The New AMD Building Thread

It survived the night I guess the Raptors connection had something to do with it. Whether its the data cable, Power cable, or an internal issue, Don't know yet. Thankfully, there is no critical data on the drive. For I don't know when I'll attempt to run it again, or if I will. a 74Gb drive is pretty much a joke this day in age. And I KNOW it no longer supports an OS. It proved that more than once. Heck, depending on their size, it would barely support two blue ray movies.
In my experience, I have never had a 7200rpm drive give me such trouble. I have now had 2/3 10,000Rpm drives give me trouble, and only 1 7200Rpm drive quit. And it was approaching 10Yrs old, so that ain't bad
Now I wait. Wait for SSD to become mainstream and trusted. I will relish my 7200 drives, and more than likely buy more of them

 

Sam,
I may have to rethink that Noctua NH-U9B SE2 92mm SSO CPU Cooler. They may make great coolers and great fans, but their Engineers don't have a lick of common sense at all! I'm going to have to make new brackets for the AMD mount. You can only point it at the PSU or the video card. It doesn't mount front to rear! They had the right idea, but should have gone the other direction and made longer arms between the wider spaced screws of the backing plate, so it could be turned 90 degrees and mounted with the pair of existing brackets you mount to the cooler. They can't claim the size because it's no wider or deeper than a freezer 64, just slightly taller!

In all fairness, Noctua is not alone. Zerotherm has some with the same problem, and I'm sure there are others as well! I'm guessing that no one actually tried one on an AMD motherboard, or if the did, they didn't see the problem. Now how the hell can you not see that it's pointing 90 degrees the wrong way, unless they didn't try it!! LOL!!

Russ

 

With the intel mounting system you change the orientation of the mounting brackets to obtain the desired orientation, I can't believe they didn't do the same thing for AMD.

 

It's the same for the Ultra-120 on 1156, but the reverse, you can only have it pointing towards the front or rear, not top/bottom, which in my situation I actually prefer.

 

Red_Maw,
I finally went back and looked over the parts real careful. It looks like there are longer pieces that are used for AMD, so the cooler is pointing the right direction. Their instructions for AMDs seem to be incorrect, or incomplete. Take a look at this.



I'm betting even money that the two longer mounts on the bottom work for front to rear mounting, and the smaller ones on top are for side to side mounting. I noticed that there were two different sets of holes in the bracket arm ends, so they can't just be for Intel! I think they lost something in the translation! LOL!! I'll make it work, if need be! LOL!!

Russ

 

The bottom brackets look like the intel one's and the multiple holes are for s775, s1156 and s1366 compatibility. If it works though, who cares? lol. Good luck, I know I love my noctua, despite the airflow blockage it causes.

 

Red_Maw,
I know the motherboard manufacturers try to make the pipelines as short as possible, but I see the problems it creates doing this, being worse than longer pipelines. They have the three major heat producers all jammed together. CPU, NB and VRMs all within about a 6 inch square. Add a decent video Card to the top slot and it makes the situation even worse, as it puts 90% of the hottest components, all withing about a 6x8 rectangle, without a lot of room for airflow between the components. Even using a Freezer 64 like me, it's still pretty close in there! I look at it this way. I had a Freezer 7 on my Pentium D-940 that pulled more watts overclocked than the 630 or the 955BE does. The current Freezer 64 is a better cooler than the old or new Freezer 7 or the old Freezer 64. I still don't see any problem with running the 955BE with it. I managed very good temps with the D-940 pulling about 225+w, and the 955BE won't draw that much wattage at 3.8GHz. The D-940 was a known real heater, while the 955BE is not! One thing's for sure, I'll know the answer in a few weeks! LOL!!

Russ

 

Russ, the freezer 64 is fine. I used it on my Phenom II 940 125W. It does WAYYY better then the stock H/sink and fan that came with the 965. But I don't think it will do to well in the small case that I currently have the 940 in. I think it may be slightly too tall. I would have to remove the side duct, which is meant for the CPU. So I put a 140mm fan on the top to vent the whole system. WORKS VERY well. I also have a 120mm 1200rpm slipstream pulling air in. The two work really well together. I guess we'll see how it fairs this summer though. Despite my efforts, it was warm in here since that task, and i've heard the CPU fan get obnoxious once. And boy does it LOL! I've seen it hit upwards of 5600Rpms!!!
I don't know where you heard the freezers can't handle the phenoms. They do better than the stock H/sinks and fans. I've seen proof for myself...

