P4 3.2g Prescott suspected heat problems

Hi all, firstly here are my system specs so the resident gurus know what kinda hardware we're working with from the onset:

P4 3.2g Prescott
Asus P4P800E Deluxe
2 x 512mb DDR400 DDRAM
Radeon 9600 XT 256mb
DVD/CDRW drive
DVDRW drive
Seagate 120g 8mb 7200rpm
Seagate 80g 8mb 7200rpm
ATX 300W PSU

I replaced the PSU with a Thermaltake Silent Purepower 480W TWV a week ago, hoping to cool the system better while increasing power reliability. This was when I started monitoring temperatures.

Case idle temp: 38ºC
CPU idle temp: 48ºC
Case load temp: 44ºC
CPU load temp: 60ºC
PSU fan: 3200rpm
Chassis fan: 2900rpm
CPU fan: 2700rpm

Reading around, I thought this was a little on the high side so I continued reading and decided to upgrade my CPU HSF with a Thermaltake Polo935, making sure I only used Artic Silver 5 thermal grease.

Case idle temp: 33ºC
CPU idle temp: 42ºC
Case load temp: 38ºC
CPU load temp: 52ºC
PSU fan: 3200rpm
Chassis fan: 2900rpm
CPU fan: 2700rpm

Both readings taken in 22ºC ambient temperature. CPU fan has a funnel channelling fresh air from outside the case direct into the fan.

I guess I was expecting a more substantial reduction in temperatures as I have read about the experience of others on the forum with much excitement. It seems that these guys don't exceed more than 45ºC under load and idle in the 30s. How can I achieve this? Even when I turn the PSU/Chassis/CPU fans to maximum (3700/3200/5700rpm) I still can't get the CPU idle temp to drop past 41ºC. I have ensured the heatsink surfaces are clean, and have used a single rice kernel sized drop of Artic Silver 5 in the middle of the heatsink.

I am using Asus PC Probe to obtain these values. I have compared them to values in Motherboard Monitor 5 and they are spot on, so it can't be that Asus PC Probe is being too optmistic.

Oh and another thing, Vcore voltage is 1.4v, is this alright? I seem to recall someone having 1.7v, thought mine might be a little low?

Any help will be appreciated thanks!

 

hey scoobysix,

Oddly enough I have a system that's pretty close to yours (3.0E, 512 DDR400 (doubling soon...thank god.), etc...) anyway, the 3GHz prescott is the key thing here, and I am a heat worrier. My CPU does hit those recommended numbers just fine (the 45C under load) but this wasn't always the case. When I got it I used a heatsink I purchased on my own, not the one that came with it...it cooled it pretty well, but it was still around 50C at max. load. I went out and got a(n) CoolerMaster Aero4 lite.

The fan (/turbine?) is ok, it's not the best heatsink/fan in the world by a long shot...but it works excellent with the airflow of my case. Have you considered the option that our heat sink moving the heat off the processor, but it's just hovering there, and not really cooling anything off? check to see that you have ample intake and exhaust. Something I do as a rule of thumb is put my hand behind the fans (not blocking the airflow) and kind of get a reading on temperature that way...I am happiest when I can feel cool air moving, and I can open my case and not get a blast of warm air in my face. That should mean that the warm air is being expelled immediately and isn't staying long enough to pool and cause heating problems. NOTE: this is something I do on my own, and is not 100% accurate by a long shot.

I also run Asus Probe, and have found it to be rather accurate for temperature monitoring. Another thing you could check is the quality if the fans in your case. I don't know if they're stock or something you added yourself, but you seem a competent enough person to be able to find out how many cfm they move (cubic feet/minute) I know these things don't necessarily effect the CPU that much, but a good cool case is the best foundation for a good cool Processor.

Like I said previously, air flow is key in removing that hot air from your case. If the ambient temp in your room is nice and cool, but it's boiling in your case, your processor is gonna boil. Try to keep the airflow in a certain direction, as I don't like the idea of interrupting it with intake fans on the side (unless you manage some kind of side to side airflow) And I REALLY don't like the idea of a funnel for the processor (looks like a bullhorn attached to the side of your case right?) I think these mess up the whole air flow system pretty darn well, but that's just my opinion.

check these things out, as well as your heatsink, make sure it's in good contact with the processor, and is working properly...(I'm sure you already have) Maybe consider a Solid copper heatsink with a more powerful fan/s? or maybe a different case? Check it out, let me know what happens, and good luck!

