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Test Results - Configuration #1 (HD 4870)
Case with test system installed (HD 4870). |
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System Measurements (HD 4870)
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Active System Fans
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none
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front (center)
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top, rears
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top, rears, front (center)
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top, rears, side
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SPL@1m
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27 dBA
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26 dBA
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25~26 dBA
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27 dBA
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28 dBA
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CPU Temp
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60°C
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55°C
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48°C
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46°C
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46°C
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SB Temp
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57°C
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53°C
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51°C
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49°C
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51°C
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HD Temp
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35°C
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29°C
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33°C
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29°C
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31°C
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GPU Temp
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88°C
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84°C
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87°C
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84°C
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85°C
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GPU Fan
Speed
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2170 RPM
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1680 RPM
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1760 RPM
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1580 RPM
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1760 RPM
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Testing conducting with both CPU + GPU load applied.
CPU fan set to 100% speed, active system fans set to Low or min. speed.
Ambient temperature: 24°C. AC power draw: 330~333W.
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The system with no active system fans ran fairly hot with the GPU fan spinning
at 2170 RPM just to keep the GPU at 88°C. Turning on the center front fan
at its minimum speed resulted in temperature improvements across the board,
4~5°C on average. Once the various component temperatures stabilized, the
overall noise level improved by 1 dB overall because the extra airflow allowed
the HD 4870 stock heatsink to slow by 500 RPM.
A tradeoff resulted when we shut off the front fan and turned
on the top and rear fans set to Low --- the CPU and southbridge ran cooler while
the video card and hard drive ran warmer. This configuration was slightly quieter
as the front fan generates more noise than all three fans at the back combined.
To test the effectiveness of the side fan mount, we installed
a spare TriCool there and tested it against the center front fan. The rear and
top fans were set to Low. The front fan produced better results, both acoustically
and thermally. It generated 1 dBA less noise, and delivered better southbridge,
hard drive and GPU temperatures. The ATI stock cooler, encapsulated in a plastic
housing really has no use for airflow blowing from the side. Perhaps it would
do better with a more open third party heatsink. The front intake, despite being
much further away, had a greater impact.
The system measured 27 dBA@1m at full load with the top, rear, and
front (center) fans on Low. |
The overall acoustics of all the configurations tested could be
described as loud, but with a smooth character. The noise was mostly broadband,
lacking tonality, whining, and vibration-induced effects. It was fairly impressive
for a gaming machine.
Comparisons
The Twelve Hundred's performance was compared with several other cases that were tested with the same components, except for the power supply.
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HD 4870 Configuration Comparison (Load)
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Case
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Silverstone Fortress FT01
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Sonata Elite
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Nine Hundred Two
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Twelve Hundred*
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Active System Fans
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6V (all fans)
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rear @ low
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rear, front @ low
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top, rears @ low
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Noise Level
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25~26 dBA
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25~26 dBA
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27~28 dBA
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25~26 dBA
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CPU Temp
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54°C
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55°C
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49°C
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46°C
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SB Temp
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60°C
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53°C
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50°C
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49°C
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HD Temp
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n/a
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32°C
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31°C
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31°C
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GPU Temp
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82°C
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88°C
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81°C
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85°C
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GPU Fan
Speed
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n/a
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1980 RPM
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1860 RPM
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1760 RPM
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CPU fan set to 100% speed, active fans set to Low
or min. speed.
Ambient temperature: 22°C (results adjusted accordingly).
*Twelve Hundred tested with Antec CP-850, others with Cooler Master Silent
Pro M700W.
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Whether due to the increased case volume, or the Antec
CP-850 power supply, the Twelve Hundred posted a small win over the
Nine Hundred Two in CPU and southbridge
temperatures, and did so with 2 dBA less noise. Our GPU temperature for the
902 was higher, but that result is a bit of an albatross as it was tested on
a day with an unusually high ambient temperature so the stock heatsink ramped
up to compensate. We adjust temperature recordings to simulate the same ambient
temperature and for the most part it works pretty well as typically the adjustment
is only 1-2°C so the GPU fan speed differences are usually minimal. Our
guess is that the GPU temperature difference would likely be nil on a level
playing field.
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