Testing (continued):
GPU Temperature:
The GPU temperatures were monitored by running CPUID's HWMonitor within Windows Vista Home Premium. The idle condition was established by recording the temperature after letting the system sit at the Window's desktop for at least 30 minutes with only HWMonitor running. The load condition was established by running 3DMark Vantage two times back-to-back, followed by two back-to-back sessions of the DirectX 9 version of the Devil May Cry benchmark. HWMonitor logs current, minimum, and maximum temperature, so once both rounds of testing were completed, the maximum temperature was recorded. All testing was completed on an open testbed with relatively still air in a room with an ambient temperature of 20C.
What we see is that although the three cards start out around the same temperature in the 40C range, when loaded up the GTX260 EXTREME+ reaches the highest temperature of the three.
One factor that could contribute to this is that the cooler's fan is extremely quiet. In my experience, coolers like this are generally louder, especially as the fan adjusts to compensate for more heat. The fan on the Leadtek card remained whisper quiet the whole time, and even though it was the hottest, 75C is not extreme.
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