Water-cooling the computer can reduce the temperature of the processor and graphics card by about 10 degrees, which increases their durability. In addition, by reducing the heat, the system is subjected to less stress. It also allows the fan to be unloaded by significantly reducing its speed, and thus achieve a virtually silent system.
Installing water cooling is quite simple. We'll show you how to do it in our step by step guide. The article describes the installation of water cooling using the example of the finished kit Innovatek Premium XXD and the Tower Silverstone TJ06 case. Installation of other systems is carried out in a similar way.
Water cooling plant
You will need tools to successfully install the cooling system. We opted for the extremely handy Victorinox Cyber Tool Nr. 34. In addition to the knife itself, it includes pliers, scissors, a small and medium Phillips screwdriver, as well as a set of nozzles. In addition, prepare wrenches for 13 and 16. They will be required to tighten the connections.
During the refrigeration cycle, the radiator keeps the water temperature stable, typically around 40°C. The heat exchanger is assisted by one or two 12cm fans, which run fairly quietly while still allowing heat to escape from the inside to the outside. When installing the fan, make sure that the arrow on the fan frame points towards the radiator, and also that the power wires converge towards the middle.
It's time to screw the corner pipe connectors to the radiator. For reliability, tighten the union nuts with a 16 wrench. Tighten firmly, but not completely. After that, the radiator is mounted to the body. A single-radiator (that is, with only one fan) can be installed from below, behind the front panel, in the place where regular air supply is provided. In some types of cases, the space behind the processor may also be suitable for this.
Our dual dual radiator requires a little more space, so we place it on the side wall. We recommend only experienced craftsmen to make the necessary nests and holes on their own. If you do not consider yourself one of those, it is best to use a specially designed case for a specific type of cooling. Innovatek offers cooling systems complete with enclosures - even assembled if desired. For our project, we chose the Silverstone TJ06 model with Innovatek prepared sidewall.
Figure A: Position the side wall in front of you on your desktop with the fan openings pointing towards you with narrow sections. After that, place the heatsink on the holes with the fans facing up. The elbows of the hoses must point in the direction that will later be connected to the front of the housing. Now rotate the side wall together with the heatsink and connect the holes made on the body with the threads on the heatsink.
Figure B: Place the two black end caps on top of the fan slots for beauty and secure them with the eight black Torx screws provided.
The standard fan is powered by 12 V. In doing so, it reaches the specified rotational speed and thus the maximum volume. In a water cooling system, part of the heat is absorbed by the radiator cooler, so 12-
volt power supply for a pair of our fans, perhaps, will not be needed. In most cases, 5-7 V is enough - this will make the system almost silent. To do this, connect the power connectors of both fans and connect to the supplied adapter, which will later be connected to the power supply.
Now let's talk about the graphics card, the main source of noise in most computers. We will water-cool the ATI All-in-Wonder X800XL for PCI Express. Similarly, the cooling system is installed on other models of video adapters.
Before you start assembling, two more notes. First, retrofitting the graphics card will void the warranty, so check that all functions of the device are working before installation. And second: a person, when walking on a carpet, is charged with static electricity and discharged when it comes into contact with metal (for example, a door handle).
If you run out of battery on a graphics card, under certain circumstances, it can order a long life. Since you, like most non-professional builders, are unlikely to have an antistatic mat, place the video adapter only on antistatic packaging and periodically discharge by touching the radiator.
Picture A: In order to disconnect the fan from our selected model of the X800 series, it is necessary to unscrew six screws. The two small screws that hold the tension spring in place optimize the cooler's pressure on the GPU, while the other four carry the weight of the cooler. Even after all six screws have been removed, the cooler will still be firmly attached with thermal paste. Disconnect the cooler by gently turning it clockwise and counterclockwise.
Figure B: After you remove the old cooling system, remove any remaining thermal paste from GPU and other microcircuits. If the paste doesn't rub off, you can use some nail polish remover. Naturally, the water cooling system also needs a thermally conductive paste, so you need to apply a new one. Here the basic rule is: the less, the better! A small droplet, distributed in a thin layer over the surface of each part, is enough.
In fact, heat-conducting paste is a rather mediocre conductor of heat. It is designed to fill microscopic surface irregularities, since air conducts heat even worse. You can use an old business card as a mini spatula to apply the paste.
Figure C: After applying the paste, lay the new cooler on a work surface with the connecting tubes on top, and align the holes on the graphics board with the threads on the cooler. The tension spring is replaced by a square plastic plate. To protect the surrounding contacts, stick a foam pad between the PCB and the plate, more precisely, directly to the 3D processor.
The new cooler is held on by three load-bearing screws. Tighten them first, and as when changing a car wheel, first loosen the screws, and then tighten them in turn. This will help avoid distortion. After that, tighten the screws on the plastic plate in the same way.
