ITX transplant advice needed

[thedons1983]

I currently have a Fractal Node 304, which is a great case, but is just getting to be too cramped, and I want to transplant all of my current components into a bigger case. I know, I know, and ITX board is going to look weird in an mATX case and probably a bit stupid in an ATX, but whatever I want the better airflow, increased space, and hopefully even better acoustics.

 

I initially was just going to get an Evolv Enthoo ITX case, but started to wonder just how well the GPU would be able to cool itself being pushed right up against the top of the PSU shroud at the bottom of the case. My card already runs hot and loud, and I have now started thinking that the extra space of an mATX or ATX case would be of benefit to the airflow into and across the GPU. Will this really make a difference, or should I just stick to ITX? GPU is a rear exhaust style card with just one fan (EVGA GTX 1060 SC Gaming), and it runs pretty hot and VERY loud in my current setup, even despite having a vent all to itself, so maybe this all futile, what do you reckon?

[Jurrunio]

The rule is, if you can accept the size of mATX or ATX case, don't go ITX. There's no reason to pick the ITX while a bigger system is fine.

Also, your graphics card is not a rear exhaust one. It's open air cooled. It will spread the heat around so it heavily relies on case fans to do the cooling

[thedons1983]

2 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

The rule is, if you can accept the size of mATX or ATX case, don't go ITX. There's no reason to pick the ITX while a bigger system is fine.

Also, your graphics card is not a rear exhaust one. It's open air cooled. It will spread the heat around so it heavily relies on case fans to do the cooling

Seems like good logic to me, and is the way I was leaning, so cheers for that. Just how much difference to you think the bigger case might make to GPU temps generally?

 

Is it really? I always assumed it was rear exhaust as that's where the air seemed to come from, and the GPU doesn't heat up my CPU when loaded, but fair enough!

[fjdhdhcyfhf]

bigger case def helps with cooling. you get more fans and just more volume for heat to disperse into.

 

[Jurrunio]

2 minutes ago, thedons1983 said:

Seems like good logic to me, and is the way I was leaning, so cheers for that. Just how much difference to you think the bigger case might make to GPU temps generally?

 

Is it really? I always assumed it was rear exhaust as that's where the air seemed to come from, and the GPU doesn't heat up my CPU when loaded, but fair enough!

How hot is the card under load now?

 

Rear exhaust cards use blower style coolers with a special fan. They resemble a hamster wheel more.

[thedons1983]

Just now, SCHISCHKA said:

bigger case def helps with cooling. you get more fans and just more volume for heat to disperse into.

 

Okay cool, that's what I was assuming, so I appreciate the clarification!

[thedons1983]

1 minute ago, Jurrunio said:

How hot is the card under load now?

 

Rear exhaust cards use blower style coolers with a special fan. They resemble a hamster wheel more.

I was running Unigine Valley and with the power target at 116% and the temp target at 82C, the card went right up to 82C. If I raise the temp target, the card gets hotter and hotter. Boost clocks are still fine weirdly.

 

Ah, it all makes sense now, yeah they look kinda like laptop fans, so I know what you mean!

[thedons1983]

When gaming, eg Mass Effect Andromeda, the temps hover around the max pretty constantly!

[Jurrunio]

2 minutes ago, thedons1983 said:

I was running Unigine Valley and with the power target at 116% and the temp target at 82C, the card went right up to 82C. If I raise the temp target, the card gets hotter and hotter. Boost clocks are still fine weirdly.

GPU boost allows Nvidia cards to go much further than their boost clocks. Try manually lock your fans to maximum speed and see if temperatures get any better.

[thedons1983]

5 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

GPU boost allows Nvidia cards to go much further than their boost clocks. Try manually lock your fans to maximum speed and see if temperatures get any better.

Yeah, I meant that even at high temps, the card maintains a boost clock of at least 1835MHz and that is the standard boost clock of the card, so it's not throttling from that level, but yes it does boost all the way to 2012MHz if the temps are low enough. 1939MHz whilst gaming is pretty normal with this card, with my current fan profile.

 

Honestly the cooler on this card is crap! Even at 100% fan speed, temps only drop like 5C max, but the fan is sitting at like 5000 RPM! Literally! I cannot have it run that high, and because of some vBIOS nonsense I won't bore you with, 60-70% is the absolute maximum fan speed I can bear, and even then the fan is running like 3500 RPM and sounds awful!

