My Dual Harper - Asus Z7S WS living review *56K warning*

[MrBean]

Currently being shipped to me is the mobo (Z7S), chips (E5430), memory (4x4GB 800Mhz), and a cheap video card.

and

I plan on having a pretty minimal system.

a Bit of a contradiction there?



Nice setup, although I'll rather get a decent PSU if I was in your shoes.....

[jt1]

Minhgi, your setup looks pretty good!

The TR Ultima 90 is looking like a good option now that I see it can fit with the stock NB heatsink. How close are the two heatsinks? A shorter cpu heatsink probably puts less leverage pressure on the board or backplate or whatever its anchored to.

Is there a significant difference in cooling between Ultima 90 versus HR-01-X? HR-05-IFX versus stock NB heatsink?

a Bit of a contradiction there?

Yeh, you have a point there. I guess I'm going budget on anything that doesn't pertain to crunching numbers. I'm trying to build this system for under $2000.

I'll rather get a decent PSU if I was in your shoes.....

What PSU would you recommend? I'm trying to get as many opinions as possible.

[neveroffline]

The big holes are just for cable management (the latest rev. of TJ07 doesn't even have them).

I marked the mounting holes that are needed for the HR-01 X, fairly easy to spot whether a case has them or not (basically 2 rectangles). The TJ07 can take eATX boards, but standard ATX + these mountings will be enough for the Z7S. I just don't know if there are any standard ATX cases featuring these mountings..



You can always take any case you like and modify the tray to fit

You didn't circle the correct standoffs. Just a FYI for jt1.

[neveroffline]

Actually, there is a black piece of plastic with two stamp out retanglar holes. Also it had "forward" and "backward" label on it. Those holes are made to fit the back plates in, which create the alignment for the socket 771 stand off.



Top right of the pic.

I have had gotten the HR-01 setup just like yours, but have to change out for the 90 due to height issue. I also peel off the paper that protect the adhesive on the back plate and stick it to the chassis back tray. The adhesive seem to be industry super glue and holding my heatsinks in place. And also use the bracket which attach to the MB; did not have to use the rubber pieces. Well, the weight of the HS may also come into play.

The things that I used that came with the Z7S:

black plastic alignment piece
backplate
spacer
bracket for the motherboard.

The backplates provided work just fine if your case doesn't have the standoffs. It looks like you mounted just as instructed and in which case you should have no issues. The tape + the backplates on the mb tray is as strong or stronger than the standoffs already screwed into the mb tray. I also am not using the rubber pads.

Seeing as the fans are spinning I don't see any issues for ya. Good luck.

[jt1]

Here's a comparison chart of some TR heatsinks:
L110 x W60 x H159.5 600g TR HR-01-X
L110 x W60 x H159.5 600g TR HR-01 Plus
L110 x W60 x H159.5 525g TR HR-01
L115 x W55 x H139.0 460g TR Ultima-90
L102 x W45 x H147.0 435g TR Ultra 90

What's surprising is that, according to the numbers, Ultima-90 is longer (i.e. stretches more towards NB) than HR-01-X and yet Ultima-90 fits (in minhgi's setup) and HR-01-X doesn't. Maybe the bottom fin of Ultima-90 is higher than that of HR-01-X?

[jcool]

You didn't circle the correct standoffs. Just a FYI for jt1.

Oh yeah sorry, will upload a corrected pic

Oh and the tape didn't hold my HR-01 X... like I said, I tried everything that was supplied with the mobo and it didn't hold for me.

[Jaco]

What PSU would you recommend? I'm trying to get as many opinions as possible.

Pc power & cooling 750watt

Silent , efficient , good price and enough power for 15HDD's.

http://www.pcpower.com/power-supply/...uad-black.html

[jt1]

OK I'm trying to decide between TR HR-01-X and TR Ultima-90.

Their cost is roughly equal so I'm mostly concerned with their features. From what I've read, the HR-01-X seems better at cooling (~3D Cel at load), which makes sense since it's bigger. On the other hand, the Ultima-90 is lighter and shorter, which means it puts less stress on the mobo and tray, especially when the mobo is positioned vertically in a tower or moved around. I plan on buying a case with the proper standoffs, but it still seems that the size of HR-01-X may be a factor.