The greatest amount of heat is most often generated CPU. Therefore, the cooling system, protecting it from overheating, is quite noisy. Replacing an air cooler with a water cooler is quite simple. First, carefully remove the air cooler from the processor. It is also necessary to overcome the resistance of thermal paste with soft rotational movements left and right, otherwise the processor may pop out of the socket. After that, remove all the old thermal paste.
Then unscrew the existing socket frame and replace it with a suitable frame for this type of processor from the water cooling kit. Before installing the cooler, apply a thin layer of thermal paste to the processor. Finally, fix the mounting brackets on both sides of the socket frame and flip the latch.
The pump is a very important part of the system, so it must be put on a pedestal - in the truest sense of the word. To do this, screw four rubber feet into the aluminum board. Rubber is used here to isolate pump vibrations. Place the pump on these feet and secure it with the four supplied washers and nuts. Tighten the nuts with small pliers.
Now it is necessary to equip the pump and compensation tank with connecting pipes. Tighten to secure the connection with a 13 wrench. Finally, connect the expansion tank to the rounded side of the pump. The pump is attached from the inside to the front panel of the housing with the supplied adhesive tape in such a way that the expansion tank “looks” outward (see Fig. 11).
Once the installation of all components inside the housing is completed, they must be connected with hoses. To do this, place an open case in front of you and put a side wall with a radiator in front of it. The hose should go from the compensation tank to the graphics card, from there to the processor, from the processor to the heatsink, and the circle ends with the connection of the heatsink and the pump.
Measure the required length of the hose to be installed and cut it straight. Unscrew the union nut on the connection and bring it to the end of the hose to be put on. After the hose is put on the connection up to the thread, fix it with a union nut. Tighten the nut with a 16 wrench. Now your system should look like it is shown in Figure 11.
As shown in our picture, connect the pump to the hard drive power connector. Nothing else should be connected to the power supply at this stage. Now we are preparing the pump for filling with water. Other components must not be connected without water in the cooling system, otherwise they risk instantaneous overheating.
Since the power supplies do not work without being connected to the motherboard, the included jumper must be used. The black wire is used to “deceive” the power supply of the motherboard. Thus, after turning on the toggle switch, the pump will start to work. If you don't have a jumper on hand, short the green and nearby black power supply wires (pins 17 and 18).
After the pump is started, it can be filled. To do this, use the supplied liquid from the kit. At Innovatec, it is distilled water with special chemical additives that keep the water fresh almost indefinitely.
In extreme cases, you can use ordinary distilled water, but then you will have to change it approximately every two years. Attention: never use tap water! It contains a large amount of bacteria that will instantly colonize your system and significantly reduce the cooling effect.
Fill the expansion tank with liquid up to the bottom of the thread and wait for the pump to pump out the water. Continue the filling procedure until the system stops bubbling.
Check the tightness of the connections. If a drop forms on any of them, this most likely means that the union nut is not tightened well. If the system is filled with a sufficient amount of water, but the bubbling continues, the following trick will help: take the side wall of the case with the radiator with both hands and shake it as if it were a frying pan on which you want to distribute hot oil. If, after 15 minutes of operation, all connections are dry and there are no extraneous sounds, close the expansion tank.
Now you can remove the jumper from the power supply and start connecting the computer components. Some skill will require the installation of a side wall with a radiator. The gaps here are very small and even a slightly misplaced hose connection can get in the way. In this case, you just need to turn the connection in the right direction. Also, when closing the case, pay special attention to the hoses so that none of them are kinked or crushed.
In addition to processors and graphics cards, the chipset and high-speed hard disk can also be water-cooled. We do not recommend cooling the power supply with water. None of them are reliable enough for this - water does not belong there. If you want to reduce the noise of the power supply, you can install a PSU with passive cooling in your computer.
In an aqueous system, fluorescent additives should be avoided: they are suspected to cause corrosion of the metal. If you don't even like slow-spinning fans, again only a passive heatsink will help. It can be placed either on a stand next to the case, or, if you have the appropriate skills, attached to the outside of the case.
This material is inspired by the impressions of working on a previous article, the hero of which was a silent HTPC in a heatsink package. I really wanted to use AMD A10-5800K in it. A handy thing that combines enough powerful processor and graphics core. But there is one difficulty - its typical heat dissipation is 100 watts. At first glance, this is not so much, but the critical temperature of the CPU is 70 degrees. It turns out an interesting equation in which there is a low temperature and a decent heat release. Not an easy task.
Naturally, like every reasonable person, I initially decided to take the path of least resistance - to buy a serial cooler that could cope with the task of removing 100 W of heat from the processor.
Cooler Options
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There is a fairly extensive list of cooling systems that can operate without fans and dissipate from 65 to 130 watts. Of course, the list is not the most complete.The first two, one might say, are veterans, the rest are much younger. Of the entire list, I had the first three, and I decided to try them out in the "passive", starting with Scythe Ninja.
