NSK4000 (NSK4400 w/o psu). UNDERVOLTING

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 2:47 am

specs:
antec nsk4000
antec neo he 380
abit kn8-sli
amd athlon64 venice e6 3000+ @2.4ghz (8x300, stock v)
kingston hyperx 1gb
xpertvision 7600gs
wd3200ks 320gb
wd3200js 320gb
pioneer 111d

the nsk4000 is one of the new solution cases from antec, its a slk1650 with a different front.
its pretty good, and is very similar to the nsk3300 in terms of the side panels and removable cage.
the reason i got this case is because it was very cheap(half of a solo) and after removing the 3.5 cage there's alot of space to do whatever with the hdds. its also one of the smallest cases that will fit an atx mb.

my old system- super lanboy:

main source of noise was from the hdd and the cpu fan, the sides were left off.

current system -incomplete/temporary:

suspended cpu fan, actually works quite well but hits everything when moving the case- worrying.

main source of noise is from the hdd when the fans are on low.
vibrations are pretty much eliminated through the foam.
i managed to suspend them at one point, but the space is so tight that it's hard to keep it from touching the sides when the panels are on, thus the foam legs.

my attempt in reducing the hdd noise thats coming through the case.
actually worked kind of.

how i insulated the front panel, it actually splits again into 2 more parts.

one of the reasons airflow sucks, i'll butcher it soon.

with all fans on low,
temps with the sides off:

temps with the sides on:

full load temps with sides off:

gpu temps consistently at 45C.

temps compared to before have gone up, although i'm not too sure how much- and it's okay since the temps are acceptable. except for the hdd temps that are up by 10C+, i'll do something about that later.
proper airflow should improve the temps, especially the hdd temps.
noise has gone down, again i'm not too sure how much. inaudible from 1m with the all the panels on and the fans on low. placing the case in that hole helps with the noise quite a bit.
the only moving part thats is directly in contact with the case is the psu, which is a neo he(although there is some foam around there), there are no noticable vibrations across the whole case.

stuff that i'm planning to do soon:
- new hdd system with cooling that will also work as an intake:

made from ply and then put on a big chunk of foam. held together with friction.

-chunkier hs on the cpu

-improve the placement of the cpu fan

-more layers of that blue foam on the panels etc., plus some on the floor of the case.

-new vent and fan for the gpu that will also act as an exhaust.

-installing an exhaust fan, probably an arctic fan 12. should improve airflow.

-clean up the wires.

suggestions? comments? questions?

dexton · Post by **dexton** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 2:12 pm

porkchop wrote:
-chunkier hs on the cpu

-improve the placement of the cpu fan

-more layers of that blue foam on the panels etc., plus some on the floor of the case.

-new vent and fan for the gpu that will also act as an exhaust.

-installing an exhaust fan, probably an arctic fan 12. should improve airflow.

I tried the Arctic Fan 12 in my P180... the Nexus 120mm outperforms it. I think the Arctic is an ADDA fan/motor so the blades are smaller than Nexus.

porkchop wrote: -clean up the wires.

suggestions? comments? questions?

How about cutting up the case for more intake area? I think the key for everything concerning cooling is creating better airflow through the system, without having to increase fan speeds. That way you dont have to install more noise insulation either, since there are no noisy fans.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 3:15 am

yeah.

i'll have a go at the front with a drill after i've made my hdd thingy so i know where the big hole should be.

a nexus costs 2x though(for me anyway), i can't justify that for a small increase in performance. as long as its quiet at 7v, i'm cool (and i don't have to worry about soft mounting it either).

dexton · Post by **dexton** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 1:53 pm

porkchop wrote:yeah.

i'll have a go at the front with a drill after i've made my hdd thingy so i know where the big hole should be.

a nexus costs 2x though(for me anyway), i can't justify that for a small increase in performance. as long as its quiet at 7v, i'm cool (and i don't have to worry about soft mounting it either).

the arctic fan is 1500rpm at 12V though so it might still be too loud at 7V, unless youre talking about this new "12L" version:
http://arctic-cooling.com/fans2.php?idx=101

Bluefront · Post by **Bluefront** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 2:16 pm

Man I sure have to wonder what Antec is thinking about when they put a 120mm fan on the rear, and expect it to get enough intake from the puny set of holes behind the front bezel.

