My RTX 4070 Super reaches about 85°C on the GPU core and 105°C at the hotspot within a few minutes of playing Total War: Warhammer 3 at 1440p settings. Cyberpunk 2077, Helldivers, and Call of Duty at 4K and 144Hz produce similar or slightly higher temperatures. I have not noticed throttling, crashes, or errors, but I am wondering whether the case airflow, fan setup, or thermal paste could be contributing. The PC is about 2.5 years old, and although it has been around 100°F outside, the room is kept near 70°F with air conditioning. Should I be concerned, and would capping the frame rate or undervolting help?
2 Answers
The easiest first step is to cap the frame rate. A game like Total War usually does not need to run at 144 FPS, so limiting it to around 90 FPS can reduce GPU power usage and temperatures significantly. Your core-to-hotspot difference is a little larger than ideal, but not severe enough by itself to justify opening the card and replacing the thermal paste. Case airflow is harder to judge without knowing the exact card model and case layout; some 4070 Super models run much cooler than others.
Those temperatures are somewhat high, but they are still within the card’s operating range if you are not seeing throttling or instability. You could try undervolting the GPU or creating a more aggressive fan curve. Both are common tweaks, though they require changing settings gradually and testing for stability. The main tradeoff is that higher fan speeds create more noise, while an overly aggressive undervolt can cause crashes if pushed too far.
I have not adjusted those settings since using an old gaming laptop. Are there any major drawbacks, or is following a reputable undervolting guide generally safe?
I will try an FPS cap. The system has a Ryzen 7 7800X3D and fans on both the front and rear panels, but I do not know the fan models. The case has a glass side panel, which I have considered replacing with a mesh panel. It has worked reliably for about two and a half years, though some games run warmer than I would like.