Preparing a PC for the summer heating period (part 1)

Although the window is still full of snow and frost, the March will come very soon, and with it the NVIDIA Fermi graphic chip (we will call it by its code name, since the manufacturer is confused in the readings - either the GT300 or the GT400 ...) the buds and wallets of avid gamers will swell, who, without embarrassing at the price of a novelty of about 1000 American presidents, will run to upgrade, which means that a zealous lover of virtual entertainment will soon be able to take the previous flagship of the “green” fleet - NVIDIA GeForce 295 , Crys best friend is warhead. If you slightly overdrive it, then at first it will be possible to look pretty good even against the background of happy owners of an expensive svezak.
Attention! Under the cut 36 photos.

But after cool March and traditional April Fools' snow on May 9, a short but furious northern summer comes, and service centers collect a rich harvest of corpses with heat stroke of the brain. It was in the summer that unlucky users rush to the Savelovsky radio market with complaints about the howl of video card turbines (of course, the heat and the speed are set to 100%), the whistle of throttles, unsoldered sockets and chips, and numerous glitches and freezes.
No, this is not the time for summer vacations (although not without it), but the result of “successful” winter purchases: video cards with passive cooling or, worse, OC Edition with torn-up core voltage, prefabricated computers in the cheapest cases with one small fan the front and the CPU with the default low-profile cooler, which, at the request of an informed user, were still overclocked, and a horse-drawn dose of voltage was rolled in. And although in cool winter conditions for temperature monitoring they fluctuated somewhere in the acceptable range of 50-55 degrees for the processor and 70-75 degrees for vidyuhi, but taking into account the dusty body and raising the thermometer in the divisions room, it’s easy to 8-10 bring your system to boiling point.
Moral - you need to cook a cart in the winter, while there is still something to cook. Below we will talk about a couple of not the most difficult steps towards a silent and heat-resistant computer.

Forewarned is forearmed

As I already wrote in my previous article “Blow into the Case” , it’s better to sacrifice the spectacular appearance of the case, but get enough space for installing additional fans and space to ensure free intake and air flow inside the case. And if now, in gentle climatic conditions, the temperatures are close to extreme, it's time to conduct an audit of the case fans and think about increasing their number.
You should not think that if during the demonstration in the store the temperatures were normal, then the situation will not change when the case will be in the computer table, almost resting its back on the wall. So, the first thing you need to do is monitor the temperatures. Experienced overclockers are very fond of using Real Temp for these purposes.. This software monitors the readings of the sensors of all processor cores and remembers the maximum values ​​achieved.



Now, in the conditions of your situation and the placement of the PC case, you need to properly warm up the processor. The following set of test utilities is suitable for this:

1. Cinebench R10 or the new version 11.5 is a multi-threaded rendering test. It allows you to evaluate the efficiency of loading processor threads, well, and indirectly checks the stability of its work.
http://www.maxon.net/en/downloads/downloads/cinebench/cinebench-115.html

2. LinX 0.6.4 - a graphical shell for the recognized performance test of Linpack multiprocessor servers. Maximally loads all the cores and virtual threads of the processor by calculating systems of linear equations, which, of course, requires high stability.
http://occlub.ru/forum/showthread.php?t=652



3. Prime95 (Blend preset) is a client of a distributed computing system for finding prime numbers, and in combination it’s also a very tough system stability test that can identify problems of stability there where other utilities worked perfectly fine.
http://www.mersenne.org/freesoft/



Enough to run each test for 20 minutes. But even if the system has remained stable, this is not a reason to relax. We look at the results recorded by Real Temp (temperature monitoring, of course, should be included during the tests) for each core. Even if the temperatures are within acceptable limits, then this is not a reason to calm down. In summer, the air temperature in the room often rises from 20-22 degrees to 28-31 degrees, which means that it is necessary to add 8-10 degrees to the maximum temperature recorded by Real Temp , and at the same time it can already go beyond the permissible range. And this is not at all good, since long-term operation of the processor at high temperatures is not recommended for it and can lead to its degradation, that is, a gradual deterioration of the properties of the crystal and loss of stability even in normal mode.
Also, Real Temp can detect overheating of one of the cores against the background of an acceptable temperature for all the others, which can indicate poorly applied thermal paste (for example, not over the entire contact surface of the heat-distributing cover and the cooler base) or skew of the heatsink sole during installation. This is also bad due to the uneven load on the processor socket.