Naturally, without a fan, since there was little hope for him. In his technical specifications it is indicated that it is capable of discharging 65 watts in the “passive”. And I put it on a hundred-watt processor.
In testing, we used the board manufactured by MSI FM2-A85XA-G65. When enabled, monitoring in the BIOS shows 32 degrees, then the temperature starts to rise by about 1 degree per minute and very soon goes off scale for 73 degrees. Then I turned it off.
Often used to build a large radiator heat pipes (English: heat pipes) hermetically sealed and specially arranged metal tubes (usually copper). They transfer heat very efficiently from one end to the other: thus, even the farthest fins of a large heatsink work effectively in cooling. So, for example, the popular cooler is arranged
To cool modern high-performance GPUs, the same methods are used: large radiators, copper core cooling systems or all-copper radiators, heat pipes to transfer heat to additional radiators:
Recommendations for choosing here are the same: use slow and large-sized fans, the largest possible heatsinks. So, for example, popular cooling systems for video cards and Zalman VF900 look like:
Usually, the fans of video card cooling systems only mixed the air inside system block, which is not very efficient in terms of cooling the entire computer. Only very recently, cooling systems have been used to cool video cards that carry hot air outside the case: the first steels and a similar design from the brand:
Similar cooling systems are installed on the most powerful modern video cards ( nVidia GeForce 8800, ATI x1800XT and older). Such a design is often more justified, in terms of the proper organization of air flows inside the computer case, than traditional schemes. Air flow organization
Modern standards for the design of computer cases, among other things, regulate the way the cooling system is built. Starting with, the release of which was launched in 1997, the computer cooling technology is being introduced with a through air flow directed from the front wall of the case to the back (additionally, air for cooling is sucked in through the left wall):
Those interested in the details are referred to the latest versions of the ATX standard.
At least one fan is installed in the computer's power supply (many modern models have two fans, which can significantly reduce the rotation speed of each of them, and, therefore, the noise during operation). Additional fans can be installed anywhere inside the computer case to increase airflow. Be sure to follow the rule: on the front and left side walls, air is blown into the case, on the back wall, hot air is thrown out. You also need to make sure that the flow of hot air from the rear wall of the computer does not fall directly into the air intake on the left wall of the computer (this happens at certain positions of the system unit relative to the walls of the room and furniture). Which fans to install depends primarily on the availability of appropriate mounts in the walls of the case. Fan noise is mainly determined by fan speed (see section ), so slow (quiet) fan models are recommended. With equal installation dimensions and rotational speed, the fans on the rear wall of the case are subjectively noisier than the front ones: firstly, they are farther from the user, and secondly, there are almost transparent grilles at the back of the case, while various decorative elements are located at the front. Often noise is created due to air flow around the elements of the front panel: if the amount of air flow transferred exceeds a certain limit, eddy turbulent flows form on the front panel of the computer case, which create a characteristic noise (it resembles the hiss of a vacuum cleaner, but much quieter).
Choosing a computer case
Almost the vast majority of computer cases on the market today comply with one of the versions of the ATX standard, including in terms of cooling. The cheapest cases are not equipped with either a power supply or additional devices. More expensive cases are equipped with fans to cool the case, less often - adapters for connecting fans in various ways; sometimes even a special controller equipped with thermal sensors, which allows you to smoothly adjust the rotation speed of one or more fans depending on the temperature of the main components (see for example). The power supply is not always included in the kit: many buyers prefer to choose a PSU on their own. Of the other options for additional equipment, it is worth noting the special fastenings of the side walls, hard drives, optical drives, expansion cards that allow you to assemble a computer without a screwdriver; dust filters that prevent dirt from entering the computer through ventilation holes; various nozzles for directing air flows inside the case. Exploring the fan
Used to transport air in cooling systems fans(English: fan).
Fan device
The fan consists of a housing (usually in the form of a frame), an electric motor and an impeller mounted with bearings on the same axis as the motor:
The reliability of the fan depends on the type of bearings installed. Manufacturers claim the following typical MTBF (number of years based on 24/7 operation):
Taking into account obsolescence computer technology(for home and office use it is 2-3 years), fans with ball bearings can be considered "eternal": their life is not less than the typical life of a computer. For more serious applications, where the computer must work around the clock for many years, it is worth choosing more reliable fans.
Many have come across old fans in which the plain bearings have worn out their life: the impeller shaft rattles and vibrates during operation, making a characteristic growling sound. In principle, such a bearing can be repaired by lubricating it with solid lubricant - but how many will agree to repair a fan that costs only a couple of dollars?
