Sparkle 8800 GT Passive: The Fastest Silent GPU in the World
by Anand Lal Shimpi on November 29, 2007 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- GPUs
Final Words
We're impressed. Usually HTPCers have to make a tremendous tradeoff when picking a graphics card, more often than not they're stuck with a pretty fast, but still mid-range GPU. With the 8800 GT, we have a GPU that's basically as fast as an 8800 GTX and with Sparkle's card we have such a beast without a fan.
The card gets hot, but as we've seen, it can easily be used inside a case alongside a very warm CPU. A well ventilated chassis will obviously help and we're not sure what the high temperatures will do to the longevity of the GPU (overclocking the graphics card is obviously not recommended), but that's what warranties are for (it looks like Sparkle provides a one-year warranty on its cards, ouch).
The only thing Sparkle's 8800 GT is missing is HDMI output, but we figure most HTPC users are accustomed to dealing with using DVI only at this point. We do commend Sparkle for making sure that its first 8800 GT would be passively cooled, if more companies would take this approach we might actually see some better product differentiation in the market. Sparkle's website also indicates a 256MB version in the works.
Pricing isn't bad either, although we're skeptical until we actually see these things ship. Given how quickly the other 8800 GTs have sold out, if you see this thing at $319 and are interested, we suggest moving quickly.
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xsilver - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
totally agree.Also the design of the sparkle doesn't look all that genius anyways.
eg. what about if you mount a zalman VF1000 or thermalright HR03 and simply pull out/not mount a fan??
how does it compare?
the sparkle model here could have easily made mounts for a fan which would entice many more buyers like me. (fan attached to fan controller, run fan only when necessary)
Kaleid - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
With zip ties and a bit of imagination fans can be attacted onto almost anything.As for the card, I suppose a non-passive plus Thermalright HR03GT and a low RPM fan would be the best solution for quiet but not entirely silent cooling.
111 degrees is not ok IMO, heck not even 94 degrees.
cw42 - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
I don't post here often, but that Mr Sparkle pic gets my two thumbs up for this review!The Boston Dangler - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
I'm sure you would have seen much lower temps with a different case. A perfect solution would be a box with positive pressure and vent(s) on the back, along the PCI slots. Some Antec and Silverstone towers, or most boxes with big fans on the front, would fit the bill nicely. Not many HTPC boxes are capable of positive pressure, but the way-too-pricey Silverstone CW02 has 2 90mm intakes and the PS draws from out side the box, allowing for positive pressure.The Velocity Micro case used in the review is actually the OriginAE X11. I don't think this box has the airflow desirable for a powerful passive vid card. I've had excellent results with using a Silverstone LC-20M and an XFX 7950GT HE9 (570 MHz). While positive pressure isn't possible with this box, I still get quite satifactory temps with a factory OC card. The PCI vent becomes an intake due to the draw of the 2 80mm rear fans and lousy intake from the front of the box. This results in a 10C drop, as compared to open case/no case running.
One similarity between the OriginAE and Silverstone cases is the PS mounted on it's side, with the lid mounting directly on top of it. Was there much (any) clearance between the card and the lid? In my box, there isn't even 1 CH of space left.
If possible, I ask you to put the card in a more suitable box and post the results. A P180 variant should be able to bring out the best in this card. With some tweaking, a very quiet SLI system should be possible.
Thanks,
Bill
The Boston Dangler - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
btw, i love the mr. sparkle picture. he is disrespectful to dirt!KeithTalent - Friday, November 30, 2007 - link
Totally agree; so awesome. I would not even have bothered to read the article, but that picture drew me in.KT
SonicIce - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
=DAbRASiON - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
Believe it or not, the 512mb 8800GT was meant to be 199->249$This is why Dell can do them for 208$.
This is why Fry's / Outpost did them initially for 229$
It's certainly not meant to have started at 249$.
You'll find early Jan when the sales taper out, it'll be as low as 199$ US (best case, perhaps with rebates) and 229$ average.
Damn good, especially considering the poor prices of the new GTS and how it performs :(
shabby - Thursday, November 29, 2007 - link
No its not incorrect, the 199 pricetag was for the 256meg gt, 249 was for the 512. If you believe the 512meg gt was supposed to sell at $199 then why did ati price the slower 3870 at $230?AbRASiON - Friday, November 30, 2007 - link
I believe that, because that's what every damned review said 6 weeks ago.The 256 pricing was unknown at the time.