Anyone try heatpipe cooler on i3-2120T, no fan?

[coolpurplefan]

I want to see if I could make a totally passively-cooled computer with passive psu, passive 3d card and passive cpu. Has anyone tried a heatsink with heatpipes on an Intel Core i3-2120T with no fan on it? All that paired with an SSD might be a pretty cool combo.

 

[dma0991]

Definitely possible with its 35W TDP and a Hyper212 EVO. There has to be at least 1 casing fan to keep a small amount of airflow moving though.

 

[coolpurplefan]

Definitely possible with its 35W TDP and a Hyper212 EVO. There has to be at least 1 casing fan to keep a small amount of airflow moving though.

If that's the case, has anyone here tried a totally passively-cooled computer with no fans (and no water cooling)?

 

[Blastman]

Someone in another forum reported a passively cooled i3-530 …

forumsbit-tech …

I'm cooling the i3 530 passively with Coolink Corator DS, which is a bit cooler, but you get the idea . CPU is idling at 31/36C, at load it reaches 70C after a hour of mprime... In other words, if you don't need the extra performance of i5 2500 or HD3000, then scrap the idea of upgrading.

A i3-2100 uses about the same power as a i3-530, so even a regular i3-2100 should be able to be passively cooled with a nice heatpipe-heatsink without much problem. That 70C was hit running mprime which represents a heavier use scenario than any programs you're likely to be running.

 

[coolpurplefan]

Someone in another forum reported a passively cooled i3-530 …



A i3-2100 uses about the same power as a i3-530, so even a regular i3-2100 should be able to be passively cooled with a nice heatpipe-heatsink without much problem. That 70C was hit running mprime which represents a heavier use scenario than any programs you're likely to be running.

Haha, OK, it's clear now. Funny how I read several textbooks on the social sciences years ago and know you can always miss details that you'll only see sometimes only by looking at things more than once and still didn't notice that (even though I failed to read twice, hehe).

 

[Blastman]

I should add, I don't know if that passively cooled i3-530 was undervolted or not, but undervolting can make a significant difference in load power draw/cooling-temps. If it wasn't, then with an undervolt, his passively cooled i3-530 would run quite a bit cooler under load than what he is reporting. A i3-2100 could be undervolted to ~1.00v -- which would make passively cooling it not really a problem at all with a decent HSF.

edit: Ya, … I realize you mentioned the i3-2120T in your OP, but I compared the i3-2100 and i3-530 because I could get data for those 2 processors with similiar power draw. It appears that passively cooling the slower i3-2120T shouldn't be a problem at all.

 

[Zap]

Definitely possible with its 35W TDP and a Hyper212 EVO.

Even better with a heatsink that has wider spaced fins.

 

[LoneNinja]

Even if it fails to cool completely passive, it should cool fine with the fan speeds turned way down making them inaudible.

 

[Magic Carpet]

You can cool passively a 125w CPU, if there is a need. You can always undervolt and / or underclock, if temperatures rise too high.

If you want a 0-15 db system, you must carefully choose the components though. Even when fanless, hardware can still be quite audible. Good luck

 

[coolpurplefan]

You can cool passively a 125w CPU, if there is a need. You can always undervolt and / or underclock, if temperatures rise too high.

If you want a 0-15 db system, you must carefully choose the components though. Even when fanless, hardware can still be quite audible. Good luck

I did read you can disable the on-board video on the i3-2120T so it uses even less power. Then I could use the video on a passive video card. I don't even know how to disable the on-board video on a chip but it sounds like a cool idea. ("cool", OK, no pun intended, hehe)

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

Yes you can disable the IGP (Intergrated Graphics on Processor) and run a dedicated video card, but the problem with this is that the video card will have a higher power drain then the IGP forcing you to have a bigger PSU. Also you need to be careful as the Intel® Core™ i3-2120T is designed for a mini-itx or HTPC system and all the boards for this systems may not have a PCI-e x16 graphics.

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

 

[coolpurplefan]

Yes you can disable the IGP (Intergrated Graphics on Processor) and run a dedicated video card, but the problem with this is that the video card will have a higher power drain then the IGP forcing you to have a bigger PSU. Also you need to be careful as the Intel® Core™ i3-2120T is designed for a mini-itx or HTPC system and all the boards for this systems may not have a PCI-e x16 graphics.

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

Well, the Gigabyte GA-P67A-UD4-B3 has the i3-2120T on the CPU support list. And when I searched quickly for a passively cooled psu, I only found the Seasonic SS-440FL which is 400 watts. The only thing I'd wonder about is if the power supply is "not being stressed enough". I thought I read somewhere that if a power supply is "too powerful" for a system, it was not ideal.

 

[GoStumpy]

I have an i3-2100 (65W methinks) with a Corsair A70 HSF, no fans (on the HSF) Works just fine. Loudest fan in my case is the XFX 6850...

My temps after 10 minutes of Prime95 & Furmark running (check max values)

Keeping in mind I have 2 case fans (3-speed Antec, both set to low RPM):

Idle temps:

So yes, passively cooling a i3-2120T would be very easy to do with a larger high quality HSF.

I may take the two case fans out tonight just to see if the CPU gets too hot without them. Will report back tonight!

 

[Magic Carpet]

I did read you can disable the on-board video on the i3-2120T so it uses even less power. Then I could use the video on a passive video card. I don't even know how to disable the on-board video on a chip but it sounds like a cool idea. ("cool", OK, no pun intended, hehe)

By disabling onboard IGP you are looking to increase your overall idle power consumption by about 10W (with a card like Geforce 210/520, for example). That extra heat has to be accounted for as well as the heat from other components.

I suggest you, to pick up an Intel micro-atx board, as these seem to be the most efficient under low loads. Message me if you need help.

Gotta thank ARM and Apple for setting trends ;-p

 

[Anarchist420]

Using Arctic Cooling MX-2 also helps. TIM will make a difference.

 

[Magic Carpet]

Using Arctic Cooling MX-2 also helps. TIM will make a difference.

MX2 is my favorite, due to relatively good performance, low cost and the fact that it is so easy to apply / clean.

Under certain circumtances, I would recommend liquid metal though. In passive boxes, every little helps.

I may take the two case fans out tonight just to see if the CPU gets too hot without them. Will report back tonight

Likely it won't throttle down. If there is a passive discrete card in use, however, I strongly recommend to all my clients to have a quality exhaust fan running at an inaudible RPM.

2) You can make a custom case, or open box... and be totally passive whilst having good temps at the same time. It really depends on your circumstances, temps & humidity around your place.

3) There are different types of noise, like car engines. Silence isn't always a pro. Sometimes, you want the feeling of power and control... I like the way Noctua fans sound, for example. It's hard to explain though.