Does that company actually test these cases before they ship the things? Looks like you could easily remove a pound of steel from that area...

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Tue Aug 29, 2006 3:33 am

started working on the hdd thing

but failed

bought a eva foam floor tile- i'll make it out of that.

stratusgd · Post by **stratusgd** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 10:59 am

I'm looking at picking up a 4400 for my next build (a budget gaming rig, nothing fancy). I have a question about the PSU though - where does it pull air through? The front bezel, or the holes on the side of the 'tunnel' inside the case?

If it pulls through the front, I'd just open up one of those 5 1/4" bays and make a simple duct - otherwise, it seems pretty restrictive.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 10:15 pm

nah there is no duct.

it would get it's air the same way as any other case.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 8:32 pm

okay.

here is my system now, it's not exactly complete but i have lost all motivation to continue, so it's going to stay this way for awhile.

fan info:
intake is a 120mm glacialtech 950rpm
cpu is an 120mm antec 1200rpm
gpu is a 92mm glacialtech 1600rpm
all running at 7v, all are inaudible from 0.5m(over the hdds anyway).

changes:
bigger cpu hs

intake fan

done with an angle grinder. the fan is just screwed on.

gpu fan

no duct!! i'm a liar!

hdd thingy

thats a small part of that eva foam floor tile.
its pretty dense so a little vibration is carried through and can be felt on the front of the case. the fan isn't in the best position since the hdds were supposed to be on a thick layer of softer foam(making them higher), but i don't care anymore.

new temps- idle

full load

this is with all the top, font and side panels off.
as you can see, lower temps all round, yay!!!!
i'd like to see the hdds cooler though, i had them in the mid 20s when they were still in my super lanboy.

here's what happened with the temps:

front panel on - hdd's increased 3-4C
side and top panels on - hdd's +1-2C, sys/cpu/nb +4-5C
current gpu temp 40C

adding an exhaust would should improve temps when the panels are on, but again- not motivated.

sound
perhaps a little louder than before since there is a small amount of vibration but i can't tell.
the only thing i can can really do to impove sound levels is to try to get some quieter hdds, i want some wd5000kss, but they're still very expensive and 2.5" drives are out of the question- i need lots of space.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Sun Dec 31, 2006 7:35 am

i'm back.

fan to the front, gives me some much needed space for the hdds.
removing the blue foam proved pretty impossible

, thus the ugly green tape.....hmmmm. -protects my finger though.

did the hdds properly, no more vibes and less fiddly now that the fans outside.
wanna get some L-sata cables soon.

thats an old north bridge hs, reduced temp by 2C even though it has less surface area- probably because of the more widely spaced fins.
push pins didn't fit exact so one corner is held with cable ties and rubber tubing.
resting the fan on foam reduces vibes ALOT.

stuff i'll do soon(when my pc shop reopens):
- gonna get a zalman nbf47 nb hs for the gpu, so i can run it passive like it was supposed to(i've been kicking myself ever since buying a 7600gs that has a FAN).
- Alpine64 for the cpu.
- exhaust fan, my sides are always off but i think theres still alot of dead air so hopefully it will help.

current temps

this is with the fans on max. -plenty of audible whoosh- some whine too, think its from the gpu fan.

its summer now and i live in Australia, its gonna be 40C on thursday

.
reducing the fans to min speed (7v with my controller), will add 5-7C to the cpu and nb, and 2-4C to the hdds.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Mon Jan 29, 2007 4:16 am

cpu fan controlled with speedfan, hdd and gpu fan controlled by the fanmate2.

gpu fan, sits on a plate with foam feet.

another post, another hdd config. this ones more stable and looks better.

gpu temps dropped about 10-15c, floats aroung 62c idle when passive, and jumps to 92c during full load. -hence the fan.

Saribro · Post by **Saribro** » Mon Jan 29, 2007 4:39 am

After seeing that 2nd black pic I have a question:
Can any kind of cabling be routed behind that mobo-tray? From this angle, it seems IDE and drive power cables should be managable but the ATX tube might just be too much. Any comments on that?

