I currently have a 7800 GT powering the video for my HTPC. It is connected to my RPTV via component cables. It's about 2-1/2 years old. The fan on the card, which is a Zalman aftermarket fan, is really loud. So loud, in fact, that my wife was complaining about it yesterday. It's not the airflow, but rather a lot of rattling. I checked to make sure everything's seated properly, and it is. It's just a loud fan.

So what do I do? Do I replace the card with a newer model like the 8600 GT or 3650? Or do I simply replace the fan with something quieter? I don't really want to spend a lot of money, so I'm leaning towards the cooling. Can anybody recommend a good fanless cooler, or at least one with a quiet fan? If I updated the video card, will I see any benefit whatsoever?

I do very little gaming on that PC, even though I thought I would when I first put it together. 75% of it's usage is watching recorded TV, 20% is watching DVD's, and the rest is listening to music.

Any advice?

Thanks,
Chris

The fan on the card, which is a Zalman aftermarket fan, is really loud. So loud, in fact, that my wife was complaining about it yesterday. It's not the airflow, but rather a lot of rattling. I checked to make sure everything's seated properly, and it is. It's just a loud fan.The bearings are probably worn out, which often happens to small cheap fans after a year or two.

Since you are using an aftermarket fan, I take it you have already removed the stock panel and have RAM sinks or such, so it's just a matter of finding a heat sink for the core.

If you don't want fan noise at all, there are some aftermarket passive video coolers you can look at.

Or, if you want a $0 passive cooling solution and you don't stress the card much, look around for an old CPU heat sink and attach it by drilling holes to line up with the card's mounting holes or by using epoxy and zip ties. If you do this, make sure there is some air flow from a case fan over the card (e.g., an exhaust fan that is sitting close to it) and monitor the heat levels. You can further reduce heat by underclocking the card and tweaking down the voltage.

You could try replacing the fan, though that might turn out to be more work than you expected. I beleive most zalman coolers use 80mm x 15mm fans; those are pretty easy to find online. You would have to modify the fan frame to get it to fit in.

If you feel like getting a new cooler, I would recommend the Arctic Cooling Accelero S1. It goes for between $20 and $30 and is compatible with the 7800GT (according to the arctic cooling website).

If you upgrade your card, you would get the newer video acceleration implementations. The nVidia 7xxx series has Purevideo 1, which handles only some of the video decoding process. The newer implementations, like Purevideo 2 (from nVidia) and UVD (from ATI/AMD), handle more of the video decoding process, reducing CPU load during video playback.

If you feel like getting a new cooler, I would recommend the Arctic Cooling Accelero S1. It goes for between $20 and $30 and is compatible with the 7800GT (according to the arctic cooling website).

I did exactly this after checking out silentpcreview. I bought one from NewEgg, so I'll see it an a few days. Thanks for the help.

Chris