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MSI N480GTX Lightning Preview

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Teelzebub 17th September 2010, 12:51 Quote
I just dont like cooler's that dump all the heat into the case its counter productive IMO.
GregTheRotter 17th September 2010, 12:52 Quote
Ahem yes. Edit that one quickly :o
V3ctor 17th September 2010, 13:06 Quote
Kudos to MSI to make this beautiful piece of engineering for just 550$... and not milk the cow, like some others :P
JIMBOB93JONNY 17th September 2010, 13:07 Quote
looks ok, could do with some work on the cooler though :)
Pete J 17th September 2010, 13:16 Quote
Quote:
the winning team were hitting 1,400MHz core frequency


Sweet Jaysus!
mi1ez 17th September 2010, 13:16 Quote
I want figures!

This has also given me an idea for an invetion...
Xir 17th September 2010, 14:07 Quote
Quote:
If MSI wanted the TwinFrozr III cooler to be for everyone, we'd expect a card with a standard PCB and a TwinFrozr III cooler
Interesting to see that they haven't got that option.
A GTX480 that's actually, well, decently cooled WOULD be nice.

Howcome NVidia isn't adressing the ridiculous heat and power numbers of the GTX480?
bigkingfun 17th September 2010, 14:11 Quote
Critique for author:
Please wipe the back-plate of the card with a alcohol cloth before taking pictures.
This is what I mean: http://images.bit-tech.net/content_images/2010/09/msi-n480gtx-lightning-preview/n480gtx-lightning-3.jpg
Scootiep 17th September 2010, 14:18 Quote
Really, unless you're upgrading your computer every 1 - 1.5 years, buying over-engineered kit can sometimes be worthwhile. While no, most people aren't going to use all of it's features right away, chances are that in two years, programs will have increased in complexity to demand more of what an "over-engineered piece of kit" offers. I'm not saying I do this personally, but I will at least give people who do this the benefit of the doubt. Those that buy the latest and greatest thing every 3 months however will still incur the wrath of my sarcasm (but I will secretly be thanking you for funding the R&D of tech companies everywhere...)
Baekkel 17th September 2010, 14:19 Quote
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigkingfun
Critique for author:
Please wipe the back-plate of the card with a alcohol cloth before taking pictures.
This is what I mean: http://images.bit-tech.net/content_images/2010/09/msi-n480gtx-lightning-preview/n480gtx-lightning-3.jpg

+1
That looks just awfull *Meh*
fingerbob69 17th September 2010, 14:35 Quote
With a cooler like that never never never try to transport you rig with the card in situ. The cooler will try to tear off every time!
dispie 17th September 2010, 15:32 Quote
the red plastic makes it look really cheap
Fingers66 17th September 2010, 16:03 Quote
Quote:
Originally Posted by GregTheRotter
Ahem yes. Edit that one quickly :o

See what happens when you rely on spell-checkers to find errors... :D
bladesavage 17th September 2010, 16:28 Quote
So what happened to those single slot cards that won't block half of the neighboring expansion slots?
south side sammy 17th September 2010, 17:24 Quote
I owned a lightning card. It ran hot as hell stock and never could get a decent over clock on it. It was also the loudest card I ever owned. This whole line fails for the "average" user so to speak and I've read other articles where "pros" can't get decent over clocks. Nifty name lousy results. Just like RipJaws memory.
xaser04 17th September 2010, 17:35 Quote
Quote:
Originally Posted by Article
Underneath the heatsinks is a 6+1+1-phase design (MSI calls it a 12+3+1-phase but it's marketing embelishment - the actual driver ICs tell the real story) powered by a row of DirectFETs similar to those we've already seen on Asus Immensity motherboard

I think it's me being tired but could someone point out the 6+1+1 design on the card please?

I see the words but I can't recall what to look for on the card itself.
thehippoz 17th September 2010, 17:48 Quote
yeah used to go with the crazy aftermarket coolers but like bums said- it dumps heat back into the case = more fans to remove it from the airflow to the cpu.. this doesn't matter to someone who doesn't oc on air, but those that do.. you know after extended gaming sessions, if your case isn't configured right you can say bye the benefits of the aftermarket sink

I still think ducting with a single gpu system on the reference cooler (after you redo the tim).. you can get some good temperatures that way without all the case airflow issues- downside is you can't sli as the duct takes up the area underneath.. I actually went with the zotac 460 the other day because they added a displayport

know ati does this too but I couldn't get a awesome deal like on the 460 1gb.. I could feel huang slinging his dingaling around when I bought it.. I feel like such a toolbag for buying nvidia- especially when ati/amd are coming out with the new cards soon but was under 200 bucks- expect to get around 900 clock so it should be around a 5870 performance when done hopefully

yes I am an nvidiot sellout who knows better.. wish the 5870 was cheaper- kind of an impulse buy lol
forksofpower 17th September 2010, 19:17 Quote
Where did you get the diagram which indicates where the power is allocated? Moreover, do you know of a site that has chip schematics like this? I am a computer engineering student at UT and I'm just trying to learn myself some good ol knowledge!
HourBeforeDawn 17th September 2010, 19:36 Quote
overall it is a great looking heatsink
Bindibadgi 18th September 2010, 05:59 Quote
Quote:
Originally Posted by forksofpower
Where did you get the diagram which indicates where the power is allocated? Moreover, do you know of a site that has chip schematics like this? I am a computer engineering student at UT and I'm just trying to learn myself some good ol knowledge!

I got it direct from MSI.
garrett_wu 19th September 2010, 03:18 Quote
If author looks closer on PWM chip and Driver IC spec, he will see the PWM is up6225 which is 12 Phase PWM chip, and advanced Driver IC is specially designed for pushing 2 phase with 1 chip. N480GTX Lightning GPU is 12 phase with no doubt. MSI will never use parallel connection power design on Lightning, and there is NO WAY to hit 1400MHz+ under extreme OC if MSI use parallel connection, MOSFET will simply blow up because of unbalanced loading.
Bindibadgi 19th September 2010, 05:37 Quote
Hi Garret,

http://images.bit-tech.net/content_images/2010/09/msi-n480gtx-lightning-preview/ic86.jpg

Click for large

These six told me a different story on the back of the PCB, although if I'm wrong feel free to email or phone me and explain, then ill update the article. ;)
TWeaK 19th September 2010, 07:53 Quote
I don't think the heatsink mount is a problem tbh. It looks to me like it's mounted to the backplate, which in turn has mounts spread all over the PCB. Looks like the load would be spread quite evenly.

Now, when are the benchies coming Bindi? :D
Bindibadgi 19th September 2010, 07:57 Quote
Quote:
Originally Posted by TWeaK
I don't think the heatsink mount is a problem tbh. It looks to me like it's mounted to the backplate, which in turn has mounts spread all over the PCB. Looks like the load would be spread quite evenly.

It's not mounted to the backplate I'm afraid, they are just holes.
garrett_wu 19th September 2010, 12:11 Quote
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bindibadgi
Hi Garret,

http://images.bit-tech.net/content_images/2010/09/msi-n480gtx-lightning-preview/ic86.jpg

Click for large

These six told me a different story on the back of the PCB, although if I'm wrong feel free to email or phone me and explain, then ill update the article. ;)

The drive is up6282 (http://www.upi-semi.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?ArchID=86) , it's dual phase mosfet driver WITHOUT phase extension function, so you can think it's two traditional single phase MOSFETs packing into single chip. There are too many components on power design of lightning, using more expensive dual phase drive ic can reduce space.
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