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A reference-style NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 is relatively unobtrusive at idle, but under sustained GPU load its cooling fan becomes conspicuously loud: expect a strong, rising blower-like rush rather than a quiet background hum. The exact sound and measured level vary with the card, its condition, and the test setup.

How it sounds at idle and under load

At idle, the GTX 480 can be fairly quiet by the standards of its era. bit-tech described its fan noise as low and unobtrusive in its test system. As the GPU heats up during demanding work, the fan speeds up and the sound becomes much more prominent. bit-tech called the card “extremely noisy when under load” in that system.

The reference cooler uses a blower fan inside an enclosed shroud, pushing air through the heatsink. That design and the reviewers’ observations support describing the sound as a forceful blower-like rush. NVIDIA’s 2010 datasheet lists advanced fan control and temperature monitoring, and ComputerBase observed the fan changing speed promptly and audibly during gaming. The sound therefore tends to rise with heat and workload, rather than staying at one fixed level.

What review measurements reported

Historical reviews recorded substantially different readings. Treat these as results from each publisher’s own test setup, not as a universal specification for every GTX 480.

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#1 Best Overall
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FE Founders Edition GDDR5X Video Graphics Card (Renewed)
  • Item Package Dimension -10.699999989086L X 3.699999996226W X 2.49999999745H Inches
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  • Product Type - Video Card
Review Idle Under load
Les Numériques (2011) 42.8 dB(A) 60.4 dB(A)
ComputerBase (2010) not stated in the cited result 68.5 dB(A), the corrected review value

ComputerBase explicitly said its earlier launch-review noise reading was erroneous and supplied 68.5 dB(A) as the corrected load value. The two load results are not directly comparable: the sources do not establish common measurement conditions. Microphone distance, background-noise correction, case, workload, and measurement method can all affect a sound-pressure reading. Decibels are measurements, not recordings, so they cannot tell you exactly what a particular card will sound like in your room.

What to expect from an individual card

These reviews describe tests from 2010 and 2011, not an inspection of a card today. A surviving GTX 480 may sound different because of dust, bearing wear, changed thermal paste, case airflow, or a different fan curve. The historical results do not establish that any specific card has a fault.

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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Founders Edition (Renewed)
  • Powered by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 graphics processing unit (GPU)
  • 8GB GDDR5 (256-bit) on-board memory
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  • A smooth rush that grows louder as the GPU warms is consistent with the documented blower cooling behavior.
  • Rattling, scraping, or intermittent noise cannot be diagnosed from these review results; it calls for inspection of that individual card.
  • The vendor’s fan-control and thermal-management features describe how the card can respond to usage, not a promise that it will be silent.

For the cooler design, see Tom’s Hardware’s GTX 480 cooler description. NVIDIA’s GTX 480/470/465 datasheet documents fan control and thermal monitoring.

Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 1
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FE Founders Edition GDDR5X Video Graphics Card (Renewed)
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FE Founders Edition GDDR5X Video Graphics Card (Renewed)
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Founders Edition (Renewed)
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Powered by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 graphics processing unit (GPU); 8GB GDDR5 (256-bit) on-board memory
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ZER-LON GeForce GTX 1660 Super 6GB Graphics Cards, GDRR6 192Bit PCIE 3.0X16 Computer Gaming Gpu, Dual Freeze Fans Video Card with HDMI/DP/DVI Ports Support 4K and 8K HD
  • 【Amazing Gaminig Experience】GTX 1660 Super graphics card is a mainstream gaming GPU built on the 12 nm process, equipped with 192-Bit and 6GB GDDR6 memory with 14000 MHz. Providing computer enthusiasts with a smoother, higher quality gaming experience.
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  • 【Powerful Cooling Performance】ZER LON cooling system uses a combination of traditional grooved and copper powder sintered composite heat pipes that directly contact the GPU core to quickly export core heat. At the same time, the integrated thermal design makes the core, memory, power supply MOS tube and the heatsink fully in contact, effectively reducing the working temperature, avoiding MOS tube overheating caused by full load degradation and other reasons, thus improving the stability and life
  • 【VR-Ready Graphics】Equipped with advanced technologies, such as NVIDIA VRWorks, the GTX 1660S 6G graphics card provides an excellent virtual reality (VR) gaming experience. It ensures low latency, high compatibility, and stunning visuals for VR applications.
  • 【What You Will Get】1x GTX 1660 Super 6GB graphics card, 2-Year Limited warranty, Before installing the driver, you must uninstall the old driver first, otherwise it may cause the driver installation to fail. You can download the driver for this graphics card directly from the official website. Select the driver corresponding to your computer's operating system for download and installation. Alternatively, you can use software that automatically installs drivers for the installation process.
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QTHREE GeForce GTX 750 Ti 4GB Graphics Card,GDDR5,128bit,HDMI,DVI,VGA,Video Card for PC Working,Computer GPU,PCI Express x16,Dual Fans,DirectX 12
  • The gtx 750ti graphics card is with 1072 MHz Memory Clock 4GB GDDR5 on Maxwell architecture,this configuration ensures high-speed data transfer,delivering smooth graphics rendering for a diverse range of applications, from gaming to content creation.
  • The video card equipped with HDMI,DVI,VGA interfaces for expanded connectivity,support up to 3 monitors simultaneously.It not only meets users' daily connection needs, but also supports multi-screen output, making multi-screen office or entertainment easier.
  • This graphics card uses PCI Express x16 graphics slot,plug and play,easy to install,good performance,also with 640 stream processors chip,durable and practical,has long service life.Compatible with Windows 11.
  • This nvidia video card is equipped with two cooling fans, and delivers more airflow,which provides a cool and quiet gaming experience.Also the high-quality electrical components and PCB plate ensure its safety and stability.This graphics card features a full-height bracket design, suitable for large cases such as ATX, M-ATX and ITX.(Not for SFF)
  • No external power supply,about 60W full-load power consumption,250W minimum PSU recommendation.This makes it an ideal choice for users seeking a capable graphics card without the need for a high-wattage power supply.

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