 

Oman7,
A number of people here and on the cooling thread have voiced their opinion that the Freezer 64 won't cut it overclocked. I guess we'll have to just wait and see! LOL!! I'm pretty confident it will!

As far as the RPMs go, I've managed to hit 1901 RPM once, while running OCCT with all 4 cores at 100%. The CPU temp got to all of 53C. Did I say I was confident. I'll be even more so when I add the rear 68 CFM Slipstream to the mix. I'll have to see how that works out before I add the FN-121 to the front! If it doesn't work out there's always the Corsair H50-1. I'm still not so sure about blowing the air into the case through it though! That seems counter productive to me!

Russ

 

If you end up seriously considering the H50-1 I would strongly recommend considering making you're own WC loop instead of a pre-built one if space isn't a problem. It will cost a bit more but you would get far better results.

 

The Freezer 64 will work on an overclocked 965, it just depends how far you overclock it. Nudge it less than 10% and you'll probably get away with temps in the high 50s (with a high fan speed), get it to 3.7-3.8 though and unless you want the fan on 100% at load, I doubt you'll be able to stay below 70C. At 3.9+ you'll almost certainly be pushing past the emergency threshold.

 

I agree with you entirely Sam. The Freezer 64 Pro is basically my favorite CPU cooler of all time. It kicks the crap out of any stock cooler ever made. I'm sure it would be just fine for a STOCK 965.

But if you plan on any sort of voltage increase, it's just not enough. Especially considering AMDs are entirely dependent on temps for their OCing. I guarantee you 100% I couldn't have taken my 940 to 3.7 with a Freezer 64.

Though water cooling is a bit extreme on the other end of the spectrum. I just don't get it: "This relatively low end air cooler isn't enough, so instead of exploring the hundreds of other options, I'll just use water cooling." A 120mm tower cooler would be cheaper, safer, and ultimately much more reliable than a liquid cooling loop.

 

This is a bizarre mentality that's showing up a lot lately. "My 92mm cooler can't handle it, so I must need water cooling." Either, people are rather deluded as where the Freezer series sits in the cooler market, or they're unwilling to fit a cooler as large as a 120mm tower cooler. Space-wise it's kind of irrelevant, you don't cause any cooling problems for other components since your CPU heatsink is no longer scalding hot to the touch, and if people are concerned about mounting, I've been using Ultra-120s for 3 years and carting my PCs to and fro LAN parties, so far not one mishap, which is less than can be said for pushpin coolers, which have come off on multiple occasions.

 

Well the Tuniq is also a backplate cooler, but it has a funny mounting system. They have retarded amounts "twist" movement in them. Basically it is held DOWN very securely but there is nothing to keep it straight. Other than my cooler sitting very crooked after transport to a LAN, no other problems. It doesn't seem to displace any TIM or anything and hasn't affected my temps so I don't mind it. Wish I could tighten them down a bit but the screws are all the way in.

Mind you it's a bit different on LGA775, and while it still has some twist to it, still not quite like mounting to AMD.

Also mind you in any case I still prefer the AMD method. Just less hassle.

 

Not sure what the AMD mount for Thermalrights is like, but on 775 and 1156, the cooler isn't going anywhere.

 

I had the Phenom II 940 at 3.5Ghz, 1.4V and holding 50-52C. A temporary voltage increase to 1.45 did not exceed 54C in Prime 95. Until one of the fans armatures became damaged, I favored that cooler. Don't get me wrong, the Tuniq is amazing, but the Freezer 64 is more than just average...

I think were forgetting a major factor. Case cooling. My temperatures were low, because of the HAF932. Not everyone is gonna get those temps...

