How hot does the northbridge and southbridge get? I know the 680i chipsets really bake...you can't hold a finger to them even at idle. Also what does the manual say about running the gfx card in the lower PCI-E slot? Does it run any slower? I'm thinking about buying the MSI P6N SLI Platinum and want...

Those sensors are often wrong. Hold a finger to the base of the heatsink. Can you hold your finger there without it burning? If yes, then it's well under 80'C.

Wow, thanks so much for all the replies! :D Mad props to whiic. I guess guys in Finland have nothing else better to do. :P Samsung would be my choice if it's possible to decouple it from the case. And I mean efficient decoupling (mounted with rubber bands in 5.25" slot), not just a noiseabsorbing en...

I assume you mean 1950 Pro? I think your only real option is the 8800GTS. The 8800GTX and 2900XT draw a lot more power, and the 8600GT and 2600XT will be slower. Do you really need a DX10 capable card though? Even the 8800's struggle with games running in DX10 mode. It's still early times though, so...

My understanding was that all hhd's in the SE16 range used 167GB platters. Is that correct? In which case the 250GB would have a higher average transfer speed because the section closest to the drive centre (where it spins "slower") wouldn't be used. It depends how WD has arranged the drive though. ...

Hi, I've been looking at the WD2500AAKS and the WD3200AAKS drives. Both seem to have identical features (except for the size obviously) - same number of platters (2), read write heads, noise specifications and power consumption (according to WD's website). From my own experience i've found Seagates ...

What happens if I set these settings: High Control Temperature: 50C Low Control Temperature: 30C High DC Fan Voltage: 12V Low DC Fan Voltage: 8V (minimum voltage) 1) And the reference temperature is in-between, say it's 40C? Will it at 40C spin at 10V or what? What about 35C and 45C? Is it linear? ...

Mounting pressure perhaps?

Any chance you could review the Zalman thermal paste that comes with the 9700? I've read reviews elsewhere but the results are inconsistent.

My guess would be either not enough pressure between the cpu and the base of the heatsink, or the sensor is reporting a faulty temperature. What are you using to measure the temp? Try Core Temp.

I've got the above mentioned cooler. The LED's are not as bright as they used to be, not even close, even with the fan at full speed.

Has anyone else had this problem? Any idea what causes it?

Bob

Which thermal paste did you use?

Applying to much thermal paste often leads to increased temperatures. How much did you use?

Did you clean both the cpu and heatsink with pure alcohol after lapping? They need to be clean.

So basically you want to know if the ZM-CS1 you're using at the moment can stay put and be used for the 9500? Or did I misinterpret that? The adpaters look completely different, so my guess would be no. Also the 9500 comes with a back plate, whereas the CS1 doesn't. The 9500 is taller and heavier (t...

rpsgc wrote:Unfortunately its fan is 110mm and not 120mm.

Woe is the day.

764grams - eish, quite heavy

Acousti-pack uses a checkerboard pattern with sloped sides. I assume they've done research on its effectiveness - so i'ld go for that shape.

http://www.acoustiproducts.com/en/acoustipack_dx.asp

That subject line doesn't do a very good job at explaining at what i'm getting at. :? Basically I have a choice (i.e i can get this stuff for free :) )between thin dense foam or a thicker less dense foam to use as air filters. The thinner will probably be able to catch smaller pieces of dust but all...

Well, it's for aesthetic purposes as well

I'll check whether fibre glass is a viable option.

As for the side window...what about using two (or several) peices of acrylic and leaving a small gap of air inbetween? Acylic is supposed to be a good sound reflector right?

It seems the open cell foam i have is actually semi-open cell foam. <gasp> :P I have another piece of foam which is the same density and thickness as the semi-open cell foam but is much easier to breathe through. So i'm guessing the other piece is actually open cell foam and the original piece is se...

Wow, that was uber informative.

I have two questions:

1) Is there an optimum shape for foam? and

2) Would leaving a gap of air between two pieces of arcylic reduce noise? (talking about a case window here)

I found mutemat's website very informative: http://www.mutemat.co.uk/information.php It seems what you mentioned is correct :D. Open cell is the way to go, the higher the density the better. From what i've read a dense and heavy vinyl layer acts as a noise blocker as well as absorbing vibration from...

I assume you speak about damper the computer even if you doesn't say so ;-) Yip, sorry i suppose i should have stated that somewhere. Vinyl is used to damper any vibrations in the case, basicly by doing it heavier. It suppose to work excellent. Does the vinyl do anything for noise blocking or does ...

Hi everyone, I have this stuff lying around: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v717/fogeshan/HPIM1714.jpg That's some carpet, thin floor vinyl and thick floor vinyl. Idealy i would like to glue some black foam on top of the thick vinyl, as i have a side window in my case and would like it to match t...

Ah, good point

It's not a problem though, i had to drill the holes myself to get a 120mm fan to fit. So i'll just make them a wee bit bigger.

Thanks for pointing that out to me.

Bob

Hi there, I just got these from Performance PC's: http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=127&products_id=3294 There're nice and squishy, so i reckon they will be good at reducing vibration. Bit of a n00by question...which way around do they go? Short side fixed...

Nice. What temps do you get on the 7600GT?

Why not close up the hexagonal grill at the back of the case to increase airflow over gfx card.

david25 wrote:Idles around 50'c with load about 70'c

Those temps seem a little high compared to the ones THG's achieved:
http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/06/02/ ... page5.html

Speedfan Support. CrystalCPUID support – not sure if that’s a given for all CnQ CPUs! Ability to overclock by 20-25% whilst keeping the PCIe buss & memory clock at or below stock speeds. Scythe Ninja Support. Any help appreciated. May I suggest the Biostar Tforce 6100? I've used that mobo befor...

Leave the fan off and start up Prime95 or CPU Burn. Whatever temperature jumps up is your CPU temperature. I'm guessing it's the one that reads 37'C.

Awesome review. I'm suprised though that the Arctic Cooler had a consistently high cpu temp considering it chucks all the gpu heat outside the box. Why does this happen?

Yeah maybe at idle, if one of the fans switches off. But at full load that thing is going to be far from quiet. Also most people on this forum wouldn't want with a 580W, its simply too much.