EVGA GTX 1070/1080 GPUs Catching Fire Due To VRMs Overheating

[Phynaz]

I believe that increasing fan speeds to compensate for the lack of thermal pads is a very bad decision and a sign of a sub-par manufacturer. They should have been included by default, all the other manufacturer's did include them.

I believe a company acknowledging the issue, researching the root cause, and offering customers multiple ways of resolving the issue is excellent customer service.

You seem to miss where you can get thermal pads if you want them. Or you can get a software fix. Or you can get a new card - shipped to you before you send yours in so you have no downtime.

Compare that response to what you from other companies such as GB or ASUS when you have an issue. You could end up waiting for weeks or months without a card from those companies.

To call EVGA a sub-par manufacturer is just trolling, they have an excellent reputation.

 

[pcslookout]

Just got 15% off my EVGA GTX 1070 video card from Amazon because of this issue. I said I was thinking of returning the card when they offered me a partial refund. I was amazed. Now it is like I got Gears of War 4 as well but instead the total value of the game.

Talk about service. I am impressed by EVGA too. I may take advantage of the cross shipping to get a new card if I see fit.

 

[Face2Face]

I would agree that EVGA has the best customer service in the video card industry, but this is a huge oversight, just like the ACX cooler issue was with some Maxwell cards. I'm hoping EVGA steps up their QC, because this mishap is costing them brand reputation and a lot of money. IMO, EVGA cards need a more aggressive fan curve in place regardless, as they are too conservative with their fan speeds. That's been my experience with my EVGA 970 SSC and my current GTX 980 TI SC+.

 

[SaltBoy]

Okay - this is no joke. Three days ago my basement had a horrible burning smell, which turned out to be coming from my eVGA 980ti, which just burned out for no reason whatsoever (that I can tell). I don't know if it's the same problem as this one, but Gigabyte, here I come. :-(

 

[Dave2150]

To call EVGA a sub-par manufacturer is just trolling, they have an excellent reputation.

I believe that this event has tarnished EVGA's previous reputation - there is simply no excuse for deciding to remove thermal pads when all other manufacturers included them.

Here is an excellent article and video from Gamers Nexus:

http://www.gamersnexus.net/news-pc/2666-evga-heat-solution-thermal-imaging-of-vrm-1080-ftw

They did a thorough test of the thermal pads and the VBIOS solution.

Here are the new noise values using the updated VBIOS:

This is simply unacceptable to me - people that have paid a premium for a top end card having to put up with 47DB under full load is ridiculous.

An example of good customer service would have been to recall all the cards, fit the thermal pads, test, then ship back out the fixed cards. Though even that option leaves the user without their GPU for a few days/weeks....

 

[happy medium]

I think the solution is don't play furmark, its not a fun game anyway.

It sounds to me they are saying , hey the bios update and thermal pads are not nessasary and if your not comfortable with doing your own bios update and installing the free thermal pads, you can cross ship your card for a new one for free.

quote:
"For those users who want additional cooling beyond the VBIOS update, EVGA has optional thermal pads available. This update is not required, however; EVGA will make it available free of charge to any customer who is interested. To request the thermal pad kit, please visit www.evga.com/thermalmod.

Any customer who is not comfortable performing the recommended VBIOS update, may request a warranty cross-shipment* to exchange the product to EVGA for an updated replacement."

It sounds like the pile on effect, there was possibly a problem with a few cards and Evga/Nvidia haters went out and made people panic.

 

[happy medium]

I believe that this event has tarnished EVGA's previous reputation - there is simply no excuse for deciding to remove thermal pads when all other manufacturers included them.

Here is an excellent article and video from Gamers Nexus:

http://www.gamersnexus.net/news-pc/2666-evga-heat-solution-thermal-imaging-of-vrm-1080-ftw

They did a thorough test of the thermal pads and the VBIOS solution.

Here are the new noise values using the updated VBIOS:

This is simply unacceptable to me - people that have paid a premium for a top end card having to put up with 47DB under full load is ridiculous.

An example of good customer service would have been to recall all the cards, fit the thermal pads, test, then ship back out the fixed cards. Though even that option leaves the user without their GPU for a few days/weeks....

Solution, ask for free thermal pads and don't do the bios update. Fan speeds stay the same.

OR

cross ship your card for free for a new one.

If I were a 1070 owner, I'd be happy.

If I were an AMD fanboy, I'd complain over and over and over in every forum I could even though I DON"T OWN THE ANY OF THE CARDS IN QUESTION.
Anyone else see a pattern ?

This thread did its job, it informed the effected users and gave a solution, anything more is thread crapping.

mods should lock it up.

 

[Dave2150]

I think the solution is don't play furmark, its not a fun game anyway.

It sounds to me they are saying , hey the bios update and thermal pads are not nessasary and if your not comfortable with doing your own bios update and installing the free thermal pads, you can cross ship your card for a new one for free.

quote:
"For those users who want additional cooling beyond the VBIOS update, EVGA has optional thermal pads available. This update is not required, however; EVGA will make it available free of charge to any customer who is interested. To request the thermal pad kit, please visit www.evga.com/thermalmod.

