Undervolted gaming system

[frostedflakes]

Antec SLK3000-B
Seasonic S12-330
AMD Athlon64 X2 3800+
ASUS A8V-E SE (Via K8T890)
2x1GB Mushkin HP PC3200
Sapphire Radeon X800GTO 256MB
Samsung P120 250GB
Pioneer DVR-A08XLB

Future upgrades/plans:
Thermalright HR-05 NB heatsink
Northbridge undervolting
HDD suspension
Better cable management
Mini-ITX DC-DC or fanless ATX PSU?





My main goals with this PC were low noise and high efficiency. Both kind of go hand-in-hand, so as I increased efficiency I would also be able to decrease noise.

The first, and easiest, task was to reduce CPU voltage. I was able to take my 3200+ from 1.4V down to 1.23V, which corresponds to a 24% drop in CPU heat and power consumption. w00t!

EDIT: Replaced the single-core 3200+ with a dual-core 3800+ and am running it at 1.23V as well.

But I wanted more, so this time I set my sights on the video card. Did mods to undervolt both the GPU and memory chips. Was able to take the GPU from 1.41V to 1.135V without any stability problems (as long as the GPU stays <100*C or so)! That's a 40% drop in GPU heat and power consumption! I was also able to take the memory from 1.95V down to 1.75V, but it seemed to make very little difference in heat and power consumption (only a few watts at the wall according to my wattmeter), but did seem to effect stability pretty bad at higher temps, so I removed the mod and left memory at default voltage.

Next on the list is northbridge undervolting. I was also planning to try undervoltng the system memory but after seeing how little gain GPU memory undervolting had I'll probably skip this mod.

As far as noise goes, the system is very quiet. Easily cooled by two low-speed 120mm fans (a D12SL-12 in the Seasonic and another as a case exhaust @ 5V), CPU doesn't climb much higher than 40*C (50*C with the X2 3800+) under load and the GPU gets up to ~65*C after being stressed overnight. Because of this I was actually considering a fanless PSU and one exhaust fan, but I want to wait and see how much more heat the X2 3800+ adds to the system first. The only thing that really makes noise is the P120, but it's just a soft thud while seeking, which is actually pretty unobtrusive -- as far as computer noise goes it's really the high frequency whining and airflow noises that bug me, so HDD suspension is something I plan to do, but isn't a huge priority.

Questions, comments, suggestions?

[ExclusivE]

That is a very nice system man! I always wanted to know if fanless schyte+3000b+venice was a good idea. But your is running smoothly, yes?
Anyway i cant give critics because i love your setup way to much, and im not quallyfied. Awesome!

[qviri]

Nice one. What happened to your old case, BTW?

[jaganath]

Next on the list is northbridge undervolting.

Can you tell me how to do this? I've looked all through my BIOS and I can't seem to find an option that will reduce voltage to the northbridge (which runs far too hot for my liking), which is strange as it allows me to reduce voltage to the CPU right down to 0.8375V!

[frostedflakes]

ExclusivE: Thanks. The Ninja + Venice works really well. Kind of curious how well it'll be able to handle the X2 3800+, though.

qviri: You mean the SLK3700-BQE? I ended up using it in another build.

jaganath: Unfortunately, it's not quite as simple as going into the BIOS and changing voltage. To undervolt the northbridge, a hardware mod will be required. What motherboard are you using?

[theyangster]

so this was the seasonic you decided not to sell

curious was it a revision 1? so it came stock with the yate loon

only other thing I can recomend is accoustic foam?

nice system!

[frostedflakes]

Yup, this was the one.

Came with the D12SM-12, but the fan started clicking really bad and I was afraid it might fail, so I just replaced it with a D12SL-12.

[jaganath]

To undervolt the northbridge, a hardware mod will be required. What motherboard are you using?

Gigabyte GA-8IPE1000 Pro Rev. 1.0 (socket 478). Are we talking serious re-soldering here or a little light tinkering?

[Firetech]

Looks neat frostedflakes

Ahhh, a couple of Q's for me and the others viewing.