 

hope everything works out Russ if, I had to back then go with the Corsair H50, I would have mounted the radiator on the outside the case for me on the 690 II with the air going out the back with fan on the inside of the case blowing thru the radiator and 1 mounted outside on the radiator sucking out the old push & pull theory but you see my case is design for rear radiator mounting...and tubing outlets as well as my 590 case is as well


if, I had your case the Centurion 534. I would had to do some modifying which. I like to do and. I know that is'nt your Cup of Tea like a number other people here first . I would have to fine me some rubber retaining hole washers to insert into the holes. I would be drilling for the cooling lines for that case...you gotta say...I have ideals the mind is used to think change and hands are used to get the job done that's how. I am explorering new options to make something different than the same again good luck on what ever you decide on doin and hope your happy with...

Happy Building
Ya'll

 

Time to start cranking the A.C. LOL! My 965 is idling at 40C. And its only 63F outside! Though its close to 80 in my room LOL! This particular room gets the brunt of the heat in the summer Not to mention my equipment that runs LOL! Well, back to the yard work

Edit - It's absolutely amazing how much an impact Air conditioning can have! I have my idle back down to 34C! Very happy LOL!

Edit 2 - encoding with cce is hovering around 39-40C

 

Oman7,
I've been sitting here reading all these posts, patiently waiting for someone to bring up Case cooling, something I've been very good at for years! When I started building computers with the idea in mind of overclocking them, I didn't know a good case from a tree trunk! Then again, for stock systems, the design of the cases airflow wasn't terribly important because you don't get involved with high temps to begin with, so cooling wasn't usually a problem. Most of the close to 400 builds I've done have used the stock CPU cooler without any heat issues.

I joined AD in early August of 05, and started my first overclocked build, a P4 Prescot, 3.0GHz, and immediately had heat issues! That's when I started paying more attention to case design and testing fans. In spite of a very inferior generic case, I was able to get the temps down overclocked at 3.83Ghz. It took a Zalman 9500 to cool the CPU and a couple of not so quiet 80mm fans (there was only 1F and 1R) to keep it below 63C, with idle temps in the low 30C range.

With the D-940 that followed, I bought a better generic case (so I thought at the time) and used the Zalman again. This one suffered from a lack of "Potty Training" and peed all over my motherboard! Zalman replaced it under warranty, and didn't damage the motherboard, but I was already looking for something else because the Zalman was too "Loud"! After a lot of research on the net, I settled on the Freezer 7, which immediately sparked a huge debate over which was better, the Zalman 9500, or the AC Freezer7. I remember comments like BroBear made, "It's made of copper, so the Zalman just has to cool better"! They were actually fairly equal, but the Freezer 7 was able to handle more watts, was much easier to install, and made far less noise. I haven't used anything but the Freezer 7/Freezer 64 since for my own builds. Using the "better generic case" I was able to get idle temps in the low to mid 30C range, and mid 60C range fully stressed. Hmm! Time to buy a real case! LOL!!

I bought a Cooler master Cavalier 3. Transferring everything from the old case to this one left the temps about the same, but the new case allowed for additional fans, so I added a side 80mm and installed a Thermaltake "Thunderblade" in place of the Stock rear fan. In my heart, I still believe that I owe Sam a new fan for that one! LOL!! You couldn't accuse Thermaltake of false advertising because the blade certainly did "Thunder"! I settled for a 120mm Silverstone FM121 for the rear, an 80mm FM83 for the side cover, and the stock cooler Master front 80mm intake. The total maximum CFM for the Silverstones was a whopping 185 CFM, at a noise level beyond belief! LOL!! I only turned both the speed controls up to max one time, and even then it was for a very short period of time, say as much time as it takes you to fumble for and turn off the power switch! Trust me, it's a totally offensive and loud sound! ;0( Still in that case the D-940 ran far cooler than I ever expected it to. Depending on whose calculations you use, the D-940 was drawing any where from 225 to 260w at 3.73GHz. With the Freezer 7, heat was not an issue!

