XPS 8700 nVidia GTX video card upgrades,

Maniak, Grab these at Amazon: 1) Noctua NFA A9 PWM   Buy 2 if you want to quiet down the PC then buy 3 if you don't want a high CFM fan on the rear case exhaust which will make the PC really quiet except when the GPU fans kicks in. Then buy this fan controller: 2) Evercool Twister Fan Speed Controller PCI slot or 3.5" Then buy this molex to 3 pin connectors: 3) Modtek 4-pin to Molex to 4 x 3 pin Fan Connector Cable Then buy this for the SSD 4) Rosewill 2.5-Inch SSD/HDD Mounting Kit for 3.5-Inch Drive Bay w/60mm Fan RDRD-11003 The idea is have 1 front intake running 100%, the mobo controlled case fan to be reused as intake fan (make sure to flip the fan so that it won't exhaust at the front of the case), rear case fan to be controlled by the PCI fan controller. If you are thinking of running your rig for hours with the GPU running 100% of the time then you need to use a high output fan on the rear case to exhaust serious heat but with the cost of decibels I used this fan as my rear exhaust fan...a little loud but I am not irritated by it on the lowest settings. If I put it on full speed I need to leave the room: 5) Bgears 90 mm 2 Ball Bearing High Speed High Performance Fan, Translucent Black (b-PWM 90 Black 2ball) Happy modding!!

Thank you so much! Going to add to my cart now!

I have to update my Bios when I got my XPS 8900 to work with the GTX 980 ti. You can always try not updating it but I would update it if I were you just to make sure it will work fine with your machine.

What GPU are you running?

Depends on which picture. It was an MSI GTX 770 2G, and later was an MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G

the 970 (lower) is slightly larger.

The picture looks more ghetto than it really is. This is my Son's system after adding a 120MM front fan. The rear PCI slot covers are removed which gives more exhaust venting. This one runs on a Y cable along with the rear exhaust fan. the seasonic PSU is also setup to have the fan always running so there is a slight amount of exhaust out of the PSU. I have yet to run any case temp tests with a thermometer but I can tell it is running much cooler after opening this up. That said, it will be a dust monster without any front screens so this is a future to-do.  note: this was cut with Tin snips and finished with a dremel cutting tool. I only had an hour to do the mods so it was a rush and will get cleaned up sometime in the future. other notes: you can't really see it, but the HDD cage is removed and there is only a single HDD in the 3.5 inch slot under the optical drives with a 2.5 inch SSD is in the lower 5.25 inch drive bay.

Once it is sitting on the floor with the plastic front bezel re-attached, you cannot notice the hack job on the front of the metal case.

But you can feel a nice breeze out the back.

Removing the PCI slot blanks is a must-do.

here is a before and after with the 92mm fan without any case mods and the 120mm with a nice opening cut.

The picture looks more ghetto than it really is. This is my Son's system after adding a 120MM front fan.

The rear PCI slot covers are removed which gives more exhaust venting.

This one runs on a Y cable along with the rear exhaust fan.

the seasonic PSU is also setup to have the fan always running so there is a slight amount of exhaust out of the PSU.

I have yet to run any case temp tests with a thermometer but I can tell it is running much cooler after opening this up.

That said, it will be a dust monster without any front screens so this is a future to-do.

 note: this was cut with Tin snips and finished with a dremel cutting tool. I only had an hour to do the mods so it was a rush and will get cleaned up sometime in the future.

other notes: you can't really see it, but the HDD cage is removed and there is only a single HDD in the 3.5 inch slot under the optical drives with a 2.5 inch SSD is in the lower 5.25 inch drive bay.

Maniak What GPU are you running? Depends on which picture. It was an MSI GTX 770 2G, and later was an MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G the 970 (lower) is slightly larger.

Ok, this isn't fair but I want to post it anyway to compare an 8700 with a GTX 970 and a seasonic X-650 PSU with a similar class system but custom built for overclocking with maximum air cooling. The upper one is my son's, the lower one is mine. I don't game much but I push the CPU very hard at times. CPU is a 4790K at 4.7Ghz and even when heavily loaded for long durations, the four 140mm intake fans and a single 140mm exhaust with PCI slot blanks removed combined with a massive CPU cooler keep everything comfortably cool. Graphics card is exactly the same, an MSI GTX 970 4G.

My point is look at the open space in a larger "workstation sized" case and the amount of air flow you can add. The case is a Fractal Design R5 and they can be had for about $90 USD. So, if after adding a spendy 980ti, and a big hot PSU you find temps are not behaving, I would consider re-casing the system.

I have a XPS 8900 and looking to "safely upgrade to a GTX 9700, in my old XPS 410 I added a Thermal Take Power Express external power unit to run an old GTS 8800...I was wondering if anyone has any idea if it would work or not...it seems as if it is strong enough..

www.tigerdirect.com/.../item-details.asp

Ok thanks, trying to get an idea of clearance of an MSI gtx 980. I believe the 970 has similar dimensions? Thank you

Depends on the exact card.  that MSI GTX 970 barely fits.

from nVidia's site, here are the dimensions, so it appears the 980ti is 5mm taller than the 970. 

MSI GTX 980ti Gaming 6G Card Dimension(mm)  277 x 140 x 40

MSI GTX 980 Gaming 4G Card Dimension(mm) 279 x 140 x 36

MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G Card Dimension(mm) 277 x 140 x 35

might work but why bother. just replace the stock PSU and it will cost you the same thing and won't have another thing to worry about.

Maniak Ok thanks, trying to get an idea of clearance of an MSI gtx 980. I believe the 970 has similar dimensions? Thank you Depends on the exact card.  that MSI GTX 970 barely fits. from nVidia's site, here are the dimensions, so it appears the 980ti is 5mm taller than the 970.  MSI GTX 980ti Gaming 6G Card Dimension(mm)  277 x 140 x 40 MSI GTX 980 Gaming 4G Card Dimension(mm) 279 x 140 x 36 MSI GTX 970 Gaming 4G Card Dimension(mm) 277 x 140 x 35

I already own the Thermaltake. Just wondering if I need to invest in a PSU..