-koadmunki

 

The Thermaltake Polo735 comes with a 60-fin copper heatsink which I'm using. A little gutted that I'm still getting higher temperatures than I would have liked. I think you're right in that airflow might be the issue in my case. My Thermaltake Silent Purepower 480w TWV PSU has 2 fans in the PSU, 1 blowing out the back as per usual and another at the bottom of the PSU which blows almost directly at the CPU. I'll get a picture soonish and post it up.

The funnel sits on the inside of the side of my case, making sure the CPU fan only gets air from outside the case, which I think may be a pretty good idea. But yeah, it does get in the way of the airflow in front of the rear exhaust fan. I think I might have to get a new case instead of this piece of crap.

Ideally, I would want idle temps to be in the low-mid 30ºC region and load temps to be in the low-mid 40ºC region. I better start planning the next step forward, I might end up spending more getting it right, or I might find I could have gotten a complete water-cooled system for less money!

Thanks,
Scoobysix

 

The CPU heatsink fan pumps out 79.5CFM at 5500rpm I think, so it's pretty decent.

I forgot to add that I only just installed the Thermaltake heatsink and fan today. I heard that temps will continue to drop in the next few days after a fresh installation, so we'll see.

 

Yes, that is true, that it takes a little while for everything to settle in with the thermal paste and all, so the true temperature will show itself in a few days or so, but you still have a pretty good idea of what's in store now. It sound like your Heatsink is just fine, unless you really do decide to go water cooling..but that's really up to you. (better cooling/more money)

I did do some research on the whole fresh air funnel for your processor. Yes, you're quite correct in thinking that it can be a very good idea, but I personally still feel that unless you have a specific need for one, they're just too much trouble. I wouldn't rule out using the thing, but I'd also look into removing it to see if that can help you out as well.

Also, if you're taking pics, snap some of that case of yours, including fans and a kind of overall picture too, so I can get a better idea of airflow. Getting a new case might not be necessary, most every case I've ever used, (and I have used some CRAPPY cases) can be managed with a little patience and effort.

Another thing I noticed while surfing the forums was a post about wire management. It's a pain in the butt, but it can also make or break a system. One guy is even claiming 30 degrees cooler with a heatsink change and wire management changes. That's HUGE, and would more that solve your problem. So I have this question for you, what kind of cables are in your case? SATA? IDE (flat or rounded?) hanging Molex plugs? anything like that can block airlfow in a big way.

As for the PSU blowing straight down onto the CPU...well that don't sound too good. I can imagine using it to create airflow, but it would be hot air from the PSU, and without proper exhaust fans next to the CPU, it could be exactly what I was talking about with the hot air just sitting there, and heating everything up by making the ambient temp higher than otherwise.

Good luck! Hope I helped, and I'll keep my eye on this thread for those pics soon, k?


-koadmunki

 

Attached below:

My case - as you can see, no provisions for a front fan which kinda sucks. You can also see the hole on the left side, that's the intake vent that leads into the CPU fan funnel.

Inside - I had a read around and found out that the fan at the bottom of the PSU actually INTAKES air so that's a good thing, ie. it sucks in hot air from the CPU and exhausts it through the fan on the rear of the PSU. I've tried my best to route all the cables/wires away from the centre of the case in order to clear the space for airflow. It has helped slightly, dropping temps by a further 1-2ºC.

 

You can see from the pics below that the CPU fan sits almost directly at the end of the tunnel, meaning that the CPU fan is only fed fresh cool air from the outside of the case.

However, as you can see in the 2nd pic, the location of the funnel also means that the airflow to the rear chassis exhaust fan is being obstructed in a pretty big way.

I am now wondering if I should experiment with removing the funnel, it might help in reducing case temps but might possibly increase CPU temps.

I also wanted to add an additional exhaust fan in the rear, but alas, there isn't any space there to do so.

 

What about a larger (adapter? I've seen them...though rarely, and I'm not so sure if they work well or not) or a More powerful fan in the rear? It might be a bit louder but you could also take measure to prevent that if it's a problem for you. I know my case is cool and all, but it sound like a jet engine when I'm trying to sleep 3 feet from it.

And yes, it does seem like that funnel is blocking a lot of airflow, though if the PSU is sucking in air that should make up for a lot of that loss, though the fan in the back is definately going to waste for the most part. I'd try and remove the funnel, it shouldn't be a problem, and see what happens. If the case temp goes down but the CPU temp goes up, you might be able to benefit from something of THIS nature. That's basically what I did with my case, though I have several fans in front of my hard drives pushing air back through the system.

