GELID Solutions ICY VISION GPU Cooler Review

Temperature Results

The first thing you can expect from the ICY Vision is a nice drop in temps across the spectrum as it should be with any aftermarket cooler. The card idled at 37C and reached 59C while running Heaven 2.1 demo repeatedly. That beats the reference coolers usual 90C average while just gaming. To take it up a level, and to ensure the card was pushing maximum amounts of data through the GPU, we used the extremely punishing Furmark benchmark.

When Furmark was set to Stability Test and Xtreme Burning Mode, temps heated up even higher which is to be expected. However, temps were still much, much lower than the stock cooler topping out at only 74C. It’s a far cry from the stock cooler’s 100-105C which isn’t really acceptable at all. I guess nVidia’s cooling engineers needed a bit more time to get their design right.

Noise Levels

Let’s discuss fan noise, or the lack thereof for a moment. The Vision’s fan specs list a CFM range that suggests the fans spin at a lower RPM which means generating much less noise. It would be nice if we could experience the Vision at a lower RPM range. But, measuring the fan noise from 24 inches away, the cooler averaged 26dBA even at desktop.

While not sure if it’s the fault of the latest NVidia drivers or the card’s firmware, the Vision never went below 24dBA and just hit 27dBA during Furmark benching. We aren’t complaining though. Whether using a fan controller or plugging straight in to the GTX480 fan port, the Vision is still much quieter across the spectrum than the reference cooler.

Closing Thoughts

The GELID Solutions ICY Vision is a very good GPU cooler. It’s obvious that the ICY Vision caters a little more to gamers and enthusiasts who like to show off their pimp hardware. And, it couldn’t come at a better time for both ATI and NVidia users who buy the best performance video cards, especially NVidia fans. It controls GPU temps and fan noise far better than the reference cooler on our GTX 480 could ever hope. Granted, installing any aftermarket GPU cooler will require a little dexterity and patience. But, in the end, it’s well worth the benefits as you can see here today.

The best part about the ICY Vision is the price. For its lowly $55 US price tag, which will probably be $45 US by the time it hits the streets, users will enjoy peace of mind that you just can’t get from a reference GPU cooler these days. GELID clearly realized that users are already hurting enough after spending $400 bucks for a video card so it’s great that they provided so much value for the buck. It will be interesting to see what other concepts GELID Solutions comes up with in the near future and at an affordable price.

Pros