Fan specifications
Fans vary in size and thickness: commonly found in computers are 40x40x10mm for cooling graphics cards and hard drive pockets, as well as 80x80x25, 92x92x25, 120x120x25mm for case cooling. Also, fans differ in the type and design of the installed electric motors: they consume different current and provide different impeller rotation speeds. The performance depends on the size of the fan and the speed of rotation of the impeller blades: the generated static pressure and maximum volume carried air.
The volume of air carried by a fan (flow rate) is measured in cubic meters per minute or cubic feet per minute (CFM). The performance of the fan, indicated in the characteristics, is measured at zero pressure: the fan operates in an open space. Inside the computer case, the fan blows into the system unit of a certain size, so it creates excess pressure in the serviced volume. Naturally, the volumetric efficiency will be approximately inversely proportional to the pressure generated. specific kind flow characteristic depends on the shape of the used impeller and other parameters specific model. For example, the corresponding graph for a fan is:
The simple conclusion from this follows: the more intensively the fans in the back of the computer case work, the more air can be pumped through the entire system, and the cooling will be more effective.
Fan noise level
The noise level created by the fan during operation depends on its various characteristics (more details about the reasons for its occurrence can be found in the article). It is easy to establish the relationship between performance and fan noise. On the website of a major manufacturer of popular cooling systems, we see that many fans of the same size are equipped with different electric motors that are designed for different rotation speeds. Since the same impeller is used, we obtain the data of interest to us: the characteristics of the same fan at different speeds rotation. We compile a table for the three most common sizes: thickness 25 mm, and.
Bold font indicates the most popular types of fans.
Having calculated the coefficient of proportionality of the air flow and the noise level to the speed, we see an almost complete match. To clear our conscience, we consider deviations from the average: less than 5%. Thus, we got three linear dependencies, 5 points each. Not God knows what kind of statistics, but this is enough for a linear dependence: we consider the hypothesis confirmed.
The volumetric efficiency of the fan is proportional to the number of revolutions of the impeller, the same is true for the noise level.
Using the resulting hypothesis, we can extrapolate the results obtained by the least squares method (LSM): in the table, these values are highlighted italic font. However, it must be remembered that the scope of this model is limited. The investigated dependence is linear in a certain range of rotation speeds; it is logical to assume that the linear nature of the dependence will remain in some neighborhood of this range; but at very high and very low speeds, the picture can change significantly.
Now consider the line of fans from another manufacturer:, and. Let's create a similar table:
Calculated data are marked in italics.
As mentioned above, at fan speeds that differ significantly from those studied, the linear model may be incorrect. The values obtained by extrapolation should be understood as a rough estimate.
Let's pay attention to two circumstances. Firstly, GlacialTech fans are slower, and secondly, they are more efficient. Obviously, this is the result of using an impeller with a more complex blade shape: even at the same speed, the GlacialTech fan carries more air than the Titan: see graph growth. BUT the noise level at the same speed is approximately equal to: the proportion is observed even for fans of different manufacturers with different impeller shapes.
It should be understood that the real noise characteristics of a fan depend on its technical design, the pressure generated, the volume of air pumped, on the type and shape of obstacles in the way of air flows; that is, on the type of computer case. Due to the wide variety of cases used, it is not possible to directly apply the quantitative characteristics of the fans measured under ideal conditions they can only be compared with each other for different models fans.
Price categories of fans
Consider the cost factor. For example, let's take and in the same online store: the results are entered in the tables above (fans with two ball bearings were considered). As you can see, the fans of these two manufacturers belong to two different classes: GlacialTech operate at lower speeds, so they make less noise; at the same speed they are more efficient than Titan - but they are always more expensive by a dollar or two. If you need to build the least noisy cooling system (for example, for a home computer), you will have to fork out for more expensive fans with complex blade shapes. In the absence of such strict requirements or with a limited budget (for example, for an office computer), simpler fans will do just fine. different type The impeller suspension used in fans (for more details, see section ) also affects the cost: the fan is more expensive, the more complex bearings are used.
The connector key is beveled corners on one side. The wires are connected as follows: two central ones - "ground", common contact (black wire); +5 V - red, +12 V - yellow. To power the fan through the molex connector, only two wires are used, usually black ("ground") and red (supply voltage). Connecting them to different contacts connector, you can get a different fan speed. A standard voltage of 12V will run the fan at normal speed, a voltage of 5-7V provides about half the rotation speed. It is preferable to use a higher voltage, since not every electric motor is able to reliably start at too low a supply voltage.
As experience shows, fan speed when connected to +5 V, +6 V and +7 V is approximately the same(with an accuracy of 10%, which is comparable to the accuracy of measurements: the rotation speed is constantly changing and depends on many factors, such as air temperature, the slightest draft in the room, etc.)
I remind you that the manufacturer guarantees stable work their devices only when using the standard supply voltage. But, as practice shows, the vast majority of fans start up perfectly even at low voltage.
