XP-120 on A8N-SLI Premium

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Sun Aug 21, 2005 4:51 am

I'm wanting to install an XP-120 with 7V Nexus on my new A8N-SLI Premium in P180 case.

Anyone who's done this - how close does it come to the first (Blue) SLI slot?

I'm wanting to install my passively cooled Gigabyte 6600GT there and the rear half of the heatsink (I notice Zalman are making them!) may get in the way.

Alternatively, will I have to go to an XP-90 - and what fan (Nexus 92mm)?

CPU will be 3700+ San Diego to start with.

Thanks for any advice.

Centaur · Post by **Centaur** » Sun Aug 21, 2005 7:47 am

Check this thread near the bottom:
http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewtopic.php?t=24429
Looks like the XP-120 fits with no problem.

Edit: Oops, re-reading that thread doesn't look like it fully answers your questions.

Oliver · Post by **Oliver** » Mon Aug 22, 2005 11:12 am

HenryHonda:

You might want to experiment flipping the xp120 fan so it sucks air off the mobo , rather than blowing it down. www.fan-x.de shows some component temps in the blow down position.

But how that reversed fan interacts with p180 I have no idea. After you try maybe you could post up what you found.

notareal · Post by **notareal** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 4:07 am

HenryHonda wrote: I'm wanting to install an XP-120 with 7V Nexus on my new A8N-SLI Premium in P180 case.

Anyone who's done this - how close does it come to the first (Blue) SLI slot?

Spotted this at the[H]ard|Forum

Close fit!

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 11:57 am

Thanks for the info guys, especially notareal - looks like the XP-120 isn't going to fit when there's a passively cooled graphics card in the first SLI slot!

I guess it's an XP-90 with smaller Nexus - unless someone can suggest a quieter/cooler alternative? (Not sure a Zalman 7700's going to fit either?)

Oliver · Post by **Oliver** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 12:29 pm

www.fan-x.de

Shows temps of other components.
Looks like if you run passive GC then SonicTower with fan at the position near the memory slot (not wedged in between the towers)is the way to go. Apparently at that position the towers create turbulence that bumps off and gets a passive GC that has fins on that side. Look at the picks there.

Of course that SonicTower looks tall unlike the xp-120!

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 1:26 pm

Just had an e-mail from Hank Peng at Thermalright - confirms what ChrisH has already posted in this forum - a new version of the XP-120 with much greater clearance below cooling fins - the SI-120

.

Not available in UK yet - and wondering if the extra height means a reversed fan (sucking up through fins) will no longer work, as rear fan likely to be out of line with HSF?

Has anyone actually got the XP-120 working on this mobo - with the overhanging fins pointing towards the memory modules, as advised by Hank Peng?

cotdt · Post by **cotdt** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:39 pm

or you can go for a XP-90 or XP-90C. for its huge size i don't see any real advantages of XP120, and XP-90C performs better and is quieter at the same time.

teknerd · Post by **teknerd** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 3:13 pm

cotdt wrote:or you can go for a XP-90 or XP-90C. for its huge size i don't see any real advantages of XP120, and XP-90C performs better and is quieter at the same time.

Cotdt, what are you talkig about? First, the noise depends on the fan used, not the heatsink. And for all intensive purposes 92mm and 120mm nexus fans are equally quiet.

2nd, the 90c does not cool as well as the 120. The 90c cools basically the same as the regular xp-90, neither of which cools as well as the xp-120, especially given that the xp-120 uses a larger fan.

cotdt · Post by **cotdt** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 3:23 pm

teknerd wrote:
cotdt wrote:or you can go for a XP-90 or XP-90C. for its huge size i don't see any real advantages of XP120, and XP-90C performs better and is quieter at the same time.
Cotdt, what are you talkig about? First, the noise depends on the fan used, not the heatsink. And for all intensive purposes 92mm and 120mm nexus fans are equally quiet.

2nd, the 90c does not cool as well as the 120. The 90c cools basically the same as the regular xp-90, neither of which cools as well as the xp-120, especially given that the xp-120 uses a larger fan.

Where do you get your data? I'd like to compare results. I've tested this myself. A 800RPM 92mm fan on XP-90C beats a 800RPM 120mm fan on XP-120 by about 2 C. This is based on my motherboard probe and compared with ambient temps. Under the same RPM, the smaller fan is quieter. Under same RPM, the 90C seems to cool better than the 120. systemcooling.com did a similar test between the 90, 90C, and 120 but with faster fans. The 90C beat the 120 which beat the 90 under their test.

qviri · Post by **qviri** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 3:35 pm

800 RPM of one fan isn't necessarily equal in terms of CFM to 800 RPM of another fan.

cotdt · Post by **cotdt** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 4:12 pm

qviri wrote:800 RPM of one fan isn't necessarily equal in terms of CFM to 800 RPM of another fan.

