VOGONS


Voodoo2 SLI cooling

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First post, by Shadzilla

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I don't know if any Voodoo2 cards shipped with any cooling (even a headsink) but for sure the vast majority were naked, and we know they run a bit toasty particularly when paired with faster CPUs. So it's arguably worth adding some cooling just to blow a small amount of air over the chips.

For a while now I've been using a blower fan over the top of my cards attached using the expansion slot screws, but it was ugly and a bit noisy. So now I've settled on this nice little 80mm fan bracket that slots onto the end of the cards to blow air across them. You can find the model here (no affiliation!) and when printed all you need are some bolts or screws to attach a fan, and ideally some small grub screws just to reduce the chance of it coming away from the cards if you move the machine around (you'll also want a M3x0.5mm tap to cut some threads for the grub screws).

file.php?mode=view&id=182986

There are versions of the model for a wider SLI setup too, and I think it would work almost as well on a single card.

Reply 1 of 9, by Shadzilla

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And here's how it looks installed, along with a PCB SLI bridge. Fully pimped out!

file.php?mode=view&id=182990

Long live 3Dfx!

Reply 2 of 9, by TheMobRules

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Nice! I had one of those printed by PCBWay a while back, but I put it into storage for a few months and when I took it out for testing it had bent and broke when trying to straighten it back. Probably due to the material they used to print it...

What type of filament/material did you use?

Reply 3 of 9, by chinny22

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Voodoo never had factory cooling, but the TennMax Voodoo cooler is the period correct aftermarket product.
http://captains-workspace.com/?page_id=119

I really like your setup and with the SLI bridge whole thing looks really tidy.
I have a similar fan setup and found it works well, only I went getto and use twist ties hanging off the hole in the corner in the card above.

Reply 4 of 9, by Meatball

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The Canopus Pure3D II had a fan from the factory (not the LX version), but your solution is definitely superior.

Reply 5 of 9, by Shadzilla

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TheMobRules wrote on 2024-01-15, 21:10:

Nice! I had one of those printed by PCBWay a while back, but I put it into storage for a few months and when I took it out for testing it had bent and broke when trying to straighten it back. Probably due to the material they used to print it...

What type of filament/material did you use?

How annoying! I don't have a 3D printer either so I use MakeitQuick here in the UK. They have a minimum cost of £20 ex. VAT so I just ticked all the options to get the price there - PC-ABS, high quality layer thickness, high percentage infill, sanding + bead blasting finish - and I'm very pleased with how it came out, it's really quite sturdy.

chinny22 wrote on 2024-01-15, 22:52:
Voodoo never had factory cooling, but the TennMax Voodoo cooler is the period correct aftermarket product. http://captains-work […]
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Voodoo never had factory cooling, but the TennMax Voodoo cooler is the period correct aftermarket product.
http://captains-workspace.com/?page_id=119

I really like your setup and with the SLI bridge whole thing looks really tidy.
I have a similar fan setup and found it works well, only I went getto and use twist ties hanging off the hole in the corner in the card above.

Love a bit of ghetto, that's probably a far more period correct approach!! Those TennMax style cooling solutions are smart and I can see why that was a good option. These days I'd be worried about attaching it to the chips. I really don't want to make any irreversable changes to the cards, or potentially damage them. These things are too damn valuable now.

Meatball wrote on 2024-01-16, 00:34:

The Canopus Pure3D II had a fan from the factory (not the LX version), but your solution is definitely superior.

Did they really just strap the fan on top of the chip, without even a heatsink?! Also what were they thinking with that SLI connector placement. Wild.

Cheers guys! 😀

Reply 6 of 9, by pentiumspeed

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Tennmax voodoo cooler, I heard of this but the fins spacing is so thin that I was not believing this would last with dust build up, noise, and adhesive too will have issues, back in the day, I commented on this long ago.

The 3Dfx should had designed in mounting holes for each chip from the start to use spring push pins and heatsinks.

Cheers,

Great Northern aka Canada.

Reply 7 of 9, by AndrettiGTO

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I used 2 Asus fans that I never used from a P6T Deluxe 1366 motherboard. Cut slits in the fan cages and hung them on the end of the boards then tie strapped to tighten. Very quiet and push air on both sides of the boards. I see their still sold at Newegg https://www.newegg.com/p/1YF-003V-01VG7

Last edited by AndrettiGTO on 2024-02-16, 13:59. Edited 1 time in total.

It's all fun and games 'till someone loses an eyeball

Reply 8 of 9, by Baoran

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I dont think they need much cooling. I have voodoo 2 sli in pc and I remember that just putting a noctua fan to front of the case blowing between the cards makes it that the chips dont feel hot to touch.
At the time when voodoo 2 was released cases didn't really have many cooling fans often so I think that is why even one case fan moving air between cards is quite effective.

Reply 9 of 9, by paradigital

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My two have heatsinks installed using modern thermal tape. The case airflow seems to be enough in conjunction to keep them cool enough.

IMG_3331.jpeg