1. Introduction
Jetart Technology was established in 1989. Jetart is a very professional & well-organized designer, manufacturer, as well as an exporter of cooling devices. The company focuses on developing "Thermal Solutions" related products. All materials used and the production procedures are under very strict control.
Recently, we received in our labs, some of JETART's products. This is the first time that we have received any products from JETART, and among them was the VC-3600, a VGA cooler compatible with NVIDIA & ATI high-end VGA cards.
An extreme heat dissipating core, made entirely of copper with precision welding techniques, will fully meet the overclocking demands of high level VGA card users. A dual adjustable axle design easily matches various VGA cards. The fan is situated so that as it draws air from one side and blows air out the other, creates a wind tunnel affect which not only cools the GPU and Memory chips, but also exhausts any possible heat build-up, helping to reduce the VGA card's temperature.
Features
- Extensible Air Tube
- Full Copper Welding Technique
- Dual Sided Air Intake
- Silent Ball Bearing Fan
- Compatible with all nVIDIA & ATi VGA cards (click for Compatibility Chart )
Specifications
Cooler Dimensions |
203.5 x 90.2 x 33.4 mm |
Fan Dimensions |
45 x 15 mm |
Heatsink Material |
Full Copper, C1100 |
Rated Voltage |
DC 12 V |
Rated Current |
0.13 A |
Power Consumption |
1.56 W |
Fan Speed |
2700 R.P.M. |
Bearing Type |
Ball Bearing |
Noise Level |
20.9 dBA |
Weight |
456 g |
The dual adjustable axle design
Retail Package
The retail package we received, includes the following:
- Screw A : 5.0 x 25.0 mm, 4 pcs
- Screw B : 6.0 x 6.0 mm, 1pc
- Spring Nut: 8.0 x 7.0 mm, 4 pcs
- Cushion Spacer :
Black, 8.0 x 1.0 mm, 4 pcs
- Insulation Spacer :
Transparent, 8.0 x 0.5 mm, 5pcs
- Memory Heatsink :
20.0 x 20.0 x 6.0 mm, 8 pcs
- Thermal Tape : 18.0 x 18.0 mm, 8 pcs
- Power Adapter : 3 to 4 Pin, 1 pc
- Thermal Grease : Needle Tube 1.5 g
The Manual
Memory Heatsink
Power Adapter
Thermal Tape, Spacers and Screws
Thermal Paste
2. Installation
For our tests, we used an ATI based X1900GT VGA card from Powercolor. During our testing of this graphics card, we had found that the temperature levels were rather high, so it was going to be quite interesting to see if the VC3600 could help out with such a difficult situation.
First, we removed the stock cooling system and cleaned the chipset's surface of any thermal compound.
Next, we applied the thermal tape, included in the retail package, to the memory heatsinks and peeled off the protective white strip.
We then mounted the memory heatsinks onto each memory chip on the card, as shown below:
The next step was to apply the thermal compound, also included in the retail package, to the GPU.
Before installing the VC3600 onto the card, you have to determine which holes line up with your VGA card.
Do this by referring to the chart in the manual, to tell you in which mounting holes the spacers and screws need to be installed.
Don't forget to put the black cushions on the spacers before installing the VC3600 onto the card.
Now the VC3600 is ready to be installed on the VGA card. Place the VC3600 on a flat surface and then put the card on top of it, lining up the holes.
Put the transparent insulation spacers and then the spring nut on each screw, as shown below:
Tighten the nuts and the installation of the VC3600 is almost complete.
All that is left, is to attach the adjustable axle so that it fits properly on your card.
As you can see, there is a lot of space between the VC3600 and the card for better airflow.
3. Performance
The X1900GT card from Powercolor, used for our tests, has the stock cooling system from ATI. Let's see how it compare's to the JETART VC3600.
The Stock Cooler
The VC3600
For our tests, we used 3DMark05, which we set to 1280X1024 resolution, with 4X Anti-Aliasing and 8X Anisotropic Filtering enabled for higher GPU processing power. We logged measurements at idle state and at the end of the 3DMark05 benchmark.
Our first measurements were carried out with the stock cooler. We then installed the VC3600.
The room temperature at the time of the tests was around 24°C. ATI's stock cooler seems not to be as effective as it should and the card at idle, was running at 57°C, which is hot. After the benchmark, the temperature of the GPU had soared to 83°C and we couldn't even touch the cooler. With the VC3600 installed, the temperature at idle state was 45 °C, and after the benchmark, only 63°C. As you can see, the differences are quite large, 12°C at idle state and 20°C under full load.
With the help of the VC3600, we managed to overclock the Powercolor X1900GT card and reach clock speeds resembling the X1900XT, something we couldn't achieve with the stock cooling system.
The noise levels from the VC3600 are low, not silent thought, and we believe that the claims of 20.9 dBA from JETART are accurate.
4. Conclusion
The JETART VC3600 is a great solution for gamers, while it is also a great modding addition, being quite noticeable inside the PC case. The quality of the VC3600 is good and we liked that the base is constructed of solid copper. The retail package is full and includes everything you need to install the cooler, even thermal compound, in quantity sufficient for at least five installations.
The installation process is not difficult and it doesn't require too much time. Some patience and caution however, are always good in order to avoid any damage. The manual will guide you step by step, on how to get the VC3600 up and working.
Regarding performance, it is very good, especially in comparison to the stock cooler. At idle state, the VC3600 kept the temperature of the GPU 12°C cooler than the stock cooler, while under full load, 20°C cooler. The noise levels are close to what Jetart claims, at around 20 dBA.