With graphics cards, things are a little easier. To warm up and check the stability of video cards, they have not yet invented a more evil thing than the “hairy bagel” - FurMark . It is not recommended to drive it for more than an hour , as there have been cases that on poor-quality video cards because of this test chip soldering departed. It is most convenient to take temperature readings with the proven Riva Tuner utility. As in the case of the processor, you must add 10 degrees to the maximum fixed temperature of the GPU when working in the conditions of your room and table and make sure that it will not be very bad in the summer. It will be possible to immediately lower the temperature by fixing the turbine speed by 100% with the same Riva Tunner . But, of course, a terrible howl is attached to this.

Emergency measures

So, the problem has been identified, and the first thing to do is to carry out simple actions that do not require serious cash injections: lay and tie the wires with plastic ties so that they do not stick out in the air flow path, remove the cooler and check the thermal paste application (it is better to replace it with a more efficient one) and correct clamping.
Thermal paste is best applied with a finger, a thin layer, without excess smearing on the entire surface of the heat distribution cover. Then you can firmly attach the cooler sole a couple of times and make sure that a uniform imprint remains on it across the entire contact surface. After that, holding the heatsink with your hand, you need to snap the fastenings in pairs diagonally from each other - in any case, not clockwise, as some people like :), otherwise all the effort will have to go on one side, and it can not only skew the cooler itself , but also can not stand the BGA-soldering of the socket.
This may give some improvement in temperature, but it may not be enough for your tasks. For example, I recently watched the assembly of a config for one friend, and the Intel Core i7 920 processor stepping D0 was extremely unsuccessful - for work on 4 GHz it required a voltage of 1.37 volts, which is very much and, of course, led to high temperatures. There is one more complaint to the default cooler - it drives the air down, perpendicular to the motherboard plane, accelerating the heat removed from the processor to the sides, that is, to the already hot elements of the processor power circuits, which can negatively affect both their stability and on durability.


Native cooler for Intel processors

Well, in this case you will have to make a difficult choice: to give up a fair amount of performance on particularly hot days, or to sit with the body open, listening to howls of fans, or put up with the need to replace standard cooling with a tower super-cooler with an effective and relatively quiet 120mm a fan.

We put the tower

By the way, this did happen: for the upcoming 6-core Intel Gultown CPUs, the manufacturer started using a tower model as a default cooler - another proof that, despite the reduction in the process technology and the increase in the energy efficiency of transistors, heat dissipation is steadily growing :).
Just be careful when choosing - tower coolers are quite high. Here in OCClub we had a funny incident: a person took an inexpensive brand-name case for having such a cool massive carry handle, but the case was surprisingly narrow, and the tower cooler bought for it simply didn’t fit in and protruding heat pipes did not allow to close the side wall. So we recommend measuring the distance from the processor to the wall before buying :).
Mounting tower coolers is usually more advanced than default cooling: they are bolted to the motherboard with four bolts (you also need to tighten them carefully, gradually tightening the bolts crosswise, then one or the other, to prevent distortion), while there is also a central regulator, which provides uniform pressure of the cooler sole to the heat distribution cover, and this does not lead to bending of the PCB of the motherboard, as in the case of standard cooling. The main thing here is not to overdo it - do not tighten the regulator to a crunch :). Mounting the tower cooler The screws provide for adjusting the position of the sole of the cooler, and the central regulator - uniform pressure The headset of the cooler











It’s better to go broke on expensive thermal grease - the “favorite” KPT-8 is of very different quality ... The finger is the best tool for applying thermal grease! Smear thoroughly, evenly over the entire lid, remove excess. Presses cooler, slightly turning around a vertical axis to the left to the right, to thermal grease stuck to the sole of a screwdriver gradually turns tighten crosswise one or the other screw, then finally presses the cooler to the CPU central regulator So mount the cooler is installed on the back side of the motherboard to the modern tower any 120 mm fans can be connected to coolers through such wire mounts. The fan is pressed against the fins of the radiator






















Infernal confrontation of fans :). It’s better to rearrange the 120-k from the rear basket to the CPU cooler itself (the main thing is that they blow air in one direction). The power supply fan will also try to take its part of the air flow. It can be seen that the case was not designed for the installation of a tower cooler. This duct, in theory, is intended to provide a regular CPU cooler with fresh air. It’s better to remove this useless pipe and put in its place an 80 mm blower fan - this will allow better cooling of the processor, and the north bridge, and the elements of the power circuits. With a tower cooler, this grill becomes generally useless. The ventilation openings to the right (they will be above the video cards) are also almost useless, they need good active airflow.