I came up with a few other ideas for you as well in case you didn't want to remove the duct. (These can be mixed and matched just fine, and can also be implemented with or without the duct on the side.) The Attached Images depict my ideas, and at the end of the post I will Supply links to where I found all the products for you, but first let me explain what I came up with...

I wanted to take warm air from two main places...in front of your PSU/Behind your Optical (cdrom) drives and all around your Hard Drive(s). These are two powerful heat keeping places that are real problem areas if not dealt with in situations like this. You could also add a blowhole (fan on top of the case) but that require case modding, and I don't know if you really want to get into that. ok, enjoy the pics, and let me know what you think, or if you have any questions!

Links:

PCI bay Cooling Fans

5.25" bay Cooling System

 

and some more pics.... (hehe)










maximum of two they say.....*grumble grumble*.....

 

Add a couple of fans.
You can cut hole in the bottom of your case near the front for incomming air, add fan.
Then you can hole in the top of your case "blow Hole" to exaust Hot air, hot air tends to rise, add fan.

Something else to keep in mind, not all fan's blow or suck the same amount of air ( keep this in mind when selecting fans), Ive found it is best to have slightly more air blowing into the case than blowing out this keeps dust from being sucked in thru cracks/creveses & around CD/dvd drives, at the very least Equal amount of air incomming vs outgoing.
Cool air incomming Low and from the front of the case, hot air out the upper back or top of the case.

Those P4's love fresh air from a duct.

If your not up to cutting holes, a better case can be had cheap they dont have to be expensive brand names to have good cooling qualities.

 

Thanks for all the input guys.

I'm not too keen on getting another heatsink as I've only just shelled out for this Thermaltake Polo735, which was reviewed to be pretty decent.

I think the main problem is my case. The location of rear fan and funnel means that the rear fan isn't able to move much air out from the middle of the case. In addition, having the Power On/Off/Reset assembly in the bottom front of the case means that I cannot put any front intake fans there. Like KoadMunki's diagrams suggested, this means I get a lot of stagnant heat around the front portion of the case (from the CD/DVD drives and HDDs) that the rear fan is unable to exhaust because of 1) its small size, and 2) the funnel obstructing the airflow.

Those PCI and 5.25" fans look like they'd work, but I'm not sure about the aesthetic value of them But hey, I appreciate the thought and effort you've put into helping me out here KoadMunki! Muchos appreciatos!

I think my next line of attack would be to get a new case that would allow an intake fan to be mounted on the case, and 2 exhaust fans on the rear, with possible provisions for ducting on the side panel towards the CPU. Before I swap everything over, I'll probably make a hole on the top of the case for an intake fan as well. Using Asus' theory that intake air volume should be roughly the same or more than exhaust air volume, this would mean 2 intake fans in front, and 2 similar exhaust fans on the rear.

Anyone see any problems with this reasoning? I'll see what I can do about making up a diagram to explain this, I'm pretty much all thumbs when it comes to graphics!

 

New to the forum ... I have a similar system with similar Prescott heat concerns ...

System config:
Intel P4-3.0E Presscott
4x512Mb DDR400 SDRAM (2Gb total)
Seagate 300Gb SATA 8Mb 7200rpm
Nvidia FX5200 128Mg 8x AGP
Nvidia NVTV Dual Tuner Card
Pioneer DVR-A09 16X DVD-RW
Antec ARIA SFF case
Thermaltake Spark7+ Copper CPU cooler w/ variable speed controls.
Artic Silver 5 thermal grease.

The Antec Aria case is not rated for the Prescott processor but I bought it for it's quiet PSU fan. Right now, the only way I can keep this sytem from overheating to 60+ degrees C, is to take the 2 side covers off ...

With that said, the best temp I can get is just at idle is:
Case Idle temp: 38 degrees C
CPU Idle temp: 41 degrees C

CPU fan is running about 3500rpm.
Chassis / PSU fan is internally controled Antec 120mm fan and is very quiet.

Under Load the CPU goes up to 53-57 degrees C. (How hot is "TOO HOT"???)

My questions is should I replace the Prescott with a Northwood so I can run quieter and have the side covers on ... OR ... I thought I might make some very open sidecovers using some kind of grill / screen that would leave the sides open for max ventilation ... OR ... should I get a larger case that is TAC certified so that it has the 'duct' and fan that blows cool outside air into the CPU fan???

Any ideas ...
Thanks,
Dennis

 

i think you should put the side covers on and forget about,if it goes just send it back.

 

Rikky,

Something about running a "PresHOTT" CPU in a non T.A.C. case will more than likely void any waranty from Intel ???

