Which card is the quietest?

[merin]

Hi

I've currently got a 8800GTS that makes a lot of noise.
In fact, it is the only component in my case that is making noticable noise.

So I've been looking at different cards with an extra focus on getting the one that is the most quiet one without having to install a custom cooler on my own.

My monitor: 22 inch, running 1680x1050.

I've pretty much narrowed down my choices to these 3 cards:

Sapphire HD4890 Vapor-X
MSI N275GTX Twin Frozr OC
ATI 5850 (producer doesn't matter since they all still have the reference cooler)

Which one of these is the best when it comes to noise-level?

I've read that the 4890 cards gets a lot hotter than the GTX275...

Is it worth chosing the GTX275 just to get PhysX?

I hardly think it's worth getting the 5850 because of the reference coolers.
Besides, I'm not a totally hardcore gamer and DirectX11-support doesn't really matter for me. But what do you guys think?
If Sapphire released a 5850 Vapor-X it would certainly get interresting!

For the record: I won't be overclocking regardless of what card I get.

I've read countless of reviews and I need some advice to tip me in either direction!

 

[merin]

Oh, and I'd like to add this card to the equation:

Asus ENGTX275

I've heard it's supposed to be just as quiet as the one from MSI an maybe more.
But I haven't been able to find any firm information about the noise levels on the Asus.

Anyone have any experience with this card?

I've also made a thread on overclock.net regarding this same topic, but I haven't decided on which card to get yet. You can find it here: http://www.overclock.net/graph...-4890-one-quieter.html

 

[MagickMan]

The quietest? The MSI Twin Frozr.

 

[merin]

sorry for being difficult MagickMan, but why is MSI the quietest?

 

[MagickMan]

It's cooling system is pretty amazing, it's one of the quietest (and most effective) OEM coolers on the market.

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com...si-sparkle-bfg-24.html

 

[merin]

yeah, I read that review too, but it doesn't say how well it does compared to the ASUS, the 4890 Vapor-X or even the 5850...
that kind of comparrison is what i'm looking for or trying to create

 

[error8]

God, to have the money to get a 5850, a card that is faster then GTX 285 and much faster then both 4890 and 275, and to avoid it just because it has the reference cooler, it's beyond my comprehension abilities.
Read reviews merin, read many of them. For example this one http://www.guru3d.com/article/...850-review-crossfire/9.

Cited from it: "The card however remains steady at roughly 41~42 dBA which really is a very normal noise level. Not annoying at all. So that's good as well." But it really ends up to what you mean by "I'm not a hardcore gamer", so maybe you need a slower card.

 

[merin]

I've read a lot of the reviews of the 5850, including the one you linked error8. It's just that noise is a really big deal for me when deciding which card to get.

"not a hardcore gamer" in my case means, not interrested in the most graphics heavy games like crysis etc. The only games I know for sure that I'm going to play in the future is SC2 and Diablo3, which both will be DirectX9-games according to Blizzard.

I guess it will come down to weather I want to sacrifice a bit of noise to get a card that performs better. But before making that decision I want to know which of the GTX275 and 4890 cards that is the quietest.

 

[error8]

Then I'd guess any of those two you've listed would be just fine, in terms of noise and performance. The Vapour-X cooler from Sapphire is known for it's efficiency in noise/cooling ratio and the MSI GTX 275 seem to also have a very efficient cooler. It's really hard to recommend one card over the other. It comes down to what brand you like more, Nvidia or ATi.

 

[jlee]

I haven't noticed significant noise from my Vapor-X 4890. FWIW.

 

[evolucion8]

Well, if you aren't a hardcore gamer, instead of investing in a new card which is overpowered for your needs, why don't you buy a VGA cooler? Is cheaper and will work like a champ for your card.

 

[Forumpanda]

If your not a hardcore gamer then get the card with lowest idle power usage, really, you can just set the fans speed at idle manually to the point where it is inaudible. (which it generally is as a default).

At this point I consider idle noise from graphic cards a non issue (and I'm very anti-noise), and noise under load is really just a matter of tweaking the fan profile yourself (and not being one of the people who think 80C is going to make your computer die in 2 weeks).

Personally I'd get the 5850 for longevity (DX11 is more than games) and low idle power usage, and I don't think its a close decision.

However, given your needs I would suggest you wait (1 week) for the 57x0, even lower idle power usage, lower price, and plenty of performance, even for the occasional game.

 

[aequasi]

a cost-free solution? turn up your sound on ur computer so u cant hear the cards

 

[merin]

Originally posted by: evolucion8
Well, if you aren't a hardcore gamer, instead of investing in a new card which is overpowered for your needs, why don't you buy a VGA cooler? Is cheaper and will work like a champ for your card.

My current card is almost broken, so I need a new one anyway

 

[KIAman]

Get an HD4850 ($95) and an Accelero V1R2($25) passive cooler. No noise.

 

[AmdInside]

I do audio recording in my office so I went through a lot of pain getting my system very quiet. Once you get to that point, you start to really hate noisy systems.

 

[s44]

Has anyone tried Accelero-modding a 5850??

 

[lyssword]

Originally posted by: KIAman
Get an HD4850 ($95) and an Accelero V1R2($25) passive cooler. No noise.

 

[Elfear]

Originally posted by: s44
Has anyone tried Accelero-modding a 5850??

It has the same mounting holes as the 4800 series cards so an Accelero should work just fine. Just make sure the PWMs and ram have heatsinks and you'd be golden.

 

[SlowSpyder]

Running F@H now, GPU @ 99% utilization. Temp is 55C, fan at 47%. I don't know how quiet the other cards in your list run at, but I can atest to the fact that anything under 50% fan speed is very minimaly noisey.

 

[merin]

Originally posted by: SlowSpyder
Running F@H now, GPU @ 99% utilization. Temp is 55C, fan at 47%. I don't know how quiet the other cards in your list run at, but I can atest to the fact that anything under 50% fan speed is very minimaly noisey.

sorry for asking, but what is F@H ?

 

[RussianSensation]

MSI 4890 becomes noticeable once the fan speed exceeds 30%. So if you want a quiet card, 4890 is not it.

I heard Vapor-X cards are a lot better though.

However, ATI fixed the loud fan on the 5850.

5850 = 42.8 dB vs. 4890 = 50.8 dB

 

[fleshconsumed]

Originally posted by: Elfear

Originally posted by: s44
Has anyone tried Accelero-modding a 5850??

It has the same mounting holes as the 4800 series cards so an Accelero should work just fine. Just make sure the PWMs and ram have heatsinks and you'd be golden.

There is a thread about it on SPCR. Someone is trying to fit S1 on 5850 already. There are minor fitting issues with DVI ports, but I believe nothing major. I haven't read the SPCR thread too closely though because I'm not looking to upgrade right now.

 

[yacoub]

Originally posted by: merin

Originally posted by: evolucion8
Well, if you aren't a hardcore gamer, instead of investing in a new card which is overpowered for your needs, why don't you buy a VGA cooler? Is cheaper and will work like a champ for your card.

My current card is almost broken, so I need a new one anyway

Define "almost broken". Aside from the fan, which is the only moving part and which would be replaced by swapping in an aftermarket cooling solution, there's nothing that can be "almost broken" unless you have busted capacitors or something.

 

[SlowSpyder]

Originally posted by: merin

Originally posted by: SlowSpyder
Running F@H now, GPU @ 99% utilization. Temp is 55C, fan at 47%. I don't know how quiet the other cards in your list run at, but I can atest to the fact that anything under 50% fan speed is very minimaly noisey.

sorry for asking, but what is F@H ?

Folding @ Home on the GPU.