FSP Zen & DFI Lanparty NF4 Ultra-D...

indotoonster · Post by **indotoonster** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 12:28 pm

Hi all,

Does anyone have the PSU and motherboard as mentioned in the subject line successfully working together? I'm setting up a new system and the combination simply will not POST. The motherboard works fine with an old Thermaltake Purepower 480w, but we all know what their definition of 'silent' is...

In fact, as I type this, the DFI Lanparty NF4 motherboard is being powered by an even older FSP300-60PNA(PF) PSU... yes, that's an old PSU that isn't ATX2.xx compliant, and uses a 20-pin connector (I'm using a 24-pin adapter). By all accounts the Zen would seem much better suited... so why can't it work? Perhaps I have a faulty unit?

I've searched the forums and found various posts regarding the slightly finnicky nature of the DFI Lanparty NF4 motherboards when it comes to PSUs, but I am still hopeful that I will be able to get mine working with the FSP Zen fanless PSU, as I'm keen on building a silent system.

I know the various folks down at www.dfi-street.com recommend high-end PSUs like the OCZ Modstream 520w, and they claim that native 24-pin 480w is the bare minimum. But to be honest, the posts such as the one found here reek of FUD to me, and if anything makes me even more determined to succeed!

This recent SilentPCReview article on power distribution actually uses a DFI Lanparty NF4 motherboard for its Socket 939 system, and shows it drawing a total of 125W under load. If anything, that article's system is even more power hungry than mine. The recent review of the Zen on this site also indicates it to be a high quality PSU that should have no problem supplying the required power.

Many, many thanks for any input on this!

Cheers,
indotoonster

pcweltz · Post by **pcweltz** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 12:58 pm

Seasonic S12's and older PC Power & Cooling 850SSI's also have issues with this board. If I remember right, all the power supplies with issues are only spec'd for 2 amps or less on the 5v VSB rail. Your Zen is also only rated to 2 Amps @ 5v VSB. All of the power supplies in the "compatible" list are rated at 2.5 to 3 amps on the 5v VSB rail.

stromgald · Post by **stromgald** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:04 pm

The Zen should be fine as long as it gets some airflow through. You can't put it in a completely passive system. If you provided more information about your setup, such as case, CPU cooling, case cooling, motherboard, and CPU, I think people on this forum can come to better conclusions whether the Zen world work. Power-wise its a solid PSU that should be able to handle your system.

Also note this comment from the SPCR review on the Zen:

A more obvious down side to the Zen is the short length and sparse selection of cables. If you are working in a large case and cable management is important to you, you may be frustrated by the conservative cable lengths. On the other hand, a small case may benefit from the shorter cables, as there will be less slack that needs hiding.

stromgald · Post by **stromgald** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:06 pm

Hmm, if pcweltz's comments are correct you might want to reconsider your choice.

indotoonster · Post by **indotoonster** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:09 pm

pcweltz wrote:Seasonic S12's and older PC Power & Cooling 850SSI's also have issues with this board. If I remember right, all the power supplies with issues are only spec'd for 2 amps or less on the 5v VSB rail. Your Zen is also only rated to 2 Amps @ 5v VSB. All of the power supplies in the "compatible" list are rated at 2.5 to 3 amps on the 5v VSB rail.

Hi pcweltz,

Thanks for your reply! Hmm, after I posted my article I came across this issue in another forum, and there may be something to it.

However, my 2 other PSUs which work fine with this motherboard, i.e. the Thermaltake Purepower 480w (with added bling-bling

) and my old warhorse FSP300-60PNA(PF) are also rated for 2.0amps on the 5v VSB rail... both these PSUs are only ATX 1.xx compliant and are not 'native' 24-pins, yet they are the ones that work, whereas the Zen doesn't!

It's really puzzling...

Cheers,
indotoonster

indotoonster · Post by **indotoonster** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 1:16 pm

stromgald wrote:The Zen should be fine as long as it gets some airflow through. You can't put it in a completely passive system. If you provided more information about your setup, such as case, CPU cooling, case cooling, motherboard, and CPU, I think people on this forum can come to better conclusions whether the Zen world work. Power-wise its a solid PSU that should be able to handle your system.

Hi stromgald,

Thanks for your reply. Well, the thing is, I haven't even fitted my components into a case yet, they are all laid out on a huge table, and ambient temperatures up here in Edinburgh shouldn't be a problem

. I plan on running this item in an Antec Plusview 1000 case with 2x Papst 80mm rear exhaust fans, an 80mm Panaflo sidepanel fan blowing in cool air, and an Innovatek watercooling setup for the CPU and chipset with an externally mounted radiator... I trust the Zen would live happily in this environment?

Cheers,
indotoonster

indotoonster · Post by **indotoonster** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 5:47 pm

Just thought I'd post an update on this... after much anguish and soul-searching(!), plus going through this long thread concerning the DFI Lanparty NF4 Ultra-D with Seasonic S12s, I managed to get my board to boot with my FSP Zen by doing the 'press power on button twice' trick... this suggests that the FSP Zen exhibits the same characteristics as the problematic S12s... interesting.

That thread isn't really conclusive, but it does seem that it ties in with pcweltz's comments above about how this board demands more amperage on the +5VSB rails -- more so than the Intel ATX 2.x spec. of 2A.

Oddly enough the other 2 PSUs that I have are rated exactly: 2A.

Anyway, I'm glad I've managed to get it to boot, although I'm worried there are other issues in store for me. Watch this space....

Have to say, though, these Zen's are lovely. The only thing I can hear is the stock CPU fan, and that's going to change when I finally install all this kit into my watercooled machine

cheers,
indotoonster

stromgald · Post by **stromgald** » Thu Nov 17, 2005 6:32 pm

I think I read in a post on these forums that someone else had an issue with the Zen starting up. I think it wasn't drawing enough power on boot up and the Zen would automatically shut down. Since its fanless, I think Fortron did some things to the electronics to protect it from overheating and stuff. You might want to use Speedfan or some other utility to keep an eye on voltages. Make sure they look ok (no more than 5% off?) and you should be fine.

Dragon Puppy · Post by **Dragon Puppy** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 1:48 pm

To bad about zens incompatibility , I was too thinking about buying an zen for my lanparty nf4. I'm still running fine with an old FSP300-60PN(PF) without even an 24pin adaptor

. Its however drawing up to and beyond 200W from the wall in heavy 3D games for the effiency is under 70%. So an zen would cut that by ~35W?

indotoonster · Post by **indotoonster** » Sat Nov 19, 2005 1:19 am

Dragon Puppy wrote:To bad about zens incompatibility , I was too thinking about buying an zen for my lanparty nf4. I'm still running fine with an old FSP300-60PN(PF) without even an 24pin adaptor . Its however drawing up to and beyond 200W from the wall in heavy 3D games for the effiency is under 70%. So an zen would cut that by ~35W?

Hi Dragon Puppy,

FYI, I'm thinking of RMA-ing this PSU -- I don't think it plays well with the Lanparty. I got it to boot when I posted my reply earlier, but it's been very touch and go. Sometimes it powers on, all fans start up, but nothing happens. Other times I hear some very distinctive clicking going on in the PSU. Like you, I've gone back to my old FSP PSU -- it's probably around the same efficiency as well

cheers,
indotoonster