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Antec 902 + Heatsink/CPU Cooling Combination
Question for those Antec 902 owners on these forums, or people familiar with the case.
Earlier last month, I posted about a build and I have recently put together the build. Here are the specifications.
Antec 902
Asus M4A89GTD 890X AMD Motherboard
AMD Phenom II X4 Black Edition 955 3.2 Ghz
4 GB G.Skill Ripjaw Series 1333 mhz
ATI Radeon Sapphire 5770 Juniper XT
Corsair 750 TX PSU
So the socket is AM3 and I am currently thinking of finding a CPU/Heatsink cooling combination, that WON'T end up having me modding the case. I do use the side 120mm fan too.
Any suggestions?
Comments
AMD processors at 55 - 60C start showing errors. You can try the Zalman Coolers which allow you to control fan speeds. My temperatures have been pretty low with them. Look at the coolers in the Zalman Website. They even have diagrams to show you an idea on how the installation works.
Those have been pretty good coolers.
I mean, my CPU idles around 32-34C and under a load around 40C.
But I've heard some Zalman coolers are good, but I am just seeing who has used this case and got some nice CPU Coolers for a good price, that doesn't require modding the Antec 902 case.
After doing some research I am debating between the Titan Fenrir and Thermaltake Frio..
Any suggestions?
They are both good.
What i do with large coolers is make sure they have a backplate to mount on the motherboard for stability. I consider push-pin coolers to be an Engineering Nightmare, since simple wear means the cooler becomes unbalanced. Titan Fenrir is one of the top enthusiast level coolers out there. If you are planning to overclock, go for it. Megahalens is another popular one. There are So many coolers out there, but they are expensive. FRIO is also another one that works. Take your pic based on what you will do with it and go with it. Its a pretty large cooler though..
I use a Scythe Ninja Revision B in my case....That is the LIMIT in height you can put in your case before being forced to MOD the case. I use the previous version of the same case you are talking about. There are three things that help a lot in cooling
1) Make sure the FAN blows upward, because in physics hot air rises...and this way actually lowers temperatures by an addition 3 - 4c at load.
2) Lap your processor. Make sure the surface of the cooler and the processor surface are even. I use sandpaper for that to make sure there isn't any warping.
3) Use something like Arctic Silver 5. Silver has better conductivity than even copper. This helps the processor tremendously.
I've been able to lower temperatures by 7 - 8c just from doing these extras...So all of these little things add up. If you plan on overclocking it helps a lot.
I appreciate the information. I have decided on the Zalman CNPS10x Extreme, since a store carrys in around my house. I've heard that it was somewhat old, but still good.
I have the Phenom II x2 555 (all cores unlocked) and recently upgrade from the stock cooling to this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181010
My temps have dropped to 28c - 30c idle, 42c-45c after 3 hours of gaming. This is in a room with the ambient temp of about 85 degrees.
I dont' know what your budget is but for my money this is one of the best purchases I've made.
Note: Watch the YouTube video on installation can be tricky the first time.
Give it 2-3 days for the thermal compound to really set in. It will run a little hot till it does.
Good Luck!
Edit: Sorry meant to add that before I switched my cpu ran in the 55c-60c range when gaming and I never had errors of any kind. Not saying it is a lie just saying I never had a probelm.
I, myself, have been trying to keep my Phenom II cool during overclocking.
I bought a Titan Fenrir and some IC diamond, but it's still incredibly hard to keep it from getting hot. It hits 47-48 celcius when my room is in the mid 80s (hot summers here), even with a high CFM fan blowing upward straight to the top cooling fan on my Antec 900 (it hits about 48-50 with the stock fan). I'm trying to figure out what I can possible do to bring this down.
The CPU had some AS5 on there, and I tried to clean it off with 91% alcohol, but it seemed to get into tiny cracks and stuff, so trace amounts were left. I'm hoping that isn't somehow causing improper cooling (it still conducts heat, even if not as well as the new paste so I don't see how it could be).
I had considered lapping the CPU and heatsink, but I've never done it before. Exactly what's involved in that? What grade of sandpaper should I use?
Before you Lap your processor and Cooler...
The reason your processor runs hot is because of the voltage. You should inspect the cooler to make sure the cooler is actually secure and not wobbling. If its secure and your temperature runs below 50c at FULL LOAD, then you are doing fine. If your temperature if 46 - 50C at Idle, then you've really got a major problem.
I am willing to help you if needed.
Well the problem is that if I hit 50C under load even at stock speeds and voltage (with load-line calibration turned off, it comes to about 1.36v-1.37), it leaves no overclocking room. The CPU remains stable right up to about 55C, but the moment it passes that, it crashes before long at all.
It's a 965 125W revision, and even going from 3.4 to 3.8 (and bumping the voltage to 1.4v), it gets too hot and crashes. Unfornatunely, the chip doesn't stablize with less voltage than that either. A 3.4ghz CPU with an aftermarket cooler and the best thermal grease in existence just shouldn't be failing to overclock past 3.6-3.7ghz. I'm really pushing the cooling too. Right now, I have a fan on top blowing up that has around 75CFM of airflow, and I attached another to the bottom (just with some wire) for a push-pull configuration. It bought me a degree or two, but it'll likely still crash if I OC it, at all.
I realize my room is a little hot, but seriously, I must be able to do better than this...
75CFM...Is that the TOP fan or the bottom fan? If the top fan has a higher CFM than the bottom, then it sucks the bottom's air and its like not having any air at all. Do you know what I mean?
Well the top fan is adjustable (nob comes out the back of the case by the PCI slots), but that's the maximum on it. The other fan isn't far off though (60 something). Still, it might very well help switching them... Adjusting the top one only makes a degree or two of difference though, so if I want any headroom for overclocking, I've gotta try something more involved I think. I have considered getting a couple of higher CFM fans. Newegg has some very quiet 90CFM cooler master fans for only about $10 a pop. Even that may not buy enough headroom though
Man, I went with a budget cooler instead of any of the ones I mentioned. I read some reviews on the Coolermaster Hyper 212 + and saw that it is a good bang for it's buck. Cheap also and I was on a budget since purchasing the new computer I built.
But just installed it, I suck at spreading thermal paste haha. It dried very quickly. I also have to mod my side fan on the Antec 902, just cut a peice of the side off a bit. Nothing too bad.
When I rebooted my computer, it said I had a new processor. This should be normal, correct? Since mine came out when I took the old stock heatsink/cpu off.
Everything seems to be running smoothly though...so far. Knock on wood.
The CPU Coolers comes with a 120mm fan with a max speed of 2000 RPM. At the moment, I am running the CPU fan at around 880 - 900 RPM and my idle temprature dropped 4 degrees.
So I sit around 30c at idle and when I am playing a single game (I don't use many applications at once), it is around 36c - 38c. Good improvement from the stock, I was at 34c with stock and 40c when playing the same game.
Just wish thermal paste wasn't so messy. Had to wipe the sides down of the CPU and got a small bit in the RAM slots, which I cleaned up the best I could. But no problems from either. All is well.
Thanks for your input, gentleman. I appreciate it. I would have went Titan Fenrir, just don't have the budget for it. Now to mod my side fan, this afternoon!