Finally!!! Ultima 90 and Slipstream fans arrive

[Elcs]

Well.... my stuff eventually arrived.

I replaced my Panaflo L1A 120x38, an Antec Tricool 120mm and a stock AMD heatpipe heatsink/fan seated with AS5.

The new parts going in: A Thermalright Ultima 90 with 120mm 1600rpm Scythe Slipstream fans replacing the fans in my system (1 front, 1 back, 1 on the Ultima 90) and it was seated ontop of Tunic TX-2 TIM.

This "upgrade" was all about quiet. My big concern is that my Ultima 90 points skyward on my motherboard, venting its air into my Seasonic S-12 600W PSU... PSU fan speeds have went up by less than 100 rpm compared to before so I do not sense a problem.

With all 3 Slipstreams dialled down to starting voltage on my Sunbeam Fan Controller, everything is rather quiet, much more so than before. My PC has been on approximately 30 minutes as I type this and @ 20C ambient temps... I am idling at 28-30C, Motherboard temp at 34C and 8800GT (44% fan speed0 idling at 56C.

Last night, I decided to Prime for an hour to get a rough fix on temps. I hit ~51C under load @ 23C ambient. My rear case fan was venting rather hot air which concerned me. My Antec SLK3000B only has one exhaust fan. I actually removed the fan duct from the side and fitted an 80mm Panaflo L1A to it a while back as an intake fan. That is currently not hooked up. Should I hook up it as an intake fan... which could blow directly down onto the heatsink or as an exhaust to help remove heat which I think is building up in my case?

Overall, a success story with the Ultima 90 on a low load system (AMD X2 6000+ @ stock speed, 1.35V)

EDIT: I thought Id stick this bit in

I lapped my Ultima 90 using the Premium Lapping kit from easypckits.com. The finish left was very nice but I did not wish to become obsessive and make it 100% shiny. As long as it was flat and smooth, I was happy.

Tunic TX-2 application... barely any different to AS5 although its a very odd creature. I did the "tinting" of my heatsink base, it was almost rolling like a ball when using the finger condom method. The heatsink base looked copper with an extremely thin fog-like layer of TX-2 on the base. For IHS application, I applied a little amount to the IHS and just spread it loosely with the tip of the syringe, keeping to the middle. I popped the Ultima 90 on top and attached it... I decided to twist it a little, not for any real temps reason but just because I had heard of a turning problem with Ultima 90's when fully secure. Yes, my Ultima 90 twists but not alarmingly so, it requires more effort than i had expected from my Forum reading.

My Core Temps delta is ~1-2C, generally 1C. I think this is due to an uneven IHS which I am not really prepared to lap.... yet anyway.

Is it possible to mount my Ultima 90 so that the fan faces towards the rear of my case, directly at my exhaust?

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Thermalright does make an S clip that will allow you to rotate your u90 90 degrees.

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
Thermalright does make an S clip that will allow you to rotate your u90 90 degrees.

Just ordered one, should give me a nice drop in heat around the PSU, maybe even a C or two off temps.

Excellent!

 

[Quiksilver]

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
Thermalright does make an S clip that will allow you to rotate your u90 90 degrees.

Ugh. Ultra-90 != Ultima 90. Two different heatsinks. I don't know if it will work... as I believe the mounting is different for them but sames he already ordered it, I guess he will find out.

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: Quiksilver

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
Thermalright does make an S clip that will allow you to rotate your u90 90 degrees.

Ugh. Ultra-90 != Ultima 90. Two different heatsinks. I don't know if it will work... as I believe the mounting is different for them but sames he already ordered it, I guess he will find out.

ARGH!!!!

Derwen is off my Christmas Card List 2008 if this doesnt work... having said that, I should have read properly.

On close inspection, doesnt look like it'll work

 

[Quiksilver]

Also, from the looks of the heatsink couldn't you just installed it so that it is parallel with the exhaust fan like it is in this image:

http://i144.photobucket.com/al...le_Rattle/P3160165.jpg

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: Quiksilver
Also, from the looks of the heatsink couldn't you just installed it so that it is parallel with the exhaust fan like it is in this image:

http://i144.photobucket.com/al...le_Rattle/P3160165.jpg

No. It cannot be installed that way due to the mounting system. An S-style bracket would be needed which is why I pounced on this bracket so quickly.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

I will be VERY happy to bet you that it will work. What makes you think it won't?

