Arctic Cooling Accelero Xtreme 5970 now available!

Wow. I was going to buy this with when I get my 5970 but now I will not even get near it.
 
i didn't have any trouble with my chargeback. i explained the situation in detail, including product description, all of the reported cases of VGA failures, my numerous attempts to communicate with AC with no success, etc. this is i think only the second credit card dispute i've had in 25 yrs of credit card ownership, and probably the only one with this particular CC company.
 
jkw said:
i didn't have any trouble with my chargeback. i explained the situation in detail, including product description, all of the reported cases of VGA failures, my numerous attempts to communicate with AC with no success, etc. this is i think only the second credit card dispute i've had in 25 yrs of credit card ownership, and probably the only one with this particular CC company.
Click to expand...

Discover was fine with mine - I have to wait 30 days for them to try to resolve it with AC, after 30 days they just take the money back from AC...but I get a refund right away. Still no reply from AC....go figure. I'm gonna look into filing a complaint with the BBB as well.
 
rampantandroid said:
Discover was fine with mine - I have to wait 30 days for them to try to resolve it with AC, after 30 days they just take the money back from AC...but I get a refund right away. Still no reply from AC....go figure. I'm gonna look into filing a complaint with the BBB as well.
Click to expand...

Please let us know what information you use for the BBB so we all use the same company. Same description etc.
 
riot123 said:
Lame, they started to sell the cooler again.

Its up on the International Webshop....
Click to expand...

That is bullshit. It is clear that they don't give a fuck about their customers. They have no problem in damaging a customer's $700 video card just to make a buck.
 
Dear customers
We received a few complaints about one of the two DVI ports would be just functional with an adapter after installing the Accelero Xtreme 5970. On the other side Sapphire used this cooler already several thousand times and such a malfunction was not registered.

This led us to investigate the root cause. Detailed tests and analysis showed that by fastening the screws of the original X-plate from the stock cooler too far, the sharp edges of that plate may injure the board as shown in this picture. The X-plate is bending down in the corners and is only supported by the spacers in the middle of the module.

5970_1000.jpg

Taking care and not over tighten screws at this point makes the installation safe. Also Screws A and B should not be over tightened. This picture below is showing the correct installation, the X-plate is paralell to the board.

streight2.jpg

Should you have further queries or comments, we are happy to support you.

ARCTIC COOLING Support Team
[email protected]
 
So if I put one on, taking pictures to show it was correct and it nukes my card you're going to replace it?
 
Wouldn't this be something you would account for? Either with additional spacers, screws, something? Tightening a screw can be a very subjective measurement and while I realize you would assume people are careful with a $700 video card, perhaps this is something that can(should?) be addressed by design of the cooler as well.
 
To Arctic Cooling:

I cannot express how careful I was installing your cooler. I tightened the screws snug as you would any screw using a small Wiha 261/PH0x50 precision screwdriver . I put zero extra torque on the screw. There is no way that you can blame your customers for the damage your cooler has caused. I feel your company has completely brushed aside this problem and recklessly put your faulty product back on the market. There will be many more damaged 5970s as a result. I smell a class-action suite coming.

Since you obviously don't answer emails at your company, please pm me here if you would like to rectify my damaged 5970.
 
GreenGoose said:
To Arctic Cooling:

I cannot express how careful I was installing your cooler. I tightened the screws snug as you would any screw using a small Wiha 261/PH0x50 precision screwdriver . I put zero extra torque on the screw. There is no way that you can blame your customers for the damage your cooler has caused. I feel your company has completely brushed aside this problem and recklessly put your faulty product back on the market. There will be many more damaged 5970s as a result. I smell a class-action suite coming.

Since you obviously don't answer emails at your company, please pm me here if you would like to rectify my damaged 5970.
Click to expand...

GreenGoose, I don’t want to suggest that you have a need to prove anything.

However if you could get some high resolution photos of the back of your card, specify of the area where AC is now claiming the damage is occurring. It could at least confirm if AC has really found the point of damage or not.

How that damage is then really occurring would still be open to debate but it would be great to know is this really is where the cards are being damaged.
 
ARCTIC Support said:
Dear customers
We received a few complaints about one of the two DVI ports would be just functional with an adapter after installing the Accelero Xtreme 5970. On the other side Sapphire used this cooler already several thousand times and such a malfunction was not registered.

This led us to investigate the root cause. Detailed tests and analysis showed that by fastening the screws of the original X-plate from the stock cooler too far, the sharp edges of that plate may injure the board as shown in this picture. The X-plate is bending down in the corners and is only supported by the spacers in the middle of the module.

