on that area (it fits fine under Accelero).

The Accelero comes with heats sinks for RAM but not the rear chips. Some people were buying sinks for those but for me, cutting off the relevant portion of stock sink works really nice (I did it over a year ago too). I dont use any fan at all

 

[v0id]

Thanks for the replies everybody. It sounds like the Accelero might not fit and if it does, heat might not actually be the problem.

I guess I will do some more testing with one card only. If the problem is a hardware issue with one of the cards, or with the crossfire functionality of the motherboard, I'll be a sad panda

EDIT: Yeah there's a mesh part of the side panel where you can attach a 120mm fan - it's right over that. I guess I'll order a fan and see what happens.

 

[CraigRT]

Can't mount something else on the GPU to cool it?

I have 2 Sapphire 4850's, like this http://regmedia.co.uk/2009/04/09/vapor-x_2.jpg

FYI it is not the Vapor-X , it is just a Sapphire designed board (smaller) with different placements.

They run fairy cool even under load, and are quiet. I have no stability issues whatsoever with these cards.

 

[MJinZ]

The S1 R2 will not fit all cases because it is TALL (will hit your side panel or very likely to).

The thickness is not much of an issue, as it is 2 slots though. However, you need a fan on it unless it's a HTPC type card so it becomes 3 slots of 4 slots thick, depending on your fan size. My GTS 250 idles at 60C passive, 30C with a fan.

 

[quadomatic]

Accelero S1 Rev 2 is enormous. I'm using one right now. It uses 2 slots by itself. You'll probably want to put some fans on it, be it the twin turbo fans or a twist tied 120mm fan. With either fan it'll take up 3 slots easy.

 

[Zstream]

I have two Rev 2's and use them in crossfire. The key is not to put a fan on each one but a 120mm fan attached to the side of both of them.

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Put a fan in the middle and it works like a charm.

 

[Zap]

I don't really know what else to do at this point.

Before throwing money at the problem, try running with the side panel off your system and pointing a desk fan into it. That will tell you if temperature is the problem.

It could also be your PSU (insufficient, or getting too hot).

 

[v0id]

Before throwing money at the problem, try running with the side panel off your system and pointing a desk fan into it. That will tell you if temperature is the problem.

It could also be your PSU (insufficient, or getting too hot).

Thanks for the suggestion. I did this, and the freezing (at least in Mass Effect) stopped - I played for 2+ hours just now. Huzzah!

Temps for both GPUs dropped only by about 5 degrees C, though. It seems weird that a drop of only 5 degrees in what already seemed to be reasonable GPU temps would stop the computer from freezing. Could the fan be cooling something else down was running too hot? FYI, even without the fan, CPU temps were not exceeding 40C even after 12 hours of Prime95.

Does this suggest that I should install a 120mm fan in the side panel and call it a day?

 

[CurseTheSky]

Thanks for the suggestion. I did this, and the freezing (at least in Mass Effect) stopped - I played for 2+ hours just now. Huzzah!

Temps for both GPUs dropped only by about 5 degrees C, though. It seems weird that a drop of only 5 degrees in what already seemed to be reasonable GPU temps would stop the computer from freezing. Could the fan be cooling something else down was running too hot? FYI, even without the fan, CPU temps were not exceeding 40C even after 12 hours of Prime95.

Does this suggest that I should install a 120mm fan in the side panel and call it a day?

Yes. The GPU core isn't the old part that gets hot. Memory and VRMs can also cause freezes, which is what I'm put my money on. Chances are, the cooler is sufficient for the GPU, but not for the memory / VRMs.

It could even be something on the motherboard that's getting too hot, or the power supply.

 

[Modular]

If you look at your Powercolor card you will see the problem right away: there are no heatsinks on the PWM circuitry. Grab one of these http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-083-_-Product and stick them on the PWM's at the back of the card. All your problems will go away.

 

[v0id]

Great suggestion! Thanks so much. Hopefully this terrible saga will be over soon.

And to think that for like, $5 more or something at the time of purchase I could have bought a different 4850 with sufficient cooling.

 

[kmmatney]

I think the VRM cooling will really help. I had a hell of a time getting the Accelero in my HD4890, having to hacksaw and bend a few parts. When I finally got it on, the card was very unstable. I was using the crappy heatsinks that come with the Accelero in the VRMs, and they weren't cutting it. I bought a Zalman VRM vooler (a lot like the one at NewEgg) and things finally worked after that. The Accelero is awesome - amazingly quiet if you pair it with a low spinning fan. I think just the VRM cooler will solve your immediate problem, though.