AMD’s future graphics cards will get reference coolers with axial fans

The fact that graphics cards are equipped with active cooling is today more of a rule than an exception and TDP values ​​well over 100 watts can be seen in the higher performance segments from both AMD and Nvidia. When it comes to air coolers for graphics cards, there are two main models, where the open type is more common and means that one or more axial fans are mounted on top of a heat sink.

The second variant is called blowercooler and instead has a single radial fan, which carries air through a heat sink to then dump the heat outside the chassis. With an open variant, the chassis fans are instead responsible for heat transport. The cooler type is often associated with better performance and lower noise level, but despite the advantages, both AMD and Nvidia have a long tradition of reference coolers of the former.

Together with the Geforce RTX 2000 family, however, Nvidia switched to an open cooling solution with dual fans, something that even AMD dipped its toes into with the power-hungry Radeon VII. The launch of the 2019 Navi family instead marked the blower cooler’s return, but on the Reddit forum, the company now certifies that there will be a change on the cooler front with the next generation of playing cards.

A presentation image from AMD’s finance-focused Financial Analyst Day showed a presentation image with a graphics card marked “AMD” and without the traditional cooler, which created speculation on Reddit. The rumor mill was quickly countered by AMD’s Scott Herkelman, who writes that game-oriented graphics cards get an updated reference cooler with the RDNA 2 architecture.

Our AIBs may choose to do a “blower” design on any of the next gen GPUs, however, the majority of feedback we received from the community at the launch of 5700 XT on AMD reference designs has guided us towards dual/tri-axial designs. I’m excited for you all to see them when the time is right!

According to Herkelman, the underlying reason for the change is the response to the Navi coolers, but the company’s partners may release variants of any type. In SweClocker’s test of the Radeon RX 5700 and the XT sibling, the duo shows both high noise levels and temperatures in the reference version. It is worth emphasizing that the Radeon VII with three fans is still higher, but this with significantly higher power consumption.

In conclusion, Scott Herkelman is clear that he can not share new information, but reiterates that RDNA 2 with the code name “Navi 2X” will debut sometime in 2020. Against RDNA and the Navi family, the primary news is spelled support for ray tracing, Variable Rate Shading (VRS) and 50 percent better performance per watt – along with fresh cooler solution.

Do you think it is a wise move to abandon the old type of cooler, or do you think that blower coolers have an important place in the market? Tell us in the comments thread!