gfx card for GA-G31M-S2L?

Spiff · 16th August 2008, 7:59 PM

Hi there,

I'm building a sff system at the moment and i've put a 9800GT (free upgrade from an 8800GT) onto a Gigabyte GA-G31M-S2L motherboard inside a Thermaltake Lanbox.

The other only card I've got at the moment is a tv tuner card.

I've found after installation that I've lost the use of one PCI slot due to the fan on the 9800GT.

Are there any alternative cards without a fan that performs as well; are there any cards or mods that will turn the fan/card the opposite side? (Although I think if I do that, I"ll get the PCI, but I'll lose the PCIe slot).

Or.. is this something I have to live with?

thanks.
spiff

SLATYE · 16th August 2008, 8:51 PM

The HD 4850 only needs a single-slot cooler. As long as the card next to it is reasonably short (so it doesn't block the fan intake) then that should be fine. The 9600GT would also be a perfectly good alternative if you don't need a really high-performance card.

426 Hemi · 16th August 2008, 11:50 PM

I would recommend against using a HD 4850 in the TTLanbox as they run very hot. I would go for a 9600GT if you need a single slot that is still a decent performer but runs a lot cooler than the ATI cards do.

Spiff · 17th August 2008, 12:11 AM

i've spent th past few hours looking at gfx cards.

it's really difficult to find any meaningful size measurements of the cards.
i'm assuming then that the 9600gt will give me use of the 2nd pci slot?

i notice you've got a lanbox too.

what psu and gfx card do u use in it?

i'm not much of a gamer, but i would like a card that can gve decent video as i want to use it for creating videos and playing some minor games.

Spiff · 17th August 2008, 12:21 AM

i've just had a look at the 9600gt.
the first link that came up was the nvidia site.
i then had a look at the 9800gt, and from the pictures, it seems that both cards seem to have the same profile.

i'm assuming that cards of different brands have a difference in profiles. the one i have at the moment, which was recommended to me, was the gigabyte 9800gt, but it has a massive fan which takes up the space of another slot.

does anyone know for sure that the 9800gt from nvidia is a much lower profile? also noticed that the photos for the 9600gt from nvidia, http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_9600gt.html, seems to be really close to the next slot.

426 Hemi · 17th August 2008, 12:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spiff

i've spent th past few hours looking at gfx cards.

it's really difficult to find any meaningful size measurements of the cards.
i'm assuming then that the 9600gt will give me use of the 2nd pci slot?

i notice you've got a lanbox too.

what psu and gfx card do u use in it?

i'm not much of a gamer, but i would like a card that can gve decent video as i want to use it for creating videos and playing some minor games.

PSU: Corsair HX620
GFX: 8800GTS 320MB

Spiff · 17th August 2008, 1:09 AM

do u lose any of your other slots with the 8800gts?
i.e. takes up the space of 2 slots.

i'm currently considering either the 9600gt or 9800gt, but in a brand that gives a lower profile. leadtek and nvidia seem to be one of the lowest compared to gigabyte.

426 Hemi · 17th August 2008, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spiff

do u lose any of your other slots with the 8800gts?
i.e. takes up the space of 2 slots.

i'm currently considering either the 9600gt or 9800gt, but in a brand that gives a lower profile. leadtek and nvidia seem to be one of the lowest compared to gigabyte.

I sure do lose a slot but as I don't use them anyway it's no big deal for me.

If you need to use the slots you will need to look for a single slot cooler card. I would also suggest not going a passive cooled performance card as the TTLanbox can get quite hot inside.

I myself have replaced the front 90mm fan with a Thermaltake 9cm Smart Case Fan Version 2.

http://www.techbuy.com.au/p/67654/CO...CFAN-SM9-2.asp

If it gets to hot inside I just turn the fan up to cool it down. It also makes a lot of noise on full but when I'm at a LAN with my headphones on it does not bother me.

I also removed the honeycomb grill from the front of the case to help cut down on noise and increase airflow. I have also removed the bottom HDD cage to allow better airflow through the case.

16th August 2008, 7:59 PM	#1
Spiff Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Perth, WhereisOZ Posts: 100	gfx card for GA-G31M-S2L? Hi there, I'm building a sff system at the moment and i've put a 9800GT (free upgrade from an 8800GT) onto a Gigabyte GA-G31M-S2L motherboard inside a Thermaltake Lanbox. The other only card I've got at the moment is a tv tuner card. I've found after installation that I've lost the use of one PCI slot due to the fan on the 9800GT. Are there any alternative cards without a fan that performs as well; are there any cards or mods that will turn the fan/card the opposite side? (Although I think if I do that, I"ll get the PCI, but I'll lose the PCIe slot). Or.. is this something I have to live with? thanks. spiff

16th August 2008, 8:51 PM	#2
SLATYE SLATYE, not SLAYTE Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Canberra Posts: 21,040	The HD 4850 only needs a single-slot cooler. As long as the card next to it is reasonably short (so it doesn't block the fan intake) then that should be fine. The 9600GT would also be a perfectly good alternative if you don't need a really high-performance card. __________________ Main system: Pentium-D 805 \| 1GB (2x 512MB) PQI DDR400 \| Gigabyte 8I865GMK-775 \| Xtreama Radeon 9800Pro with Zalman ZM-80HP-D \| 320GB WD SATA HDD \| Antec SmartPower 2.0 500w Laptop: Compal EL80 \| C2D T7200 \| 320GB Fujistu HDD \| 2GB DDR2-667 \| GF Go 7600

16th August 2008, 11:50 PM	#3
426 Hemi Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Sydney Posts: 67	I would recommend against using a HD 4850 in the TTLanbox as they run very hot. I would go for a 9600GT if you need a single slot that is still a decent performer but runs a lot cooler than the ATI cards do. __________________ Fear is the killer of dreams. Successful trades: ALx, charithjperera, mitch79, aussie-revhead, hendot, Saiyan_Overlord, yaphax, cmanc, not4us.

17th August 2008, 12:11 AM	#4
Spiff Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Perth, WhereisOZ Posts: 100	i've spent th past few hours looking at gfx cards. it's really difficult to find any meaningful size measurements of the cards. i'm assuming then that the 9600gt will give me use of the 2nd pci slot? i notice you've got a lanbox too. what psu and gfx card do u use in it? i'm not much of a gamer, but i would like a card that can gve decent video as i want to use it for creating videos and playing some minor games.

17th August 2008, 12:21 AM	#5
Spiff Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Perth, WhereisOZ Posts: 100	i've just had a look at the 9600gt. the first link that came up was the nvidia site. i then had a look at the 9800gt, and from the pictures, it seems that both cards seem to have the same profile. i'm assuming that cards of different brands have a difference in profiles. the one i have at the moment, which was recommended to me, was the gigabyte 9800gt, but it has a massive fan which takes up the space of another slot. does anyone know for sure that the 9800gt from nvidia is a much lower profile? also noticed that the photos for the 9600gt from nvidia, http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforce_9600gt.html, seems to be really close to the next slot.

17th August 2008, 1:09 AM	#7
Spiff Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Perth, WhereisOZ Posts: 100	do u lose any of your other slots with the 8800gts? i.e. takes up the space of 2 slots. i'm currently considering either the 9600gt or 9800gt, but in a brand that gives a lower profile. leadtek and nvidia seem to be one of the lowest compared to gigabyte.