How much better can it get???

[jaimegmr]

I have a computer with a Soyo Dragon Plus, Athlon XP 1700+ and a Thermaltake Volcano 6cu+. My current temps are as follows:

- Idle: 50C-52C
- Full Load: 56C

I am using Arctic Silver III. I think the temperature is too high. Also, the fan is way too loud. It is rated at 39dbA but it seems more than that. Can you recommend a better Heatsink to use with my computer? How can I lower th e noise level.

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[knowan]

What's your ambient case temp?

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[phsstpok]

Knowan asked your case temp. A decent HSF will put you between 12 and 18 degress above case temp depending on your CPU speed/type.

Are you running stock speeds? Is your XP1700+ a Palomino, Tbred A, Tbred B, which? It makes a difference.

Assuming a 30 degree case temp, a Palomino at stock speed 1.47 Ghz, and if that's a 60 mm Delta fan you have there then 50-58 degrees seems a little high. If it's a Tbred B then you a really high. However, if your computer is stable then those temps are not really a problem. Still, I can see your desire for quieter (and cooler).

I was using an OEM version of the Volcano 5 which has about 1-degree worse performance than the Volcano 6cu when using the same fan. I went from a Delta (39 CFM, 42 dBA LOUD!) at 38-46 degrees (Tbred B XP1700+ at 2.1 Ghz, ~XP2600+, 27 degree case temp) to a YS Tech TMD (36 CFM, 39 dBA, much less irritating because of lower pitch but still very loud) at 40-48 degrees. I finally switched to a Glacial Tech Igloo 2500 not pro (28 dBA) which performs the same as the latter but is much, much quieter. It runs 35-43 degrees with the TMD fan but I prefer the low noise. Never tested the Delta fan with it.

I wish I could recommend the Igloo 2500 but I don't like the high tension clip (which I had to mod). The Igloo 2500 is a basic hybrid, copper plate bonded to a big*ss aluminum heatsink. There are others that should do similary.

I'd be using the the Spire Falconrock II (21 dBA, I think) if I could get it here in the USA. (Supposedly it performs as well as the SLK800 when using the same fan according to Dansdata.com). I'd like to try one with a speed controlled performance fan though, so I could go between quiet (surfing, music listening, dvd watching) to high-performance (gaming).

I'll probably try this with the Igloo 2500, instead.

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[Fallen]

I just ordered the Spire Falconrock II from Excaliberpc.com. They are here in the US, and they have them in stock. I should actually have it today (along with my XP1700DLT3C). I'll let you know how it performs.

 

[phsstpok]

That's great! Thanks for the info! Looking forward to seeing your results.

$12 (plus $5 shipping) is a steal if it's as good as I have heard.

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[jaimegmr]

Im not sure what the ambient temperature is, but I live in Los Angeles, CA, so I think it is around 70-75F. Not sure what that is in degrees Celsius.

My case temperature is usually around 10-12 degrees lower than my CPU temp. so it would be 40C-46C.

I have a PALOMINO cpu because I bought it in December 2001. It is not overclocked. I tried overclocking it by increasing the FSB but I could only increase it to 138 Mhz max to run stably. I then tried to unlock it and got it to run at Athlon XP 1900+ speeds but not reliably and it would crash often, so I don't overclock it anymore.

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[phsstpok]

10-12 degrees above case temp tells me the HSF is doing it's job. It's your case temp that is causing high CPU temps. 40-46 degrees is too high. 30 degrees is more typical.

What do you have for case fans now?

A small change is case cooling might allow you to use a quieter fan on your CPU heatsink and get you lower CPU temps to boot.


<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[jaimegmr]

I have a generic fan (I think I took it from a PSU) in the front bottom part of the case blowing air in. Then I have a Vantec Stealth 80mm fan blowing air out through the top. There is also a space for a fan in the back under the PSU, but I dont have a fan there. What I think may be causing the case to heat up too much is that the top fan blows air to another section of the case between the top lid and the frame, and the lid has small holes in the sides. I think the holes are too small to allow enough air to go out. I was thinking of making a hole on the top lid directly above where the fan is mounted.

Here is a picture of my case:
<A HREF="http://store4.yimg.com/I/joyluckshop_1738_42585522" target="_new">http://store4.yimg.com/I/joyluckshop_1738_42585522</A>

As you can see in the right of the picture, it has small holes along the side of the top lid on both sides. These are too small, so an 80mm hole needs to be made in the top directly above where the top fan goes (between the PSU and front drive bays).

I was also thinking that removing the built-in fan grills will allow more air to go through.