The contacts are fixed in the plastic part of the connector with a pair of folding metal "antennae". It is not difficult to remove the contact by pressing down the protruding parts with a thin awl or a small screwdriver. After that, the "antennae" must again be unbent to the sides, and insert the contact into the corresponding socket of the plastic part of the connector:
Sometimes coolers and fans are equipped with two connectors: a molex connected in parallel and a three- (or four-) pin. In this case you need to connect power only through one of them:
In some cases, not one molex connector is used, but a pair of "mom-dad": this way you can connect the fan to the same wire from the power supply that powers the hard drive or optical drive. If you rearrange the pins in the connector to get the fan non-standard voltage, pay special attention to rearrange the pins in the second connector in exactly the same order. Failure to do so will result in the wrong voltage being supplied to the hard drive or optical drive, which will most likely result in their immediate failure.
In three-pin connectors, the installation key is a pair of protruding guides on one side:
The mating part is located on the contact pad; when connected, it enters between the guides, also acting as a retainer. The corresponding fan power connectors are located on the motherboard (usually several pieces per different places board) or on the board of a special controller that controls the fans:
In addition to ground (black wire) and +12 V (usually red, less often: yellow), there is also a tachometric contact: it is used to control the fan speed (white, blue, yellow or green wire). If you do not need the ability to control the fan speed, then this contact can be omitted. If the fan is powered separately (for example, via a molex connector), it is permissible to connect only the speed control contact and a common wire using a three-pin connector - this scheme is often used to monitor the fan speed of the power supply, which is powered and controlled by the internal circuits of the PSU.
Four-pin connectors have appeared relatively recently on motherboards with processor sockets LGA 775 and socket AM2. They differ in the presence of an additional fourth contact, while being fully mechanically and electrically compatible with three-pin connectors:
Two identical fans with three-pin connectors can be connected in series to one power connector. Thus, each of the electric motors will have 6 V of supply voltage, both fans will rotate at half speed. For such a connection, it is convenient to use fan power connectors: the contacts can be easily removed from the plastic case by pressing the fixing “tab” with a screwdriver. The connection diagram is shown in the figure below. One of the connectors connects to the motherboard as usual: it will provide power to both fans. In the second connector, using a piece of wire, you need to short-circuit two contacts, and then insulate it with tape or electrical tape:
It is strongly not recommended to connect two different electric motors in this way.: due to the inequality of electrical characteristics in various operating modes (startup, acceleration, stable rotation), one of the fans may not start at all (which is fraught with failure of the electric motor) or require an excessively high current to start (it is fraught with failure of the control circuits).
Often, fixed or variable resistors connected in series in the power circuit are used to limit the fan speed. By changing the resistance of the variable resistor, you can adjust the rotation speed: this is how many manual fan speed controllers are arranged. When designing such a circuit, it must be remembered that, firstly, the resistors heat up, dissipating part of the electrical power in the form of heat - this does not contribute to more efficient cooling; secondly, the electrical characteristics of the electric motor in various operating modes (starting, acceleration, stable rotation) are not the same, the resistor parameters must be selected taking into account all these modes. To select the parameters of the resistor, it is enough to know Ohm's law; you need to use resistors designed for a current no less than the electric motor consumes. However, I personally do not welcome manual control of cooling, as I believe that a computer is quite a suitable device to control the cooling system automatically, without user intervention.
Fan monitoring and control
Most modern motherboards allow you to control the speed of fans connected to some three- or four-pin connectors. Moreover, some of the connectors support program control the speed of the connected fan. Not all connectors on the board provide such capabilities: for example, the popular Asus A8N-E board has five connectors for powering fans, only three of them support rotation speed control (CPU, CHIP, CHA1), and only one fan speed control (CPU); Asus P5B motherboard has four connectors, all four support rotation speed control, rotation speed control has two channels: CPU, CASE1 / 2 (the speed of two case fans changes synchronously). The number of connectors with the ability to control or control the speed of rotation does not depend on the chipset or southbridge used, but on the specific model of the motherboard: models from different manufacturers may differ in this regard. Often, motherboard designers deliberately deprive cheaper models of fan speed control capabilities. For example, the Asus P4P800 SE motherboard for Intel Pentiun 4 processors is able to regulate the speed of the processor cooler, while its cheaper version Asus P4P800-X is not. In such a case, you can use special devices, which are able to control the speed of several fans (and usually provide for the connection of a number of temperature sensors) - there are more and more of them on the market today.