When I did my E4300 build in the same case on my first Gigabyte MB, the 965P-DS3R Rev 1.33 at 3,43GHz, my temps were even lower. When I installed the E6750 with E0 stepping in the same build, my temps were so low, they were called into question on dvdhounds. Frankly, I was flattered! I wound up doing a requested Encode with DVDRB/CCE, 2 pass, and taking full window screen shots at prescribed times of Core temp, Everest, CPUZ and a couple of others I can't remember along with the DVDRB screen. I flubbed the first test because thinking I would no longer need the DVDRB screen, I removed it in the final screen shot, so I had to do it all over again! No problem at all, and it passed with flying colors! My temps have never been called into question since! Time for an all new computer!

I bought the Cooler Master Centurion 534+, and did my first AMD build in it, an Athlon2 x2 7750 on a Gigabyte MB. I ran into a number of problems with the build and finally wound up with the Motherboard I have now, the MA790X-UD4P. Once I got the fans tweaked, it ran cold as ice! The Athlon IIx4 630 came along and I have one in mine now. It now runs marginally warmer at 3.458GHz by about a degree over the 7750. It never exceeds 54C, running OCCT on all 4 cores, idles in the high 20s to very low 30s. I'm going to order the Scythe Slipstream 68 CFM fan for the rear, when I order the 955BE, to replace the 53 CFM Silverstone FN121. I may replace the stock C/M front intake fan, with the FN121, but I'll have to do a bit of testing first, before I decide. I'm pretty confident that I'll have no heat issues with the 955BE, using the Freezer 64, because as you pointed out, the major factor, Case cooling! I like my chances of success!

I have only given a fleeting thought to water cooling, because of the time factor. I don't have a lot of time to get this all done! My remark about the H50-1, was meant to be a joke as it's a totally inadequate system for any high performance computer, and then there's the leak possibilities and the inherent danger of ruining the computer to consider. With the H50-1, the Radiator is way too small to be very effective, and mounted inside the case, with the air being blown into the case is just plain nuts IMO! If I was going to do a water cooled system, it would be something more like this!
http://www.swiftech.com/products/H20-220-COMPACT.asp
I see no point in using water to cool a computer if the radiator isn't mounted externally. The whole point of water cooling is being able to carry the heat away from the source, inside the computer so that it can be dealt with outside the case. I mean, what's the point of transferring the heat 6" away from the CPU cooler, if the transferred heat still remains inside the case? The Rad box would have to go though! It sticks out way too far, putting a lot of strain in the rear of the case. The easiest way to do it would be to take a 120mm fan, and remove the struts that hold the fan and motor, and use that as an spacer. Move the fan that comes with the 220 to the rear side of the Radiator as an exhaust, and secure the Rad through the existing exhaust fan mounting holes, with longer screws. The Rad has threaded holes on both sides for the fan screws. You just need to be careful that the screws aren't too long. With the empty fan frame in between the cooler and the outside of the case, it should be far more solid than using the Rad box. It even looks like a flimsy mount in the pictures. That would leave a 25mm gap between the Rad and the back of the case, and an overall additional 85mm space to contain the Rad, with the fans mounted on the back side! Doing it that way will make the whole assembly more rigid, while only adding 3.34" to the overall depth of the case, with the Rad mounted. A right angle DVI cable, for about $4 should complete the deal! You may only need, the lower fan on the Rad! LOL!! Makes me wonder what they teach in Engineering these days. It took me all of about 2 minutes to figure out how to turn a very clumsy looking and space consuming installation, into a very neat and far less intrusive one! ROFL!! If I ever needed a Lan card or a Fax modem, there's enough room to plug the cables into them!

Best Regards,
Russ

 

Since the 965's Stock heatsink and fan, are averaging 51C cooling the 940 clocked to 3.5 at 1.4V(Higher than 125W), and I know that the Freezer 64 is better, I'm pretty confident saying the Freezer is still a good choice for cooling Overclocked CPU's. Of course case cooling is STILL a must of course. If people think that slapping a better cooler on a CPU, in a seriously cramped case is gonna make things loads better, they need to think again. A cpu cooler is not always a miracle worker LOL! It requires assistance.

My secondary encodes away at 100% cpu usage, averaging 51C High temp. I think case cooling is the most critical factor in high end computers. What good are those components, if the heat can't be expelled? How do you feel in a car, in the summer time with all the windows up. Pretty hot right? How about with all the windows down, and a good breeze?