Let's settle this cooling thing once and for all

[Guest]

Hello friends

I've been watching the hsf scene for a while, and I've got to say that Tom's analysis of 'sinks might be ...well, off. This is especially true for results that people have been getting with Silverados. I'm having problems finding an authoritative source for information. Let me sum up my situation..

I'm runnning a peice of junk hsf on a 1.2 athlon. I get 59c idle. I bought the Gigabyte ga7dxr board for the amd760 and its overclocking capabilities, plus hearing kudos for Gigabyte products. Additionally, it's got other nice things such as dual bios, etc. But enough of that. I intend to overclock to maybe 1.4, if I'll be able to get it up that high. I will not push it higher. Ever. Needless to say, this cruddy CoolerMaster hsf does not have a prayer of letting me do this.

I need something quiet that will let me achieve my target of 1.4 while maxing out at maybe 55c under full load. Of course, the lower the better, but there is no reason for me to be afraid of hitting 55 under load if I am idling at 59 right now with no problems.

Now, I'm not the kind of person to just not read up on this stuff and hope other people do it for me..I checked out amdmb.com and their tests are all wrong becasue they only use delta fans in the hsf tests. No thank you. I need something that isn't going to make my head hurt.

Of course, I am willing to put up with (some) noise becasue I have a radio shack fan bolted to the side of my case that is not exactly a totally quiet operator. It's not annoying either. I was on some website that lets you listen to some of the fans on these HSFs and THEY are annoying.

I apologize for the length of this post, and for the most likely repeated question of "uhh, what will make me run cool and quiet?" but any help is appreciated. Thanks everyone.

Down with bloatware!
Proud user of <b>ICQ98A</b>

 

[Guest]

well.. i have a norwegian webshop that lets you listen to the fans.... but only papbst

well.. the url is:

http://www.microplex.no/lytterom/index.shtml

then press the tiny icon all the way to the right to download the soundclips..

 

[Guest]

Although I don't have much of an opinion on HSFs (I don't really like any of them) I do have to say that you should be afraid of hitting 55C at all at 1.4Ghz.. With that kind of temp, you will most likely not have any stability at all.. I've had a water cooled setup that only reach 40C & it had poor stability over 1.35Ghz. As far as fans & noise, all I can say is if you want low temps via fans, you're going to have to deal with the noise. The only way to do it quietly would be use several lower cfm fans instead of one high cfm one, and use some ducting.

Asus A7V133
AMD Athlon 1200@1584(11.0x144) REFRIGERATED!

 

[Guest]

Unfortunatly most top end coolers are noisy, I have a Drag orb3 7000rpm fan(4500 optional) It is excellent at cooling keeps my 1.4G at 38C under a mild load in a room temp of 25C but the noise occasionally annoys me, so I turn up the volume some more. I will either try the 4500rpm fan for this or just put up with it until I get the $$ for Vapochill or kryotech.

Try this site of <A HREF="http://www.dansdata.com/coolercomp.htm" target="_new">dans data</A> for a comparasion of 52 coolers.

~Ok back on medication now~

 

[Guest]

Hi ptcq
From what I have read and experienced first hand, 40c is nothing to be worried about, and since I am idling at 59 and hitting maybe 64 load for extended periods of time with no stability issues to date, I don't know how that can be bad. Of course I'm always open to correction because I'll be darned if I know all there is to know =) so if anyone else can confirm that please let me know. Thank you for your reply(ies).

Down with bloatware!
Proud user of <b>ICQ98A</b>

 

[Guest]

Ok, higher temps = shorter lifespan due to heat. Also more heat =less electrical efficiency within cicuits.





~Ok back on medication now~

 

[Guest]

Once and for all (I doubt it)...
One of the new copper hybrids (or solids) should do it,
mini copper orb (cheap), global win cak etc...
I think anything over 52c may not be stable at 1.4
(Cover your fan, watch the temp rise and see where it craps out)If you are really energetic, make a graph and plot the temperature where it dies vs the speed. (I wish more people would post that kinsd of graph, but its dependent on cpu stepping, memory etc...)
Use artic silver (to get a few degree drop)
Note: We are now enetering a phase where the price of heatsinks will soon exceed the price of processors (and thats just not right) especially if you try out 5 or 6 to get a good one. bla bla....