 

[zorrt]

I thought the Ultima 90 can be installed to face the back of the case?

along with quicksilvers link which is a ultima 90 pointin to the back

http://www.anandtech.com/casec...us/showdoc.aspx?i=3068

Or is it because the AMD mounting won't let you do it? That just sucks then.

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: zorrt
I thought the Ultima 90 can be installed to face the back of the case?

along with quicksilvers link which is a ultima 90 pointin to the back

http://www.anandtech.com/casec...us/showdoc.aspx?i=3068

Or is it because the AMD mounting won't let you do it? That just sucks then.

AMD mounting wont let me. Its rectangular and the bars provided only allow fitting one way... its like a clip on solution in that respect as you are tied to one fitting direction only whereas the Intel mounting looks square, which could be rotated at will. I couldnt change it unless I made myself a custom bar to go across the length rather than the shorter side.

DerwenAtros12: Id be happy to take you up on that bet.... The S Clip you directed me to doesnt appear to have any screwholes. The Ultima 90 clip has spring screws which screw into the bracket mounting. Do you still want to take that bet?

 

[DerwenArtos12]

You're going to have to re-attach the factory HSF plastic retention clip to get it to work but, if it doesn't work, I'll buy your ultima 90 from you so you can get a heatsink that will work better in your set-up.

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
You're going to have to re-attach the factory HSF plastic retention clip to get it to work but, if it doesn't work, I'll buy your ultima 90 from you so you can get a heatsink that will work better in your set-up.

I will just leave it as it is, it is performing fine.

I am not interested in selling my Ultima 90, especially once you factor in shipping and the weak dollar.

Thank you

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Originally posted by: Elcs

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
You're going to have to re-attach the factory HSF plastic retention clip to get it to work but, if it doesn't work, I'll buy your ultima 90 from you so you can get a heatsink that will work better in your set-up.

I will just leave it as it is, it is performing fine.

I am not interested in selling my Ultima 90, especially once you factor in shipping and the weak dollar.

Thank you

Aw, I didn't see you're from the UK. Have you checked to see if they'll let you return it for a refund? Sorry.

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12

Originally posted by: Elcs

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
You're going to have to re-attach the factory HSF plastic retention clip to get it to work but, if it doesn't work, I'll buy your ultima 90 from you so you can get a heatsink that will work better in your set-up.

I will just leave it as it is, it is performing fine.

I am not interested in selling my Ultima 90, especially once you factor in shipping and the weak dollar.

Thank you

Aw, I didn't see you're from the UK. Have you checked to see if they'll let you return it for a refund? Sorry.

It is not worth the time, money and effort. The heatsink is doing its job fine and its lapped so I cannot really return, I cannot complain as its doing all it needs to do, keeping my CPU at a decent temperature whilst allowing me to run a fan on it thats very quiet.

If it was possible to orientate it so that it fits 90 degrees like the S Clip, then it would help exhaust the heat better from my case, which would drop my Chipset and CPU temps probably by ~5-6C back to where they were pre-change.

Im going to switch my side mounted 80mm Panaflo L1A to exhaust and test what its like there, hopefully the small amount of heat it exhausts will help, as an intake fan it does not seem to be making any impact on any component. This might sound sad but the side mounted 80mm L1A makes audible noise at 12v in my PC setup.

I do think it is solely to do with the mounting system that is employed and I realistically think Thermalright can produce an S Clip for the Ultima style heatsink. If you visit here, Thermalrights AM2 installation guide, their heatsink also orients pointing vertically. Step 6 shows you what it looks like with the bracket installed and Step 8 shows the clip mechanism... from this I believe that an S Clip could be made to fit the Ultima 90 but I do not believe the Stock AM2 Bracket is sufficient/compatible with the S Clip and Ultima 90 in combination, I would think that the pressure of the mount would not be strong enough.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Originally posted by: Elcs

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12

Originally posted by: Elcs

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
You're going to have to re-attach the factory HSF plastic retention clip to get it to work but, if it doesn't work, I'll buy your ultima 90 from you so you can get a heatsink that will work better in your set-up.

I will just leave it as it is, it is performing fine.

I am not interested in selling my Ultima 90, especially once you factor in shipping and the weak dollar.

Thank you

Aw, I didn't see you're from the UK. Have you checked to see if they'll let you return it for a refund? Sorry.

It is not worth the time, money and effort. The heatsink is doing its job fine and its lapped so I cannot really return, I cannot complain as its doing all it needs to do, keeping my CPU at a decent temperature whilst allowing me to run a fan on it thats very quiet.

