Fanless video cards use a passive cooling system with a large heat sink to dissipate heat, making them completely silent. They are now suitable for most gamers and can be installed in a case with good circulation. Major brands like Gigabyte, Pine Technologies, and Asus offer fanless cards.
A fanless video card uses a passive cooling system to dissipate heat, rather than the built-in fan of a conventional video card. A fanless video card’s cooling system consists of a large heat sink made of aluminum and other alloys, designed to draw heat away from the chips. A fanless video card is completely silent.
Video cards have gotten better in both speed and design, but as the chips work harder to process more data at ever-increasing speeds, they generate more heat. An overheated card can create artifacts or system errors or even fail. Conventional cards use a built-in fan to keep temperatures in check, but fans can be loud and distracting. Even a quiet fan raises the overall decibel level of a computer system. A fanless video card makes the system much quieter and is a must for the so-called silent computer.
In the past, there was some question about how passive graphics cooling systems actually work. The general impression was that they might be fine for non-gamers, but were insufficient to cool the chips under load. Current technology has reportedly brought the fanless video card up to par, even for most gamers. Some of the top manufacturers are producing fanless versions of their most popular game cards with solid reviews.
There are a few considerations when it comes to installing a fanless video card. The heat sink is extremely large and may block the slots on either side of the installed card. A fanless video card might even be longer than a standard card, so if your motherboard BIOS chip is nearby with its own heat sink and fan, space might be an issue. Piping is often routed to the top edge, making the card taller. Mini cases may not be compatible.
A case with a fanless video card should have a lot of circulation. The card’s heat sink will draw heat away from the chips, but if the case fans are inefficient, internal heat will build up, making the heat sink less effective.
A fanless video card can be a great way to keep a system running quieter while enjoying high-performance graphics. This is especially appreciated when watching a DVD, as fan noise can rival the quieter parts of a soundtrack. A fanless video card is also useful for systems located in shared housing or common rooms, where computer noise can distract others.
Gigabyte, Pine Technologies’ XFX cards, and Asus are just three of the major brand companies offering mid-to-high-end fanless video cards. Cards are available wherever computers are sold.
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