What is the top temp that a 3.0Ghz CPU can get to before it cooks itself?
Dennis

 

How will they know what case its in?Unless you tell them.When you send a cpu back all you need is the box,warranty and rma number not the full case.

Prescotts are designed to run hot,people have them running at 70 degrees with no problems,the thermal spec on the website is 70,so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you.

 

Is the 70 degrees the maximum temperature ?

Anyone else out there want to comment on running a Prescott 3.0E CPU at 70 degrees C???

 

TOO HOT TOO HOT TOO HOT. yeah, he's right, you COULD send it back and it MIGHT not get cooked, but first of all, let's review something here.....are you really interested in going through the trouble of removing, and sending back your processor, dealing with Intel, and then waiting for a new one if it DOES go? and the cooler you make it, the better it will run. Sure people run them fine at 70 degrees, but people who run them at 36 run them a lot finer!

Something to think about, and it's not a big deal to throw in a few fans, or mod the case a little, or even get a new (not necessarily expensive) case that has better cooling qualities. The choice is yours bud, do what you think is best for you, but if you see my point and agree, then contact me and I can give ya some ideas if ya want, k?

Good luck either way!


-koadmunki

 

Seems like temperatures are continuing to drop, which is always welcome. I think the Artic Silver 5 is finally filling up the voids/air pockets/irregularities on the Thermaltake heatsink surface (which isn't the smoothest - I should have lapped it before I put it in but I was too excited to fit my new toy! )

Case idle temp: 30ºC
CPU idle temp: 37ºC
Case load temp: 36ºC
CPU load temp: 49ºC

Still not my target temperatures but I will continue to strive for better cooling!

 

Hmm contemplating switching to watercooling but not sure how much that would help as I won't be going for a hardcore setup, just something simple.

Am thinking of switching to a Thermaltake Armour case and a Thermaltake BigWater liquid cooling system, changing out the GPU heatsink with a copper waterblock as well. It seems that people are advising against going for a watercooled setup unless one is willing to shell out for a good one. The arguement is that a properly set up fan cooled system will be better than an average watercooled setup.

Thoughts and opinions guys?

 

For the price of a good watercooled system you could get a nice cool a64 and mobo.

 

The Prescott 3.0E can run up to 85 degrees celcius: at this temp it will shut itself down to avoid damage.

i think as a rule you should make sure it runs below 70 degrees C.

I got mine running below 65, just upgrade the stock cooler with a better one, and get some additional case cooling (replace 80mm with 120mm fans) and use artic silver compound on your cpu.

 

Well that certainly is good news ... the less than 70C ... I am trying to get a 'working airflow' in this small Antec Aria case (SFF) ...

Someone mentioned that I should have the CPU heatsink fan pulling air OFF (up) the CPU heatsink fins. I am presently using a Thermaltake Spark 7+ copper CPU cooler that includes a 70mm fan (it's the only one that is short enough to fit in the case) ... the fan came mounted and blows air downward onto the copper fins ... which way is better? ... blowing air down onto fins or up pulling hot air off the fins?

Here is a related question ... is it better to direct outside air with a side panel fan to the cpu fan or should the side panel fan be blowing outward and pulling the hot air off the CPU fan/heatsink. (this outward method I would think should have the CPU fan blowing upward so that the side panel fan can pull that warm air out of the case) ... Am I thinking correctly here or is there a better way?

Thanks,
Dennis

 

Hey Dennis,

i think most cpu fans blow air onto the CPU, with the exception of certain "freezer" models that suck air side-ways through the fins of the heatsink. In your case, if you have a TAC-case which has a small duct at the side of your case in line with your CPU, it's best to mount a fan there that blows air into the case, and thus will provide fresh cool air from outside the case into your CPU cooler.

Just make sure you got a good airflow in- and out of your case (usually 80mm or bigger at the front-bottom of the case blowing air into the case, and another one at the top-back of the case (under power unit) to suck air out of the case.

All hotter air coming out of the bottom of your CPU cooler will then be caught in the internal airflow stream in your case, and be transported outwards to the back.

hope this helps,

 

Dr. Evil,
You are 'da man! I have since given up on the Aria case and got a Antec mid tower with the TAC side panel duct. It has a large 120mm fan in the back and I'm going to get 2-80mm fans today ... one for the front intake and one for the side duct fresh air to CPU ...

I will revive the SFF Aria case with an older P4-1.6Ghz ... without all the extra heat generating cards as I have in this Media Center PC ...

