My P150 Exposed

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 9:34 am

Components are:

Motherboard: ASUS A8N-SLI-Premium
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Venice core
Heatsink and Fan: Thermalright SI-120 and Scythe "D" S-Flex 120mm
PSU: Seasonic SL12 600 watt
Harddrive: WD 1600JS SATA2 (160GB)
Video card: Gigabyte 7600 GT Silent Pipe II
Sound card: Montego DLL
Optical drives: Plextor 712A and Plextor 760
Floppy: Alps
Rear case fan: Scythe "D" S-Flex 120mm
Front intake fan: Nexus 92mm with Fanmate at lowest setting
Case: P150

Bobendren · Post by **Bobendren** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 10:33 am

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.

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 12:24 pm

Looks like you managed to whip the oversize fan mounting holes on the exhaust (which you've told me about once or twice). Congrats! Can you give us the details? I'm sure that every other P150 or Solo owner has the same problem.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 6:37 pm

Bobendren wrote: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.

I just installed the OS today and haven't had time to download a utility for the video card temps. What do you suggest?

The BIOS says CPU 31C and MB 36C so that looks good. Both CPU fan and rear case fan are specified at 800 rpm, although BIOS shows 815 rpm for cpu fan.

The fans are silent to me, even at night and I'm in the country where it's so quiet I can tell the mail came by hearing a car go by!

I'll wait until I can find out the video card temps before deciding on those rear vent holes.

The only downer so far is the hdd activity light does not work. I connected the wire to the mb but no hdd activity light.

All I can say is this is absolutely the quietest computer I've ever had. In fact, I could say it is practically silent. It is so quiet that I now hear my TIVO DVR hum

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 6:44 pm

Felger Carbon wrote:Looks like you managed to whip the oversize fan mounting holes on the exhaust (which you've told me about once or twice). Congrats! Can you give us the details? I'm sure that every other P150 or Solo owner has the same problem.

Hi Felger,

I found a way to use the soft rubber things by cutting small sections of a silicon fan gasket to keep the rubber acoustiproduct Ultra-Soft Fan Mounts from slipping through the holes. Works great! And the Scythe "D" S-Flex are superb! Extremely quiet. In fact, everything is practically silent. My only problem so far is the hdd activity light doen't work on the front. The wire is connected to the mb so I am baffled.

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 6:54 pm

JVM wrote: My only problem so far is the hdd activity light doen't work on the front. The wire is connected to the mb so I am baffled.

Betcha your new HDD activity light is blue. Your mobo won't put out enough voltage to drive a blue LED. The power on light, on the other hand, is driven from 12V so it'll work fine. Right? (I got the same problem.)

Putz · Post by **Putz** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 7:18 pm

JVM wrote:My only problem so far is the hdd activity light doen't work on the front. The wire is connected to the mb so I am baffled.

Have you tried reversing the polarity (ie. flipping the connector around)?

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 7:25 pm

Felger Carbon wrote:
JVM wrote: My only problem so far is the hdd activity light doen't work on the front. The wire is connected to the mb so I am baffled.
Betcha your new HDD activity light is blue. Your mobo won't put out enough voltage to drive a blue LED. The power on light, on the other hand, is driven from 12V so it'll work fine. Right? (I got the same problem.)

Yikes! Yes, the light is blue! The power light works but not the activity light. So what if I change the LED to green?

My motherboard is an ASUS A8N-SLI Premium. What's yours?

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 7:28 pm

Putz wrote:
JVM wrote:My only problem so far is the hdd activity light doen't work on the front. The wire is connected to the mb so I am baffled.
Have you tried reversing the polarity (ie. flipping the connector around)?

Haven't tried that and don't know if that would work, meaning I think the connector is keyed to go in only one way -- but I'll give it a shot tomorrow.

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 10:56 pm

JVM wrote:Yikes! Yes, the light is blue! The power light works but not the activity light. So what if I change the LED to green?

My motherboard is an ASUS A8N-SLI Premium. What's yours?

Asus K8S-MX. On my case, the blue LEDs are locked into a proprietary fixture, can't change them. I've gotten used to not having an HDD activity light. On my case the power blue LED was _way_ too bright. I didn't want to have to use suntan lotion to operate my computer, so I used a Sharpie (made famous by T.O.) to smear over the LED itself, and an additional smearing over the optical plastic in the bezel. Now I can tell the computer is on and it doesn't blind me.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 11:12 pm

Felger Carbon wrote:
JVM wrote:Yikes! Yes, the light is blue! The power light works but not the activity light. So what if I change the LED to green?