From the 3rd photo I see you've fitted a non-vented side panel to improve airflow/reduce noise. Did it make a big difference

Which temps can your board monitor because, as you know, my concern with the Ninja (with fan fitted, not even passive) is increased PWM/Mosfet temps due to decreased airflow

PS Your cable management isn't that bad

[Badger]

Really nice, great choice of components and nice work on the undervolting. I asume you were able to undervolt while keeping stock speeds, corect?

One question and one suggestion:

Is Yate Loon fan in the S12 is wired to the PSU's circuitry?

And, I'm sure the HDD is the loudest part, and you've been around here long enough and longer than I to know how to quiet it, but I'm going to recommend you stick it in a homemade enclosure. alleycat and I are big advocates (I got the idea from him). It's so simple, aluminum box + hot/cold pack = silence. And cheaper than other enclosures, too. Of course, not as cheap as suspension, but I had a lot better results with the enclosures than with suspension on my HDD's. I really think that would give you the quietest setup.

Best of luck whatever route you go, and thanks for sharing.

[theyangster]

badger, where did you get the aluminum box, if I remember it wasn't cheap

[frostedflakes]

jaganath: Soldering wouldn't neccessarily be required, SMD grabbers can be used instead. These are really intended for temporary use, but as long as you don't move you computer around a lot they'd probably be fine. To be extra safe you might want to melt a little hot glue over the connections just to make sure they don't come loose.

I did a quick search on Google and couldn't find any chipset volt mods for your motherboard. Your best bet would be to sign up at the XtremeSystems or VR-Zone forums and post a request in the appropriate section for a chipset undervolt mod. The members there will ask you to post a picture of the circuitry in the northbridge area and hopefully be able to figure out a mod for you.

Firetech: I had an extra SLK3700-BQE side panel lying around, so I used it instead of the SLK3000-B side panel. A solid panel seems to work much better for my airflow setup.

There are no MOSFET/PWM temperature sensors on this board, but using the finger test it all seem to run pretty cool. The main problem is the northbridge, which runs very hot without any airflow. I measured the hottest spot on the heatsink to be 61*C, so I wouldn't be surprised if the northbridge itself was at 70*C+. Doesn't seem to cause any stability problems, but I'd kind of like to get the temp down a bit.

Badger: You are correct, everything is still at default speeds. Also, the Yate Loon in the power supply is wired to the S12's fan controller. Your homemade enclosure sounds very interesting -- do you happen to have a guide posted on the forums you could link me to?

[Firetech]

Cheers frostedflakes, this article finally swung me with the Ninja over SI-120!

My only suggestion after my own testing would be to to consider lowering the HDD down a notch or two and installing a front fan. In my set-up it lowers system temp 4 deg, so I'd think it will cool the HDD nicely and possibly aid your NB problem.

My other thought was could you connect the rear fan to the CPU fan connector (if it has Qfan enabled) and as CPU temps increase so would the rear fan speed? Just thinking out loud.......

[jaganath]

Your homemade enclosure sounds very interesting -- do you happen to have a guide posted on the forums you could link me to?

Alleycat's Homebrew Aluminium Enclosure

How-To (with pics)

[Badger]

222 x 146 x 55mm (8.7"x5.7"x2.2")

The Aluminum Box, $30 That's where I got mine, Vetco Electronics, two of them came out to $66.55 shipped.

Then you just need to go to your local Rite Aid, Wal-Mart, what have you and buy two hot/cold gel packs that are slightly wider and longer than the enclosure itself. Put one pack on the bottom, place the hard drive on top, then sandwich it with the second pack. These cost like $3-5 each.

I have a friend that owns a grinder, so he was able to shave off about 2-3mm across the shorter side of each of my enclosures so I could run my cables through without pinching them. However, if you don't have access to a grinder you can still run the cables through, just don't tighten down the screws on that end all the way. alleycat's website also shows how he filed down a slit for his cables.

Here, this post, especially the last pic I put up, should show it a little better

[frostedflakes]

Looks really nice, but it is kind of pricey. I'll probably just try some plain ol' elastic suspension first and if I'm not satisfied go for the enclosure.

