Jump to content
Corsair Community

Corsair Obsidian 650D + 3-way SLI GTX580 cooling woes


dakotha

Recommended Posts

Hi,

 

This spring I built my new computer and really got what I wanted. I already had a moderate case with awesome cooling capability (AIR still), 2-way SLI GTX 580 and power supply to give enough juice for the cards. However I've had some rather positive experiences with 3-way SLI (8800 Ultras and GTX285s) so I went three-some again!

 

I seeked advise from different forums and got corsair 650D - which I think is a rather awesome case - and Corsair AX1200 which is also very awesome product. :). I was thinking for 800D but found out that the 650D has better air cooling capability with a big intake fan.

 

However, now when summer came, and I finally found time to do some serious gaming, I began to monitor my video card temps while playing The Witcher 2...

 

1st GPU went to 97c

2nd GPU went to 94c

3rd GPU went to 89c

 

:S

 

Removed the side panel from my case and temps went down to max 93c on 1st GPU - usually 91c. This is still much but acceptable since the cards don't have much air to breathe. I read that 97c should be the max safe temp and after this throttling takes place. With 8800s and 285s this limit was 105c. Also The Witcher 2 might be the most visually demanding game out there.

 

What confused me is that I can run my 990X @ 4.5 GHz with HT off and it really doesn't even get hot while gaming and I can run prime and LinX just fine. Also when I removed the side panel of the 650D, the air released instantly from inside of the case didn't even feel very warm but the cards do. So I guess the case cooling is doing it's job quite well?

 

How could I further improve cooling, if I remove one card the purpose of purchasing the AX1200 would also go down the drain. All fans are at max since I haven't yet changed the faulty fan controller on the 650D. I am currently thinking of adding a GT fan somehow over the three cards with zip ties so the cards could intake fresh air more effectively. Any suggestions? I just saw that there could be a mesh side panel for 650D?

 

Also I have another question about the 650D, if I went for Corsair H100 on CPU cooling, would my setup's outtake cooling become bottleneck while using 3-way SLI?

 

Is it possible to somehow mount the H100 rad outside the case while having the side panel in place (I guess not without modding)?

 

Thanks for help :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

With three huge GPU's like that you are going to have heat problems. Most of the tri-sli set-ups i have seen have gone to watercooling. It wouldn't be that hard to put a loop on just the video cards themselves. Although i know depending on which components you look at it can get quite expensive. But it is an option...
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I replaced the front 200mm fan on my 650d with a silverstone ap181 fan. It does a good job of getting air right to my 580's. I only have two of them, but my W2 temps top out around 78-79 on the top card.

 

Also, if you havent already, create a custom fan profile and dont leave the 580's fan set on auto.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Water cooling is probably the best bet right there. A 120 on the rear and a 240 on the top would get your temps to max out in the low 60's at full load.

 

You have a couple companies that offer full cover water blocks, but your 580's need to be refrence or you'll need the basic blocks plus passive heat sinks on the vrm's and ram.

 

You'll also get rid of the aweful noise video cards make at full load.

 

I say get an extra 500$, and take the plunge. You won't regret it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks everyone!

 

I tried today to add a GT 1450rpm fan into the *** of the GFX cards, but that didn't help..seems like Witcher 2 is the Furmark of all games anyway. I got the cards to unbelievable 97/93/93 degs temperatures at one area in the game. Fans were maxed out at 85%. The cards refused to begin thermal throttling though.

 

I will seek how to unlock the max fan speed for the cards, although 85% already sounds like a jet takeoff in my living room. :P Those are reference models, but "Black Ops" editions from EVGA, I don't know if EVGAs trick to unlock 100% will work with these, I have to ask them.

 

I don't have that 500 dollars/euros to put in the comp right now, since I'm planning to get married soon. Well, maybe after that.. :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks everyone!

 

I tried today to add a GT 1450rpm fan into the *** of the GFX cards, but that didn't help..seems like Witcher 2 is the Furmark of all games anyway. I got the cards to unbelievable 97/93/93 degs temperatures at one area in the game. Fans were maxed out at 85%. The cards refused to begin thermal throttling though.

 

I will seek how to unlock the max fan speed for the cards, although 85% already sounds like a jet takeoff in my living room. :P Those are reference models, but "Black Ops" editions from EVGA, I don't know if EVGAs trick to unlock 100% will work with these, I have to ask them.

 

I don't have that 500 dollars/euros to put in the comp right now, since I'm planning to get married soon. Well, maybe after that.. :D

 

Everyone brings money to a wedding. Trick is to ask for it at your bachelor party so the wifey doesn't know about the extra!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

97 for 580 SLI is crazy.. unless its really hot in your room.. whats your ambient temp?

 

my top 580 in a 650d doesnt hit 80 degrees on the witcher 2 and that's overclocked/overvolted to 900mhz/1.075V ...

 

I replaced the front 200mm fan in the 650d with an silverstone ap181 but i seriously doubt if changing out the fans would make that big of a difference.

 

Try taking out another card and see what temps you get just running the top card. Maybe the TIM needs replacing?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

97 for 580 SLI is crazy.. unless its really hot in your room.. whats your ambient temp?

 

my top 580 in a 650d doesnt hit 80 degrees on the witcher 2 and that's overclocked/overvolted to 900mhz/1.075V ...

 

I replaced the front 200mm fan in the 650d with an silverstone ap181 but i seriously doubt if changing out the fans would make that big of a difference.

 

Try taking out another card and see what temps you get just running the top card. Maybe the TIM needs replacing?

 

Ambient is about 25c.

 

Do you run vsync on or off? If always run it off.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks everyone!

 

 

I don't have that 500 dollars/euros to put in the comp right now, since I'm planning to get married soon. Well, maybe after that.. :D

 

Enjoy it now. Once you're married, it's integrated graphics for you!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Enjoy it now. Once you're married, it's integrated graphics for you!

