xp-120 on msi k8ngm2-fid ?

[kentc]

hej,
has anyone tried this combination, is it compatible?
thanks, kent..

[Stacey Melissa]

Haven't tried it myself, but I did very easily fit a Zalman 7700 on my K8NGM2-FID. It doesn't even overhang the edge of the board. Plenty of room all around.

Have you looked at the Thermalright SI-120? Surprisingly, it actually performs a bit better than the XP-120, according to the tests by Madshrimps.

[kentc]

Haven't tried it myself, but I did very easily fit a Zalman 7700 on my K8NGM2-FID. It doesn't even overhang the edge of the board. Plenty of room all around.

i'm mostly worried about the dimm-slots, the xp-120 has the heatpipes coming out at a really flat angle so they stick out alot rather close to the mobo. i actually dont know the 7700 though, maybe it does too..?

wrong forum but have you tried underclocking/undervolting the board?

Have you looked at the Thermalright SI-120? Surprisingly, it actually performs a bit better than the XP-120, according to the tests by Madshrimps.

yes i know and the si-120 has overcome the issues with the xp-120 by being taller. unfortunately i'm on a tight height restriction so i really wanna go with the xp-120 first hand, xp-90/c secondly and third si-120. (building my own case so i do have the option to make it wider if neccesary).

why do you say surprisingly?

thanks, kent.

[Stacey Melissa]

i'm mostly worried about the dimm-slots, the xp-120 has the heatpipes coming out at a really flat angle so they stick out alot rather close to the mobo.

Hmmm, hadn't thought of the heatpipes running into the DIMMs. I guess that's worth checking into before purchase.

i actually dont know the 7700 though, maybe it does too..?

I found that it's wise to install RAM prior to installing the 7700. Installing RAM afterwards can be done, but just barely. Once it's in there, though, it has plenty of room. Here's the SPCR review of the 7700.

wrong forum but have you tried underclocking/undervolting the board?

Yeah, just to see if it could be done. It requires a Windows utility like CrystalCPUID to do it, though, since there is no vcore option in BIOS.

unfortunately i'm on a tight height restriction so i really wanna go with the xp-120 first hand, xp-90/c secondly and third si-120. (building my own case so i do have the option to make it wider if neccesary).

A custom case? You know we'll need pics when you're done, right?

If you're height-restricted, the 7700 would be an excellent choice. It's much shorter than the XP-120, and performs within a degree or two. I swapped the fan out of mine for a 120mm Nexus, and it has still enough capacity to cool my X2 4200 that's overclocked to 2475 mhz (it's running stock vcore, though). The mobo also usually keeps it spinning around 600-650 rpm, except during very high loads. I set the SmartFan thing in BIOS to 55C threshold and 2C tolerance.

why do you say surprisingly?

I figured the SI would be less efficient due to lack of traditional direct conduction, and less surface area.

Had I known how much better the SI performs versus the XP, I probably would have bought it instead of the Zalman 7700.

[kentc]

so i figured i'd just ask thermalright, got an answer in just a couple of hours. that's what i call great customer service.
unfortunately the answer cas that the xp-120 does NOT fit the msi k8ngm2-fid motherboard. so i guess i'll just have to go for the xp-90c instead, even though it's some 12mm taller.

pictures of the case? you'll bet, hopefully i'll be so proud of it i'll plaster pictures of it all over! i do have some anxiety though, what if it doesn't turn out as good as i want to...

kent.