To slice and dice my GPU, or not....?

[Alceste]

I have built a new HTCP, and the case (Silverstone LC17) allows for two 92mm fans up front to cool the Hard drives...which is all well and good....but this pushes back the HHDs so much that they touch my 4670 isilence graphics card. Specifically, the giant heatsink.

So, my question is:

On this card ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161266 ) I am considering cutting off (with a dremel?) about an inch of the fins to make room for the HHDs. I am wondering what unforeseen ill-effects this may have. I would assume the heat dissipation would suffer....but just how much? Enough to damage the card under load? The card is passive, fanless, but there is decent airflow in the case.

Is this a mod worth considering, or is it bat-**** crazy?

Here is a side-on view of the card. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/ImageGallery.aspx?CurImage=14-161-266-S03&ISList=14-161-266-S01%2c14-161-266-S02%2c14-161-266-S03%2c14-161-266-S04%2c14-161-266-S05&S7ImageFlag=1&Item=N82E16814161266&Depa=0&WaterMark=1&Description=HIS%20H467P1GP%20Radeon%20HD%204670%20 1GB%20128-bit%20GDDR3%20PCI%20Express%202.0%20x16%20HDCP%20R eady%20iSilence%204%20Video%20Card)

What I am looking to do is shave the blue fins completely off the right side, straight down even with the edge of the card itself.

Any takers?

[diluzio91]

i dont think itll be an issue. if you are really worried maybe put a low speed slim fan on it too.

[x88x]

So, for clarification, you want to cut off the fans sticking off the back? It took me writing a long post about how cutting off all the heatsink blades was a horrible idea, and how on earth do they run into the HDDs, before I realized that's probably what you meant. :P ..of course, I'm not running on much sleep right now, so that may have something to do with it...

So, basically what you're wanting to end up with is this?:
http://i428.photobucket.com/albums/qq3/x13931x/H467P1GP_mod.png

If that's right, it should be ok. Just make sure you monitor the temps for a while to make sure it's not overheating. You also might want to look into underclocking the card a little if it has problems with those fins cut off.

[blueonblack]

I second the idea of low-profile fans instead of cutting the heat sink fins. Not sure how much space you need to keep them from touching, but these (http://www.xpcgear.com/sy1012sl12l.html) are only 12mm thick and they work well.

[Alceste]

So, basically what you're wanting to end up with is this?:
http://i428.photobucket.com/albums/qq3/x13931x/H467P1GP_mod.png


Yes, exactly that...thank you for the photoshop that I was too lazy to do myself!

Although now that those slim scythe fans have been pointed out, I might try going with those. I MAY be able to squeeze those in front of the HHDs without having to mutilate to GPU, though I would then have to drill new holes in the HDD bays to take advantage of the slim fans. The brackets that house the HDDS only have have screw holes for two different spacing.

If anyone is still interested in what I am talking about, a good review of the Silverstone LC17 is here (http://www.silentpcreview.com/article772-page3.html), and at the bottom of the page you can see what I am working with.

Thanks for the advice guys.

[mDust]

i dont think itll be an issue. if you are really worried maybe put a low speed slim fan on it too.

This will work if you still decide to chop it up. Cooling performance will suffer a bit due to less surface area contact with the air. However, if you force more air to contact a smaller surface area, the same effect will be achieved. Get the quietest fan you can find and point it at the passive heatsink.

[x88x]

This will work if you still decide to chop it up. Cooling performance will suffer a bit due to less surface area contact with the air. However, if you force more air to contact a smaller surface area, the same effect will be achieved. Get the quietest fan you can find and point it at the passive heatsink.

/\ This.

[chaksq]

Although now that those slim scythe fans have been pointed out, I might try going with those. I MAY be able to squeeze those in front of the HHDs without having to mutilate to GPU, though I would then have to drill new holes in the HDD bays to take advantage of the slim fans. The brackets that house the HDDS only have have screw holes for two different spacing.
Well if you are willing to cut into you GPU heatsink I don't see any reason to fret over modifying the case or HD cage.

[Alceste]

Well here's a curious thought....what if I took the portion(s) that I shave off, and soldered them to another location on the heatsink? Hmm, or would the solder melt and/or not conduct the heat appropriately? If so, what would be the best way to attach it?

Or could you take a different heatsink, say from a different card or CPU cooler, and jimmy-rig it on the current one to form your own custom super-passive heatsink? Anyone ever seen that done?

I know it would be simpler and more sensible to simply slap a nice little fan on, but just...theoretically....

[mDust]

Well here's a curious thought....what if I took the portion(s) that I shave off, and soldered them to another location on the heatsink? Hmm, or would the solder melt and/or not conduct the heat appropriately? If so, what would be the best way to attach it?

Or could you take a different heatsink, say from a different card or CPU cooler, and jimmy-rig it on the current one to form your own custom super-passive heatsink? Anyone ever seen that done?

I know it would be simpler and more sensible to simply slap a nice little fan on, but just...theoretically....

In theory, yes, you could do that. In theory. Just in theory.:D
To get any benefit out of doing that, you'd have to solder them back onto one of the heatpipes...which would be difficult as they already have fins soldered to them in an optimal spacing. You might also look into the thermal conductivity of the solder you're using. And after all that, the gains would be minimal.
It's too great of a PITA to justify action beyond hypothetical thinking.

[Alceste]

UPDATE:

I did in fact choose to take a dremel to the heatsink and slice off about an inch worth of fins, just like in the picture above.

Reinstalled the card and it seems to be working just fine. Looks like it is idling at about 50C, pushing 60 after a little load....unfortunately I didn't think to check the temps before the hack-job, but I would bet it was around that beforehand.

That seems like an acceptable temp for a fanless GPU to me! Not a gaming rig, just HTPC, so I'm not too worried.

[mDust]

UPDATE:

I did in fact choose to take a dremel to the heatsink and slice off about an inch worth of fins, just like in the picture above.

Reinstalled the card and it seems to be working just fine. Looks like it is idling at about 50C, pushing 60 after a little load....unfortunately I didn't think to check the temps before the hack-job, but I would bet it was around that beforehand.

That seems like an acceptable temp for a fanless GPU to me! Not a gaming rig, just HTPC, so I'm not too worried.
Success! Now make it look cool!:D