ThermalTake Blue Orb

[JCNiest5]

A closer observation tells me that my BFG Tech Asylum GF4 TI4600 is equiped with the popular ThermalTake Blue Orb. It was adhesively taped so I can't take it out, but at least it does a decent job. I kind of want to replace it with the ThermalTake GF4 Cooler but I don't want the hassle of having to put my card in the freezer then plying out the Blue Orb. I'm scared I might also ply out the GF4 chip itself! How risky is this, anyone knows?

[Touchline]

If it is secured with adhesive tape it should be easier than one secured with adhesive epoxy. Just don't use a lot of force that might damage one of the surrounding contacts or the chip itself.

I have done it several times successfully where adhesive epoxy was used...but there is a risk! It usually pops right off with little pressure.

[JCNiest5]

I think it is adhesive epoxy, not tape. Sorry I didn't make it clear at first.

[Jonathan]

Here's what people do to remove heatsinks adhered with epoxy:

Throw it in a ziplock bag and put it in the freezer for 10 minutes. Take it out. Use a plastic knife, wooden chopstick or anything that doesn't have a hard edge, and pry the heatsink off.

How is that BFG card anyway? It's a shame it doesn't come with a real GF4 cooler. I would have expected it from a company made up of ex-Visiontek employees and executives.

- Jerky.

[JCNiest5]

Yeah, if I do get the real GF4 cooler then I will follow your intructions to remove and install the cooler. I think it will look nice (if not perform better) with the Thermaltake GF4 Cooler.

Ah, so BFG Tech is actually started by Visiontek ex-employees? So, where's Visiontek going? OOB, I thought awhile back but I thought they got their together again or am I wrong?

The card is good, but they keep the Nvidia reference design, so nothing fancy or extraordinary. It's very plain. No RAM heatsinks. All BGA RAMs are topless (if you know what I mean!). The Blue Orb sits atop the GF4.

The card does come with VIVO, DVI, DVI to Analog adapter, S-Video In/Out along with Video RCA In/Out, though. But no games or other goodies that other manufacturers include with theirs top of the line model.

[Jonathan]

Yep. A few of the top executives at BFG were executives at Visiontek. Also one of the executives at BFG was a marketing director from BestBuy. Makes you wonder how come they got into that retail chain so quickly after the announcement of Visiontek's financial problems.

Have you tried overclocking that vidcard? The reason why I'm so curious is that people often come here and ask: "Is BFG any good?" and I always tell them not to buy it since they're still a relatively new company with no proven track record.

I'd change that recommendation if knew more about their products.

BTW, be VERY gentle when removing that heatsink. If you're using a lot of force, then it may not be cold enough. Throw it back in for another 5-10 mins and try again.

- Jerky.

[JCNiest5]

I haven't try any real OCing, just changed the AGP from to 66 to 75, that's all. Other than that, I haven't even try messing with the clock inside Windows yet. The card runs stable at 75, so I don't know what to make out of it, yet, whether it is an OC-able card or not.

The real reason why I bought the BFG Tech card was I saw it for $219.00 at Best Buy. Right now, the price is back to $299.00 like it was before the sale.

[opofus2002]

If youve got room slip a credit card between the sink and board, then a flat screwdriver between the sink and the credit card. Then twist the driver. I found the credit card helped protect the vid card.

[Soap]

All the mentioned ways to remove the HSF unit are good decent advice.
But if I had to choose, I would go with "opofus2002", recommendation(use of the credit car).
Just seems very simple and effective with minimum risk.

From, what I hear, BFG cards are pretty decent.
I've been to their site and they have some of the best support manuals/faqs for their cards,(which applys with all other GF4 cards)on the net. I haven't seen to many other manufactures have that much tech/support/faq information on their sites like BFG does, good reading.