Fan speeds can be controlled by BIOS help Setup. As a rule, if the motherboard supports changing the fan speed, here in the BIOS Setup you can configure the parameters of the speed control algorithm. The set of parameters is different for different motherboards; usually the algorithm uses the readings of thermal sensors built into the processor and motherboard. There are a number of programs for various operating systems that allow you to control and adjust the speed of fans, as well as monitor the temperature of various components inside the computer. Manufacturers of some motherboards bundle their products with proprietary programs for Windows: Asus PC Probe, MSI CoreCenter, Abit µGuru, Gigabyte EasyTune, Foxconn SuperStep, etc. Several universal programs, among them: (shareware, $20-30), (distributed free of charge, not updated since 2004). The most popular program of this class - :
These programs allow you to monitor a range of temperature sensors that are installed in modern processors, motherboards, video cards and hard drives. The program also monitors the rotation speed of fans that are connected to motherboard connectors with appropriate support. Finally, the program is able to automatically adjust the fan speed depending on the temperature of the observed objects (if the motherboard manufacturer has implemented hardware support for this feature). In the figure above, the program is configured to control only the processor fan: at a low CPU temperature (36 ° C), it rotates at a speed of about 1000 rpm, which is 35% of maximum speed(2800 rpm). Setting up such programs comes down to three steps:
- determining which of the channels of the motherboard controller are connected to fans, and which of them can be controlled by software;
- specifying which temperatures should affect the speed of the various fans;
- setting temperature thresholds for each temperature sensor and operating speed range for fans.
Many programs for testing and fine-tuning computers also have monitoring capabilities:, etc.
Many modern video cards also allow you to adjust the speed of the cooling fan depending on the temperature of the GPU. With help special programs you can even change the settings of the cooling mechanism, reducing the noise level from the video card in the absence of load. This is how the optimal settings for the HIS X800GTO IceQ II video card look in the program:
Passive coolingPassive cooling systems are called those that do not contain fans. Passive cooling can be content individual components computer, provided that their heatsinks are placed in a sufficient airflow created by "foreign" fans: for example, a chipset chip is often cooled by a large heatsink located near the installation site of the processor cooler. Passive cooling systems for video cards are also popular, for example:
Obviously, the more heat sinks one fan has to blow through, the more flow resistance it needs to overcome; thus, with an increase in the number of radiators, it is often necessary to increase the speed of rotation of the impeller. It is more efficient to use a lot of low-speed large-diameter fans, and passive cooling systems are preferably avoided. Despite the fact that passive heatsinks for processors, video cards with passive cooling, even power supplies without fans (FSP Zen) are produced, trying to build a computer without fans at all from all these components will certainly lead to constant overheating. Because a modern high-performance computer dissipates too much heat to be cooled only by passive systems. Due to the low thermal conductivity of air, it is difficult to organize effective passive cooling for the entire computer, except to turn the entire computer case into a radiator, as is done in:
Compare the case-radiator in the photo with the case of a conventional computer!Perhaps, completely passive cooling will be enough for low-power specialized computers (for Internet access, for listening to music and watching videos, etc.)
In the old days, when the power consumption of processors had not yet reached critical values - a small radiator was enough to cool them - the question "what will the computer do when nothing needs to be done?" was solved simply: until you need to execute user commands or running programs, the OS gives the processor a NOP instruction (No OPeration, no operation). This command causes the processor to perform a meaningless, ineffectual operation, the result of which is ignored. This takes not only time, but also electricity, which, in turn, is converted into heat. A typical home or office computer, in the absence of resource-intensive tasks, is usually only 10% loaded - anyone can verify this by running the Manager Windows tasks and watching the CPU (Central Processing Unit) Load History. Thus, with the old approach, about 90% of the processor time flew to the wind: the CPU was busy executing commands that no one needed. Newer operating systems (Windows 2000 and later) act more sensibly in a similar situation: using the HLT (Halt, stop) command, the processor is completely stopped for a short time - this obviously allows you to reduce power consumption and processor temperature in the absence of resource-intensive tasks.
Experienced computer scientists can recall whole line programs for "software processor cooling": when running under Windows 95/98/ME, they stopped the processor using HLT, instead of repeating meaningless NOPs, which lowered the temperature of the processor in the absence of computing tasks. Accordingly, the use of such programs under Windows 2000 and newer operating systems is meaningless.
Modern processors consume so much energy (which means: they dissipate it in the form of heat, that is, they heat up) that the developers have created additional technical measures to combat possible overheating, as well as tools that increase the efficiency of saving mechanisms when the computer is idle.