5970_1000.jpg

Taking care and not over tighten screws at this point makes the installation safe. Also Screws A and B should not be over tightened. This picture below is showing the correct installation, the X-plate is paralell to the board.

streight2.jpg

Should you have further queries or comments, we are happy to support you.

ARCTIC COOLING Support Team
[email protected]
Click to expand...

Are you going to replace our broken cards, with working cards that come pre-installed with the cooler?

That is the only option I will take. For the record your idea of support is a joke.
 
I waited for Arctic Cooling to come up with a solution, now that their piss poor solution is out, I've started a charge back on both Xtreme 5970 with Mastercard. Enjoy dealing with Mastercard, losing your money & future customers.
 
geekusa said:
Are you going to replace our broken cards, with working cards that come pre-installed with the cooler?

That is the only option I will take. For the record your idea of support is a joke.
Click to expand...

I agree with you man, that is a total joke.

Not over tighten screws? F*ck that... They maybe should have testeds their product with other reference cards instead of with the Toxic cards, what a joke of company.

I was deffinitely thinking of buying it, until I saw this thread, now i'll probably wait for another option to come out (As watercooling is out of my budget).
 
EGM92 said:
I waited for Arctic Cooling to come up with a solution, now that their piss poor solution is out, I've started a charge back on both Xtreme 5970 with Mastercard. Enjoy dealing with Mastercard, losing your money & future customers.
Click to expand...

Same here. Just sent the fax off of this thread for my charge back.
 
When i installed my Arctic cooler, I didn't use Screw A and B, i had a feeling it could potentially bend the board. Temps are ok anyways without them.
 
Ironically, with the AC cooler for the 4870x2, they supplied screws that were too short, and you had to use so much force and pressure to get the screw to thread that you were extremely lucky if you didn't slip and put your fist through your card. Note that I was one of the apparent few who was able to successfully mount the cooler with the original (too short) screws and not break my VGA card.
 
Seems to me like they are trying to avoid replacing any cards that were damaged...

Also, I have an x1600 that has the same type of back plate on it...

from the factory, the screws are tightened all the way down so the x plate bends.

Also, how do they expect the cooler to be tight enough if all that is holdig it tight is those little springs? I would think just the weight of that cooler would tend to flex the x-plate and make the cooler pull away from the card if it isn't tight enough, Unless those x-plates are a whole lot thicker then the one on my x1600.

Also, from the sound of it, they did not have these instructions in the original installation instructions that came with the cooler.

If that is the case, then yeah, they should have to replace the damaged cards.

They should also start shipping spacers with the cards... OR, you could always use one of those red motherboard screw washers to insulate the bracket from the card on each corner of the plate.
 
ARCTIC Support said:
Dear customers
We received a few complaints about one of the two DVI ports would be just functional with an adapter after installing the Accelero Xtreme 5970. On the other side Sapphire used this cooler already several thousand times and such a malfunction was not registered.

This led us to investigate the root cause. Detailed tests and analysis showed that by fastening the screws of the original X-plate from the stock cooler too far, the sharp edges of that plate may injure the board as shown in this picture. The X-plate is bending down in the corners and is only supported by the spacers in the middle of the module.

...see original post for image...

Taking care and not over tighten screws at this point makes the installation safe. Also Screws A and B should not be over tightened. This picture below is showing the correct installation, the X-plate is paralell to the board.

...see original post for image...

Should you have further queries or comments, we are happy to support you.

ARCTIC COOLING Support Team
[email protected]
Click to expand...

ARCTIC Support, thank you for looking into this issue and identifying the root cause, I'm sure that took a lot of work. I hope it is not the position of Arctic Cooling that your customers somehow should have been able to avoid this problem without explicit directions such as those contained in your post. Below is a photo of the installation instructions I received with the cooler I purchased:

b4Wh0I


These instructions clearly state to tighten the screws to 100%. And that is what I did, using a small Wiha screwdriver designed for precision electronics, using the same amount of torque that I have used building and upgrading computers for 15 years...tightening until the two parts being joined make contact, and then just slightly more. I've never before damaged a motherboard, a CPU, or anything else.

Each X-plate is attached to four mounting posts that extend through the holes in the card. If the X-plate is supposed to be flat, why aren't those mounting posts longer, so that every user would consistently tighten the X-plate until it contacts the mounting posts, and therefore have the proper amount of pressure without any risk of damage? If there is some reason that approach was not taken, why weren't there explicit details in the instructions that shipped with the card detailing that the screws should not be tightened all the way?