RIght now the idle temp is still at: case=44C, CPU=49C (for a Prescott 3.0E). I think it could be lower than that ...

Now that I have a ton more room inside, one possibility may be the Zalman CNPS-7700Cu cooler ... which is supposed to be MAX Quiet ... I am only trying to balance max cool with max quiet. The other unit I have read about is the Thermright XP-120 heatpipe solution with a 120mm on top of the heatsink. The 3rd candidate is the Thermaltake CL-P0019 Fanless Cooler. I have room right in front of the rear 120mm fan for heat exhaust. Just don't know if it has enough 'ooomph' to chill a Press-HOT CPU.

Any preference or notes about these 3 units or further ideas?
Thanks,
Dennis

 

STOP!

don't get the 80mm fans, get 120MM fans with converters to fit them in your case!!

It makes a world of difference in terms of noise and airflow, i can't hear them and the airflow is really good. My case temp is now below 38C and that's WITHOUT a TAC duct on the side!!!

As for CPU Coolers, I wanted to get that Zalman you are getting, but it didn't fit in my case. My CPU is too close to my PSU, and you need like 3-4 cm room extra, so I couldn't fit it in.

Instead I went for the Gigabyte Rocket 3D, which is also quite silent and effective. I plugged it onto my manual fan controller and when i play games or converting video i turn it to the max, then you can hear it but it's not an annoying sound like the Intel stock cooler.

I suggest you go for the 3d Rocket Pro, or Ultra versions, they are even better...

Anyways, spendign all this time experimenting, i found out installing a duct is worthless really, even with fan, as it really didn't lower my temps that much.

With the "double 120mm" fans (Akasa) i can feel the airstream sucking at front and blowing at the back, without hearing any significant noise. it's awesome and brought my case temps below 38.

My Prescott gets max. 65C when converting video, but normally it only gets up around 60C. Idle it's 48 !!!

hope this all helps,

 

I have the Thermalright 90 copper version and that worked *way* better than my old Zalman 7000AlCu. So I highly recommend it, I've also seen plenty of reviews showing it outperform the competition, as well as many praises from other customers.

 

Well I wanted to get the 120mm fans, but they physically won't fit in my case, even with the 80-120 converters. So I just got 2 quiet 80mm's and the case temp seems to have have come down a bit ... now it's
Case= 39C idle, CPU=42C idle. THis is with the CPU fan running very slow - almost inaudible.

I still would like to get a quieter cooler like the XP-120 or even a fanless unit like the ThermalTake CL-0019. I have a message into their tech support with inside of case dimensions to see if it would fit and properly cool a Prescott 3.0E CPU.

 

I have experimented with removing the duct from the side panel, the CPU actually runs 2-3ºC cooler with the duct on.

Current setup has a single 80mm rear exhaust fan with NO intake fans. I have just put in an order for a Thermaltake Armour case and BigWater watercooling unit as well as a VGA card copper waterblock, I'm hoping this should bring down temps considerably. Looking at the Thermaltake Armour case, it looks like it'll work exactly as Dr Evil suggested: its fans are setup as such -

1 x 120mm rear exhaust fan
1 x 120mm front intake fan
1 x 90mm rear exhaust fan on the ceiling panel
1 x 90mm rear exhaust fan

Although it doesn't have a side duct, the CPU sits almost right smack in the middle of the airflow between the front and rear 120mm fans. This should move hot air pretty effectively. In addition, you have the option of mounting your HDDs directly in front of the rear 90mm fan instead of front bottom (where it will obstruct airflow from the front intake fan). My PSU has an additional intake fan on the bottom of the unit, and in the Armour case, the PSU is mounted sideways. This means that heat from the HDDs will be directly exhausted through the rear and top 90mm fans, AND through the PSU intake fan.

As a last burst of fire, I have also ordered some rounded IDE and FDD cables so that I can route the cables away from the middle of the case easily, this should also help to aid airflow even further. Will report back in about a week to see if it has made a difference.

My mate has a 3.0E CPU and he runs 32ºC idle and 41ºC load. This is with a Thermaltake Polo735 heatsink & fan, and only 1 x 80mm rear exhaust fan so I reckon you might still be running a little hot ey?

PS. Ambient temperature is about 16ºC.

 

Wow - is his pc in an airconditioned room or something?

Yeah - rounding off cables is good, but you do it yourself easily with some tape.

HDD's can run quite hot, but my main problem is the AGP videocard which is situated right in the middle of the case; it adds up to the central heat core of the pc, where cpu northbridge and memory.

