Need more cooling in the Shuttle...

FormFactorFormFactor At the core of forgotten
edited June 2004 in Hardware
So I bought a SmartFan2 to use as the CPU/Case fan based on some suggestions here.

I never asked what size I need so I just ordered an 80MM one without doing any research. (pretty smart)

The reason is that my shuttle keeps shutting down due to cpu (AXP Barton 2500+) overheating when my house is 75 degrees fahrenheit or warmer.

My GF is NAGGING MY FRIGGIN EAR OFF about the air conditioning bill. I am now haveing trouble ignoring those nags as they have gotten louder.

Do you guys think this fan will surfice in keeping temps low enough that the thing wont shut off anymore?

Comments

  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited May 2004
    I imagine that it should help considerably, especially if you use the included manual speed control so that you can throttle it up to what you actually need for airflow to keep the temps down. Be aware that it's kind of noisy at full tilt though. Another relatively simple mod you can do that will help temps is to cut out that built-in cheesegrater grille on the back of the case and install a regualr fan grille. That cheesegrater grill is incredibly restrictive to airflow, especially with the low air pressure generated with axial flow case fans. They can't buck much backpressure at all without losing most of their airflow and the fan is already trying to move air through the heatpipe.
  • FormFactorFormFactor At the core of forgotten
    edited May 2004
    Thanks for that info muddocktor!

    Thats great advice about the cheesegrater stock fan grill. I never would have thaught of that.

    Much apreciated!
  • madmatmadmat
    edited May 2004
    Just make sure that you hook that SF-2 to a 4-3 converter and run the rpm lead alone to the mobo (if you're worried about rpm monitoring that is) because that fan draws close to .8a at full tilt and would blow out the fan header pretty quickly.
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited May 2004
    Yeah, madmat is right about the power requirements of the SmartFan2. They draw between 9 and 10 watts at full power and will definitely do a number on the fan traces on the mobo.
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited May 2004
    I run mine off the mobo headers all the time... I've never had a problem... :-/
  • madmatmadmat
    edited May 2004
    At full speed???
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited May 2004
    Yeah, at full speed. I'm sure it's possible to blow the traces on some boards with them, but I've run them off MSI, ASUS, and ABIT boards at full speed without a problem...
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited May 2004
    Geeky1 wrote:
    Yeah, at full speed. I'm sure it's possible to blow the traces on some boards with them, but I've run them off MSI, ASUS, and ABIT boards at full speed without a problem...

    That's what I call taking a risk, Geeky. Have you ever had a trace burn before? I have, but luckily I was around when it happened and caught it when the temp alarm went off. I don't trust any of the fan headers any more on the mobo to feed high wattage fans any more. Also, I was lucky in that the burnt fan power trace on that board didn't affect the rpm sensor either.
  • madmatmadmat
    edited June 2004
    I burnt the case fan trace on an ASUS board running 2-4w fans on it, it ran ok for a few days then they just quit turning, like M.D. says though, the rpm monitoring was still ok but I learned a valuable lesson that day, 1 fan only to a header.
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited June 2004
    huh. I may have to do some re-wiring, then... :D
  • teflemingtefleming
    edited June 2004
    Back on Topic

    You may also want to look at getting the SilentX PSU (~$70 from Shuttle) or in the alternative, modding your PSU with a better 40mm fan. You should check out Sudhian for more advice on Shuttle cooling/modding etc.
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited June 2004
    Also, one of the overclockers.com owners did some fan modding on the psu on his shuttle, you might want to check it out also. He mounted an extra fan or something internally on the psu which helped his cooling out. It was an older unit though; maybe the newer psu's in the shuttle boxes have better airflow than the older ones.
  • teflemingtefleming
    edited June 2004
    The original ones had the 200w PSU's. There were two different brands, early ones used Achme (not that bad, my old shuttle had one of these) then they switched to another brand that ran way too hot. That's why they offered a rebate to existing owners on the newer SilentX (250w) PSUs. So, if he's running a 200w it is at best mediocre, at worst awful.

    If he's got an achme, it might be worth modding, but if its not, then I'd just grab the newer PSU.
Sign In or Register to comment.