My updated Solo

[frenchie]

Hi everyone,
I've been playing around with my Solo quite a bit lately, changing heatsinks, fans, ducts... So I figured I'd start a new thead for the updated rig

System specs :
- Antec Solo with Scythe Kama Bay (no fan)
- Enermax Modu82+ 625W with the fan swapped for Noctua NF-P12 @1100rpm (9V)
- Asus P5QD Turbo with HR-05 sli on Northbridge (original one is really bad)
- Intel E7200 @ 3.2GHz with Mini Ninja (no fan)
- Corsair 2x2Go XMS2 DHX
- Gainward 9800GTX+ with HR-03 GT with Nexus 92mm fan @1500rpm (12V)
- Intel X25-M (V2) 80Gb for OS + programs
- Samsung 1To in SQD for storage
- Exhaust fan NF-S12 @900rpm max (9V) temperature controlled
- Input fan Nexus 120mm @1000rmp (12V)
- Major ducts

There are 3 ducts in the system:
- One on the Ninja : to separate the airflow for the exhaust fan and the PSU fan (so they don't fight for air)
- Two for the Nexus 120mm intake fan :
- One for the northbridge : the original NB heatsink got so hot it was impossible to touch (Asus' clever design is not that clever after all...) so I replaced it with an HR-05 I had laying around. That was much better but I figured a bit of airflow wouldn't hurt. Also, this duct helps cool the underside of the GPU (the top of the card).
- One for the GPU : the idea for this duct is to make a separate chamber just for the GPU : some air flows through the RAM/VRM heatsinks, some air is used by the 92mm Nexus to cool the HR-03 GT , and all this warm air is ducted direcly to the outside of the case

Untitled.jpg

Some pics :

General view :

1.jpg

General view without main duct :

3.jpg

Exhaust fan, PSU fan, Minja duct :

2.jpg

Intake fan (through the fins, the HR-05 and HR-03 GT) :

4.jpg

HR-03 GT and GPU exhaust, without duct (PCI slots cut out to facilitate airflow, but ou can still use the screw holes to attach the expansion cards)

7.jpg

Worse temps on full load (with 25°C ambiant), CPUburn x2 and rthdribl :
CPU : 51°C
GPU : 65°C

Usual temps while folding :
CPU : 47°C
GPU : 60°C

A few notes about load temps :
If I remove the main duct, the GPU temp drops 5°C (!) but the exhaust fan ramps up to full speed (900rpm), the PSU warms up, and the CPU temps jumps 6°C.
With all the ducts in place, if I open the door of the Solo, the CPU temp drops 2°C (49°C) and the GPU temp drops 7°C (58°C).

All comments/suggestions/questions are welcome. Enjoy

[Hangfire]

Very nice, well thought out build. I like the deeply inset drive bay fan.

The side-off temps make me wonder about the shroud between the GPU cooler and the PCI slots. Have you tried running without it?

I'm thinking there is just a vortex behind it and the PCI slots are not being well utilized for exhaust.

-HF

[sub]

Ça fait beaucoup de carton !

Hi Frenchie,

Nice setup, very clean !

Don't you think the t° of the gpu is a little high for a card with a 92mm on it


Why not put 92mm in front for a better air intake with a setup like this one:



And How silent is the Samsung 1To in the quiet drive ? I'm thinking to buy two of them for my solo too.

[shleepy]

Very cool setup. I've been wanting to try out some similar cardboard ducting.

A question (out of curiosity, rather than an educated suggestion): How are the temps affected if you remove the vertical "wall" that's leaning on the GPU fan? Although I understand why it's there, I'm wondering if it also has the effect of bouncing back and circling warm air in the bottom/front of the case.

(EDIT: I see that Hangfire actually pointed out the same concern that I did.)

[datapappan]

Very interesting, quite similar to my current setup, where I try to separate air flows for CPU/GPU. (Mine has two separate compartments: upper = ODD bays-CPU/northbridge - PSU w fan; lower = inlet fan in bottom - HDD suspended - GPU w fan).

The idea is to split the heat load from the components equally, and have one 120 fan for each section (I added an 80 fan for the GPU as safety at the moment). Seems to work excellent, will post pics and temps later. Now if only the HDD seek noise could be taken care of...

/d

[frenchie]

Very nice, well thought out build. I like the deeply inset drive bay fan.

Thank you

The side-off temps make me wonder about the shroud between the GPU cooler and the PCI slots. Have you tried running without it?

