XP2500 Barton CPU fan replacement reccomendation?

rtt2 · Post by **rtt2** » Fri Jan 30, 2004 7:11 pm

All,

I recently put together a new system, Athlon XP2500 Barton, Asus A7N8X-deluxe, Antec Sonata case, ATI Radeon 9100 AGP card. I'm quite happy with everything except the cpu fan mounted on the stock Barton heatsink: it's really, really whiny, and my bedroom is really, really small.

I know I can get a new heatsink and fan combo that'll be much quieter, but first I'd like to try replacing just the heatsink fan if possible. One problem with the Asus is it's pretty cramped around the CPU--I know some heatsinks require a bit of surgery before they'll fit.

It's a 60mm cpu fan, and I know that it's tough to make a small fan quiet.... but if anyone has any good reccomendations I'd love to hear them. I see that the JMC 6025-12MB TB is "recommended", is that a good one?

Danke!

Ramsey

chylld · Post by **chylld** » Fri Jan 30, 2004 9:37 pm

Welcome to SPCR, rtt2!

if you want to stick with the stock heatsink, perhaps you could buy a 60mm->80mm adapter and mount an 80mm fan such as a panaflo l1a on it.

but, if i were you i'd dish out for a better cpu cooler like the zalman 7000a. I have an asus a7n8x-e deluxe (pretty much same as yours) and the 7000a fits fine.

zuperdee · Post by **zuperdee** » Fri Jan 30, 2004 9:48 pm

Hello,

I have much the same problem with my AMD Athlon XP 2400+ (Thoroughbred) system. I bought it thinking the stock heatsink would be great, cause I'm so used to the relatively decent coolers Intel packages with its CPUs, but boy was I wrong. The stock AMD cooler has got to be one of the LOUDEST ones I've ever heard. The copper base isn't even all that nicely finished.

Personally, I'm thinking about getting a Nexus AXP-3200 cooler. At 331 grams, it is only 31 grams over AMD's 300 gram limit, and it has a 3-prong clip, so I think it ought to be okay even if you're going to a LAN party!! (Someone correct me if I'm mistaken.)

I don't like the Zalman 7000A-AlCu, only because at 445 grams, it is *FAR* over the limit--I'd worry about moving the system with one of those in it.

chylld · Post by **chylld** » Fri Jan 30, 2004 10:24 pm

you needn't be worried about it falling off. keep in mind that the 300 gram limit is based on the use of the socket's prong thingies. the 7000a is mounted via screws to the motherboard, and is MUCH more stable.

fyi my 7000a-cu weighs 773g and it's mounted on my motherboard rock-solid. i can move my computer around no problems.

DanceMan · Post by **DanceMan** » Fri Jan 30, 2004 11:24 pm

I wouldn't replace your 60mm fan with another 60mm. There's not much magic here. To make it quieter you'd have to make it slower. Go for an 80mm and forget the adapter. I did some tests on a 60x60mm heatsink and found that an 80mm fan suspended in free air above the heatsink was only a few degrees higher than the same fan on an adapter. Fan rpm is your choice. I found a standard "M" 80mm (about 2500 rpm) produced temps a little higher than the original 4700rpm 60mm.
A Panaflo "L" at 1900-2000 rpm will increase temps more, and be even quieter.

zuperdee · Post by **zuperdee** » Sat Jan 31, 2004 12:06 am

So the Zalman 7000A-AlCu bolts directly to the motherboard? There might be a problem with the Soyo KT400 motherboard in that case. I bring this up only because I happen to have a Soyo KT600 Dragon Plus motherboard, and although it does have heatsink mounting holes, I'm not sure it has the clearance around the socket for it. (Does anybody else out there know for sure about this?)

I'm also curious as to just what the weight limit would be for a heatsink that bolts through the motherboard. Anyone know?

zuperdee · Post by **zuperdee** » Sat Jan 31, 2004 12:09 am

Oops--my apologies, I was thinking of the wrong post when I replied...

The Asus motherboard may be different.

Also, assuming the CPU isn't seriously overclocked, I believe the AlCu version has nearly the same cooling capacity as the pure Cu, but it weighs a lot less.

chylld · Post by **chylld** » Sat Jan 31, 2004 3:56 am

in terms of real world cooling performance, they're pretty near identical.

if ur gonna get a 7000a, get the alcu. it's prettier

rtt2 · Post by **rtt2** » Sun Feb 01, 2004 11:13 am

All,

Many thanks for the quick replies!

It seems the Zalman 7000A isn't going to work for me--the Asus mobo I have doesn't have the mounting brackets needed to mount such a heavy heatsink.

Using an 80mm man and either getting an adaptor or running it in free-air doesn't sound too bad, but I just though of something else: my room isn't air conditioned, yet where I live in the summer it can get to be 90-95 degrees F (maybe 34 degrees C or so?). I'm not planning on overclocking, yet I wouldn't want such high ambient temps to cause problems.