Also the size of the card is humongous (gigabyte 6800GT with heatpipe design) and i think it obstructs the airflow from the front-bottom intake fan a bit.

Nothing i can do though, except buy another case...

The real funny thing is that i must have spent about 50-60 pounds on coolers, fans and accessoires trying to cool the whole thing down, but this actually buys you a new Prescott 3.0E CPU so why bother ? ;-)

 

HAs anyone used the Thermaltake CL-P0019 Fanless cooling hetpipe unit?

I wonder if it would work on a Prescott 3.0E CPU (socket 478).

Let me know what you think about this unit.
Thanks!

 

fanless and prescott in the same sentence,LOL,Its like TNT and matches.

 

Well, looks like I couldn't wait, went out and collected the case/watercooling unit/gpu waterblock/rounded cables today and just finished putting them all together.

Result

Case idle: 26ºC
Case load: 27ºC
CPU idle: 37ºC
CPU load: 45ºC

Conclusion
Case temps never went above 27ºC so it goes to say a lot about the airflow capabilities of the Thermaltake Armour case! CPU still idled at similar temperatures but the thing is, on load it never went above 45ºC so it's a fair improvement under load. I suppose the 3.2g Prescott just runs inherently hot, can't seem to get idle temperatures any lower. Then again, I only just fitted everything a couple of hours ago, so CPU temperatures might continue to drop over the next few days as the thermal grease settles.

Fingers crossed! I sure hope to see more improvement as I just blew AU$600 on all of the above! Didn't realise that the fans that came with the case weren't RPM adjustable, so I'm gonna splurge a little bit more to get some RPM adjustable ones so I can make sure I have finger tip control over noise/RPM/temperature with my Thermaltake Hardcano 13! (Yes, it's starting to sound like I work for Thermaltake but no, I don't. It's just that their products look so cool!)

PS. No idea why mate's PC runs so cool, it's not in an air-conditioned room but ambient temperature was about 16ºC.

 

Photo's,Photo's,Photo's!!!1

 

The prescotts are rated at 100w, thats pretty hot, watercooling i hear works the best.

For me I'm using my old Celeron 366 case i bought way back in the day, have the side off, and have a Card cooler (2 80mm over the video card), using the stock Intel HSF with AS5, @load i'm at 58*, i don't know idle since i fold 24/7.

My motherboard temp is 27* and the cpu fan speed is 3068rpm as of posting. I've been running this setup fine for about 7 months now.

I'm moving soon to a new house and will have the computer in the basement and expect my temps to drop even more

 

Ok Watercooling is very nice to have - but how much does it all cost?

So really, what would be better, to buy watercooling and increase the lifetime of your CPU by 2 or 3, or just buy some additional fans and increase the lifetime by 1.5 or 2?

(so what's the Break-Even point here?)

just a though...

 

My watercooling kit cost $150 Australian dollars, plus another $50 for the GPU waterblock so $200 all up. I spent $600+ because I went the extra mile to get a new case as well as more fans (not to mention a bling fan controller) and rounded cables.

Watercooling $200

vs.

Additional fan cooling
120cm RPM adjustable fan $25
120cm RPM adjustable fan $25
CPU heatsink $65
GPU heatsink $55
Total: $170

Pretty darn close if you ask me. IMHO, the extra peace and quiet from watercooling is worth the $30 extra

... but then that's just me.

 

Well that's close indeed, but I think from my point of view there is a bigger difference between the two cooling methods here:

here's what i have exactly spent on additional cooling:

* 2x Akasa 120mm Fans £20 ~ $36.58
* 2x 120mm-80mm converters £06 ~ $11.00
* Fan Control Panel £20 ~ $36.58
* Artic Silver compound £07 ~ $12.80
* Gigabyte 3D Cooler £18 ~ $32.92

Total £71 ~ $129.86

Could you give me a breakdown like this pls on all the components you bought for your watercooling pls?

Also, how easy is it to install the watercooling components? I can imagine it's a bit more work than installing the air cooling components, right?

 

Actually the Thermaltake BigWater watercooling kit was a cinch to install. It depends how far you want to take it I suppose. My mate has a pretty hardcore watercooling kit that costs a bomb and naturally was a fair bit more difficult to setup. He DIYed the entire setup, using Swiftech waterblocks, huge tubing diameter, an Eheim pump and a HUGE radiator (2 x 120mm fans blowing into it). He had to have a custom shroud made up to house the radiator, and a fair bit of dremelling and drilling to fit those 2 x 120mm fans. On top of that, he has a total of 9 fans running the airflow in his case. His CPU doesn't ever go above 40ºC even while under heavy load.