Firetech: HDD is surprisingly cool considering how little airflow it gets. Only 32*C during normal use, which I'm pretty happy with. I'm sure it gets a bit warmer during heavy use, but probably still well within limits.

[Firetech]

Firetech: HDD is surprisingly cool considering how little airflow it gets. Only 32*C during normal use, which I'm pretty happy with. I'm sure it gets a bit warmer during heavy use, but probably still well within limits.

Cool, as i said I was just thinking
Maybe I'm a bit paranoid but with one HDD being a Raptor and not being able to monitor their temps......

BTW, what part of the world are you in?

[frostedflakes]

Hey don't worry about it man, I wouldn't have posted in the gallery section if I didn't want input.

And I am in the United States.

[Firetech]

Hey don't worry about it man, I wouldn't have posted in the gallery section if I didn't want input.

And I am in the United States.

No Worries!
Yeah, it's handy to know where someone is when they're quoting temps. I know that ambient here is definitely a lot warmer than it was back in Scotland. I could have put my PC outside there and run it totally passive...

[frostedflakes]

Definitely not cold enough in Kansas to do that year-round (unfortunately)...

And I guess I should have put this in my original post, but room ambient is 21*C.

BTW, Athlon64 X2 3800+ is ordered and on the way.

[frostedflakes]

Update: Installed the X2 3800+, and boy does this thing heat up the computer! Seems to be stable at 1.21V and maxes out around 60*C with both cores loaded 100%. However, GPU temps seemed to have increased about 10*C idle and 5*C load with the CPU loaded, but they are still within limits.

But consider this is basically a worse-case scenario (with both CPUs and GPU loaded). For normal usage and even gaming temps are not much higher than with the 3200+ Venice. All in all I'm pretty happy with the 3800+.

[Firetech]

Great, glad you're happy.

Looking forward to further updates especially on the proposed HDD suspension

[mattthemuppet]

how about a duct to guide the air from the PCI slot over the ZM80 more efficiently?

can't think of anything else that hasn't already been mentioned. On the HDD front, can you remove the 3.5in drive caddy? On my Antec 1650B I removed mine, suspended my HDD and then stuck the caddy to a piece of foam on the floor of the case in front of the intake. By blocking off any other front intakes the exhaust fans pull air in over the HDD, which meant I could ditch my L1A@5V and have the same temps. Now I can only hear the seeks (7200.7 IDE) in the middle of the night when it's really quiet.

That and tidy up the cables a bit

BTW, I can adjust the NB voltage of my Abit NF7S in the BIOS, but as whatever probe lies underneath/ near it doesn't report temps properly (eg. 52C on start up in a cold room?), I've no idea what difference lowering it has made

Just wish I had the cash to make a system like that!

[frostedflakes]

Another update, guess the dual core wasn't responsible for the huge increase in temps. One of the power supply wires had caught in my rear case fan, preventing it from spinning. Now that it's going @ 5V again GPU temps have dropped to where they were originally and CPU temp dropped a good 10*C load.

Firetech: HDD suspension is coming very soon, probably in the next week or two. Will be sure to let you guys know how it works out.

mattthemuppet: Good idea on the ZM80 ducting, will probably give it a shot and see what happens.

[Firetech]

Another update, guess the dual core wasn't responsible for the huge increase in temps. One of the power supply wires had caught in my rear case fan, preventing it from spinning. Now that it's going @ 5V again GPU temps have dropped to where they were originally and CPU temp dropped a good 10*C load.

If I read that correct, the dual core is 10deg cooler than your venice or is it that the dual core is 50deg max on load

PS Lucky you found that stuck fan before it burnt out! Your case temps must have been interesting

PPS for suspension motivation check out this

[frostedflakes]

Sorry for not being clearer, the dual core is now 10*C lower under load, so about 50*C.

And to be honest I'm surprised the fan isn't burnt out, it must've been stuck for at least 6 hours or so. Maybe at lower voltage fans don't burn out as easily? Either way, yeah I'd say I must be pretty lucky.

[mattthemuppet]

see, that's why you need tidier cabling