[Jurrunio]

6 minutes ago, thedons1983 said:

Honestly the cooler on this card is crap! Even at 100% fan speed, temps only drop like 5C max, but the fan is sitting at like 5000 RPM! Literally! I cannot have it run that high, and because of some vBIOS nonsense I won't bore you with, 60-70% is the absolute maximum fan speed I can bear, and even then the fan is running like 3500 RPM and sounds awful!

I will blame your case more. This card (or cooler) isn't known for being hot (incapable) (at least I haven't seen people complaining about its cooling here yet).

 

Loud fans are why you should get a bigger case to lower the load of the graphics card fan. My Gigabyte RX 470 only runs its 2 fans at 65% (2400RPM) to maintain 72C under full load, thankfully. It's already audible despite being 3 feet away. If I have to turn it up to maximum speed (3.5k RPM), it really sounds like a hair dryer.

[thedons1983]

12 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

I will blame your case more. This card (or cooler) isn't known for being hot (incapable) (at least I haven't seen people complaining about its cooling here yet).

 

Loud fans are why you should get a bigger case to lower the load of the graphics card fan. My Gigabyte RX 470 only runs its 2 fans at 65% (2400RPM) to maintain 72C under full load, thankfully. It's already audible despite being 3 feet away. If I have to turn it up to maximum speed (3.5k RPM), it really sounds like a hair dryer.

Well, I've heard other grumblings on EVGA forums, but I too think that the case is a huge factor, hence the want to move up to something bigger.

 

I was hoping that someone could confirm that for me, as I really wasn't sure if this idea had legs, so cheers for that! That's Interesting to know, as the cards are pretty equivalent, yet you get lower temps and lower fan speed too!

 

I started a new thread on here earlier detailing how I actually changed the cooler on my card to a two fan job from a GTX 760, which worked perfectly, and now the card is much, much quieter under load, but still goes all the way to 82C on my current fan profile, suggesting the case and fan setup just can't get enough airflow to the GPU.

 

As a side issue, at idle, the fans on the 760 cooler will not run at anything lower than 40% or 1200 RPM (specific issue relating to this exact cooler), so it is much louder at idle now! Can't bloody win!

[fjdhdhcyfhf]

1 hour ago, thedons1983 said:

Okay cool, that's what I was assuming, so I appreciate the clarification!

best case i ever had was antec 1200. i wish i kept it. 200m fan on top and 2X120mm rear exhaust which i have not seen on any new cases

[thedons1983]

17 minutes ago, SCHISCHKA said:

best case i ever had was antec 1200. i wish i kept it. 200m fan on top and 2X120mm rear exhaust which i have not seen on any new cases

Hmm, no, that is an unusual setup... Although I think the first iteration of the Phanteks Evolv had a 200mm front and 140mm rear, which is close, although that may have been the ITX version to be fair.

 

I still can't decide whether to go mATX or ATX - all I care about are thermals, accosutics and airflow, BUT I don't need a huge case, as I don't want an SLI setup or anything, so I can't make up my mind. ITX is definitely out though! 

[Jurrunio]

2 minutes ago, thedons1983 said:

I still can't decide whether to go mATX or ATX - all I care about are thermals, accosutics and airflow, BUT I don't need a huge case, as I don't want an SLI setup or anything, so I can't make up my mind. ITX is definitely out though! 

mATX will enough. You don't have an ATX board anyway.

[thedons1983]

Just now, Jurrunio said:

mATX will enough. You don't have an ATX board anyway.

Alright, nice one, mATX sounds like a plan then!

 

Although an ITX board is still compatible with an ATX case. All the ATX cases I've looked at can take an ITX board no problem

[pzspah]

Fractal nano is a larger itx case, I don't have any issues with cooling in mine at full load. Granted I have an asus dual card and not a blower.

[thedons1983]

On 6/23/2017 at 3:40 PM, pzspah said:

Fractal nano is a larger itx case, I don't have any issues with cooling in mine at full load. Granted I have an asus dual card and not a blower.

It's just still to small for me, but I appreciate the input, as I do love my Fractal Node 304 and will be keeping the case to reuse for a lower powered system in the future!