If it was possible to orientate it so that it fits 90 degrees like the S Clip, then it would help exhaust the heat better from my case, which would drop my Chipset and CPU temps probably by ~5-6C back to where they were pre-change.

Im going to switch my side mounted 80mm Panaflo L1A to exhaust and test what its like there, hopefully the small amount of heat it exhausts will help, as an intake fan it does not seem to be making any impact on any component. This might sound sad but the side mounted 80mm L1A makes audible noise at 12v in my PC setup.

I do think it is solely to do with the mounting system that is employed and I realistically think Thermalright can produce an S Clip for the Ultima style heatsink. If you visit here, Thermalrights AM2 installation guide, their heatsink also orients pointing vertically. Step 6 shows you what it looks like with the bracket installed and Step 8 shows the clip mechanism... from this I believe that an S Clip could be made to fit the Ultima 90 but I do not believe the Stock AM2 Bracket is sufficient/compatible with the S Clip and Ultima 90 in combination, I would think that the pressure of the mount would not be strong enough.

I meant return the s-clip. The factory bracket is enough for for the factory to warrant it and enough for a lot of after market heat sinks. It's not like the plastic push-pin method

 

[Elcs]

Update..

I AM OFFICIALLY A PC IDIOT!!!

Haha..... I have just noticed that I have got my 120mm Slipstream set up on my Ultima 90 set in a Pull configuration. It is pulling air from the PSU through the fins and onto my GPU.

I used ATI Tool and Prime95 together to simulate something more intense than gaming and my temps were quite dramatic... 56/50C on cores (odd discrepency there, higher delta than I was used to) and the GPU hit about 95C before I got unhappy with my setup.

I will repost data once I have swapped my fan direction.

Derwen: S-Clip arrived, it will not work even with the stock retention mechanism. The middle of the clip is long, whereas the Ultima 90's clip part has only a simple, small dimple.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Originally posted by: Elcs
Update..

I AM OFFICIALLY A PC IDIOT!!!

Haha..... I have just noticed that I have got my 120mm Slipstream set up on my Ultima 90 set in a Pull configuration. It is pulling air from the PSU through the fins and onto my GPU.

I used ATI Tool and Prime95 together to simulate something more intense than gaming and my temps were quite dramatic... 56/50C on cores (odd discrepency there, higher delta than I was used to) and the GPU hit about 95C before I got unhappy with my setup.

I will repost data once I have swapped my fan direction.

Derwen: S-Clip arrived, it will not work even with the stock retention mechanism. The middle of the clip is long, whereas the Ultima 90's clip part has only a simple, small dimple.

That was a notable whoops! should be on the bottom pushing air up through the HSF to you PSU.

And thats retarded, send it back and tell them I said so. Sorry bout that, I looked and a dozen pictures of each and it really looked like it would work. You could always make a Z shaped bracket out of some plate steel...

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12

Originally posted by: Elcs
Update..

I AM OFFICIALLY A PC IDIOT!!!

Haha..... I have just noticed that I have got my 120mm Slipstream set up on my Ultima 90 set in a Pull configuration. It is pulling air from the PSU through the fins and onto my GPU.

I used ATI Tool and Prime95 together to simulate something more intense than gaming and my temps were quite dramatic... 56/50C on cores (odd discrepency there, higher delta than I was used to) and the GPU hit about 95C before I got unhappy with my setup.

I will repost data once I have swapped my fan direction.

Derwen: S-Clip arrived, it will not work even with the stock retention mechanism. The middle of the clip is long, whereas the Ultima 90's clip part has only a simple, small dimple.

That was a notable whoops! should be on the bottom pushing air up through the HSF to you PSU.

And thats retarded, send it back and tell them I said so. Sorry bout that, I looked and a dozen pictures of each and it really looked like it would work. You could always make a Z shaped bracket out of some plate steel...

Cost me the equivilent of $10 or two and a half sandwiches at my works locel eating place. No biggie in the end.

Im still sure my Temp Sensors are bugged somehow but a reset will tell. Seems like blowing the air through the fins to the PSU has reduced idle temps by 10C down to 30C and load (ATITool + Prime) temps down about 6C. Temp Delta seems to usually be 1-2 but you get flashes of 3 and 4C.

Overall, I slept with my PC on overnight so its a success story.

 

[Assimilator1]

lol Elcs ,nm we all make mistakes ,at least no harm was done
I hope your loaded GPU temps drop!:Q

So your loaded temps spread is 6C?

Btw do you know any good lapping guides? I might do it for my Ultima 90.