CPU thermal protection
To protect the processor from overheating and failure, the so-called thermal throttling is used (usually not translated: throttling). The essence of this mechanism is simple: if the processor temperature exceeds the allowable one, the processor is forcibly stopped by the HLT command so that the crystal has a chance to cool down. In early implementations of this mechanism, through BIOS Setup, it was possible to configure how much time the processor would be idle (CPU Throttling Duty Cycle: xx%); new implementations "slow down" the processor automatically until the temperature of the crystal drops to acceptable level. Of course, the user is interested in the fact that the processor does not cool down (literally!), but performs useful work for this you need to use enough effective system cooling. You can check if the processor thermal protection mechanism (throttling) is enabled using special utilities, for example :
Minimization of energy consumption
Almost all modern processors support special technologies to reduce energy consumption (and, accordingly, heating). Various manufacturers these technologies are called differently, for example: Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology (EIST), AMD Cool'n'Quiet (CnQ, C&Q) - but they work, in fact, the same way. When the computer is idle and the processor is not loaded with computing tasks, the clock frequency and voltage of the processor decreases. Both of these reduce the power consumption of the processor, which in turn reduces heat dissipation. As soon as the processor load increases, the full speed of the processor is automatically restored: the operation of such a power saving scheme is completely transparent to the user and running programs. To enable such a system, you need:
- enable the use of supported technology in BIOS Setup;
- install the appropriate drivers in the OS you are using (usually this is a processor driver);
- in Panel Windows controls(Control Panel), in the Power Management section, on the Power Schemes tab, select the Minimal Power Management scheme from the list.
For example, for an Asus A8N-E motherboard with a processor, you need ( detailed instructions are given in the User's Guide):
- in BIOS Setup, in the Advanced > CPU Configuration > AMD CPU Cool & Quiet Configuration section, switch the Cool N "Quiet parameter to Enabled; and in the Power section, switch the ACPI 2.0 Support parameter to Yes;
- install ;
- see above.
You can check that the processor frequency is changing using any program that displays the processor clock speed: from specialized types, up to the Windows Control Panel (Control Panel), section System (System):
Often, motherboard manufacturers additionally complete their products with visual programs that clearly demonstrate the operation of the mechanism for changing the frequency and voltage of the processor, for example, Asus Cool&Quiet:
The processor frequency changes from maximum (in the presence of computational load) to some minimum (in the absence of CPU load).
RMClock utility
During the development of a set of programs for complex testing of processors, (RightMark CPU Clock / Power Utility) was created: it is designed to monitor, configure and manage the power-saving capabilities of modern processors. The utility supports all modern processors and the most different systems control of energy consumption (frequency, voltage...) The program allows you to monitor the occurrence of throttling, changes in the frequency and voltage of the processor. Using RMClock, you can configure and use everything that allows standard means: BIOS Setup, OS power management with processor driver. But the possibilities of this utility are much broader: with its help, you can configure a number of parameters that are not available for configuration in a standard way. This is especially important when using overclocked systems, when the processor runs faster than the nominal frequency.
Video card auto overclocking
A similar method is used by video card developers: the full power of the GPU is needed only in 3D mode, and a modern graphics chip can cope with a desktop in 2D mode even at a reduced frequency. Many modern video cards are tuned so that the graphics chip serves the desktop (2D mode) with reduced frequency, power consumption and heat dissipation; accordingly, the cooling fan spins more slowly and makes less noise. The video card starts to work at full capacity only when running 3D applications, for example, computer games. Similar logic can be implemented programmatically using various software utilities. fine tuning and overclocking video cards. For example, this is how the automatic overclocking settings in the program for the HIS X800GTO IceQ II video card look like:
Quiet computer: myth or reality?From the user's point of view, a sufficiently quiet computer will be considered such, the noise of which does not exceed the ambient background noise. During the day, taking into account the noise of the street outside the window, as well as the noise in the office or at work, it is permissible for the computer to make a little more noise. A home computer that is planned to be used around the clock should be quieter at night. As practice has shown, almost any modern powerful computer can be made to work quite quietly. I will describe a few examples from my practice.
Example 1: Intel Pentium 4 platform
My office uses 10 Intel computers Pentium 4 3.0 GHz with standard CPU coolers. All machines are assembled in inexpensive Fortex cases priced up to $30, blocks are installed Chieftec supply 310-102 (310 W, 1 fan 80x80x25mm). In each case, a 80x80x25 mm fan (3000 rpm, noise 33 dBA) was installed on the back wall - they were replaced by fans with the same performance 120x120x25 mm (950 rpm, noise 19 dBA) ). AT file server local network for additional cooling hard drives on the front wall there are 2 fans 80 × 80 × 25 mm, connected in series (speed 1500 rpm, noise 20 dBA). Most computers use the Asus P4P800 SE motherboard, which is able to regulate the speed of the processor cooler. Two computers have cheaper Asus P4P800-X boards, where the cooler speed is not regulated; to reduce noise from these machines, the CPU coolers have been replaced (1900 rpm, 20 dBA noise).
Result: computers are quieter than air conditioners; they are almost inaudible.