My motherboard is an ASUS A8N-SLI Premium. What's yours?
Asus K8S-MX. On my case, the blue LEDs are locked into a proprietary fixture, can't change them. I've gotten used to not having an HDD activity light. On my case the power blue LED was _way_ too bright. I didn't want to have to use suntan lotion to operate my computer, so I used a Sharpie (made famous by T.O.) to smear over the LED itself, and an additional smearing over the optical plastic in the bezel. Now I can tell the computer is on and it doesn't blind me.

I think I have the same issue with changing the LED. Do you have a P150?

oldabelincoln · Post by **oldabelincoln** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 2:34 am

Standard P150 blue HDD light works fine on my Asus A8N SLI Premium / P150.

To tame the light, just cover it with a single sheet of paper. I used regular ink jet printer paper (20 lb).

peteamer · Post by **peteamer** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 4:14 am

JVM wrote:It is so quiet that I now hear my TIVO DVR hum

JVM, you've been coming here more than long enough to know that was going to happen

..... can I take a guess at your next project?...

Time for a new siggy to show off your top achievement too...

Nice job Matey.

Pete

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:29 am

peteamer wrote:
JVM wrote:It is so quiet that I now hear my TIVO DVR hum
JVM, you've been coming here more than long enough to know that was going to happen ..... can I take a guess at your next project?...

Time for a new siggy to show off your top achievement too...

Nice job Matey.

Pete

I did find a helpful solution for thr TIVO unit:

I took some leftover acoustipack and attached it to the inside of the rear panel that covers the TV cart (glass doors close the front) -- and that has really helped.

Yes, I do have to change my signature -- I just got the OS installed yesterday. In fact, I am going to make the sig change now so it should show up. Let me know if it's too long, maybe went overboard listing my components

Actually, I left out my Plextor optical drives, but then they are far from silent so no big deal there

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:32 am

oldabelincoln wrote:Standard P150 blue HDD light works fine on my Asus A8N SLI Premium / P150.

To tame the light, just cover it with a single sheet of paper. I used regular ink jet printer paper (20 lb).

I don't have to tame it because it isn't working!

My power light works but the hdd activity light doesn't. Your hdd activity light works?

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 9:16 am

JVM wrote:I think I have the same issue with changing the LED. Do you have a P150?

Ever Case ECE3505. Three of them plus one for spare parts. They're cheap.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 11:24 am

Felger,

I reversed the connection to the motherboard and the hdd activity light now works! Apparently it was a polarity issue. Funny thing is, the activity light is a bit bright at times and I may reverse the connection again

I'll see, I might just use a Sharpie if it becomes a real issue.

Mike_P · Post by **Mike_P** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 12:51 pm

the new 90 series nvidia drivers have temp monitoring enabled (and logging!)

vitaminc · Post by **vitaminc** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 12:56 pm

Question:

You have a 92mm fan at front running at 5V, and a 120mm fan running at back.

So the actual total airflow inside the case will be limited to be 92mm fan at 5v.

My question would be why not just scrap the front air intake to increase the overall airflow?

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 2:13 pm

vitaminc wrote:Question:

You have a 92mm fan at front running at 5V, and a 120mm fan running at back.

So the actual total airflow inside the case will be limited to be 92mm fan at 5v.

My question would be why not just scrap the front air intake to increase the overall airflow?

I haven't downloaded a utility for checking temps yet --I don't think MBM supports my board --but the BIOS says CPU 31C and Chassis/Case I forgot what it says

36C. At this point I am very satisfied, especially seeing my passive 7600 GT temp using rivatuner at 42-44C idling, and that is with a room temperature of 72F. I have yet to play a game, but I can't see that being a problem when idle is low-mid 40'sC.

So, at this point I don't know if the front fan should be removed, especially since I don't hear it

If anything, it's cooling the hdd, and possibly helping to move some air, which may be a good thing.

I guess the bottom line is with the front fan inaudible, why not leave it in? I don't really know if removing the front fan would actually increase the airflow.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 2:13 pm

Mike_P wrote:the new 90 series nvidia drivers have temp monitoring enabled (and logging!)

You mean in the control panel?

Putz · Post by **Putz** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 9:20 pm

JVM wrote:I reversed the connection to the motherboard and the hdd activity light now works! Apparently it was a polarity issue.

You're welcome

nick705 · Post by **nick705** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 12:27 am

vitaminc wrote:Question:

You have a 92mm fan at front running at 5V, and a 120mm fan running at back.

So the actual total airflow inside the case will be limited to be 92mm fan at 5v.

Not really - the 92mm fan won't prevent the 120mm fan drawing in plenty of air through other openings (the other 92mm fan grille, the rectangular grille at the back, the various small openings in the inner front panel). Sure, you'll still be running a degree of negative pressure, but that's pretty much a function of the overall case design.

If the 92mm fan is inaudible, and it provides spot cooling to the hard drive, there's nothing much to be gained by removing it IMO...