And that's the amazing thing. The XP90C seems to outperform the XP120 at around half the CFM. You guys better check my bold claim, but according to my tests and those of some others it seems to be true.

ozdoc · Post by **ozdoc** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 4:51 pm

Doh! What a noob I am. I'm in the process of a build and have finally received my SLI premium, XP 120 and passive gigabyte graphic.... then found this thread this today.
Two questions:
1. Will a Scythe Ninja fit?, (otherwise XP 90 the go)
2. Anybody in Oz looking for a XP120? It may be going cheap..

bobov · Post by **bobov** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 5:50 pm

ozdoc wrote:Doh! What a noob I am. I'm in the process of a build and have finally received my SLI premium, XP 120 and passive gigabyte graphic.... then found this thread this today.
Two questions:
1. Will a Scythe Ninja fit?, (otherwise XP 90 the go)

Yes, Scythe Ninja does fit in A8N-SLi Premium.

Ackelind · Post by **Ackelind** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 1:53 am

I can confirm that the ninja will fit, and even with a passive GPU heatsink i believe (not the aerocool VM-101 though). It is about an inch of space between the back of the GPU and the Ninja.

ozdoc · Post by **ozdoc** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 6:18 am

I need to retract my previous post. Got home from work and put together the A8N SLI premium MB / XP-120 / Passive gigabyte 6600GT in first blue slot. All fits OK. Feeling much better now.

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 11:39 am

Hi ozdoc, that's fantastic news!

Thought I'd never find anyone who'd actually assembled what I'm building!

This prompts some questions:

1. Which orientation have you installed the XP-120 in? Hank Peng at Thermalright recommended that the overhang was pointing toward the DIMM slots. Looking at the piccys, that means that the heatpipe end would be pointing towards the rear case panel - near the coolpipe radiator.

2. Exactly which Gigabyte model are you using? I've got the GV-NX66T128VP (or at least I will have when I get a replacement for the one that arrived with the rear heatsink panel crooked!).

3. Can you tell me how much clearance you've got between the edge of the XP-120 and the Gigabyte rear heatsink?

4. Which fan are you using/planning to use? I'm now torn between a Nexus@7V or a Papst 4412 F2/GLL...

5. Which memory are you using? The XP-120 is reported to have probs with taller modules e.g. Corsair 3200XLPRO.

Thanks for any help/advice you can give!

ozdoc · Post by **ozdoc** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:17 pm

HenryHonda

I have got the same card - GB GV-NX66T128 VP. Fortunately the passive heat sinks seems to be attached quite nicely.

Heat pipe orientation can go to either over the coolpipe radiator or DIMM end.
It seems a bit tight at the coolpipe radiator end due to a close capacitor, but I havn't got my CPU in yet (still waiting on a Dual Core 4400 and associated second mortgage

). With a bit of elevation from the CPU it would clear the capacitor. About 15mm clearance from the coolpipe radiator.

I've planned for a Nexus @ 7v, as we are very limited for decent alternatives, and the Nexus came with a US acoustipak shipment. The local PC guy wanted to sell me a Vantec. (This is the same guy who talked me into getting a Thermalwrong Noisey Cat for my current system. )

Haven't purchased the memory yet. Thanks for the heads up.

I'll try and get some pics of the assembly on a desk. As I have mentioned, still don't have CPU or memory.

What case will you be using?

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 10:16 pm

Ozdoc

OK, thanks for that...

As stated in first post, the case is the wonderful Antec P180, and I've fitted an Antec Phantom 350 in the PSU tunnel. Will start with stock fans (TriCool) at Low setting and see how I get on.

Have put two Samsung P120 SATAII HDDs in the lower tunnel and removed the upper HDD cage for better airflows.

Just getting a mortgage together here as well

for an A64 3700+ and a matched pair 2 x 1GB of RAM.

Have you actually attached the Thermalright retention module to the board and sat the XP-120 in the exact location?

Maybe I'll wait until you're 100% sure it's going to fit...

Many thanks for your help so far.

ozdoc · Post by **ozdoc** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 10:33 pm

Yes, thermalright retention bracket insitu, and XP120 where it should be (apart from lack of CPU underneath). I have photos but don't know how to attach them! What a noob. Happy to send photos directly to you if you like. Leave email in a PM.

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 1:08 am

Ozdoc

Thanks for the offer of piccys - will take you up on that.

Have PM'd you.

gesundheit · Post by **gesundheit** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 12:11 pm

Building very similar setup here too, so I'll also PM my email and photo request.

"in situ" - ozdoc, you must be a doc, who else would use that term?

ozdoc · Post by **ozdoc** » Sun Aug 28, 2005 4:18 am

OK. Apparently photos are in high demand.