Any customer who is not comfortable performing the recommended VBIOS update, may request a warranty cross-shipment* to exchange the product to EVGA for an updated replacement."

It sounds like the pile on effect, there was possibly a problem with a few cards and Evga/Nvidia haters went out and made people panic.

Once flashed to the new VBIOS, all affected cards are now extremely noisy (40DB+) when playing normal games that put heavy load onto the card.

 

[Markfw]

Once flashed to the new VBIOS, all affected cards are now extremely noisy (40DB+) when playing normal games that put heavy load onto the card.

They have a tool called Xprecision. It can control the fan speed, and let you choose a target temp REGARDLESS OF THE VBIOS UPDATE OR THE COOLING PADS.

I use it and all my cards run@100% load 24/7/365 and are under 73c at all times, and I can't hear the fans. Forget articles on the web, and listen to people that HAVE the cards and use them.

I have not seen a reply like that yet here.

 

[happy medium]

Once flashed to the new VBIOS, all affected cards are now extremely noisy (40DB+) when playing normal games that put heavy load onto the card.

You don't need to flash the bios. please read my post.
Install you own free thermal pads
OR
Free new card with thermal pads.

 

[Bacon1]

If I were a 1070 owner, I'd be happy.

Really? You'd be happy that you were sold a part missing cooling parts? So should the 480 ref owners be happy they were sold cards that used more power than advertised (extra power is good!)

Sorry but no, you can be appeased by Evga's solutions but not "Happy". Having to replace a card because it might catch fire isn't something I'd ever be happy about. I'd be happy if it never had a chance of catching fire to begin with.

The amount of Db change on that bios is crazy 8.5db higher!

Having to take the card apart to install the thermal pads isn't something I'd be happy about either.

Neither is having to double down on the money to cover the EAR costs (they will charge you full price for the card and then refund it once they receive the original).

I've always though EVGA was the best and had best support and warranty, but forgetting or not wanting to spend the few cents for this part has tainted their image for me. I'll still say their support is great, but I wouldn't be happy about any of this.

 

[happy medium]

Forget articles on the web, and listen to people that HAVE the cards and use them.

Very good advice.

 

[happy medium]

Having to take the card apart to install the thermal pads isn't something I'd be happy about either.

Neither is having to double down on the money to cover the EAR costs (they will charge you full price for the card and then refund it once they receive the original).

You don't have to pay a dime to have a card cross shipped with thermal pads installed. And with the thermal pads , you wont need to ramp up the fans.
but Mark the mod says you might not have to do any of this, he don't, his cards are fine.

 

[Markfw]

You don't need to flash the bios. please read my post.
Install you own free thermal pads
OR
Free new card with thermal pads.

Or just use EVGA Xprecision, set the fan settings, listen to the card, then reply back here with your honest opinion on the noise level.

I don't care what they say about a decibel level. If in my house, I can't hear it, I don;t care what the number is.

 

[Bacon1]

Forget articles on the web, and listen to people that HAVE the cards and use them.

So we can't trust reviewers that have the cards and have tested them themselves and provided hard data?

We should believe other people that haven't done any actual testing instead? Do you have any data of how loud your cards are?

 

[Bacon1]

You don't have to pay a dime to have a card cross shipped with thermal pads installed

Source? EVGA EAR has always been an upfront cost of the card since they are cross-shipping. Otherwise there is nothing stopping you from not returning the old card and just keeping both. Once they receive the card they refund your money. Not a big deal with a high limit CC, but for those only with debit it matters.

My Source? I've used Evga EAR twice in the past

 

[Markfw]

So we can't trust reviewers that have the cards and have tested them themselves and provided hard data?

We should believe other people that haven't done any actual testing instead? Do you have any data of how loud your cards are?

No, I googled, and even at 47db, here are description of those nose levels (google it) ( http://www.asha.org/public/hearing/noise/)

50 dB = moderate rainfall

40 dB = quiet room

So somewhere louder than a quiet room and moderate rainfall. AND THATS WORST CASE SCENARIO

COULD WE PLEASE HEAR FROM OTHERS THAT ACTUALLY OWN THE CARDS AFTER KEEPING THEIR TEMPS BELOW 73C WITH XPRECISION

My point is simple. numbers do not tell everything. Example If you have a CPU that is 14nm, and another that is 22 nm, and they both perform the same, take the same amount of power and create the same amount of heat, who cares if one is 14 and one is 22 in production spec. (not saying that is the case, just a possible real life scenario)

 

[Pariah]

Source? EVGA EAR has always been an upfront cost of the card since they are cross-shipping. Otherwise there is nothing stopping you from not returning the old card and just keeping both. Once they receive the card they refund your money. Not a big deal with a high limit CC, but for those only with debit it matters.

My Source? I've used Evga EAR twice in the past

EVGA has an advanced RMA program that only requires you to provide them with a credit card number as collateral. HD makers have similar programs. If you do not send the bad product back within 30 days, they charge you MSRP for the product.

