Low wattage Ryzen cpus for desktop fanless operation?

May 31, 2018
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I've read this description of the R3 2200 and 2400 and at 35 watts they almost seem practical as a consideration for a fanless system.
And there are new, more powerful 45 watt Ryzen cpus being introduce.

But, when loaded down a Ryzen 3 2200 can draw 101 watts while the Ryzen 3 2400 can draw 114 watts.

These power draw figures make them seem less practical for a fanless system than they might at first sight appear.
And the new i3-i7 that are also quoted at 35 watts probably draw significantly more power under load as well.

Also, no one seems to have built a board for the desktop market that supports Ryzen based laptop cpus.

So what are the real options for fanless desktop use without using a stupid sized heatsink that probably would still have problems when the processor was heavily loaded?

Are we forced to use a low performance cpu, or is there an alternative?
 


Not stupid at all. If your goal is to run an HTPC, then this is an incredibly common idea/request for silent running. If the intended case design is to be SFX or passive, getting adequate cooling becomes a big concern.

iggyigou, I'd contact the vendors who do passive cooling for whatever setup you want to do and see what their limitations are. I know for instance that HDPlex has systems built to handle 65w CPUs with their passive setups (I use a first Gen H5 myself), and Silverstone has options as well. The question I have is what are you trying to do that you need a large amount of CPU power but a passive cooling system?
 
May 31, 2018
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No, its not a stupid idea, and would probably be my preference.
But I had someone else present this to me, and they specified silent operation.
Even a quiet fan generates noise.
 
Oh I'd forgotten about the DB4. That is a sexy case.
The one big downside to the cooler from the SilentPC link is the RAM limitation the cooler imposes (like a lot of big air coolers), but 95w is pretty damn good.

If you're looking to do a low profile build, in addition to the cases by Streacom I'd also check out HDPlex. They both have very similar designs but a few differences between them so that might open up motherboard options.
https://www.hdplex.com/
 
May 31, 2018
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I wasn't thinking 95w, more like 65w, or better still 45w or 35w.
And compact size is more important than height.
Got any other recommendations guys.
 
May 31, 2018
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I think I have enough options.
And fanless coolers are available for video cards up to the Radeon RX560.

Storage will be via SSDs.