Thanks to all of those who hounded me into posting photos. Apparently not knowing how to just doesn't cut it in this forum...
As mentioned before, I'm still waiting on the CPU (4400 DC) and memory, however photos are with XP 120 where it should be, apart from it eventually being a bit higher by the height of the CPU. Pics are with heat pipes in both possible orientations. Further pics on request if needed.

...

gesundheit · Post by **gesundheit** » Sun Aug 28, 2005 9:13 am

Thanks for the photos, ozdoc! Now I'm wondering about clearance for the first couple RAM slots, with the HS in either orientation. The newer SI-120 sits a little higher and would prob clear the RAM sticks just fine, but then again it's also 140mm x 120mm instead of 110 x 125, so one could have probs with the video card. Hmmm...

On the other hand, the Ninja might clear everything (with it's 110 x 110 base), although it's so honkin big and tall. There's a photo someplace on these forums, must go search.

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Sun Aug 28, 2005 12:07 pm

Ozdoc

Many thanks once again for your sterling work - these piccys are going to save a lot of folks a lot of time worrying about this compatability issue,

Gesundheit - no need for the SI-120 if you're going to put regular DIMMs in the slots. Hank Peng of Thermalright assured me that, if the heatsink is mounted so that the heatpipes are at the coolpipe heat exchanger end, and the overhanging fins are at the DIMM slot end, then any regular DIMMS should be OK. However, there are clearance issues for some taller DIMMs - those with the fancy (but pointless - IMHO!) LED displays for example.

Ozdoc - I guess you already know from scanning these forums that the Nexus fan will need those 'closed' screw tunnels opening up so that the XP-120 clips can click into the lower set of mounting holes. A Dremmel and some care appear to do the trick...

Hope to have some piccys available of my build in the next few weeks.

notareal · Post by **notareal** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 3:37 am

Thanks Ozdoc, these photos do help a lot. Strange how those photos I did found from hardforum did show much tighter fit... but still I am between "hard to find" Ninja and XP-120.

HenryHonda · Post by **HenryHonda** » Tue Aug 30, 2005 9:39 am

Notareal

I understand how the ninja will present fewer lateral space problems - but I worry about it's height above the mobo (sure, the heaviest parts are low down - but if you have to mount a fan then the weight levering on the mobo would concern me).

The XP-120 seems ideal for a H/S fan in sucking mode - i.e. taking air from below the H/S and presenting it level with the rear fan to be efficiently sucked out. But I plan to try both - not sure which arrangement will give optimum cooling of CPU and Coolpipe system.[/i]

DanielR · Post by **DanielR** » Tue Aug 30, 2005 6:47 pm

I am pondering the same setup in a Sonata II case. Which orientation of the HS would you think is better? With the heatpipes towards the NB heat exchanger or towards the ram slots? I will need to tell this to the people assembling it. The cpu + HS assembly is the only thing I let a pro do.

ozdoc · Post by **ozdoc** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 7:58 pm

I finally assembled my computer yesteday. (Asus SLI premium, phantom 350, Athlon 64 DC 4400, 2GB Corsair value, XP-120 with Nexus @ 12v, Gigabyte 6600GT Passive, Raptor 74 GB, Spinpoint 200 GB, - drive cage suspended, Nexus 120mm x2 @7v, in Antec 3000B with acoustipak). All working like a dream. (my old rig was a celeron 400 Mhz!)

I can confirm all fits well and is QUIET. Too quiet actually... Now I can hear some hum coming from the DSL modem and surge protector.
The CPU and XP 120 were easy to put together, and doesn't get in the way of the motherboard screws or fan headers. I have the heatpipe end of the XP 120 facing the memory (on advice from thermalright, and better clearance of capacitors at the other end).
I have found that the CPU is a few degrees cooler with nexus blowing down rather than sucking up. This may be because of the passive 6600 gigabyte vidoe card sitting just below the CPU and XP-120. In suck mode the XP-120 Nexus may be drawing in the hot air. In blow the XP 120 is receiving cool air from the CPU air duct (in a 3000B case). Not sure about the effect in a Sonata II.
So far CPU idle 35 degrees, motherboard 40 degrees (?NF4 effect), ambient temp 28 degrees. Haven't got any load data as yet.
A report and official bragging pics to follow...

Oliver · Post by **Oliver** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 9:41 am

Ozdoc,
1)Is the 40c mobo reading taken with the 7v Nexus mounted on the heatsink blowing down with the airguide extended right up to it?

2)And what is the mobo reading when you take the 7v Nexus and flip it around into the 'suck' position (with and without the airguide present)?

3)Does your powersupply have a fan on its bottom that faces the topside of the motherboard, or is its fan in the back of the powersupply on the side facing the optical drive cages? What size fan is in that powersupply?

Thanks

XP-120 on A8N-SLI Premium

XP-120 on A8N-SLI Premium

Re: XP-120 on A8N-SLI Premium