By the way, I borrowed a sound level meter from my teacher and I measured the sound level:

-From 1 feet away from the front of the case- 58dbA
-From 1 Meter away from the front of the case- 54dbA

As you can see, it is extremely loud. I can hear it up to 20-25 feet away from the case

 

[jaimegmr]

I just removed the top lid from my computer and the temps are now as follows @ semi-idle(downloading files):

- Chassis: 39C
- CPU: 51C

The top lid is definitely restricting air flow. Now where can I get my hands on a dremmel tool? Any inexpensive ones that can be recommended?

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[phsstpok]

Wow, top removed and still 39 degrees and with two cooling fans! Don't know how your case is holding in all that heat.

Have you tried moving your exhaust fan to the back location just for testing?

I can't tell from your pics. Is there anything blocking the air intake at the front?

I had air flow problems (both noise and lack of air) with my cheapo case. The punched holes over the case fans were too small and too few. I decided to cut 80 mm holes in their place. I used a Black & Decker Wizard. Cheaper than a Dremel, by the way. (I used reinforced cutting discs but there has to be a better way. Do hole saws work on metal?)

I had another problem. In the front of my case the fan attaches to the chasis but the only place for air to enter from the outside is through a small opening on the underside of the fascia. When the computer was on the floor almost no air could enter. I took the easy way and put the computer on a table so that the opening would hang out over the edge rather than mod the fascia.


<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[jaimegmr]

As you can see from the picture, the front of the case where the intake fan is mounted was a mess, but I took out some parts. This is what it looked before:
<pre> | F |
,---,---| R |
||F|| B | O |
||A|| O | N |
||N|| X | T |
_____|___|___|___|
</pre><p>There was a white plastic cage for the fan and then that cage was on another metal box that looked like another fan cage. I removed both the plastic fan cage and the metal fan cage and attached the fan directly to the chassis in the front:
<pre> | F |
,---| R |
||F|| O |
||A|| N |
||N|| T |
__________|___|___|

</pre><p>The front part where I put the fan still has the cheap fan grill that blocks most of the air.
I just got a dremmel tool off ebay, so I hope I can cut the cheap grills out.


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[phsstpok]

Well, your rear fan grill looks like it passes more air than mine did. If the front grill is the same I'm not sure it's worth cutting it away but it's up to you.

Using your diagram<pre> | F |
,---| R |
||F|| O |
||A|| N | AIR INTAKE
||N|| T | /
__________|___|__ | /
---------------------------------FLOOR</pre><p>See my problem. Is this a problem on your case?

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[jaimegmr]

My case also has a bottom intake through the bottom like yours but my case is lifted about 2cm from the ground with some "feet" that it has. Also, if you look at the picture of the image, you will see some horizontal lines going across the front silver part of the case. These also allow some air to go through as they are directly in front of the fan.

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[phsstpok]

Vents and 2 cm of clearance ought to give you plenty air flow.

I just don't see how you are getting such high case temps.

Just for a point of reference, I think my temps are typical for a very middle of the road cooling solution.

My typical temps are, room ~18 degrees (cool basement), case 28 degrees, CPU about 41 at idle, 46 at load. That's with a Tbred B at 2.1 Ghz.

Notice the deltas. Case temp is 10 degrees higher than room, and CPU at idle is 13 degrees higher than case temp.

Pretty average stuff. I have one 32 CFM fan for the intake in the front, one 28 CFM (I think) fan at the back, plus the PSU fan which I would guess at 15 CFM. My CPU fan is something like 22 CFM.

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[jaimegmr]

!!! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!
Unplug your holes!

I mean your computer fan, cheap grill holes,

I just removed the built-in fan grills from my case and added a hole to the top of it and now my temps are as follows:

IDLE (Ambient Temp. = 25C)
- CPU: 45C
- Case: 32C

Compared to my CPU temps of before (54C @ idle), this is much better.

I am only using an 80mm Vantec Stealth fan for intake in the front and a generic fan (that oddly enough is quieter than the Vantec fan, but not as many CFM) for exhaust in the top. So now I have one fan for intake and 2 for exhaust (top and PSU). I still have room for another fan in the back so I'll get another quiet fan and it will be fine.

Thanks for all your help everyone.



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[phsstpok]

[Thumbs up!]

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>

 

[tombance]

Good for you! Another thing to try (although you may not wish to do it) is dropping the CPU voltage. If your not overclocking then its likely your CPU will run stable at much lower than its default voltage. And considering heat output increases by the square of the voltage increase then dropping voltage will dramtically decrease heat output. Try dropping it in steps until it becomes unstable and then put it up one more step.

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[phsstpok]

Well, what do you think of the Falconrock II?

<b>56K, slow and steady does not win the race on internet!</b>