Jcool, how wide are the fins on the Alpenföhn Ötzi? The specs say the base is 37mm wide but they don't mention the fins, which are usually less wide.

[neveroffline]

Minhgi, your setup looks pretty good!

The TR Ultima 90 is looking like a good option now that I see it can fit with the stock NB heatsink. How close are the two heatsinks? A shorter cpu heatsink probably puts less leverage pressure on the board or backplate or whatever its anchored to.

Is there a significant difference in cooling between Ultima 90 versus HR-01-X? HR-05-IFX versus stock NB heatsink?


Yeh, you have a point there. I guess I'm going budget on anything that doesn't pertain to crunching numbers. I'm trying to build this system for under $2000.


What PSU would you recommend? I'm trying to get as many opinions as possible.

Under 2k? I spent $2750 USD on my build. But it was entire and included a new 24" LCD (which I also had to send back/RMA). lol - all components from newegg.com

As jcool recommended I got the Corsair 620 HX and he wasn't lying, it makes no noise and is enough for the board, cpus, dual 3870's, and 5 drives and all my fans. 5 Days straight now, no hiccups. I want to do a good 2-3 week burn in, so very hesitant to take it down even though I think I need to remount the HS's as the cpus are 5-10c hotter than I like @ 50 and 40c idle/minimal load. Damn those stock intel thermal pads and 20 mounts each on the cpus. I just wanted the bastard to boot after my previous headaches.

I wanna see your price list now, I feel jipped.

[s0lid]

Well i'm making my octacore build under 1k USD :p
Using clovers but any how

[neveroffline]

Well i'm making my octacore build under 1k USD :p
Using clovers but any how

Well like I said, mine was a full build, case, ram, mb, cpus, drives, video, kb, mouse, os, etc.

Board $500 USD, CPUS $500~ USD, looks like close to $1k to me right there.

I don't ever build a system just to retire another, I build them new and complete otherwise it's a waste of a previous investment and I don't like doing that.

[jcool]

How wide are the fins.. well, good question. The Ötzi certainly is fat (thicker than the HR-05 but not quite as wide), but it's not as thick as the bottomplate. 3cm I'd guess, have to go measure tomorrow if you wanna know exactly.

[minhgi]

Actually Jt1,

You will have to modify heatsink that will be closet to CPU 1 or near to the heatsink, just like Jcool setup. Unless you use the HR-05. The width of the HR-01 and 90 is about the same.

Thanks to Jcool posting, I did not have to do much reseach.

[minhgi]

Here's a comparison chart of some TR heatsinks:
L110 x W60 x H159.5 600g TR HR-01-X
L110 x W60 x H159.5 600g TR HR-01 Plus
L110 x W60 x H159.5 525g TR HR-01
L115 x W55 x H139.0 460g TR Ultima-90
L102 x W45 x H147.0 435g TR Ultra 90

What's surprising is that, according to the numbers, Ultima-90 is longer (i.e. stretches more towards NB) than HR-01-X and yet Ultima-90 fits (in minhgi's setup) and HR-01-X doesn't. Maybe the bottom fin of Ultima-90 is higher than that of HR-01-X?

Forgot about the Ultra 120 and Ultra 120 Extreme. I would had have use it these, but I needs hot swap HD.

I wonder how much had you all spend on your system? When I saw Jcool setup, I too tear down my currently built system apart and sold them piece by piece in order to fund enough to build this one. Is that going extreme? =)

[jt1]

Under 2k?

I'm trying to get under $2k, but I haven't bought all the parts yet so I don't know. And I'm re-using a lot of old stuff like keyboard, mouse, dvd drive, monitor, hard drive, etc so our costs aren't really comparable.

Forgot about the Ultra 120 and Ultra 120 Extreme.

