Best heatsink for P5B-VM + Ultra Microfly (or X-Qpack) based SFF

[Treripica]

Tiger Direct has the Ultra Microfly for $60.

In the event you haven't already picked up the MX6.

 

[MrNeutrino]

Thanks for the heads up! Now that's one sweet deal from a reliable etailer!

No, I haven't yet bought the MX6. I'm very tempted to get one of these microfly cases right now.

However, more I look at the two of them, I'm still leaning toward the MX6. It's painful shelling out the 90 some odd bucks extra for the higher wattage PSU that most likely doesn't come close to the Corsair PSUs I pointed to above... It's the darn looks that are to fall for. 🙂

Hopefully between now and April 22, we'll see some price drops on that case too.

 

[Treripica]

I PM'ed you a possible idea.

 

[MrNeutrino]

Treripica, your idea got me thinking again about something unrelated.

Shabby,

Not sure if you are monitoring this thread anymore. I just PMed you and Steeeeve from sffclub.com to see if either of you could post a brief reply to clarify one of your earlier posts. (pasting some context from the PM here.)

You mentioned earlier in this thread, the need to hold the CNSP7700 (down?) while pushing the MB tray back into the case (Ultra Microfly in my case). You also mentioned that you'd recommend putting the HSF in place, then slide the tray in and THEN secure it in place.

You have to slide the mobo tray it while holding the heatsink above the cpu area at the same time. This is the only way it will fit, so apply thermal grease before, slide it in and screw it while its inside the case.

I'm hoping to go with the more CFM / quieter 7700 if at all viable. That is, if all it takes from my side is a small amount of pushing (down?) on the HSF each time I slide the tray in / out (to put 1-2mm of clearance between the HSF and the case), I can live with that for the quieter / better 7700 (vs. 7000).

To be sure, a few questions for shabby:

1. By 'hold', did you mean hold down?

2. Are the above streps, all that's needed to fit in / use this 7700 HSF with the ultra microfly cases, or am I missing something here?

3. Why do you say not to secure the HSF until after sliding the tray in (while holding the HSF to the MB, I presume)? If it's impossible sliding a secured HSF in / out the first time, is it not impossible to slide out the tray at 'any' time?


Steeeeve, Shabby's data has been very helpful already. To get a wider statistic, two questions for you:

1. How many customers are successfully able to use the CNPS7700 with the ultra microfly cases? In my case, I'm going to use the Asus P5B-VM mATX MB.

2. Do you have any other comments / concerns with this type of setup?

I noticed you have the CNPS7700 but not the 7000, which makes me wonder if you are already aware of the compatibility between the 7700 and ultra microfly cases.


Thanks guys, for sharing any data you can on this!

 

[shabby]

If you install the heatsink and try to slide the mobo tray in the heatsink will hit the case.
So... the heatsink has to hover above the cpu area while you're sliding the mobo in. You're basically holding the heatsink low enough so it fits(couple mm of clearance) but high enough so it doesnt hit any components on the mobo, and you're sliding in the mobo in at the same time. Its easier said then done 😉
Once its in, and assuming you put the thermal grease on, position it on the cpu bracket, lock her down and thats it.

 

[MrNeutrino]

Originally posted by: shabby
If you install the heatsink and try to slide the mobo tray in the heatsink will hit the case.
So... the heatsink has to hover above the cpu area while you're sliding the mobo in. You're basically holding the heatsink low enough so it fits(couple mm of clearance) but high enough so it doesnt hit any components on the mobo, and you're sliding in the mobo in at the same time.

Thanks for the post, shabby! That's just what I'm trying to understand.

It sounds like an installed 7700 touching the CPU socket is taller than an uninstalled HSF that's hovering above the CPU socket. This is what has me confused.

In other words, if an installed 7700 won't slide in with the tray because of 'lack' of a few mm of clearance, how are you able to find enough clearance to slide a 'hovering' heatsink in, since you just increased the height of that hovering HSF by a few mm?

Sorry, not trying to nit-pick. Just trying to understand how difficult the 7700 is to play with in this case.

Originally posted by: shabby
Once its in, and assuming you put the thermal grease on, position it on the cpu bracket, lock her down and thats it.

Are you suggesting that I'd need to take steps in the following order?

1. Apply the the thermal grease before sliding the MB / tray / hovering HSF in.
2. Carefully hold the HSF above the CPU socket (hover) without touching the socket / CPU lid, and push it down while sliding it in (while still not letting it touch the thermal paste on the CPU lid?).
3. Once slid in, drop the HSF on the greased CPU lid that's already layered with the thermal paste.

Did I get that right?

Originally posted by: shabby
Its easier said then done 😉

If I got the above steps right, I can see how this is easier said than done. 🙂

Just curious, how long did it take you / would you say it'd take?

 

[shabby]

Its not the height but the width of the heatsink that doesnt allow it to be slid in while installed.
Ya you need to grease up the cpu first, you wont have any room after you slide the cpu in.
It doesnt take long, couple minites.

 

[MrNeutrino]

Ah ha!

Now things are falling in place. 🙂

Not vertical but horizontal clearance is the issue.

Cool, I think I can live with a couple of minutes (or even 10-15) the few times I'll actually slide the MB tray out.

