Burned out vid card fan

[Vigil80]

I discovered this evening that the fan on my HD4870 had burned out. I got it through my thick skull after my machine cut itself off a few times from overheating when trying to run a game. I've since removed the vestigial fan, so I'm (nervously) running with just the heat sink. Needless to say, my activities are curbed until I get it patched up.

Recommended brand? Model? While I'm at it, I intend to replace all the fans in my case. My machine is entirely too loud, and most of the other fans are older than this failed one was.

Thanks for reading.

[RandoM51]

Which brand is it and when did you purchase it? It might still be under warranty. The Asus 4870s were prone to early fan failure but since they're covered by a 3-year warranty it isn't a big deal to get a replacement if you're still in the warranty period.

I'd go with an Arctic Cooling Accelero Twin Turbo Pro. Think I might even order one of these myself in the not-so-distant future.

[Vigil80]

I bought it last July. HIS is the company.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161269

As you said, numerous reviews of the product report the fan giving out. They also report HIS support not being terribly good. The money they'd charge for shipping to send me the same kind of fan would probably be better spent on one of my own choosing.

Unfortunately, the end of the card is right next to the SATA ports, so I don't think I have room for a cooler that runs the length of the card. You can see how close things are.

http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/444/1313118204.jpg

For my next build, I'm getting a case the size of a refrigerator, and a nice, sprawling motherboard...

[BrassGecko]

For my next build, I'm getting a case the size of a refrigerator, and a nice, sprawling motherboard...

Get a case that IS a refrigerator and worry less about fans and cooling!

[Voodoo]

How about one of these?

http://www.svc.com/fan-acces1.html

[RandoM51]

Get a case that IS a refrigerator and worry less about fans and cooling!

...and worry more about condensation. :D

[Vigil80]

How about one of these?

http://www.svc.com/fan-acces1.html
I had looked at that, but there's an asterisk next to my card model that says "*Turbo Module, or a fan is required for these cards." :(
Back where I started.

[BrassGecko]

...and worry more about condensation. :D

Okay, it's not a perfect plan.

[Thanasimos]

Okay, it's not a perfect plan.

Fridge with a dehumidifier inside, on the other hand. . .

[Vigil80]

Given that it appears I'll be spending ~$40 to find a decent heat solution, assuming I can find one, I'm wondering if I shouldn't just put that ~$40 toward a whole other card. We seem to be on the cusp of another generation of cards, which means falling prices on the previous generation, or a shiny new one from the next.

I'm rather missing my PC gaming, though...

All the options I find on Newegg either don't seem to be compatible with my card, or won't fit in the space I have. Why oh why couldn't Asus have put the video card's PCI slot on the bottom?

Edit:
I've gone with a Zalman VF900 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118001). Not the most premium option, but I wanted something I could be more or less sure would fit without a lot of fuss. It isn't as if I'm looking to do any aggressive overclocking. It should be at least as sufficient as the stock cooler. If I can get a few more months out of this card with it while I put money back for an upgrade, it'll be worth it.

I was very tempted by the two Arctic Cooling suggestions, however. I was prepared to try out the Accelero, and order some new SATA cables along with it and try to make it all fit. Probably would have gone through with it had Newegg not been out of stock at the time. When I started looking at new 6870s and GTX 470s, I knew my patience was wearing thin and I'd better hurry and order a new cooler. :p

[Doogie2K]

I had a similar problem (the fan made grindy noises, so it was on its way out), so I sent it back to XFX and after a few weeks of running gimped on a 4550, they sent me back a shiny new 4890. So...you could go that route.

[Vigil80]

Sadly, I wasn't choosy enough when I bought this one. HIS is not so determined to please, apparently. The next card I buy will be from a company like XFX for sure.

It's just as well. The stock cooler was never great. I should have replaced it long before now.