GPUs Graphics Reviews

EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 FTW with cooler mod and new BIOS in test

Reasons for the post-test In our Pascal Roundup: GeForce GTX 1070 and GeForce GTX 1080 we reported in great detail about the EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 FTW and the cooling problems we identified. We already had EVGA... Measurements on the gaming loop Our test demands the graphics card quite neatly and the power consumption increases to values that only a few games achieve on average in the long run. One can therefore assume that the ...

Measurements on the gaming loop

 

Our test demands the graphics card quite neatly and the power consumption increases to values that only a few games achieve on average in the long run. It can therefore be assumed that the temperature values measured in the following will also be reasonably representative and will represent the worst case. In the idle, by the way, the hotspot of our measurement is outside the graphics card, where memory and GPU remain below the 40°C mark

 

 

First of all, we look at the temperatures at the GPU diode for all three expansion stages of the thermal mod in our overview and compare this with the first measurement without mod. We can see that the temperatures without the BIOS flash are very similar, which of course is also due to the old fan curve, which was only significantly tightened with the BIOS flash.

 

 

Since these temperatures also have a direct influence on the boost and thus the achievable GPU clock, we push these measurements even further:

 

 

We see that the boost clock rates at the original fan curve are analogous to the temperature of the GPU. The normal mod by means of a thermal pad does not change anything significant at the temperatures of the GPU (and thus also the boost). Only the (quite loud) BIOS mod, which also noticeably cools the GPU, can convince here by higher achievable clock rates.

 

But this was not really the hanger for our first test in the Roundup, but the inflated temperatures in completely different places of the board. For this we now need our IR camera again.

 

Original measurements without mod

 

As a reminder, we are once again advancing the values from our Roundup, where the memory has already reached the limits of the memory specifications even in the metro loop. We are silent about the values of the Torture Loop:

 

 

We measured the card in its original condition with a mounted backplate to stay true. However, the noise level remains more or less the same in the range of possible measurement tolerances:

 

 

Measurements with the pad on the back

 

First, let's check what the pad brings between the board and the backplate alone. This can then also be used as an experience, which other cards that are badly cooled in these places might gain. In addition, it is the so-called "fear bunny" mod, in which you do not have to remove the cooler yet and thus do not have to handle thermal paste or reassemble the whole thing later.

 

We can see that both memory and voltage converter MOSFETs (VRM) are now around nine Kelvin cooler! However, the memory temperatures in the stress test are still a little high. We can also see that the temperature of the GPU socket (not the GPU) has increased. The cause is the significantly warmer backplate. Now we also know why the temperatures of the GPU diode with the pad were a little higher than the original.

 

 

Interestingly, the card is a little bit quieter, which could be due to the lower overall temperature at the GPU diode, whether the tips are slightly higher from time to time. However, 0.5 dB(A) is actually not something that could be identified as a clearly audible difference:

 

 

Measurement with pads on front and back

 

Let's put a pad on top of it and connect the top of the front plate to the large heat sink using a thermal pad. Especially the coils and the area of the VRM are now gaining significantly in performance in heat dissipation thanks to this solution. If we now look at the individual temperatures, the voltage converters are already 16 Kelvin cooler than with the original without pads. This is not only a bigger house number, but already a whole galaxy!

 

But the memory is now also relieved more clearly: Almost 15 Kelvin in the gaming loop and at least seven Kelvin in the stress test speak a clear language. Actually, this modification could already be left standing, because there are now even enough reserves for warmer days. Compared to many other cards, this EVGA card no longer has to hide.

 

 

With the thermal mod with both pads we are again on a similar level, so that one can conclude that the noise of all two pad mods is the same compared to the original.

 

 

Measurements of the complete mod with BIOS flash

 

Even if it doesn't seem necessary anymore – we still have one. And so we flash the BIOS and use the new primary BIOS from the EVGA homepage.

 

The fans now start as if there was no tomorrow, and the result is impressive. The boost clock increases a bit, the noise development unfortunately also – how strong, we will see in the measurements. First of all, the measurement of fan speeds, which increase from less than 1300 rpm in the original to over 1500 rpm. Unfortunately, this increase is expensive, as we shall see in a moment.

 

 

But if we look at the temperatures at first, then one wonders why one has not already allowed at least 100 rpm more with the original. We see the current fan curve of the new BIOS version a little too aggressively and think that half of the increase would certainly have been enough.

 

 

A whopping 25 Kelvinless at the VRM in the Gaming Loop and the stress test are a downright brutal result. The memory can also benefit again, just like the GPU. But do you even need this frost cure?

 

We now want to see what awaits us acoustically in return: With just under 41 dB(A), the card gets really audibly loud. The only positive aspect is the rather pleasing and uniform noise of the fans, which can be filtered quite well, at least in suitable housings with a suitable insulation.

 

 

A slightly more moderate curve would have positioned the map at 37 to 38 dB(A), which would still have been absolutely sufficient. Hardly anyone in Dubai sits in an unair-conditioned room at noon and plays like an obsessed Furmark. Thus, the BIOS mod deserves at least a small question mark.

 

Conclusion

 

Why not the same? There are two months between our contact at the beginning of September and now. EVGA could have reacted much earlier (much more so) in order to more actively limit the damage caused by forum reports and published user experiences by means of a more converged response. Time was wasted here, but in the end the result is in the foreground – and this in turn speaks for itself and EVGA.

 

If you operate the card in a normal environment and in an average ventilated housing, the BIOS mod is completely superfluous from our point of view. EVGA would certainly be well advised to equip the models only with the two pads after the conversion of mass production and to leave the BIOS optionally on the homepage as a further download offer. With just under 41 dB(A), which can actually be justified by nothing but a slightly higher boost clock, the card is unnecessarily loud compared to the competitors.

 

In conclusion, we can state that the thermal mod with the pads has already achieved exactly what customers want: a cooler, yet pleasantly quiet card. If you really want to have it loud and a tick faster, you could still flash the BIOS or create your own individual fan curve with the in-house EVGA Precision tool even more easily.

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About the author

Igor Wallossek

Editor-in-chief and name-giver of igor'sLAB as the content successor of Tom's Hardware Germany, whose license was returned in June 2019 in order to better meet the qualitative demands of web content and challenges of new media such as YouTube with its own channel.

Computer nerd since 1983, audio freak since 1979 and pretty much open to anything with a plug or battery for over 50 years.

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