I'm thinking there is just a vortex behind it and the PCI slots are not being well utilized for exhaust.

-HF

Good point... But this shroud also prevents hot air from the GPU from being recycled by the GPU fan. You are suggesting that I get rid of the gap behind this shroud and the PCI slots, right ? It's a good idea, I'll give that a try when I have a few minutes.
The ideal setup would be to modify the solo even further in the back to fit a slow 120mm fan in the PCI slots !! That would give you a very nice 120mm fan push/pull setup that would cool very well. Right now, there is only room for an 80mm fan and that doesn't help (I tried).
Finally, if some manufacturer came up with a heatsink like the Spitfire but perpendicular to the case (rather than parallel like the spitfire), that would be great. I destroyed an Accelero trying to do that (the heatpipes don't mind the bending, but they totally hate the twisting... ) but I strongly believe this would be a great solution.

[frenchie]

Ça fait beaucoup de carton !

haha Yeah, carboard is your best friend for experimental ducts !!

Nice setup, very clean !

Thank you !

Don't you think the t° of the gpu is a little high for a card with a 92mm on it
Why not put 92mm in front for a better air intake [...]

The 92mm Nexus is a very quiet fan but it doesn't have that much airflow at all. I can't hear it and my temps aren't that high, so I'm leaving it here for now but one day I might just remove it and see how it does. It also helps get the airflowpass through the fins. I'll save that experiment for later.
As for the intake, the 120mm nexus does just that
Now, if I get rid of the 92mm nexus on the GPU heatsink, I could lower the 120mm fan and use it only to cool the GPU (not the northbridge), and fit the 92mm fan as an intake/NB cooler on top of the 120mm fan... Oh God, another experiment...

And How silent is the Samsung 1To in the quiet drive ? I'm thinking to buy two of them for my solo too.

It's a great drive ! I have mine right behind the Kama bay, in the bottom 5.25 bay, sitting on 2 blocks of foam. I've had it in just about any position in the solo I can only hear the drive if I'm within a couple of feet of the computer, and only during spinup. No sound at idle, and barely any sound during seeks (a muffled version of the regular seek sounds). I can never hear this drive when sitting at my desk (about 70 cm from my ears).
In case you haven't see it, there is a thread here about the SQD : viewtopic.php?t=32220

[frenchie]

Very interesting, quite similar to my current setup, where I try to separate air flows for CPU/GPU. (Mine has two separate compartments: upper = ODD bays-CPU/northbridge - PSU w fan; lower = inlet fan in bottom - HDD suspended - GPU w fan).

The idea is to split the heat load from the components equally, and have one 120 fan for each section (I added an 80 fan for the GPU as safety at the moment). Seems to work excellent, will post pics and temps later. Now if only the HDD seek noise could be taken care of...

Can't wait to see your pics, I'm sure there is something interesting to do with separate chambers for GPU !
Depending on your HD, the Scythe Quiet Drive might help a bit with seek noise. Also, I added a layer of acoustic foam on the inside of the door of the Solo. I'm not sure if it really does anything with my current setup, but I had the HDD in this bay for a some time and it kept them (I had two at the time) quiet.
Check out the link I posted in a previous post in this thread about the SQD.

[Hangfire]

Good point... But this shroud also prevents hot air from the GPU from being recycled by the GPU fan. You are suggesting that I get rid of the gap behind this shroud and the PCI slots, right ? It's a good idea, I'll give that a try when I have a few minutes.
The ideal setup would be to modify the solo even further in the back to fit a slow 120mm fan in the PCI slots !! That would give you a very nice 120mm fan push/pull setup that would cool very well. Right now, there is only room for an 80mm fan and that doesn't help (I tried)..

I have a SLK-3000B that used to have a 8800 Ultra, an 80mm fan over the PCI slots was the only thing that cured the heat woes. However that was a a very different case, and had sufficient supply from the front. I have been thinking about replacing it with a 92mm fan (that system has a GTX 275 now) but will probably go to a modern case instead.

Finally, if some manufacturer came up with a heatsink like the Spitfire but perpendicular to the case (rather than parallel like the spitfire), that would be great. I destroyed an Accelero trying to do that (the heatpipes don't mind the bending, but they totally hate the twisting... ) but I strongly believe this would be a great solution.

I think that would be a great product. What might be even better is if someone put a large fan below the PCI slots and left the PCI slots usable. However this would require either a full tower case or a front mount power supply.

