MSI GTX 670 Power Edition OC (Twin Frozr IV) Review

1. Introduction2. MSI GTX 670 Power Edition OC3. MSI GTX 670 Power Edition OC (Super High Res Gallery)4. Testing Methodology5. Synthetic: Unigine Heaven Benchmark6. Synthetic: 3DMark Vantage7. Synthetic: 3DMark 118. Synthetic: HQV Benchmark 2.09. Gaming: F1 201110. Gaming: Alien V Predator11. Gaming: Tom Clancy HAWX 212. Gaming: Resident Evil 513. Gaming: Far Cry 214. Gaming: Total War Shogun 2 (720p and 1080p)15. Gaming: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim16. Gaming: Battlefield 317. Technical: Thermal Dynamics18. Technical: Acoustics Performance19. Technical: Power Consumption20. Technical: Overclocking21. Closing Thoughts22. View All Pages

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

The MSI GTX670 Power Edition OC is a very quiet card, almost silent when idle, with the fans spinning around 1,110 rpm. When gaming, they spin up to around 1,900 rpm. At these speeds the solution emits around 35.7 dBa. When under synthetic Furmark load, the fans spin a little higher, at 2,100 rpm. This raises the noise levels a little more, to around 36.3 dBa.

It is audible under load and not the quietest solution we have tested, but it is never intrusive. I do feel they could have traded slightly higher temperatures for a little less noise.

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