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: Assimilator1
lol Elcs ,nm we all make mistakes ,at least no harm was done
I hope your loaed GPU temps drop!:Q

So your loaded temps spread is 6C?

Btw do you know any good lapping guides? I might do it for my Ultima 90.

Load GPU temps do not bother me. ATI Tool BURNS GPU's a lot more than general gaming in my experience and Prime 95 creates more CPU heat than gaming so its kind of an ultimate stress test for me with regards to temps. Plus, my 8800GT's fan is set at only 44%, max speed before it is audible over my system for idle purposes. If I needed to, I have a lot of fan speed headroom. High GPU Temps account for a ~2-3C CPU heat increase.

Oddly, the spread for the Prime & ATI Tool test was 6C but with the fan working as it should, blowing the air through at the PSU, the load spread is generally 2C, 4C is spotted frequently though.

Lapping Guide & Lapping Kit: Here they are. I bought a premium kit, its great. Has almost everything you need in one place. Plus, I got my Articlean and I really love that stuff so great page. Nice fella too.

 

[Assimilator1]

Well I hope your games don't get your GPU even close to 95C ,that was far too hot.

Btw I'm in the UK too & don't fancy buying from so far.
Thanks for the guide anyway ,lapping seems like a lot of hassle though, how long did it take you?

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: Assimilator1
Well I hope your games don't get your GPU even close to 95C ,that was far too hot.

Btw I'm in the UK too & don't fancy buying from so far.
Thanks for the guide anyway ,lapping seems like a lot of hassle though, how long did it take you?

95C is fine. Auto shutdown on an 8800GT is 110 or beyond. AT's trial run with the Sparkle Passive Cooled 8800GT surpassed 100C fine. People are ultra paranoid these days.

Im from the UK, it cost me £13 and took 5 days to arrive (ordered on Christmas Eve, arrived Saturday 29th December).

To lap my Ultima 90 probably took about half an hour to an hour of work. I was not totally anal about a perfectly polished finish. It probably would have taken me another hour to get it perfectly shiny and reflective.

For me, the important things were 1) Flat and Square surface and 2) no deep scratches, everything reasonably smooth.

Really, the lapping took me two whole days.... but I was typing, chatting, gaming.... just picking up the block for a couple of minutes at a time doing some work on it. I didnt use water, which may be good or bad.... but the proof is in my temps and they are fine.

 

[Assimilator1]

I know you're in the UK
Re lapping ,yea that's the sort of standard I had in mind.I think if I go for it I'll buy sandpaper through work ,its easy enough to get hold of ,then it's 'just' a case of finding a flat surface.........

Btw autoshutdown temps are usually a last resort ,I would think it's a bad idea to consistantly approach those temps for longer term reliabilty.
Re temps, I was going by current & previous ATI cards under load (about 70-80C) ,but I don't know what a typical loaded temp is for an 8800.Is it typically that much higher?

Inccidently a mate of mine has family around your area & goes to watch footie there too ,maybe if I gave him my HS you could lap it for me? heh

 

[Elcs]

Originally posted by: Assimilator1
I know you're in the UK
Re lapping ,yea that's the sort of standard I had in mind.I think if I go for it I'll buy sandpaper through work ,its easy enough to get hold of ,then it's 'just' a case of finding a flat surface.........

Btw autoshutdown temps are usually a last resort ,I would think it's a bad idea to consistantly approach those temps for longer term reliabilty.
Re temps, I was going by current & previous ATI cards under load (about 70-80C) ,but I don't know what a typical loaded temp is for an 8800.Is it typically that much higher?

Inccidently a mate of mine has family around your area & goes to watch footie there too ,maybe if I gave him my HS you could lap it for me? heh

Really, you need to do the effort and gradually work your way up the grits from low to high. The guide I linked to is good, I went for one of his pakcs because its pretty cheap and came with everything I needed, flat surface included.

Over 90C seems normalish for an 8800GT under load considering my low fan speed and it idles at around 56C. Is it high? Yes. Is it dangerous? No. Is it quiet? At this fan speed, yes.

Im a season ticket holder at Newcastle United. Yes, Im a mug for paying to see them but they are my club, i fulfilled my dream last season by becoming a season ticket holder.

And no.... I wont lap it for you

 

[Assimilator1]

Aww
My mate is a season ticket holder for N/c too.

I read the AT review of the passively cooled 8800GT ,whilst it did get much hotter than yours they didn't think it was a good idea.But I noticed the actively cooled 8800GT they had hit ~94C loaded, seems they naturally run pretty hot then!

Btw did you try your side case fan in different ways & measure temps?