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digiology2 · Apr 13, 2004, 07:48 PM

Hi I have a GeForce4 MX that came with my Digital Audio G4, my mac is really noisy and i'd like to replace it with a new fan but does anyone know if my graphics card has a fan?
If so are there any quieter cards out there (agp if possible) or cards with no fans, I'd want a simular performance to the GeForce4 MX.

Cheers

rag on a muffin · Apr 13, 2004, 11:03 PM

heh. dont get the geforce fx 5600 (i think) it takes 2 slots and sounds like a blowdryer!!

digiology2 · Apr 14, 2004, 08:44 AM

so my card does have a fan, yeah? Are there any without fans?

Leonard · Apr 14, 2004, 01:56 PM

Why don't shut down the computer, open it up and see if it has a fan? It takes only a couple minutes to check. It could be one of the computer fans making the noise rather than the graphics card.

Peter · Apr 15, 2004, 07:10 AM

Originally posted by digiology2:
so my card does have a fan, yeah? Are there any without fans?

Yeah, there are a lot without fans... but they're usually crap performance. It is possible to replace the Graphics fans, Zalman and Vantec both make new fans, they're MUCH quieter, I know they fit the ATi Radeon 9*** series, and there are some Nvidia replacements...

digiology2 · Apr 15, 2004, 08:14 AM

I just opened my mac and looked, it doesn't seem like the card has a fan, but there is a huge fan next to it blowing onto the entire motherboard. There is one on the power supply too. Which would be best to replace? (best meaning safest or easier or quieter)

FurionStormrage · Apr 15, 2004, 12:28 PM

Originally posted by digiology2:
I just opened my mac and looked, it doesn't seem like the card has a fan, but there is a huge fan next to it blowing onto the entire motherboard. There is one on the power supply too. Which would be best to replace? (best meaning safest or easier or quieter)

DO NOT attempt to replace the fan in the power supply. If that's the fan that went you'll need to replace the power supply.

The fan blowing on the motherboard looks like a standard 120 mm fan. You should be able to replace that one (looking at my open case).

::maroma:: · Apr 15, 2004, 04:02 PM

I too would highly recommend NOT replacing the fan in your Power Supply. I had my fan get REALLY noisy, and thought about replacing it myself, but read some really bad stories. You could really get hurt if you aren't extremely careful. I ended up replacing my whole Power Supply, and it's whisper quiet again.

digiology2 · Apr 15, 2004, 04:03 PM

right, so any 120mm fan will work yeah? Do I have to worry about power consumption, connection interfaces or anything like that? I take it most of the companies that sell fans would be sellingthem to pc users, will this be a problem?

What about dampening materials and other little things that might help? Yay, if this works I wont have to sell my mac for a while.

FurionStormrage · Apr 15, 2004, 10:49 PM

Originally posted by digiology2:
right, so any 120mm fan will work yeah? Do I have to worry about power consumption, connection interfaces or anything like that? I take it most of the companies that sell fans would be sellingthem to pc users, will this be a problem?

What about dampening materials and other little things that might help? Yay, if this works I wont have to sell my mac for a while.

If I were you, I would take the existing fan out and bring it into a PC supply shop. DON'T tell them it's from a Mac; you'll just get a blank stare. Ask them to help you find a replacement that's similar. Since you are already having issues with noise, specify that you want a quiet replacement. The nice thing about 120 mm fans is they can spin a LOT slower than 80 mm fans for the same movement of air (rated as CFM -- Cubit Feet per Minute). This means that you are more likely to find a quieter fan.

Bringing the fan in will help you 1) get the fan with the correct connector on it, and 2) allow you to match the electrical requirements to your existing fan. This should help not overload your Mac.

It should be obvious that you want to replace the mainboard fan instead of the power supply. The mainboard fan is a lot cheaper than a whole power supply unit. Before going to the trouble of removing and buying a mainboard fan, open your case and unplug the mainboard fan and turn it on to see if you have the same noise. If the noise disappears then you have probably isolated the problem to that fan.

Good luck!

Edit: You should be able to find inert materials that you can place in between the fan and the case that will dampen the noise even further. Ask the supplier to help. They are always eager to sell you something else.