The back wall of the housing. Both the 120 mm and the 80 mm fan can be installed in the basket (although there is little sense in the second). It is seen. What with the installation of a tower cooler, the cooling efficiency of the power supply will suffer. The completely blank area around the video card is also alarming - hot air can only escape through the tiny grate on the slot cover.


Circus! Heat pipes stick out from an overly narrow case - that is what a frivolous attitude to this part of the computer means.


It is impossible to close the wall. The unlucky buyer was sent for a lower cooler, that is, a tower with 120 mm fans will not be available to him, which raises concerns about the stability of the computer in the summer.


The biggest problem of this case is that the installation of components in it is possible only in this way, which leads to the division of the body space into two practically autonomous parts. All the flow from the front fan goes under the video card and there does not know where to put yourself. It is difficult to get air upstairs, the ventilation grill above the processor cooler with a “tower” is practically useless, and therefore, the cooling efficiency drops sharply. So two 120s for cooling the processor are an urgent need, and it would be nice for the video card to provide alternative cooling, otherwise noise and overheating cannot be avoided.

Fan arrangement

But even installing a tower cooler on the CPU and turning on the video card turbine at 100% may not give the expected effect and will change the temperature by only a few degrees, because pumping cold air into the case and ejecting hot air from it can be very ineffective. In this case, we are waiting for an audit of installed case fans and places for them.
Even in the oldest ATX cases, which economical users like to leave when upgrading the system, there are small ventilation slots and a basket for an 80 mm cooler in front from the bottom (though without the cooler itself). Honestly, at the current level of heating of modern hard drives and the number of heat sources in the case - this is ridiculously small, but better than nothing. If possible, one should invade there with tools and install a 120 mm fan.
The second required program number is an additional 120 mm cooler on the rear panel of the case - it should not be neglected, as it will help disperse the warm air that has accumulated between the back of the case and the wall.
Well, in the case of sufficiently powerful graphics cards, it is very important to blow cold air from the side directly onto the video cards and, preferably, on the chipset. For example, additional blowing of video cards from above even with an open test bench allows overclockers to increase stability at limiting frequencies.
And this may not be enough. Here, for example, the test results of one of the most beautiful gaming cases already familiar from the previous article of the NZXT brand - LEXA Shung with as many as four pre-installed efficient fans (1x120 mm in front, 1x120 mm fan with backlight on the side, 1x120 mm fan on the rear panel and 140 mm fan on the top cover with the possibility of installing another 120/140 mm). The system consisting of an Intel Core i7 920 CPU (at the standard frequency and with a default cooler), an NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTS 320 MB video card, an MSI Eclipse SLI motherboard and one Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 1 TB hard drive warmed up to the following temperatures (air temperature - 25 degrees Celsius):
- processor - 44 degrees in idle / 74 degrees in load
- video card - 46 degrees in idle / 76 degrees in load
- hard drive - 33 degrees in idle / 37 degrees in load
- chipset- 70 degrees in idle / 79 degrees in load.
That is, we can say that the temperatures are already close to critical, although the air temperature in the room is still not the highest. The case would clearly not hurt another 120 mm fan in the front, which would provide an influx of cold air over the video card directly to the processor and processor. In defense of the case, we can say that it has a pre-installed two-channel reobas (separately for the channel for fans working on blowing and blowing), and cooling performance would be better if the impeller speeds were set to a maximum of 1200 revolutions, sacrificing noise characteristics. The temperature of the chipset reached such “indecent” marks just because of the default cooler, which blew hot air directly into the radiator of the north bridge, which was connected by heat pipes to the south bridge and the very hot chip of the NVIDIA nForce 200 bridge.


NZXT LEXA S


Very successful side-by-side blowing of video cards.


Correct location of the power supply unit (bottom) and effective removal of hot air from the near-socket space.