 

[Bacon1]

EVGA has an advanced RMA program that only requires you to provide them with a credit card number as collateral. HD makers have similar programs. If you do not send the bad product back within 30 days, they charge you MSRP for the product.

Thats exactly what I said it did, I've used it twice in the past.

 

[Dave2150]

Noise level is subjective. Not everyone has the same level of hearing - in fact it mostly depends on your age, since we start loosing our hearing (very slowly) from 8 years old onwards.

Here's a chart to illustrate my point:

I'm in my twenties, and I had to sell my MSI 390X due it it's noise, it was so loud at load (reported to be 40DB in reviews). There's literally no way I could bear to be in the same room while gaming with that card, even with headphones.

Hopefully gamersnexus and other review sites do comprehensive testing of noise and temperatures in a wide variety of games soon, so we have concrete numbers do go by.

Also it's only natural that owners of affected cards will be very defensive and hostile, I just hope they get this issue resolved without massively increased noise levels.

For the record, I'm currently rocking an NVIDIA 1070 FE, very pleased with it's cooling and noise levels.

 

[Markfw]

Noise level is subjective. Not everyone has the same level of hearing - in fact it mostly depends on your age, since we start loosing our hearing (very slowly) from 8 years old onwards.

Here's a chart to illustrate my point:

I'm in my twenties, and I had to sell my MSI 390X due it it's noise, it was so loud at load (reported to be 40DB in reviews). There's literally no way I could bear to be in the same room while gaming with that card, even with headphones.

Hopefully gamersnexus and other review sites do comprehensive testing of noise and temperatures in a wide variety of games soon, so we have concrete numbers do go by.

Also it's only natural that owners of affected cards will be very defensive and hostile, I just hope they get this issue resolved without massively increased noise levels.

For the record, I'm currently rocking an NVIDIA 1070 FE, very pleased with it's cooling and noise levels.

First, I don't know who has been defensive and hostile, I don;t see it, unless you think I am. Second, you actually are proving my point. Why can't we have opinions of more owners as to noise level at "cool" temps (<80c, maybe <75c)

 

[Pariah]

Thats exactly what I said it did, I've used it twice in the past.

No, you said they charge you the cost of the card up front. That is not true depending on the method of replacement you choose.

http://forums.evga.com/Advanced-RMA-return-shipping-paid-or-not-m2068464.aspx


"Advanced RMA, are usually an option for new products or once you have received an RMA product, the option is available to purchase within the first 30 days. If your product ever needs to be replaced, you simply Activate the Advanced RMA, submit the request, and enter your credit card/ bank card. Now this will only put a $1.00-$1.27 authorization on the card which will be released within 1-3 days. There is no full charge of collateral like the Std. Cross Ship. Once the card information is received, we will send out the replacement product with a pre-paid return shipping label in the box. You receive your replacement and put the defective unit in the box, attach the pre-paid return shipping label and drop off at any UPS Store. "


I highly doubt they would charge any user for this service based on the circumstances that are more of a recall than a user RMA.

 

[Lyfer]

Glad I got a MSI card instead. Two dead EVga cards in the past and now this overheating issue. Meh, I'll move on to another manufacturer.

 

[coercitiv]

First, I don't know who has been defensive and hostile, I don;t see it, unless you think I am. Second, you actually are proving my point. Why can't we have opinions of more owners as to noise level at "cool" temps (<80c, maybe <75c)

You began quoting semi-random environment noise levels and writing entire sentences in caps. We've all been there though - frustrated by forum members who conveniently ignore our experience on the subject, and while I understand your point of view and completely agree we should hear more from actual owners and their experience with the cards, the bottom line is the VBIOS update is a sure loss in terms of audio comfort for people running these things in stock mode.

To put things into context, using environment noise level as comparison point to measuring component noise levels is a risky endeavor: take the noise level of a normal conversation between 2 people, which is considered to be between 55-65dB and is obviously bearable/enjoyable since we do it all the time, then compare it with the noise level of the 290X in Uber mode as measured by Anandtech at 59dB(A). Not only would people not stand that, but would actually have a hard time having a conversation near an open bench with 290X under load. How can that be though, when conversation level seems to be even 4 times noisier than the video card? Could we have missed some things like measurement distance and noise characteristics?

As for sound sensitivity and how it affects customer experience, it wasn't until I had to tell my father and my wife I want to leave a room due to an annoying rodent repellent high pitched sound that I realized they did not hear it at all. Some people could have slept in that room, some could not spend 1 minute without obvious discomfort. And the kicker is I don't have excellent hearing either.

Seems to me though that EVGA covered almost every angle they could except sending an employee back in time to prevent the issue altogether: offer thermal pads, offer to mount thermal pads, offer to change card and offer VBIOS update that ensures one can keep the card cool even without removing it from the system.

Some people might even consider removing the backplate, but who would do such horrible horrible thing?

 

[Bigbadwu]

https://m.reddit.com/r/nvidia/comments/5aqjvb/so_i_disassembled_my_two_evga_gtx_1080_ftws/