GPU started running hot / Fans ramping up and down

[sfks]

Main issue: My EVGA RTX 2080, has been running very hot in any game that maintains a sustained 99% load, and as a result the fans are ramping up and down between audible and obnoxiously loud levels. It's not uncommon for it to hit 95C on the core and 105C+ on the hotspot after 10-15min in these games if I don't cap the framerate to 90 or so to reduce load. I purchased the card shortly after it released in late 2018, and it only starting behaving like this around 1.5 years ago. I called EVGA last year (RIP their GPU division ) and the rep told me that these temps were within spec, but didn't have much else to say about it. Of course, GPU-Z did not report hotspot temps until ~2021(?), so it's possible those were always fairly high. Still, I know something has changed since my fans never used to ramp up to such a distracting, jet engine-level in any game.

 

Other relevant info:

• The RTX 2080 GPU is very lightly OC'd using the MSI Afterburner voltage/frequency curve, but actually undervolted to a max of 1.0V, which is substantially lower than the 1.5V that it would hit using stock settings. "Memory Clock" is also lightly OC'd at +500-600MHz. The "Core Voltage (mV)" and "Power Limit" sliders are all the way to the left (aka lowest), and the "Temp Limit" slider has priority and is set to 80C (feels like this does nothing). I used to have these voltage/power/temp limits maxed out in the past, with no perceived issues or overheating.
• GPU fan curve is set to auto, although I have tried messing around with setting this manually, which had no effect on the ramping behavior or noise level.
• The 9700K CPU is OC'd to 5GHz with a small voltage bump, and I almost never see CPU temps above 65C.
• I used to run my case with the side and top panel vents closed, and only had two case fans: front and back. At some point before this problem started, I upgraded my CPU and installed two additional case fans, so I currently have two intakes (front and side, right over the GPU), and two exhausts (top and back).
• Every fan intake is dust filtered, and I regularly clean the dust out, so the GPU and everything else has little to no visible dust on it.
• I live in Oregon, and my room is about 20C ambient temperature...nothing crazy warm.

 

Full parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/samshurts/saved/#view=ZWXm8d

Problem part: EVGA XC GAMING GeForce RTX 2080 8 GB Video Card

 

I'm really at a loss for ideas as to how I could improve airflow/thermals any more in this situation. I've considered trying to repaste the GPU, thought I would prefer not to disassemble it myself unless I absolutely have to. Also, this video from Gamers Nexus concluded that repasting GPUs has very little effect on thermals unless they are 10+ years old and extremely dried out: https://youtu.be/n7NMeu0QiYk.

I would greatly appreciate any ideas or avenues of research I could pursue to get these temps under control. Except water cooling -- I'm way too busy these days to get into that whole experience lol . Thanks in advance LTT Community!!!

 

[DonGirses]

Those are very high temps, when did this start happening? Sounds like either the whole die may not be fully covered in shmoo or a bad thermal jelly batch.

[podkall]

4 minutes ago, DonGirses said:

Those are very high temps, when did this start happening? Sounds like either the whole die may not be fully covered in shmoo or a bad thermal jelly batch.

sounds like 2021 ish year, that's approx after 2-3 ish years:

16 minutes ago, sfks said:

and it only starting behaving like this around 1.5 years ago.

16 minutes ago, sfks said:

I purchased the card shortly after it released in late 2018,

 

[sfks]

1 hour ago, DonGirses said:

Those are very high temps, when did this start happening? Sounds like either the whole die may not be fully covered in shmoo or a bad thermal jelly batch.

Yeah as podkall said, sometime during 2021, so around 2.5 to 3 years into the card's life. It's now ~4.5 years since purchase, so I've been pretty slow about posting this.

It is worth noting that the card was one of those lower end 2080s that was actually listed at like $50 above MSRP, so the cooling solution was possibly the cheapest out of the entire EVGA lineup. Still, while it would hit temps in the 80s, it definitely did not run this hot or loud for the first couple of years.

I would suspect bad thermal paste application as well if it were a CPU I installed myself. But it's a factory assembled GPU that has just been sitting in my case this entire time, so idk why anything would have changed.