 

[funkdog]

Here's my setup:

Alpha Pal-6035MFC Heatsink
Thermaltake 60mm 31cfm 25db fan
4x80mm Antec case fans
1 Gig Axia @ 1200
idles temps in the low 30C's
load temps in the mid 40's

and I'd say that 55-60C is a bit high, but nothing to get your panties in a bunch about. cool your case down, then work on the cpu. Buy a Volcano II and put a decent fan on it, that will provide adequate cooling, without the ear strain of a Delta Fan (I've used one). Buy a roomier case. The more room, the less heat.

<b>"These are my thoughts, your mileage may vary."

 

[chaotictech]

Im using a Coolermaster 6I51(I think) and a 23cfm 60x60x25 sunon fan on the hs. Its in an Antec sx1030 case with 4 80mm case fans, a 120mm fan on my vid card and pci cards. I get 35c idle and 40c at full load with a 1.2@1.4. Also your case makes a big differance, I went from a big a$$ server case to the antec and droped about 5c and im using 4 less fans than in the full server case.

When I go into a computer store I lose all means of reason for some reason.

 

[Guest]

You might be able to run stock speed at those high temps (50C+), but trying to overclock by 200Mhz with that kind of temp is just ridiculous. I know I had a crappy HSF & I got temps of 55C+ at idle (VERY high), & I had no stability issues.. But trying to overclock was another ball game. The higher you overclock, the lower temps you'll need.. Going to 1.4 from 1.2, I'd say anything over 40C & you'll start to have instability. Also as Scotty3303 said, more heat=shorter lifespan, so 64C even at short intervals IS bad. (64C is almost 150F.. That's hot!)

(You can see from some of these other posts that people tend to agree)

But as I said, if you want to minimize the noise, you can try more low-rpm fans. You can get almost the same air flow with less noise.

Or just do what I did & put a refrigeration unit on the CPU!

Asus A7V133
AMD Athlon 1200@1584(11.0x144) REFRIGERATED!

 

[Edison]

I've got the Vantec 6035D, but as I mentioned in an earlier post, the fan was a little loud. My VolcanoII kept my 1.4 TBird in the 52-54C range. I took the suggestion of replacing the Delta with a quieter fan and so far so good. I just happened to have a FOP32-1 fan on hand so I popped it on and after six hours of constant use the highest I've seen is 51 degrees. So I gain three degrees on the VII, but I lose three to five degrees on the stock Vantec with the Delta screamer. I did have to reverse the fan so it sucks instead of blows. The temps is very stable with this combo (I'm always under load -smile).


"TBird owners just naturally have more heatsinks and fans"

 

[funkdog]

I do believe that a 60mm Thermaltake fan has a higher rated cfm and lower rated db level than the stock Fop fans. So buyin a TT fan you might get quieter and cooler. Just a thought.

<b>"These are my thoughts, your mileage may vary."

 

[Edison]

I'll have to compare the specs of the two fans. I found my VolcanoII and my FOP32-1 essentially identical in performance, but there could be other factors involved besides the fans. My system was stable with the VII so any gains are more of a theoretical nature for me. For two degrees I might make the change. <smile> The Vantec 6035D has such a nice clip I'm really comfortable changing it as needed.

TBird 1.4 OEM
Maxtor 40 GB/7200
DVD
CD Burner
Combo floppy drive
A7V133
256 MB PC133
front intake 80mm
rear exhaust 80mm
350 Enermax (W/bottom fan)
VanTec 6035D copper HS W/stock FOP32-1 fan
(open 3.5 slot in case front)

 

[Edison]

Hmm, so now I'm talking to myself...

Funkdog, you are correct. The Volcano II does have better specs, at least according to one vendor.

I just checked Inflow Direct for the following specs.
Volcano II (stock fan).......FOP32-1 (stock fan YS Tech)
4500 rpm ....................4500 rpm
36 CFM ......................27 CFM
31.5 dBa ....................36 dBa

"Charter member of the half dozen HSF club"

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by edison on 09/05/01 08:40 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Guest]

Wow. Like, wow. =)

I didn't expect so many replies. Thank you all very much, and if you have anything additional to share, please do. The more feedback I get, the easier it will be for me to make a more educated decision. It seems as though there is a degree of consensus that states that overclocking by 200 mhz is generally going to require the purchase of the type hsf that I have been wanting to avoid...oh well. I'm not willing to trade my eardrums for another 200 mhz, heh.

Hey, my last computer was a 700mhz slot a athlon, so the jump to 1200 should hold me over for some serious amount of time. So a 1200 tbird...yeah. I shouldn't dare to be so picky. I'm more than getting my money's worth. My local dealer hooked me up with PriceWatch prices, so all's good.