So, I consider it mandatory to install a 120 mm fan from the front to the blower (in the case of the old case, for greater efficiency, you can carefully extend the ventilation slots or drill holes in the form of an aesthetic pattern), an additional 120 mm fan from the back to blow and a fan to the side panel that pumps air to the area of ​​video cards and chipset.
For these purposes, it is better to use efficient relatively quiet fans, such as those installed in the housing mentioned above (1200 rpm, 23db / 42CFM, double roller bearings).
With the side panel, you can do the following. If there is no space for a fan there, then whether it is a Plexiglass window or just plain steel with a small ventilation grill, you can swipe at installing a 200 mm cooler that will cool both the video card and the chipset. To do this, you can include the wall of the body in laser cutting, having previously taken all the measurements and drawn a cutting scheme in Corel Draw. Everything about everything with fans and sharp will take 2,000 - 2,500 rubles, which is not so much compared to the very probable losses and inconveniences.


Quiet 120 mm fans A


200 mm fan is best suited for side airflow. To install it, just shamanize it a bit in Corel Draw and get to laser cutting.

Another place where you might need to install an additional 120 mm fan is, oddly enough, the second side of the radiator of a tower-type CPU cooler. The fact is that by default the kit always comes with only one fan, which pumps air between the fins of the radiator. Adding a blow fan that will draw hot air out of the intercostal space will increase the cooler's efficiency. But the main thing here is not to overdo it :), otherwise you can get a steam locomotive from three fans in a row, including a 120 mm cooler on the rear panel. In this case, it is better to simply rearrange the 120-ku from the case to the heatsink of the CPU cooler.
Of course, even the quietest and most efficient fans, although they can make the overall background noise of the system more comfortable, for example, having positively influenced the speed level of the video card’s turbine, will definitely contribute to the overall choir of the impellers. And the only way to deal with this is to actively manage the cooler speed.

Control, more control!

No matter how trite it sounds, but you have to pay for everything. Saving on the purchase of a case and a good cooler, in the summer you run after an additional fan and a radiator-tower; twisting a bunch of blades all over the body, after a while you run after the control panel for them.
And so that you do not have to run twice, you must immediately part with the illusions and come to terms with the fact that:
1. Five channels for modern reobas are a sanitary minimum. We consider: fans in the front, an additional fan in the back, blowing from the side, two 120s on a processor cooler (you can, of course, trust the adjustment to the automation of the motherboard or proprietary software, but the accuracy and reaction speed will be noticeably lower) and one channel to the PSU fan, or additional cooling of the chipset, or cooling of the CBO radiator. Even a little.
2. Modern good fans can eat up to 10 watts, so the panel should be capable of delivering up to 10 watts per channel.
3. It is imperative that you have precise temperature and rpm control, temperature control and notification of critical values, and storing profiles in memory.
The aforementioned NZXT has, for example, a good touch panel with such characteristics - NZXT SENTRY 2. I had no business with similar products from other brands, so I won’t speak in vain, and this device leaves the most pleasant impressions: a bright touch LED screen, a matte black frame - just for fashionable all-black cases. The kit comes with a fair amount of molecules for connecting fans and thermocouples to take temperatures. Thermocouples elementary glued to hot melt closer to the bottom of the radiator, and we get a fairly high measurement accuracy. Nevertheless, it is better to make a margin of 2-3 degrees from the critical temperature, because directly on the chip it is slightly higher.


NZXT SENTRY 2


The kit includes fairly comfortable temperature sensors. NZXT SENTRY 2 also has a large number of molecules for connecting any fans.


In about the same way, the sensor is glued to the radiator of the unit whose temperature you want to control :).

The desired 5 channels are just implemented in this panel, so that you can independently separate all sections of the cooling system and carefully experiment with each fan. Most likely, 100% of the revolutions for some fans will be excessive, and the noise can be significantly reduced even when playing a gluttonous 3D toy. You can also select profile parameters for the torrent-rocking mode at night, and automation will not allow the computer to overheat if the air temperature outside the window suddenly creeps up.
But there remains one more very noisy tenant of the system unit - a video card. You cannot connect its turbine to external control panels! Not to mention the fact that it is simply not intended for this. Adjustment of the turbine speed should be carried out using the driver or the same Riva Tunner - it is better to entrust temperature control to the automation of the video card itself.

About what can be done to reduce the temperature and noise of the video card, as well as about the pitfalls that are associated with this - in the next part.

Donny