4. Converting Older Graphics Cards to Passive Cooling

Older graphics cards, such as the MX200 or GeForce 3 generations, can be converted into passively cooled graphics cards with a little time and some careful effort. Companies such as Zalman, be Quiet!, or Aerocool all offer special conversion kits designed to replace active GPU coolers with passive alternatives.

Before buying any of these kits, however, you should make sure that they're warranted to work with your graphics card and GPU because not every GPU is suitable for passive cooling. You should also be aware that the amount of space that a passively cooled (or converted) graphics card consumes inside your PC case is often bigger than a plain-vanilla, actively cooled graphics card.

A converted MX400 graphics card

The Zalman solution includes a large aluminum heatsink with a quiet fan.

This passive solution from BeQuiet! Works on older ATI or Nvidia graphics cards.

Aerocool's passive cooling option