Should I RMA My 970 Over Slight Coil Whine?

Hardware Hub GPU
1

My Gigabyte 970 is making coil noise when under load. I've talked to both gigabyte and the retailer, but I have not been able to get a straight answer on whether it is considered a defect or not (I've been approved for an exchange because it is within 30 days of purchase).

I just wanted to get some advise here to see if it is considered a defect or if it could mean/cause damage to the card. I ultimately want to know if it is worth all of the trouble of an RMA.

(The card performs well. I've been able to get it to 1500mhz stable.)

Recording of the coil noise while running Heaven: http://m.soundcloud.com/lllghostwriterlll/gpu-noise

2

1500Mhz sounds crazy high. I usually leave my 780 at around 1200Mhz. How is the coil whine on stock clock?

3

The same. It's irrelevant to where I clock it to, the noise is always present when under load.

Like I said, the card performs fine, I just want to know if this is something to merit the hassle of a RMA.

4

I see, i'm sorry for the late reply. If the coil whine is always present and it's something that's annoying enough to you personally to notice then you should RMA it.

5

Maxwell can hit clock speeds much higher than Kepler.  1500Mhz is doable.

Doesn't really hurt to RMA.  If you can notice it during daily usage, then go RMA it for sure.

6

Right click on the top left hand corner on gpu-z and check its asic rating >80% its a golden card so keep it and deal with a bit of whine. Otherwise return it while you can.

What bump in voltage did you need for 1500?

7

Coil whine usually dosent fall under faulty. My 780 had coil while when I first got it but over a month of usage the card broke in and the coil while stopped.

8

i didnt know about that thanks im going to check my card now and hopefully not be disappointed but im pretty sure its not >80 due to my oc results 

9

68.9% :( its a 780 so honestly who gives F%#@ :)

10

My GTX 770 had coil whine issues for a few months after I got it, but it has since stopped.  Could just be because the card is new.

11

Well, shit.  Never knew that existed.

My poor HD 7950 is at 66.5%