If you read through this entire thread, you will find that there are many people who were planning on purchasing this cooler that have said that they will not because of this issue. Your post states that you have only received a few complaints of this problem...I am absolutely certain that the cost to you to replace the few cards that have been damaged will be much less than the business you will lose to people reading this thread and avoiding this product. I am sure that through your close relationship with Sapphire you could get these replacement cards at a significantly reduced cost, and this would go a long way toward reassuring the enthusiast community of your commitment to produce quality products.
 
I was planning on getting this cooler too, really excited about it, quieter, cooler.

funny, if I had installed it, my card might have been 100% cool and quiet, since it would be sitting on my desk collecting dust :p
 
TGA said:
However if you could get some high resolution photos of the back of your card, specify of the area where AC is now claiming the damage is occurring. It could at least confirm if AC has really found the point of damage or not.

How that damage is then really occurring would still be open to debate but it would be great to know is this really is where the cards are being damaged.
Click to expand...

You may have already seen these, but for anyone just joining this thread, I previously put pics of my installation here. Unfortunately I don't have any pics of the back of the card at an angle with the cooler installed following the initial installation. I looked at my card with their cooler on it just now, and I'd say that the X-plate is bowed slightly as in the illustration posted by ARCTIC Support, but it is by no means dramatic and I don't think anyone looking at it would think "hey that doesn't look right". That X-plate relies on bending to provide the proper pressure (it would spring back the other direction when not installed on the card), so it would not have struck me as a cause for concern during installation (there was no reason to think it needed to be flat vs. bending). If you take a look at my pics in the 19-27 range, you can see what there is on the back of the card where those X-plates are installed. I'm not sure I follow their explanation of the sharp edges of the plate injuring the board. If tightening the X-plate is the source of the problem, my initial thoughts are that I'd think it would be due to exerting too much pressure on the components under the spacers on each side of the plate, or perhaps the "arms" of the plate touch/crush a component somewhere -- for example, there does appear to be a component that would be in the path of the lower-left arm for the rightmost GPU in pic 19. I can't see any visible damage in my photos, but of course the damage may just not be visible.
 
stingrayv2 said:
ARCTIC Support, thank you for looking into this issue and identifying the root cause, I'm sure that took a lot of work. I hope it is not the position of Arctic Cooling that your customers somehow should have been able to avoid this problem without explicit directions such as those contained in your post. Below is a photo of the installation instructions I received with the cooler I purchased:

b4Wh0I


These instructions clearly state to tighten the screws to 100%.

...
Click to expand...

Owned!
 
More like 100% owned. :)

Class-action lawsuit, exhibit A. Or at least something definitive to use for CC chargeback.
 
Matrices said:
More like 100% owned. :)

Class-action lawsuit, exhibit A. Or at least something definitive to use for CC chargeback.
Click to expand...

I'm using the quote for my CC charge back. I'm going to run this companies name through the mud the rest of my life. Anytime I see anyone asking about this company I will put a link to this thread.

I was also thinking about registering a few domains along the lines:

articcoolingkillscards.com etc and point them at this thread.
 
I just mailed my affidavit and supporting documents to my credit card company for a charge back. They said it would not be an issue and would gladly charge back the full amount once received.
 
Called Mastercard, talked to the rep, explained the situation, linked him to the thread, asked me to fax in my invoice. Won't be a problem getting my money back. AC can burn for all I care. I'll be linking this thread anywhere I see anyone inquiring about your coolers. Screwed me over once with the 4870X2 not going to happen twice.
 
stingrayv2 said:
These instructions clearly state to tighten the screws to 100%.
Click to expand...

what the hell is "100%" anyways? that's not even a proper engineering unit for torque. how does one know when "100% torque" is reached? is it 1° before you start stripping the head ... or right before you kill your DVI ports?

fwiw, as a general rule of thumb (or when a torque tool isn't available or practical), i default to "snug plus a quarter turn". :)
 
jkw said:
what the hell is "100%" anyways? that's not even a proper engineering unit for torque. how does one know when "100% torque" is reached? is it 1° before you start stripping the head ... or right before you kill your DVI ports?
Click to expand...