 

Are you talking about your current situation? ::pirate::

 

Well now I think I've tested everything. Seems like my problem is due the bad or average airflow in the 650D case.

 

I can run my 3-way SLI just fine in my Three Hundred case that costs just 50 euros! However it has two Noctua NF-P12 fans in the front, one in the back, one tricool on top and one Nexus at the side. Quiet enough anyway.

 

In this Three Hundred case my cards got to a maximum of 92/88/92 degrees while testing the same area in Witcher 2. That's already much better. I think with 2-way SLI and this cheap case, my temps would be much lower. So I think the problem is with the 650D case that it just can't get enought fresh air from the front only. :!:

 

I'm looking forward to the 650D mesh panel and attach 4 fans into it if possible! I _Really_ hope a mesh panel will be released since I really like the looks of the 650D. Three Hundred looks like junk compared to it, even that it outperforms the 650D. :)

 

And by the way, I also re-tested the 650D with 2-way SLI only. I had to zip tie a GT fan into the cards, and after this the top card maxed at around 91 degrees (in the most demanding area in Witcher 2). So, again I think it's due to the bad airflow in the case.

 

Does anyone have more info about that mesh panel?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks faulkton! Really appreciate your help!

 

Looking forward to the panel, while waiting I might upgrade my NH-D14 for the H100 just for the looks ;) could also give a shot with the NH-D14 on my old QX6700 just to see how cool...I mean HOT it would run while overclocked. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You may want to consider using the alpenfohn-wing-boost 140 mm fans at the top of your case drawing in cold air from outside... they have 104 CFM @ 1100rpm so will draw plenty of air plenty of air down to your gfx cards..... they also do a 120 mm which would be great for a rear exhaust fan.

 

The ambient temps in the case are very good and the pressure you create in the case with these is impressive.

 

These are the fans i am using on my 650d and i noticed a 6 degree change on cpu and 5-10 on the GTX580. I only have 1 card running at the moment but they certainly made a noticeable difference.

 

Hope i havent put in a competitors fan on the forum, apologies if i have!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Turn on v-sync. Not only does it eliminate tearing, it will also prevent your cards overworking themselves.

 

I can't, it causes a heavy mouse lag which I really can't stand. This is more like a workaround not a solution. ::pirate::

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The only solutions you have are either limit the fps if it isn't limited already..... a lot of games limit it to 90 without v sync on so check the config file or in console..... deck out your case with as many high CFM fans as you can fit in (like the ones i suggested above) or take the plunge and water cool the gfx cards.... yes its expensive but if you're running tri sli with gtx 580's i'm sure you can stretch to a water loop to fix the problem.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Thread resurrection! :)

 

I bought Corsair H100 and after that my 580s did run a little cooler (since around 200 watts went straight through the roof now). However then my IOH temps cooked on the R3E board (already when in BIOS 95 degrees C) and I sent it in for RMA. Should get it back soon after a month, hopefully it works better this time. My cards didn't reach the throttling temp 97 anymore I think.

 

Now I've found motivation again to re-setup my 650D since the mesh panel seems not to become available..ever? I've been running 2-way SLI in my Three Hundred case, and they do run very cool. Zero problems as well..but I don't like the looks of that case at all.

 

I am going to remove both HDD cages to have no obstacles on the way. I will move my SSDs in the 5.25" bays and remove old drives. I am also going to swap the intake fan to AP181 or Megaflow. There was also a CM 166 cfm fan around, but couldn't find it for sale anywhere.

 

Question: will the Megaflow fit just fine in the old screw holes? I wouldn't want to drill my case. :) How about the AP181, could I attach it with rubber screws? Or zip ties? If I could get the AP181 in, would it be necessary to cut the front grill as well?

 

Any other suggestions? I think I also saw faulkton or someone else had an intake fan on the 5.25" bay, but how did he make the cover for it? That would be an awesome option..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sorry to hear that the Witcher 2 is poorly programmed and doesn't offer hardware mouse or FPS capping.

 

However, a quick Google gave me this:

 

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=430456

 

With that first post listing DXtory and FPSLimit as viable solutions.

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for the suggestions again. :cool:

 

However, I think limiting FPS is just a workaround and not a solution. I am not sure if W2 supports HW mouse, it actually might. I feel that using vsync it's like driving a ferrari and never exceeding 120 km/h. :) Also in some games hw mouse is not available and causes horrible lag to the mouse, it really destroys the whole gameplay experience.

 

One thing to consider is also that in the future, not all games run even at 60 fps using vsync, and heat up the cards like W2 does now with well above 100 fps. I WILL run into cooling problems once again if I don't get this sorted out (and if I still have this system).

 

Today I removed the hdd cages and moved everything out of the way I could. I only route the PCIe cables now inside the case, but not much on the way. I could run my GTX 285 3-way SLI and Furmark 15 mins on my old 790i Ultra mobo in this case now and not exceeding 100 degrees C (throttling temp for 285s is 104 C).

 

I think the main 'flaw' in the case is that the front fan cannot suck in enough fresh air from outside, or the distance between the fron fan and the cards is too big. But I've now ordered both the Megaflow and the AP181 and looking forward to them. Aww damn, I really hope this would finally fix my issues, the 650D is a really nice looking case. Hopefully Corsair still considers releasing the mesh panel, since that would solve all my problems.

 

If all else fails, I might give a shot at Corsair 500R, if the cards fit there (if 3-way SLI can be fitted into Three Hundred case just fine, why not!!) ::pirate::

 

I'll grab some pictures to better explaing myself. Really appreciate any help, I don't think I'm the only person who has some cooling problems inside the case. Even that I think there is nothing wrong with the case design for now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...