-HF

[frenchie]

Been a while....
sooooo, the X-650 caught fire. Flames coming out of the back, loud crackling noises, dimming lights in the house, screaming wife... Somehow the breaker didn't break. Ran to the computer and unplugged it. My wife saw the whole thing, she was in the same room. I just saw the blue smoke and the awful burnt electronics smell. Computer was on, doing nothing, pulling around 100W from the wall when it happened. Not sure what went wrong here... Kind of scary, and lucky we were home. The backups ran last night, at least no data loss (backup is on another machine).
RMA initiated with seasonic. We'll see if I can get the thing to boot when I get the replacement... No other components were hot to the touch so who knows, maybe the PSU didn't destroy the whole thing...

[quest_for_silence]

Sursum corda...

[CA_Steve]

Exciting!

[frenchie]

Something is being shipped back to be from Seasonic !!!!
Not sure what it is... I've gotten NO communication whatsoever from them. They got my PSU on Monday (they are closed on Saturday). Then today I get a shipping notification from FedEx saying a 4lbs package is being shipped to me.

[quest_for_silence]

a 4lbs package is being shipped to me.

BTW, 4lbs look like a bit light for a PSU.

[frenchie]

a 4lbs package is being shipped to me.

BTW, 4lbs look like a bit light for a PSU.

SPCR review lists the weight at 5.82 lbs ... sigh...

[edit] According to the USPS receipt, I RMAed a 5.26lbs package... the 0.5lbs could be weight of was burnt
hopefully, I don't get a brick back...

[quest_for_silence]

the 0.5lbs could be weight of was burnt

I was told 21grams was a soul weight.

[MikeC]

frenchie --

Flames?!! Really? I've been told for years that modern electronics can't burn at all because there's so much flame retardation in them. This is pretty amazing.

Also, pls repost your images to SPCR's server. The problem with external image hosters is that they aren't really reliable long term, and when they don't serve, SPCR loses the images that were essential to the post. I'll double the # of images allowed per post.

[frenchie]

Oh yeah, flames ! I'll post some pics (and refresh the old ones, the system has changed quite a bit... )

I received the (new ?) PSU yesterday : a PSU in a UPS padded envelop, in a larger plain cardboard box filled with packing peanuts, shipped by FedEx. Serial number is different, so I supposed this is a refurb... It looks clean, so no complains. No paperwork at all, not even a packing slip... Saves trees I guess.

I want to mod the case a bit to move the PSU to the front of the case, in it's own separate chamber maybe. Or I might make it a reverse atx Not sure yet.
The problem with having a fanless PSU in the traditional top-mounted position is that you end up with a psu sucking air from the back of the case (the hot air that just came out...). So I want to see if I can tinker with the setup a bit...

[frenchie]

Tested the new PSU today : all is working fine ! everything booted normally
Side note : I just noticed that the sleeving is burnt of 2 of the cables that came with the PSU... No damage to the cable themselves.
Trying to come up with a plan.

[CA_Steve]

The replacement didn't come with cables?

[frenchie]

The replacement didn't come with cables?

Nope, just a PSU in a up padded envelop...

[quest_for_silence]

The replacement didn't come with cables?

Nope, just a PSU in a up padded envelop...

JFYI frenchie: if the USA Seasonic distributor/subsidiary is like the EU one, you may order a brand new replacement set.
Here it costs about 20 bucks plus shipping (and including a brand new cables pouche!).

[CA_Steve]

I'd demand free replacements.

[frenchie]

Some pics of the burned PSU. You can't see much, sorry...

Burn marks :

DSC09219s.jpg

DSC09238s.jpg

DSC09244s.jpg

[frenchie]

the new PSU, in the UPS enveloppe :

DSC09275ss.jpg

[frenchie]

Reverse ATX Solo project in progress
Case is deriveted, new hole need to be drilled (I need a new drill bit...)
Need new feet (taller feet for the external PSU intake)
Will fix the paint scratches on the outside while I'm at it.

[mentawl]

Looking forward to seeing the mod .

I got these taller feet for my Solo 2:

http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/acatalog/info_8955.html

Look good on it

[Lucky Luciano]

I managed to find rubber feet for just 50 cents a piece at an audio equipment store.

[frenchie]

Case is riveted back together, external PSU intake has been cut.
Next, I'll work on the all the minor scratches and I'll be on my way to putting it all back together !

[quest_for_silence]

frenchie, the photos!