As you said before, I could even take the PSU out if I'm just tinkering with the cards side of the MB. Even better.

Thanks Shabby!

 

[MrNeutrino]

SWEEEET!! 😀

Check out the second post.

Who'da thought? Heatpipe tower cooler in an unmodded microfly?! Now we're talkin (if the cooling as good as I'd expect a tower with heatpipes + 80mm silent fan)!

Wonder how the cooling / noise performance is like...

Checking over there as we speak.

 

[Steeeeve]

Sorry for the late reply. Shabby has it right. Just a few mm to high so it won't go into the MicroFly (oddly enough). It still is the best HSF for the case though and some folks actually push down on the motherboard to get it in but I highly recommend you DONT do that.

 

[MrNeutrino]

Not a problem, Steeeeve. Thanks for the post!

Yeah, sounds like 7700 is indeed one of the best choices out there for this case in its unmodded form.

If I end up going with the 7700, I'm thinking of doing a fan swap with the Yate Loon 120mm fans for a quieter setup (along with around the same air pressure / CFM flow). If I end up making that mod, will be sure to share the data.

More I research online, I'm torn between the silentpcreview forum post (linked above) type setup - XP-90 tower HSF at half the price - vs. the 7700, both in an unmodded case. OR, Noctuna etc. type tower HSFs in a modded case (inner HDD cage support bar removed).

Let's see. 7700 is in the lead right now... 🙂


BTW, thanks for that suggestion. Yeah, would never push the MB PCB down like that. Warping PCBs are very vivid in my memory... Lived through installation of some of the most horrendous AMD Athlon XP HSF installations... clipping on that second clip to the CPU socket was a nightmare depending on the HSF / stiffness of included HSF clip. I've heard a PCB crackle more than a few times during those days. Even had the screwdriver slip and knock off a memory resistor-pack between the CPU and DIMM connector. Had to re-solder every R-pack pin to its PCB pad very carefully to bring the non-POSTing dead board back. 😛

In comparison, definitely love the LGA 775 HSF installation process. 🙂

 

[MrNeutrino]

All right, here's my mini-review of the recent build based on all the helpful feedback I've received from helpful fellow-community members here and elsewhere (Thanks!):

After months of waiting on the sorry state of affairs that are the mATX reviews here at AT, I finally decided to become my own best judge and reviewer and build the system based on valuable feedback from various folks here and elsewhere. My digicam is on loan to a family member for few weeks so can't post pics. right now but here's the config:

Asus P5B-VM + E6700 @ stock + CNPS7700 HSF @ reasonably low RPM
Ultra MicroFly MX6 mATX case (great, simple and classy aesthetics but flimsy build - not as sturdy as the silverstone case but decent if you put it on a solid surface.)
WD5000AAKS
Liteon 20x SATA dual-layer burner supporting everything under the sun (checkout the verbose title @ newegg)
2x1G DDR2-800 Gskill DIMM kit @ 1.8V (1.8V default operation for max. performance @ minimal power / cost)
Corsair HX-520W PSU - AWESOME PSU and packaging / accessories (pouch for unused cable etc. Truly silent at any stress level in my config!
stock MX6 case fans

Waiting for a decent DX10 card with less buggy drivers, lower power consumption (55nm / DX 10.1 parts?), passive HSF for dirt cheap parts. Don't care about anything other than VIVO + DVI / HDMI capability in terms of features here. Maybe another purchase in a month or two.

I didn't bother looking at AM2 options, given the price / performance ratio currently available. That may change in a few months but I need the performance now...

Shabby and Steeeeve had it right. The 7700 was a pain to install but wasn't impossible. I went through 3 test installs without thermal paste, before applying it and sliding the HSF + MB tray in (while hovering HSF above the MB at all times). Didn't take more than 20-30 minutes of careful work. Though, hovering HSF while pushing the unruly MB tray in this case (with dare I say, sharp edges galore) is not a task for all.

Another issue is optical drive vibration on inserting some (presumably warped disks) that in turn, causes the HDD mounted vertically near by as well as the case resonates. Thanks to Nero DriveSpeed, I can control the max. spin speed for such warped disks. For perfectly flat ones, it's fairly silent and almost vibration-less even in such a relatively thin sheet-metal based case.

Temps:
- CPU = 36c / MB = 41c via Asus PC Probe II (not sure why it's swapped but I'm sure that's the case given the temps).
- MX6 case temp. thermal diode snugly slid between the HSF and CPU 'post' HSF installation (i.e. reading temp. off the edge of the chip). Temp = 29 - 38c range.

Overall, compared to my oder box, this is an awesome performing, extremely silent case. almost inaudible at slowest 7700 fan speed.

Quite happy with the build itself. Though again, would have appreciated Gary's hopelessly and pathetically late mATX review appearing sooner.



On a related note, I'm no longer sure AT is the site it's made out to be as of late, when it comes to timely (at least mATX) reviews as well as number of (mATX) reviews! Just search for my complaints by username and Gary's responses... you'll find sufficient evidence. :frown:

So much for a balance between mATX vs. ATX reviews at AT!

If it weren't for the forums and the nice community buildup, I'd be seriously looking elsewhere as of months back!