I decided against these early on, because they're too heavy and they'll extend over the NB heatsink pretty far. Right now, I'm leaning towards HR-01-X, because Ultima-90 seems less likely to fit (L110mm vs L115mm) with the Noctua NC-U6 NB heatsink.

Thanks to Jcool posting, I did not have to do much reseach.

Yeh, Jcool's posts have been really helpful.

[jcool]

I wonder how much had you all spend on your system? When I saw Jcool setup, I too tear down my currently built system apart and sold them piece by piece in order to fund enough to build this one. Is that going extreme? =)

Wow, true honor for me and my rig
Wait till you see the completed cube, I can guarantuee that if you like the current build, you'll simply love it when it's finished

[minhgi]

Wow, true honor for me and my rig
Wait till you see the completed cube, I can guarantuee that if you like the current build, you'll simply love it when it's finished

Yes it would be a pleasure to see what you have up your sleeve next.

[jt1]

The XIGMATEK PTR-N881 chipset heatsink looks like another interesting option for the NB. But does it fit? The fins are a little off-center from the base.

[milkmandan]

The HR-05 IFX is fine for the NB, attaching a fan will be tough though. You definitely need a slim fan if you populate the 1st ramslot (which you do with 4 sticks), something like 70x10mm or 80x15mm (don't know if the latter existis, but there are slim 70mm fans).

Will these fans work?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835224016
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835226001
they are 80x80x15mm

really hoping these fans are slim enough to allow me to populate the first RAM slot.

[jcool]

Yes, they should fit. But don't fall for the SilenX, they are all about the marketing talk but in reality, they are just plain sucky fans, every single one of them.
Oh and active NB cooling isn't a must should you think that... I'm running my Ötzi passive, no problems at FSB 430 and 30C ambient. Just got to have some case fans...

[minhgi]

Is it a good idea to install a aftermarket HS for the NB? I have the Thermalright HR-05. The base of it is half size smaller than the northbridge. How effective would the cooling be like?

All my parts should be coming in today and hopefully I do not have any more hurdles to jump.

[milkmandan]

Is it a good idea to install a aftermarket HS for the NB? I have the Thermalright HR-05. The base of it is half size smaller than the northbridge. How effective would the cooling be like?

All my parts should be coming in today and hopefully I do not have any more hurdles to jump.

I remember jcool telling me that HR-05 was perfect for the NB.

Or was that the HR-05/IFX?

[jcool]

There is no real difference between the HR-05 and the HR-05 IFX, except that the IFX is made for 80mm instead of 70mm fans (it's a little bigger).
I have the Ötzi on my NB because I too was scared that the base of the HR-05 would be too small for efficient cooling.
But a friend of mine uses it and gets excellent NB temperatures, so it's working all right (the NB chip itself is way smaller than the heatspreader, obviously).

[neveroffline]

I'm just curious what everyones temps are. CoreTemp and Everest are giving me different temps.

For CPU0 I'm getting 39c in Everest Enterprise but 50c in CT. For CPU2 I'm getting 32c in Everest and 40c in CT. The CPU core temps however seem to be similar with 50, 50, 51, 50, and 36, 41,41,39. During a 30 min Prime95 smallFFT test all core's jumped to around 90c+, some over 100c however the heatsinks were still cool to the touch. I've had ZERO issues with stability so far, letting it run crysis in both benchmarks for an hr or so, prime95 for 30, and it hasn't hiccuped in over a week. The only other things I've done to stress it are install VS 05, Office 07 (Blue), and any other app I could find. My medium temps seem to be around 65-75 with over 60%-80use of all cores. Using prime95 scared me a bit though watching them jump over 90c with all cores @ 100%.

I have a P4 3.4 running at 80c pretty much 24/7 for over a year though. Just very curious about all your temps.

[jcool]

90-100C prime? wow that is hot.. You can generally substract 10C from Everest's core readings as it uses the wrong Tjunction for the 45nm CPUs, just like coretemp.
So if it shows 100C you are at around 90 which is already dangerously close to the junction (95C).
I get a max of 78C Everest reading, but only after weeks of continuous crunching and 30C ambient. I wouldn't like it if it went over 70C real...