Matthew on 31/5/2016 at 10:20
twisty, I'm in a similar position as you were, with a first-gen i7-2600k but saddled with what I consider to be a problematic motherboard, the Asus P8P67 Pro. The USB3 (passthrough) ports have never worked reliably, and Asus had to recall all boards early on due to other issues.
Part of me would love to upgrade to something a bit less energy-hungry later in the year (seriously, the darn thing pumps out enough heat to make me need a tower fan in the room), maybe with a GTX970; a 980 would be really nice for future VR possibilities but I don't think I can justify almost doubling the price now that I game a lot less.
Nameless Voice on 31/5/2016 at 12:57
One thing that's been bugging me about my setup is that over time, the fans have slowly got louder as they've got more worn out. The computer still isn't excessively loud, but I'm sure it used to be quieter when I first bought it.
I'm actually considering getting a completely fanless CPU cooler next time.
Something like this monster:
Inline Image:
http://i.imgur.com/vmAvBlX.jpgThe GPU is usually too quiet to hear, since it only spins up during heavy gaming, and more recent graphics cards now can turn off the fan completely when not under load. I think it's the CPU fan that makes the most noise in there.
catbarf on 31/5/2016 at 13:18
Quote Posted by Nameless Voice
One thing that's been bugging me about my setup is that over time, the fans have slowly got louder as they've got more worn out. The computer still isn't excessively loud, but I'm sure it used to be quieter when I first bought it.
I'm actually considering getting a completely fanless CPU cooler next time.
Something like this monster:
Inline Image:
http://i.imgur.com/vmAvBlX.jpgThe GPU is usually too quiet to hear, since it only spins up during heavy gaming, and more recent graphics cards now can turn off the fan completely when not under load. I think it's the CPU fan that makes the most noise in there.
If you also have case fans, then don't forget that those make noise too. If you don't, well, that might explain why the CPU fan is going full-tilt. I've never done it myself but it sounds like a water-cooling setup might be beneficial to you, I hear they're pretty much silent in operation.
Nameless Voice on 31/5/2016 at 13:48
The case fans are pretty slow and quiet. No, it's not so much that the CPU fan is running fast, just that it seems to wear out over time and make more noise, probably it's scraping against its casing slightly or something.
Water cooling might be interesting, but somehow having water inside my PC seems scary.
TannisRoot on 31/5/2016 at 14:58
Quote Posted by Abysmal
I game on a MacBook Pro with an Intel Iris Pro connected to an HDTV and it runs pretty much everything I throw at it at 720p
@Abysmal: Do you use a laptop cooler pad? I have a newer MBP and it gets blazing hot playing anything 3D and the fans go full blast.
Renzatic on 31/5/2016 at 15:03
Quote Posted by Nameless Voice
Water cooling might be interesting, but somehow having water inside my PC seems scary.
I used to think the same thing, but with the new(ish) closed loop setups they've got these days, it's not a huge concern anymore. The only way you'll get a leak is if you tear one of the hoses while installing it (which is very difficult to do), or you've got one with a factory defect, which would be immediately noticeable.
After having spent over year with one, I have absolutely no complaints. It's quiet, keeps a decently low average temp, and cools down your CPU from peak load far, far more quickly and efficiently than the old heatsink and fan combo.
Inline Image:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3018396/Temps.jpg...it's so good. :D
scumble on 31/5/2016 at 16:43
Quote Posted by Neb
I got myself one of these, and I found it more annoying than the reviews made it out to be. It has an angled flappy bit inside for cables to pass through between the different sides, but it's flush with some of the sockets on the motherboard, so I had to jam some of the cables in at a bit of an angle that I'm not happy with. Also, that fancy SSD holder doesn't fit my Samsung 2.5-Inch 250 GB 850 EVO, which, as far as I know, is super popular. I just ended up fixing it in like a regular HDD.
I just think it's a bit over-designed. Also, the power button is on the top, and is exactly the right size for my kitty cat to prod when she's bored and wants to find ways to get my attention.
I found the holes around the motherboard tray to be quite conveniently placed. Threaded the motherboard power cable through the bottom and back through by the power connector. I've saved a few quid for now without an SSD so haven't got to trying the little trays out yet. It is fairly quiet and solidly built, and no cats have tried to sit on it yet so the power button hasn't presented problems... But I guess there are so many cases and possible parts you can put in them that there will always be problems somewhere. I don't know what it's like once you go for water cooling and things get more busy inside.
Quote Posted by Abysmal
I am a converted believer in integrated GPUs on mobile hardware, and I think dedicated is on its way out concerning laptops.
Interesting point actually. When I took my laptop apart I could see a design flaw with the copper heat conductor in contact with both the CPU and the GPU - they were actually overheating each other. Maybe the gaming laptops have separated conductors because I can't see it working very well otherwise.
Matthew on 31/5/2016 at 20:23
Oh yes, water cooling with a closed loop (I have a Corsair Hydro, I think) is SO GOOD from a noise point of view.
TannisRoot on 31/5/2016 at 20:30
Quote Posted by scumble
Interesting point actually. When I took my laptop apart I could see a design flaw with the copper heat conductor in contact with both the CPU and the GPU - they were actually overheating each other. Maybe the gaming laptops have separated conductors because I can't see it working very well otherwise.
Interesting. My MBP does have a dedicated GPU along with an Iris pro. Both can be switched between but I felt like it was definitely getting much hotter than reasonable (90C) running something like Torchlight 2 on low.
scumble on 1/6/2016 at 09:58
I've just noticed that I may have made a timing error with the GTX 1070 approaching and looking like it can outrun a Titan X for similar money to the GTX 970 I've just bought! Probably good to give it time though while vendors refine their card designs. At least I've got a pretty good example of a 970...
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