Example 2: Intel Core 2 Duo Platform
New home computer Intel processor The Core 2 Duo E6400 (2.13 GHz) with a standard CPU cooler was assembled in an inexpensive $25 aigo case, with a Chieftec 360-102DF power supply (360 W, 2 80×80×25 mm fans). There are 2 fans 80×80×25 mm connected in series in the front and rear walls of the case (speed adjustable, from 750 to 1500 rpm, noise up to 20 dBA). Used motherboard Asus P5B, which is able to regulate the speed of the CPU cooler and case fans. A video card with a passive cooling system is installed.
Result: the computer makes such a noise that during the day it is not audible over the usual noise in the apartment (conversations, steps, the street outside the window, etc.).
Example 3: AMD Athlon 64 Platform
My home computer on the AMD processor Athlon 64 3000+ (1.8 GHz) was assembled in an inexpensive Delux case priced under $30, initially containing a CoolerMaster RS-380 power supply (380 W, 1 fan 80 × 80 × 25 mm) and a GlacialTech SilentBlade GT80252BDL-1 video card connected to +5 V (about 850 rpm, noise less than 17 dBA). The Asus A8N-E motherboard is used, which is able to regulate the speed of the processor cooler (up to 2800 rpm, noise up to 26 dBA, in idle mode the cooler rotates about 1000 rpm and noise is less than 18 dBA). The problem with this motherboard: cooling of the nVidia nForce 4 chipset chip, Asus installs a small 40x40x10 mm fan with a rotation speed of 5800 rpm, which whistles quite loudly and unpleasantly (in addition, the fan is equipped with a sleeve bearing that has a very short life) . To cool the chipset, a cooler for video cards with a copper radiator was installed; against its background, clicks of head positioning are clearly audible hard drive. A working computer does not interfere with sleeping in the same room where it is installed.
Recently, the video card was replaced by HIS X800GTO IceQ II, for the installation of which it was necessary to modify the chipset heatsink: bend the fins so that they do not interfere with the installation of a video card with a large cooling fan. Fifteen minutes of work with pliers - and the computer continues to work quietly even with a fairly powerful video card.
Example 4: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Platform
A home computer based on an AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ processor (2.0 GHz) with a processor cooler (up to 1900 rpm, noise up to 20 dBA) is assembled in a 3R System R101 case (2 fans 120 × 120 × 25 mm, up to 1500 rpm, mounted on the front and rear walls of the housing, connected to regular system monitoring and automatic control fans), an FSP Blue Storm 350 power supply (350 W, 1 fan 120 × 120 × 25 mm) is installed. A motherboard was used (passive cooling of the chipset microcircuits), which is able to regulate the speed of the processor cooler. Used graphics card GeCube Radeon X800XT, cooling system replaced by Zalman VF900-Cu. A hard drive was chosen for the computer, known for its low noise level.
Result: The computer is so quiet that you can hear the sound of the hard drive motor. A working computer does not interfere with sleeping in the same room where it is installed (the neighbors behind the wall are talking even louder).
It's been over a year since I put together my first complete watercooling system from a pre-built kit (see ). A month later (on a new platform), the system was significantly upgraded - I included the north bridge and the video card in the cooling circuit, and also replaced the processor water block. And he made all these water blocks himself. Despite the fact that the main elements of the system unit were enough hot: Athlon processor [email protected] 2800+ with a core voltage of 1.85V, an overclocked GeForse 4 Ti 4600 graphics card, and a Northbridge with a Peltier element, the system passed the southern summer heat with honor. Even at an air temperature in the room of 32 degrees, the temperature of the processor core did not exceed 55 degrees.
When the need arose for a second computer, it was assembled mainly from what was left of previous upgrades. Unfortunately, the remaining building is a mini-tower. But, since a normal air cooler didn’t fit into it in any way, I had to do it.
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Everything, it would seem, is nothing, if not for one important circumstance - once you get used to a quiet water-cooled computer, it is simply impossible to give up this habit in the future. And so the desire arose: to create a quiet yet efficient water cooling system.Why is it still water? There are enough reasons for that. Since in any cooling system the final (actually heat-removing) device is an air cooler with a fan, the noise parameters of the system are determined by the value and, main, the speed of the air flow blowing the ribs (plates, pins, etc.) of the radiator. And the more thermal power must be removed at the same noise level, the larger the size of the radiator and fan is needed.
A vivid example of this is the Zalman CNPSA-Cu cooler - the best available (and not only available - it has correct construction): dimensions - 109x62x109mm; weight - 770g; fan - 92mm; plate area - 3170 square centimeters; speed, noise level and thermal resistance in quiet and normal modes, respectively: 1350 and 2400 rpm; 20 and 25 dB (during overclocking, by the way, a quiet mode is unacceptable, and 25 or even 20 dB is not very quiet yet) and 0.27 and 0.2K / W. Remember these numbers, they will be useful to us in the future. And you should not think that this and similar coolers are necessary only for latest processors with heat dissipation up to 90 - 100W.