I guess I'd just be looking for something to keep me running at 1200 more nicely, and just leave it there. That should broaden my options as far as lower performing HSFs go. Won't be needing ones that can propel small aircraft =), just something to keep me in a safer temperature zone.

As for current ventilation, my case is a generic thing that I tried to make the best of. I cut a 6" hole in the side panel and bolted a fan to it, blowing in. I also have a standard 80mm outtake, and an enermax psu, plus an Antec slot cooler under my vidcard. I tried switching the big fan to outtake but the cpu runs a good bit warmer that way, so it's going to stay on intake until I get something that cools my cpu better.

ANYWAY (whew) keep the replies coming, and thanks again.
SmlHrs

Down with bloatware!
Proud user of <b>ICQ98A</b>

 

[Guest]

Out of curiosity, has anyone reviewed the Antec Jet Cooler? I tried finding some info on it but could not. It's featured on thinkgeek.com of all places,

<A HREF="http://www.thinkgeek.com/stuff/fun-stuff/5744.shtml" target="_new">http://www.thinkgeek.com/stuff/fun-stuff/5744.shtml</A>

and according to the stats, it has thermal resistance that rivals a globalwin according to dansdata.com and yet weighs much less than these other monster HSFs. The fan rotating at 4700 seems a bit ...low compared to some other ones, probably resulting in higher temps but lower noise. What's the point of better thermal resistance if you can't get rid of the heaat? Not that I'm talking it down at all, because I don't know how well it performs. Naturally, it won't be as good as the extreme HSFs, but has anyone given this one a shot or just know how it stacks up? It's pretty inexpensive.

Down with bloatware!
Proud user of <b>ICQ98A</b>

 

[jg38141]

actually it's a marketing lie- the volcano II fan puts out almost the exact same amount of air as the fop 32 ystek fan, about 26cfm. I've seen a few reports of this over the review sites and having purchased both my self know it to be true.

My Jesus is whiter than your Jesus.

 

[Edison]

No argument whatsoever. I was only relating what I saw on a website. I've never dealt with the vendor so I can't comment on any bias. The performance of the two HSFs on my system appeared to be about the same which would make sense if the CFM of the two fans was equal. At best I only saw about a one degree difference between the two, but that could have been due to ambient temperature differences. Since I don't overclock I'm comfortable with the low 50 temperatures I record with my current Vantec 6035D+FOP32 fan. While I would like to see the 40C temps reported by some in this forum, I don't think it's going to happen unless I add more fans or add a blowhole.

"Him? He's a pioneer. You can tell by the arrows in the back."

 

[peteb]

Those fans are not that great - although fairly quiet. I use a variation on a PIII and it is quiet but about 15 degrees C hotter than a Fop38.

See <A HREF="http://www.quietpc.com/cpucooling.php#amdrf" target="_new">http://www.quietpc.com/cpucooling.php#amdrf</A> for a more honest appraisal of the product. It also states max CPU of 1.33G and expected temps 50-65 degrees!



-* This Space For Rent *-
email for application details

 

[Guest]

Anybody out there tried installing a side case fan blowing directly on the cpu? Also maybe installing some ducting to help direct the airflow right onto the heatsink?Can this kind of mod hurt the natural airflow from front lower to upper back of case?I've done about all i can do with intsalling fans in their regular places(except the front of the case i've installed 2 80mm intakes)I already spent way too much on a Swiftech MC370-OA Heatsink! Any helpful replies will be appreciated

<font color=red>H@ck!N <font color=purple>- <font color=green>N@sT!e$ We Fr@gg For Free!!

 

[Guest]

hey man...i hope you dont have that thermo couple sandwiched right in between your chip and heat sync. If you do your not getting proper conductivity of heat. Try some thermal grease, it makes a difference. 59C Is screaming high for anything...my comp at idle (really close to good thermal reading point short of hollowing out a chamber) is 24C

Bent on taking Compaq down

 

[Guest]

I am really thinking of buying one of those beer fridges and putting my comp in it. If ambient temp is about 5C in a fridge, a HSF will cause a meatlocker effect bringing it into the freezing range. Super cool......

A fridge costs about 75 bucks (the cost of a HSF some would say). Moisture isnt a problem cause the fridge removes it, you can keep beer in it, have a handy shelf for your CD's....

Bent on taking Compaq down