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Want to replace NB Heatsink.

Northbridges don't like running passive. Learned that the hard way, having lost an NVIDIA based board to passive NB cooling. 😛
 
You could add a 40mm dia fan to the heatsink the OP listed.

What would put me off is the push pins. I know how shit they are for a HSF, and I can't see them being any better for NB heatsink.
 
I believe it would be an improvement over the stock, both fanless, for me I would run a fan unless I had a larger fan blowing on the mobo. My favorite little fan is this little guy. It is quiet, can't hear it outside the case but I may try his big brother next time I order.
 
The stock NB heatsink on this board is fanless as well and that's probably why it feels really hot when I touch it and the PC is on (I mentioned above that the onboard GPU runs my 720P LCD TV). This is the same NB heatsink Asus and Gigabyte have been using in earlier mATX boards. I hope the Enzotech I linked to above works better fanless than the fanless stock heatsink.

My case is a SilverStone SG03 w/ two 120mm front intake fans and a 120mm blowhole mod w/ 120mm fan at the top.
 
As long as you a) have a well ventilated case and b) aren't running insane FSB speeds / voltages, passive will be fine. There's a reason why so many boards are running passive stock. As for the pushipins, they are also fine. These coolers don't need much clamping force against the tiny NB die. Comparing them to CPU pushpins is difficult since CPU coolers weigh probably 10x as much (comparing aftermarket to aftermarket). I'm running a fanless Zalman on my P34 @ 400Mhz FSB and while it's warm to the touch, it's never been unstable.
 
I've had good luck just attaching (use your imagination to figure out how) a quiet 80mm fan to the chipset area.
 
Originally posted by: geno
As long as you a) have a well ventilated case and b) aren't running insane FSB speeds / voltages, passive will be fine. There's a reason why so many boards are running passive stock. As for the pushipins, they are also fine. These coolers don't need much clamping force against the tiny NB die. Comparing them to CPU pushpins is difficult since CPU coolers weigh probably 10x as much (comparing aftermarket to aftermarket). I'm running a fanless Zalman on my P34 @ 400Mhz FSB and while it's warm to the touch, it's never been unstable.
Click to expand...

I take your point geno that the CPU HSF is quite a lot heavier and larger than a NB heatsink. It's just that I have bad experiences with push pins and do not trust their effectiveness.

@IsLNdbOi, does the GA-E7AUM-DS2H use a retention bracket and bolts to hold the NB heatsink on?

The reason I ask is that this is what they use on my GA-X48T-DQ6, and I figure that if your's also has the same retention mechasim, then it could be re-used instead of the push pins.
 
Yes, the GA-E7AUM-DS2H has a bracket on the backside that the stock NB heatsink's screws go through. I will be using the board's onboard video. I guess I have to have a fan then? The stock NB heatsink does not have a fan. I don't overclock anything.
 
Well, the fan doesn't have to be right on the NB HS, it can be remote (better, quieter) as mentioned by Zap. Antec makes a spot fan, I think Zalman still sells a fan arm that could possibly be used and Sunbeam makes a multipurpose bracket kit. Lot's o' ways to terminate your feline, OP... Check with a couple of the heatsink makers like Zalman, Swiftech, Enzo, etc. to get specific recommendations for your application.

.bh.
 
Originally posted by: Zepper
Well, the fan doesn't have to be right on the NB HS, it can be remote (better, quieter) as mentioned by Zap. Antec makes a spot fan, I think Zalman still sells a fan arm that could possibly be used and Sunbeam makes a multipurpose bracket kit. Lot's o' ways to terminate your feline, OP... Check with a couple of the heatsink makers like Zalman, Swiftech, Enzo, etc. to get specific recommendations for your application.

.bh.
Click to expand...

If he really has the patience for it, the time for it and the inclination -- there are at least two ways I can think of that will push more air through the heatsink than the stock fan. (1) -- get a bigger, quieter fan, and find a way to mount it (to the case) with some sort of tapered Lexan or acrylic funnel that sits right over the heatsink. (2) build a duct -- even using a cardboard tube -- that sits over the sink and even covers part of it, so that the duct is mated to a ducted rear-exhaust fan. If the rear-exhaust fan pulls air mainly through the CPU cooler, the NB duct can be ported to that duct so that the exhaust fan pulls air through both CPU cooler and NB duct.
 
I don't want to add anymore fans. I've had an Asus P5E-VM HDMI and Asus P5Q-EM. The P5E-VH HDMI has the same NB heatsink as this Gigabyte board and the P5Q-EM has an even smaller NB heatsink. I used the onboard video on both in my current case (SilverStone SG03 w/ two 120mm intake fans on the front and a single 120mm fan / blowhole up top).

I hope the EnzoTech linked to above is better than the stock NB heatsinks on either Asus board I've had.
 
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