His radiator
His setup
His custom radiator shroud on roof of case

Here's a breakdown of the costs for me (Australian $):

Thermaltake Armour case $228
Thermaltake BigWater watercooling kit $150
Thermaltake Aquarius II VGA waterblock $50
Thermaltake Hardcano 13 fan controller & universal card-reader $85
Thermaltake 90mm Smart Fan II $16
Artic Silver 5 thermal compound $10

Total: $539

I was contemplating keeping it fan-cooled at first. If I did, I would have done it this way, and then I did the maths:

Thermaltake Armour case $228
Thermaltake Polo735 CPU cooler $65
Thermaltake Extreme Giant II GPU cooler $65
Thermaltake 90mm Smart Fan II $16
Thermaltake 90mm Smart Fan II $16
Thermaltake Hardcano 13 fan controller & universal card-reader $85
Artic Silver 5 thermal compound $10

Total: $485

I'll post up some pics of my setup as soon as I get some.

 

Took some pictures today, here they are. Some components aren't shown as they have haven't arrived yet, ie. Hardcano 13 and a 90mm RPM adjustable fan.

My Setup
Items visible:
HDDs mounted in cage beside PSU, 90mm exhaust fan right behind it
120mm fan blowing into radiator
Waterpump

My setup 2
Items visible:
120mm fan blowing into radiator
CPU waterblock
GPU waterblock
Waterpump

HDD cage and exhaust fan
Items visible:
HDDs mounted in cage beside PSU, 90mm exhaust fan right behind it
90mm exhaust fan mounted on roof of case

120mm front intake fan
Items visible:
120mm front intake fan

120mm radiator fan and PSU fans are currently hooked up to the Thermaltake TWV fan controllers so they are speed adjustable at the moment. Once my Hardcano 13 arrives in 3 weeks, I will be hooking the fans up this way:

Hardcano 13:
120mm radiator fan
120mm front intake fan
90mm HDD exhaust fan
90mm roof exhaust fan

TWV:
PSU fans
(I will be mounting an 80mm intake fan on the side panel in front of the CPU/GPU area)

 

Thats sweeeeeet!,any really nice and tidy,I'm definately getting a water cooled setup soon,at the momont I,m still in the middle of modding the comp in my sig,I'v bought the coolermaster aerogate 1 to control the fans,I'm gonna have 6 low noise fans with 2 sharing a channel on the aerogate,the cooling performance should be able to be tuned so the pc becomes very quiet, I think this will be my last air cooled rig.

Alot of watercoolers I have seen place the pump on the bottom of the comp on a peice of sponge,so the vibration doesnt vibrate through the box.You will have to post the kind of performance/overclock you get from it.nice work.

Anyway heres my mess at the moment,LOL

 

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm still new to the whole PC modding business so I won't be doing any overclocking until I am sure of what I'm doing. Once all the cooling shiznit is completed, I'll be looking at upgrading my RAM and VGA card before I sit down and have a good think about how I can overclock my machine safely.

Due to the HDDs being relocated to the top of the case, the SATA cables aren't long enough that's why they are stretch right across the middle of the case. I've already ordered a couple of longer ones so I can route the cables away from the middle. I haven't really paid a lot of attention in routing the cables/wires yet because the Hardcano 13 and 90mm fan hasn't arrived. Once everything has arrived and I am sure I've got nothing else (with wires) to add to the setup, I'll have a serious shot at routing everything properly.

I left the computer idling overnight yesterday and had a look at the temperature logs this morning. It dropped to as low as 21ºC Case and 32ºC CPU in 12ºC ambient temperature. Right now it's 22ºC ambient and it's reading 25ºC Case and 37ºC CPU. Not too shabby considering the fans are running at minimum RPM!

I seriously recommend the Thermaltake BigWater watercooling kit for anyone just starting to dabble in watercooling. The next closest kits in terms of price is nearly double in price and offers only slight improvement over the BigWater.

Currently using some crappy Veritech RAM and Gigabyte ATI Radeon 9600XT 256mb VGA card, will be looking to upgrade them to some Corsair XL RAM and ATI Radeon X850XT VGA card as soon as money allows, AND THEN I'll have a serious poke at understanding and doing some overclocking

 

Edit to previous post: Apparently the RAM is Samsung, not Veritech.

 

Sorry again, apparently the RAM is PSC, not Samsung. Now I have never heard of PSC RAM before! Smells like new RAM I reckon...

