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We have changed our method of measuring noise levels. We have built a system inside a Lian Li chassis with no case fans and have used a fanless cooler on our CPU. We are using a heatpipe based passive power supply and an Intel SSD to keep noise levels to a minimum. The motherboard is also passively cooled. This gives us a build with completely passive cooling and it means we can measure noise of just the graphics card inside the system when we run looped 3dMark tests.
Ambient noise in the room is around 20-25dBa. We measure from a distance of around 1 meter from the closed chassis and 4 foot from the ground to mirror a real world situation.
Why do this? Well this means we can eliminate secondary noise pollution in the test room and concentrate on only the video card. It also brings us slightly closer to industry standards, such as DIN 45635.
KitGuru noise guide
10dBA – Normal Breathing/Rustling Leaves
20-25dBA – Whisper
30dBA – High Quality Computer fan
40dBA – A Bubbling Brook, or a Refridgerator
50dBA – Normal Conversation
60dBA – Laughter
70dBA – Vacuum Cleaner or Hairdryer
80dBA – City Traffic or a Garbage Disposal
90dBA – Motorcycle or Lawnmower
100dBA – MP3 player at maximum output
110dBA – Orchestra
120dBA – Front row rock concert/Jet Engine
130dBA – Threshold of Pain
140dBA – Military Jet takeoff/Gunshot (close range)
160dBA – Instant Perforation of eardrum
When idle, the card is almost silent, however the fan quickly spins up to compensate for rising temperatures when loaded. The fan profile is specifically tailored to be aggressive. The reference AMD cooler is much louder than the Nvidia GTX680 solution, although we are confident that AMD partners such as Sapphire will release custom solutions to rectify this problem. Until AMD ditch the tiny red fans and use heatpipe coolers this is always going to be a problem.
I dont get it… i may be a little dumb here, i dont get it, i bought a 7970 Black edition card which was OC’d to 1Ghz + on the core, and had dual fan cooling when the 7970 was released ages ago now.. so whats different, and what would i be getting extra for my money now?
fair review, seems like a good card, and i love AMD hardware, but yeah the reference coolers do not impress. Sapphire should make a great version with heatpipes, two fans etc.
Interesting to see the power concumption has increased. I doubt it will hit £400, probably closer to £430.
id wait for sapphire or XFX models, with improved coolers, they normally can match the reference card price.
Yeah im not sold on this, its going to cost too much for what you get. Nvidia OC 570s are much better value for similar performance.
@muppit.
Basically very little apart from a worse cooler and slighty faster memory…
its alright. but whats the big deal? bring out a new card with a better cooler or something. clock it higher? not very creative.
problem is, amd`s heads are a bunch of cowboys in suits because: for amd to survive, it needs a CEO like nvidia, someone who knows gpu`s or even something about games… i bet Rory has never played a game, so what would he know about coolers, fans, temps and performance? relying on AIB`s or OEM`s will get you bankrupt..wait & see AMD.
not only is Rory going to kill amd but the whole amd crew is going to, bcoz none of them seem to have any clue.