Is this normal?

[Idkwhat2putheresowhatever]

I just got my Zotac 1070Ti RMAed for coil whine and the graphics card I got back had these weird looking copper heatpipes. I cant remember if the heatpipes were supposed to be shiny but it definitely did not look like that on the card that I sent in. Is this normal?

 

Also, this card still has the hissing noise that I RMAed it for. Its not coming from the fan and only happens when the card ramps up for a graphically intensive application. Do you guys think I should send it in again? The hissing noise is rather audible but only while Im sitting at a desk. Its sounds a bit like a gas leak.

[Windows7ge]

It looks like copper oxide. Which means it's probably been exposed to the open air for a extended period of time.

 

I am a little concerned about that green-ish blue pattern on the GPU dies PCB as that's a sign of another form of copper oxide which is more consistent with being exposed to water for a long period of time.

 

This looks kind of like a refurb of a liquid damaged card but I'm not an expert on what you can expect with RMAs so take my observation with a grain of salt.

[Idkwhat2putheresowhatever]

5 minutes ago, Windows7ge said:

It looks like copper oxide. Which means it's probably been exposed to the open air for a extended period of time.

 

I am a little concerned about that green-ish blue pattern on the GPU dies PCB as that's a sign of another form of copper oxide which is more consistent with being exposed to water for a long period of time.

 

This looks kind of like a refurb of a liquid damaged card but I'm not an expert on what you can expect with RMAs so take my observation with a grain of salt.

The stuff are just thermal pads covering the memory chips. However it seems like there is a ton of dust stuck to it which confirms that it is indeed a refurb card. Should I send it back? Also, what do you think about the hissing noise? Is it normal?

[papajo]

the pipes look like roasted wieners

[OhioYJ]

The hissing noise still maybe coil noise.  It is hard to say what it is. Does it get worse under load?

[Idkwhat2putheresowhatever]

2 minutes ago, OhioYJ said:

The hissing noise still maybe coil noise.  It is hard to say what it is. Does it get worse under load?

It only occurs under load. But when the gpu usage is higher it does tend to be louder.

[Windows7ge]

37 minutes ago, Idkwhat2putheresowhatever said:

The stuff are just thermal pads covering the memory chips. However it seems like there is a ton of dust stuck to it which confirms that it is indeed a refurb card. Should I send it back? Also, what do you think about the hissing noise? Is it normal?

Ah those are thermal pads. They look like they're suppose to be black. It looks like the card was put together with old refurbished parts. I get the feeling the card isn't new.

 

Coil whine isn't something you can do much about. Some GPU manufacturers don't even accept it as a valid reason for RMA. Sometimes using a different PSU can help as it can have to do with how clean the power delivery is to the card but otherwise there's not much you can do about it aside from buying headphones.

[Idkwhat2putheresowhatever]

Quick update if anyone cares lol. They gave me a brand new RTX 2060 Super Mini. Enjoying it so far.