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 8:14 am

Putz wrote:
JVM wrote:I reversed the connection to the motherboard and the hdd activity light now works! Apparently it was a polarity issue.
You're welcome

Thanks! Sorry, you were right and I should have taken your suggestion but decided to call Antec.

I called Antec and the support guy there suggested I look at the connection pins on the motherboard to see where the + sign was. I looked and found the + (positive) on the left which was where I had the white (ground) wire connected. So, at that point we knew the connection had to be reversed and I did and it worked. Also, he thought the LED might have burned out from incorrect polarity and would have sent me a new LED even though it was my fault. Now that's what I call good support.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 8:29 am

nick705 wrote:
vitaminc wrote:Question:

You have a 92mm fan at front running at 5V, and a 120mm fan running at back.

So the actual total airflow inside the case will be limited to be 92mm fan at 5v.
Not really - the 92mm fan won't prevent the 120mm fan drawing in plenty of air through other openings (the other 92mm fan grille, the rectangular grille at the back, the various small openings in the inner front panel). Sure, you'll still be running a degree of negative pressure, but that's pretty much a function of the overall case design.

If the 92mm fan is inaudible, and it provides spot cooling to the hard drive, there's nothing much to be gained by removing it IMO...

Yup, that 92mm Nexus is inaudible to my ears -- and it's dead silent around here in the country where I live.

You know, all these years I was always reluctant to use a front fan because it was like more fans equal more noise and a front fan will make more whoosing of air sound from sucking air in. But this Nexus with Fanmate at lowest setting, running around 705 rpm is absolutely silent to my ears.

The only concern I have is Hmonitor (the software utility) reports Mainboard at around 38C while CPU is around 33C idling with room temperature of 72 F So I don't know how good the Mainboard temp is -- this is the first build I've had where the case temp runs higher than the CPU temp.

The temps on my Gigabyte 7600 GT Silent Pipe II have been pleasantly surprising: idles at around 44C and I think that's amazing!

L3thal · Post by **L3thal** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 9:34 am

JVM wrote:Felger,

I reversed the connection to the motherboard and the hdd activity light now works! Apparently it was a polarity issue. Funny thing is, the activity light is a bit bright at times and I may reverse the connection again

I'll see, I might just use a Sharpie if it becomes a real issue.

I've had the blue LED's in my cases before, and although they look cooler than the standard orange or green lights, they can be very bright, especially when your are looking straight at them. I wish more manufacturers would put a frosted lense or something over them like some of the OEM computer and electronic makers do. That way they give off a cool, soft glow, rather than being blinding bright.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 9:45 am

L3thal wrote:
JVM wrote:Felger,

I reversed the connection to the motherboard and the hdd activity light now works! Apparently it was a polarity issue. Funny thing is, the activity light is a bit bright at times and I may reverse the connection again

I'll see, I might just use a Sharpie if it becomes a real issue.
I've had the blue LED's in my cases before, and although they look cooler than the standard orange or green lights, they can be very bright, especially when your are looking straight at them. I wish more manufacturers would put a frosted lense or something over them like some of the OEM computer and electronic makers do. That way they give off a cool, soft glow, rather than being blinding bright.

I absolutely agree! I have a blue light on one of my DVR's but they made it so you can actually dim the light to varying degrees, and even shut it off!

Felger Carbon · Post by **Felger Carbon** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 10:23 am

JVM wrote:The only concern I have is Hmonitor (the software utility) reports Mainboard at around 38C while CPU is around 33C idling with room temperature of 72 F So I don't know how good the Mainboard temp is -- this is the first build I've had where the case temp runs higher than the CPU temp.

The "mainboard temp" is usually the NB chip temperature, as measured by an on-die thermal sensor diode. Not the case (chassis) temperature at all.

JVM · Post by **JVM** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 11:18 am

Felger Carbon wrote:
JVM wrote:The only concern I have is Hmonitor (the software utility) reports Mainboard at around 38C while CPU is around 33C idling with room temperature of 72 F So I don't know how good the Mainboard temp is -- this is the first build I've had where the case temp runs higher than the CPU temp.
The "mainboard temp" is usually the NB chip temperature, as measured by an on-die thermal sensor diode. Not the case (chassis) temperature at all.

What kind of range is considered good for the Mainboard temp?

openwheelformula1 · Post by **openwheelformula1** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 12:01 pm

The "motherboard" temp is usually NOT the northbridge temp. It's usually the sensor chip somewhere away from the northbridge. It's literally the "motherboards" temperature. This is the case for A8N SLI Premium.

So what kind of temp is good for "motherboard"? There is no definitive answer. It varies from board to board, manufacturer to manufacturer. Simply put: lower the better. In the case of A8N SLI Premium, you should direct as much air flow over the mosfet heatsink as possible, and move the hot air out the case. My temp varies from 36 to 54 depending on the weather.