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 2:35 am

nah.
there simply aren't any gaps big enough to let you do it(unless you want to dismantle your molex connectors etc.).

the ide cable can be mounted behind the mobo like in any other case.

jeremy · Post by **jeremy** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 6:12 am

porkchop wrote:gpu temps dropped about 10-15c, floats aroung 62c idle when passive, and jumps to 92c during full load. -hence the fan.

92C?! That's quite high! You'd get a much lower temperature if you got a cooler that blows air outside of the case. My GeForce 6800GS with an Arctic Cooling NV Silencer 5 Rev. 3 full loads at 58C according to Everest Ultimate Edition: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=90988

Saribro · Post by **Saribro** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 6:45 am

porkchop wrote:nah.
there simply aren't any gaps big enough to let you do it(unless you want to dismantle your molex connectors etc.).

the ide cable can be mounted behind the mobo like in any other case.

Ah, I see.
Thanks

Rory Buszka · Post by **Rory Buszka** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 1:41 pm

It's good to know that you can take an NSK4000 apart enough to spray-paint it black and use it more like a rack for your components. I've thought of building a test rig, but I hadn't thought of using a disassembled case to do it in.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 6:13 pm

current temps.

gpu 40c idle.
gpu fan @1400rpm.

fairly audible right now.

bringing the cpu fan down to 1000rpm(30% in speedfan) and the other 2 down to 5v(400rpm and 630rpm), renders the fans inaudible over the hdds.

chinna_n · Post by **chinna_n** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:51 am

Hey, nice black paint, nice arrangement for HDD.

I have SLK 1650B, exact same case except for the front Bezel. It's front intake is too restrictive, and no idea why they did not provide any ventilation where you actually install HDDs( HDD Rack).

IMHO having a exhaust fan improve things lot more in this case, and I think having negative pressure in the case aids more cooling than positive pressure.

I have Enermax Exhaust fan running at 1100RPM, and Stock CPU fan only need to run at 1500RPM, and even HDDs are okay with 32-34C on average during idle and 38-39 C during defrag etc. I had to get creative when I added third Segate HDD though. I haged it below original HDD cage with two plastic credit card brackets, which really worked well even for vibration, though my main intention was improving cooling.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 6:56 am

undervolted to 1.1v at stock speed ----i'd love to see how low i can get it but the cpu won't let me.

temps, priming- hence the high cpu fan speed.

looks promising.

i used cnq before but the voltage kept on spiking when i was just watching video. but since i can just leave it at 1.8ghz(instead of 1ghz) at the lowest voltage possible, then its all good.

i have a question though:
does power usage depend on the input voltage, cpu speed or both?
thanks

er...... i'm still priming right now, i reduced the cpu fan to 1000rpm(inaudible) and my core temps only went to 35.
great!

jaganath · Post by **jaganath** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:38 am

does power usage depend on the input voltage, cpu speed or both?

both, but voltage is more important.

MrBean · Post by **MrBean** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 9:24 am

Dynamic power consumption:

Depends on V^2 * F

Where:
F is the switching frequency.
V is the Voltage applied.

So:
Half the frequency -> half power.
Half the voltage -> quarter of the power !

E.g.:
0.90V instead of 1.35V: 50% reduction of dissipated heat !

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 4:12 pm

thanks for the quick replies.

so right now, my cpu is 1.1x1.1x1800=2178
stock is 1.4x1.4x1800=3528
62% nice!
can this be directly converted into watts? say if i knew how much my cpu normally consumed during idle and peak?

i might increase the fsb to 300, and work on that so i can have it at 8x300(2.4ghz, the speed i used to run it at) at stock v when i want. it'll also be interesting to see how high i can get it at 1.1v and whether or not the fsb is effected by the v.

still priming, reached 37C, and keeps hovering between 35-37.
stays about 10C over sys temps.

stopped prime at 15hrs. can't be bothered leaving it any longer.
stable(enough).

NSK4000 (NSK4400 w/o psu). UNDERVOLTING

NSK4000 (NSK4400 w/o psu). UNDERVOLTING

Re: NSK4000 (NSK4400 w/o psu). incomplete project. lots of p