On the CPU/heatsink track, what's with the Igloo Silent Breeze 462 II? Is this really a quiet unit?

Thanks!

rtt2 · Post by **rtt2** » Sun Feb 01, 2004 11:25 am

just relalized a mistake I made... the mobo DOES have mounting holes for sinks like the Zalman. It's just that the brackets aren't there yet, of course they come with the unit and aren't already on!

I'm going to take another look at the Zalman. The weight is a concern, but this computer isn't going to move much if at all.

What's a good price for the unit here in the US? I see newegg has the Cu for $43, anyone know offhand of a cheaper place?

Thanks.

lm · Post by lm » Sun Feb 01, 2004 2:28 pm

rtt2, i have sonata, asus a7n8x dexlue and 7000a-alcu, it fits just fine and cools my 2800+ easily on lowest speed

wumpus · Post by **wumpus** » Sun Feb 01, 2004 2:37 pm

If you want something quiet that's cheaper, I can recommend the speeze series:

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDe ... 023&depa=1

NINE DOLLARS (!) and fairly quiet, with al/cu core. I use two of these on my dual athlon XP2500+ server and you absolutely cannot beat them for the price. But don't take my word for it, read the newegg user reviews and see for yourself.

The Zalman is a top choice as well, for five times the price.

Michael_qrt · Post by **Michael_qrt** » Sun Feb 01, 2004 7:59 pm

[quote="wumpus"]If you want something quiet that's cheaper, I can recommend the speeze series:
[quote]

I can recommend this HS too. I have a whisper rock IV which is the same HS with a slightly quieter fan and its been great for such a cheap HS. I'd love to see a comparison with this HS and some of the more expensive models out there with the standard SPCR procedures.

Anyway this HS will fit your MB and it'll be as cheap or cheaper than fooling around with the stock HS and give better results. A 9V or so panaflo should be more than adequate with this HS or even lower depending on your case/ambient with a 2500+ at stock speed.

Post by **MikeC** » Sun Feb 01, 2004 8:15 pm

The Arctic Cooling Copper Silent 2 TCis very good for the money & a completely integrated package with thermal (read: auto) fan control adjustment. Fit any standard socket-A or 370 board with the standard lugs, very secure. Weight is within limits.

You really should scan through the HS section.

Gxcad · Post by **Gxcad** » Sun Feb 01, 2004 9:03 pm

both SVC and jab-tech.com have the 7000 alcu for $32 + ~$5 shipping. Jab-tech has better resellerratings but SVC is not far behind. SVC is in CA and jab-tech is in newyork, so take your pick to avoid tax. (For example, I am in CA so I would order from jab-tech.com to avoid tax that SVC would charge me).

-Ken

silvervarg · Post by **silvervarg** » Mon Feb 02, 2004 1:33 am

MikeC:
The Arctic Cooling Copper Silent 2 TC is very good for the money & a completely integrated package with thermal (read: auto) fan control adjustment. Fit any standard socket-A or 370 board with the standard lugs, very secure. Weight is within limits.

The clip of that cooler does not fit socket 370.
The outer lugs on socket 370 are too wide to fit in the clip, so you either have to hack of part of the lugs or modify the clip a bit. Both ways will reduce how firmly the cooler is attached.
Also many socket 370 boards have high capacitors close to the socket that can interfear with the cooler.

It is a great cooler for the low cost, but I would not recommend it for most users that run socket 370.

rtt2 · Post by **rtt2** » Tue Feb 03, 2004 8:01 pm

All,

After digging quite a bit I've decided to get a Speeze Whisperrock IV. It seems to have the best performance for price. If I was into overclocking I'd probably get the Zalman, as iit definitely seems to be a better cooler than the Speeze, but since I'm not I can't really justify the 2x greater price. I just want the durn thing to be quiet.

Much thanks for all the advice and help! I have a feeling that my next project will be quieting the fan in my ATI Radeon 9100 graphics card, as that'll probably be the next loudest thing--but that's another forum.

DanceMan · Post by **DanceMan** » Tue Feb 03, 2004 10:00 pm

rtt2 wrote:my next project will be quieting the fan in my ATI Radeon 9100 graphics card, as that'll probably be the next loudest thing--but that's another forum.

Okay, here's another forum. The link is a how-to on putting a big ol' cpu heatsink on your Radeon. Just forget the fan at the end, or use the 80mm on a Zalman arm mount, and orient the fins for it.
http://discussions.hardwarecentral.com/ ... did=154511

rtt2 · Post by **rtt2** » Wed Feb 04, 2004 6:52 pm

oops, by "other forum" I meant the Cool and Quiet VGA discussion group.

Thanks for the info though!

XP2500 Barton CPU fan replacement reccomendation?

XP2500 Barton CPU fan replacement reccomendation?

How about the Nexus AXP-3200

Mounting

Mounting

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