 

Hmm weird as...according to the model number showing in PC Wizard 05, my RAM is a PSC RAM but I had a look at them recently and the stickers on them show Veritech.

Ah well, doesn't matter. I've left them at 2.5-3-3-8 latency timings and overclocked my CPU to 3.6ghz by raising the FSB, increasing VCore, DRam and AGP voltages. Have run Prime95 on all 3 settings for their torture test, for a period of 8 hours (basically start before I go to bed and check when I wake up). No errors have been reported in all 3 tests so I suppose it's all running pretty stable.

Temperatures have dropped somemore but I think that's probably due to the cold weather (it's winter in Perth now). Ambient temperatures are typically 5-16ºC. Will be interesting to see how it all performs when I relocate to Singapore in a month's time, where temperatures are 27-34ºC all year round!

Now I'm just contemplating whether to retain my current rig and add an AGP 6800GT card, or piss my current rig off to my dad and buy a completely new rig for myself If I do decide so, it'll probably be a 945P mobo, 775 socket P4 3.4ghz CPU and 6800GT PCI-e card. Decisions decisions...

 

Kaula - what prescott u got and how much have you overclocked it?

60 Idle is quite high for my standards, but i'm sure it can take it...

 

Here's one for you, Using speedfan as a monitor i discovered something alarming in the way the BIOS controls the fans on Intel 915 motherboards. While running speedfan as a monitor, but not as a controller, i did some folding at 100%. I disconnected all my non controlled fans, and I watched the case temperature rise to the mid sixties before the BIOS decided to increase the front and rear case fans from tick over speed. If the recommended temperature is 38c, and the BIOS will kick the front and back fans in at about 65c, the pentium temperature rises like a runaway train.

It was at that point i found out about the Intel Bios control of the Pentium 4 fan. The temperature at the cpu was in the low to middle sixties when the BIOS evenually kicked the cpu fan in, it reached 100% speed when the cpu temperature reached 70c. The reason i updated the BIOS from the last one was because of this problem. This designer flaw is going to shorten the life of more than a few pentiums. My BIOS is not unique to my motherboard, it is used on just about every Intel 915 motherboard there is. Speedfan does a wonderful job af keeping the pentium at 40c, and if third party software can do it, then so can the BIOS. The flawed Intel BIOS is the latest, it's not corrupt, and is set on default. The Pentium has a high temperature throttle, that protects the thing from being damaged, the Bios ensures though, that the temperature is high enough to shorten its life, and that has to be good for Intel's profit margins.

 

Front and back fans?do you mean front and back case fans 'and' the cpu fan,in total 3 fans,If your bios controls your case fans that can easily be fixed by unpluggin the yellow speed sensor wire from your system fan socket,they will auto run at full speed,or adjust your system fan options in bios so they are not temp sensitive.

Your cpu fan speed could be a number of things,a bios bug,sensor bug,mobo bug,its hard to guess without your system specs.

Its the first I'v heard of this,"but I havnt owned an intel board for 6 years"If you want to try and fix it post your specs so we can find out if its a common problem or just a symptom your comp shows

BTW welcome to the MG forums.

 

In my case i have six fans, one top exhaust, one rear exhaust (120mm). On the side panel i have four fans, all blowing on the motherboard, two on the cpu itself (90mm). The case never exceeds the Intel specs. When i downloaded and ran temperature monitoring software though, i found the Bios fans kicked in very much outside the Intel specs. My software and new fan(speedfan and freezer 7) reduces the temps by a massive 10 degrees, and shows that everything works perfectly. Some of you have gone to the extreme, and have reduced the temperature a lot lower. The pentium is not a hot chip, unless the BIOS controls it, and you use the stock fan. That fact has been proven over and over again in this thread

You guys have reduced the temps, and done it on your monthly pay checks, Intel though, is a billion dollar global company with billion dollar brains in thermal dynamics. Intel Have even added a clause in the warrenty that states you can't change anything without invalidating the warrenty. The stock fan is a pile of junk, the bios kicks in the two most important fans too late. If you go into the Bios and visit the monitoring section, the Bios puts the cpu under 100% load, you can hear the fan start up. If you boot into windows though, the !00% readout is far higher, and the fan kicks in a lot later. Ask yourselves why.

One billion computers with one billion chips that end their lives a year earlier = a lot of profit.

 

.............And thanks for the welcome

 

Interesting statement about Intel - how long do they claim their Prescotts have? If these CPU's would last shorter than they claim, surely a lot of people will be buying AMD cpu's in the future?