Cooling the DS3 - questions

Amart

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Jan 17, 2007
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Rig:
E4300 - 3.0 Ghz, 1.40v unoptimized | OCZ 2GB PC6400 Rev.B | Gigabyte 965P DS3 Rev 3.3 (F12) | EVGA 8800 GTS 320Mb |

I recently reduced the OC down to 2.4ghz, keeping the FSB at 266 (what I heard the cooling on the DS3 is designed for), because the NB and SB would overheat.
I also had problems with pushing the FSB above 340 with the memory at 2.0v, getting the cold boot issues. Doesn't bother me since this E4300 at 330x9 approaches my preferred temperature max at load (62c). However, I can't maintain even that since the NB, SB and even RAM appear to be too hot.

Current cooling - Centurion 5 case:
- 120 S-Flex (high) on rear case exhaust, 120mm PSU Fan top exhaust, 90mm fan bottom exhaust on side-panel (removing hot air from air pocket under the 8800 GTS); and the original 90mm intake fan at the front, cooling the two HD's.
- Thermalright Ultra 120 oriented properly towards the rear case fan, with another high S-Flex 120 Fan.

Problems:

- NB heatsink airflow is insufficient - the Ultra-120 hangs over the passive NB heatsink which gets too hot and may not be sufficiently affected by the rear exhaust.

- SB heatsink is right underneath the 8800 GTS.

- RAM gets hot at above 600 (300 FSB). Rated for DDR800. Normal or lemon? Maybe needs more airflow.

Current plan:

- I have a 50cm Fan that I plan to attach to the NB (hot glue or screws?), that will hopefully fit underneath the Ultra-120.

- I have an HR-05 SLI that I wanted to use on the SB but could not attach because the smallest bracket holding the push-pins is wider, and I was probably not orienting the HR and the bracket correctly.

Main questions:

- Should I consider RMA on the OCZ RAM? Will I be able to replace it later if it's indeed a lemon and melts down? (never used above 2.0v or 340 FSB, and it will be within manufacturers warranty, the limit is 2.2v and it should reach at least 450 according to OCZ support forum). Got it from that Fry's deal.

- What's the best way to attach that 50cm Fan, how exactly do you hot-glue or screw it on? I pulled it from an old CPU HS, and I think its screws were just held by the top fins. Never hot-glued anything...

- How can I attach the HR-05 SLI to the SB? Is there a way with the bracket and push pins supplied?

- Is cooling the SB worth it when dealing with ~350 FSB? Should I try and use the HR-05 SLI on the hotter NB instead?

- I have a spare 120mm fan (the original rear exhaust) and enough room at the top-front of the case to hang it above the DVD. I could hang it inside that space as intake, or closer to the motherboard and try giving it an angle to aim at the ram. Good idea?


 

thilanliyan

Lifer
Jun 21, 2005
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I have a similar comp to yours and I've managed to fit the HR-05 (non-SLI) there. I do have the U-120 in a horizontal orientation though (ie. wider in the horizontal direction) to allow the HR-05 to fit with the 70mm fan.

I also found the NB got blazing hot (and locked up my comp) hence why I bought the HR-05 and I have no more problems.

The ram I think is less of a concern. My ram also runs pretty hot but have not really had any problems.
 

Amart

Member
Jan 17, 2007
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I doubt the HR-05 SLI will fit well even if I turn the U-120, and I don't want to touch it and mess with the fine OC and temps I am getting - so hopefully a 50mm fan on the NB will be enough.

Thanks for the answer, especially about the ram.

Can anyone share some details on attaching a 50mm fan to a NB Heatsink (and being able to detach it when it dies)?

Is it worth it to put an HR-05 SLI on the SB, or will the stock passive HS be enough? How hot can these safely run, without losing significant longevity?


 

BonzaiDuck

Lifer
Jun 30, 2004
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For cooling the chipsets, mosfets and other mobo components, you could try ducting the motherboard to an exhaust fan. I posted an epic thread on this a couple weeks ago. You can use foam-art-board or Lexan. It's a bit tedious, but once done, it should go far in keeping those components cool. Like another poster said, you shouldn't need worry about the RAM, but it would work equally well on that issue, too.

Here's a link you might want to read:

Cheap As Free, John Cinnamon, 2004

There are simple, clever things you can do for the motherboard cover that make it fit around heatpipes and assure [reasonably] easy, quick removal. It doesn't have to be made as a single piece. In my mod, for ducting the CPU cooler with a box-shaped duct, the bottom of the box served to cover all of the important components for ducting to another exhaust fan.

In my C2-Quad system, I only measured reductions in CPU temperature with this approach, but it has more profound impact on the motherboard components -- which I did not measure. For example, my Q6600 is set at 3.132 Ghz, but at room ambient around 76F, the peak load CPU core temperature is only 61C.
 

Amart

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Jan 17, 2007
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I read your thread and it was quite interesting, but I think you need to add some overall finished job pictures and flow diagrams at the start of it. I didn't really understand the benefits of what you were doing until reading the article you just linked.

I'm intrigued - a creative solution using safe materials that I know how to work with (being an apprentice architect).

I thought this would be hard to implement inside my relatively small case with that giant radiator over the CPU.
Reading that article (and finally getting the concept) I think that it will be possible - though somewhat more complex.

I'll join the discussion on your thread.