In context it makes slightly more sense but it is still completely ambiguous...the prior steps show first tightening to 50% in a star pattern like you would with lug nuts. I posted the pic to show the original instructions clearly don't have the slightest bit of detail about not tightening fully the way you would naturally do with any normal screw. If anyone had for some reason wondered if they should only tighten it part-way, I think seeing "100%" would have encouraged them to tighten it fully. There should have been giant bold letters on that step with the directions that Arctic Cooling is only now giving, to tighten only until the X-plate is flat. Or of course they could've designed the cooler in such a way as to avoid this problem completely...then we'd all be raving about a fantastic cooler rather than waiting for an official answer on whether they are going to take any steps to help those of us with damaged cards.

jkw said:
fwiw, as a general rule of thumb (or when a torque tool isn't available or practical), i default to "snug plus a quarter turn". :)
Click to expand...

Yep...I can tell you from experience it doesn't take any more than that to kill a DVI port!


FredBasset said:
Well, just look at this shot of the toxic, notice which part it does not have!

http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_toxic_hd5970/images/12.htm
Click to expand...

Wow, that's extremely interesting. I've read the message from ARCTIC Support over again several times, and I honestly cannot tell whether the poster somehow didn't know about this difference, whether Sapphire's use of the cooler is mentioned without disclosing this critical difference in an attempt to minimize the problem and deflect responsibility, or whether the poster mentions it in order to explain that analyzing the differences between the two is what led them to discover the problem with their reuse of the X-plates. I'd welcome an explanation from ARCTIC Support about why the Toxic cooler uses a different mounting system.
 
To be fair I've now found other pictures of the toxic with the x mountings, however as I've already posted I have a Toxic on order, hopefully arriving some time soon so I'll let you know what the retail mounting is like.

Fred
 
Also whilst its no help to you poor guys who have lost your cards, if this is the way Sapphire are mounting these things that AC should get a similar mounting system out to purchasers of the cooler who have not dared to fit it yet.

Regards
Fred
 
Wow, I don't have one of these cards but I read through the thread out of interest and man, this is ridiculous. I guess I know one company I'll be avoiding in the future. My condolences go out to all who lost their cards in this whole fiasco.
 
ARCTIC Support said:
Dear customers
We received a few complaints about one of the two DVI ports would be just functional with an adapter after installing the Accelero Xtreme 5970. On the other side Sapphire used this cooler already several thousand times and such a malfunction was not registered.

This led us to investigate the root cause. Detailed tests and analysis showed that by fastening the screws of the original X-plate from the stock cooler too far, the sharp edges of that plate may injure the board as shown in this picture. The X-plate is bending down in the corners and is only supported by the spacers in the middle of the module.

5970_1000.jpg

Taking care and not over tighten screws at this point makes the installation safe. Also Screws A and B should not be over tightened. This picture below is showing the correct installation, the X-plate is paralell to the board.

streight2.jpg

Should you have further queries or comments, we are happy to support you.

ARCTIC COOLING Support Team
[email protected]
Click to expand...

Dear Arctic Cooling,

I find it absolutely AWESOME that you reply to all of our complaints in a thread. I've emailed you across 3 different email addresses, and gotten ONE reply from you, after what, 6 emails? You ruined my card, your instructions do not agree with what you say here, and you offer absolutely no solution to those who your product has caused damage. This entire experience tells me you are one of the WORST companies I have dealt with in years...and I will see any action through to the finish that totally ruins your reputation by making this fiasco publicly known.

Enjoy my credit card chargeback, because once it's through I'm going to be sure to take a sledge hammer to this fucking brick of a heatsink I have sitting on my desk. I have no use for you or your support staff. I don't know who is to blame within your company, and I don't give a damn - you have shown you don't give a shit about the customer.

God damn money sucking scum bags.
 
MavericK96 said:
Wow, I don't have one of these cards but I read through the thread out of interest and man, this is ridiculous. I guess I know one company I'll be avoiding in the future. My condolences go out to all who lost their cards in this whole fiasco.
Click to expand...

Same here, just read through this thread and it definitely faltered my confidence with AC after happily owning one of their products for over a year now. I hope they get what's coming to them.
 
jkw said:
interestingly, there's one for sale on ebay right now.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-ACCELERO-XT...tem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item255a7724f0


looks like Microcenter no longer carries any Arctic Cooling products (nothing in their web site store or my local store). also interesting that no vendors other than Arctic Cooling have it for sale (or even pre-order). then again, maybe it just hasn't hit the channels yet.
Click to expand...

"KEEP YOUR NICE 5970 COOL"

More like keep your nice 5970 dead!
 
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