Air Flo Mini - Complete

[23RO_UK]

Air Flo Mini Concept

What started out as a notion of a concept energy efficient gaming rig build centered around the ASRock Z77 E-ITX motherboard has evolved into this...



Case choice

With the Bitfenix Prodigy not yet available in the UK and on a chance visit to *Can't mention the retailer in question* I spied the Silverstone TJ08-E...


Decisions decisions should I wait on the Prodigy...???


Nah lol to impatient to put theory and concept into practice


Any regrets?


NONE WHATSOEVER!!! The silverstone TJ08-E is a great bit of kit and it's build quality is flawless

The Motherboard


My deciscion to remain ATX at the time of upgrading to the Z77 chipset was heavilly inflenced by the lack of information and reviews pertaining to the new Z77 ITX boards available; these being the Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe, the ASRock Z77 E-ITX and the Zotac Z77ITX-A-E respectively.

The past 8 weeks however has seen the ITX concept nagging away at me, that and the fact my own requirements for a motherboard are simply as follows -

• It have 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors
• A PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot
• It should be Z77 ideally ITX
• It should both be quiet and energy efficient
• And lastly it should be able to overclock like the Devils own

With my recent hands on experience of the ASRock Z77 Extreme4 and the impression it left apon me I elected to go for the ASRock E-ITX.

Of the three ITX boards currently available the ASRock Z77 E-ITX is the cheapest offering if you shop about, in terms of layout I believe it also offers the best layout of the three and it's certainly aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

Build quality is absolutely superb, certainly no bargain basement el cheapo quality tag can now be applied to ASRock; this comes from an individual who previously would never even entertain the idea of a motherboard not manufactured by Asus or Gigabyte.

Performance


The overclock I applied out of the box was the 4.5GHz, I used the very same voltages that I utilised on it's big Brother the ASRock Z77 Extreme4; now for a board that only has a 6 phases for the CPU main voltage, one for the CPU VSA voltage and one for the CPU VTT voltage (6+1+1 config) the performance beggars belief!!!

Could it go further...


I set about applying a 4.8Ghz overclock

Ok how far can it go...???

Try 5.1GHz!!!



Even more impressive is that during the testing not once did I have any sort of instabillity or BSD occurence.



Lastly the specs

Case - Silverstone TJ08-E

Mobo - ASRock Z77 E-ITX

CPU - Intel i7 2600K clocked @ 4.5GHz @ 1.285V

RAM - 8 GB (2x4GB) Samsung Green DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz 30nm Dual Channel running @ 2133MHz (10-10-10-24 2N) @ 1.45v

GPU - KFA2 - GeForce GTX 560 Ti LTD OC 1024MB PCIe 2.0

Sound Card (external) - Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro

PSU - Silver Power S460SL 460W 80Plus Gold Fanless Silent Modular

SSD – Kingston Hyper X SH100S3/120G 128GB

HDD - Seagate Momentus XT 500GB

Cooling - 1 x 180mm Silverstone Air Penetrator SST-AP181 (front intake)
Antec KÜHLER H2O 620 with 2 x 120mm 1850 RPM Scythe Gentle Typhoon's (CPU cooler/extract)


Thank you for looking, any comments and feedback are more than welcome

 

[23RO_UK]

I must say thats avery Nice build

Thats one superb looking case and the build itself looks great!

5.1GHz on an ITX mobo, thats insane!

Thank you both


When Silverstone get it right, oh do they get it right; great case and highly recommended!

Insane I believe adequately describes the overclocking potential of the Z77 E-ITX yes lol

I ran that benchmark six times to satisfy myself it wasn't a fluke

 

[23RO_UK]

Fantastic build mate. I love that case and hope it's still available for my next build.

What temperatures you getting on the cpu?
Is teh HD up in the drive bay?

Thank you much appreciated


Silverstone also retail the PS07 MATX case which shares the same internal layout but mounts 2 x 120mm fans in the front of the case as opposed to a single 180mm Air Penetrator, with minimal modding you could mount a H100.

Here is the Manufacturers link -

http://www.silverstonetek.com/produc...id=314&area=en


To answer your first question -


*Pic to be posted*


On a day to day basis The Air Penetrator 180mm front intake is throttled back to run @ just 500RPM and the 2 GT 1850's are throttled back to run @ 1100RPM, this basically allows for nigh on silent rig.

Below is an example of quite how effective the cooling of the case is even with the fans throttled back; half an hour 100% load Prime95, 2600K @ 4.5GHz 1.285V.


*pic to be posted*



In answer to the 2nd question the HD's sit in the lower drive bay yes


I modded a Lian Li 5.25" Internal HDD Mounting Kit


*pic to be posted*


*pic to be posted*


I simply removed the standard mesh faceplate and substituted it for one of the brushed aluminium drive bay covers that came with the TJ08-E


It turned out quite well as you can see.

 

[23RO_UK]

Very nicely done mate.

Just having a look at that watercooler your using and I've got to say I'm pretty impressed with how simple it looks to setup.

As a side, have you considered house the external soundcard inside the case?

The 620 is an absolute doddle to install and with the right fans it's efficiency is absolutely superb.

No I purposely went external on this occasion, Creative drivers for internal sound cards are adequate at best and p*ss poor at worse; Asus soundcards are great but require power connections.

I love it. Makes me want to get a matx/mitx board right now!

Well don't let me stop you lol

Seriously though some of the new matx/itx cases and boards are absolute quality these days

To give you an idea of what I've down scaled from in the past 12 months see below-


From this...


*Pic to be posted*


*Pic to be posted*


*Pic to be posted*


To this...


*Pic to be posted*


*Pic to be posted*


*Pic to be posted*


Then I rediscovered ASRock


*Pic to be posted*


*Pic to be posted*


*Pic to be posted*


Which finally led to what you see now


*Pic to be posted*


Any regrets on my part???

Absolutely none!!!

 

[23RO_UK]

That is just epic.

Man, that looks good. I have a mATX though.

Ahhhhhh...tech porn!

I have many wet-dreams about building a system in a Silverstone TJ08-E...

Cheers guys much appreciated

@ Edward78 an mATX board would still have plenty of breathing space in the TJ08-E

 

[23RO_UK]

That 'thing' over the motherboard makes it look seriously tidy.

What is it?

You talking about the 'heatshield' on the sabertooth board?

@23RO UK - I have a kuhler 920 but as it happens I was looking at the bequiet air coolers. Which do you prefer?

Yes. I guess that's particular to that board?

It's the only board I have seen it on. The first sabertooth's suffered with a few heat issues I think, but don't quote me. The new ones have mini fans built into a reduced partial 'armour' to increase air flow.

@ PiKe as welshdragon has stated the Thermal Armour is unique to the P67 and Z77 Sabertooth motherboards, the P67 doesn't come with a fan but one can be fitted as I did but the Z77 comes with 2 included.

Does it work?

My experience with using the P67 Sabertooth with and without the fan fitted I would say yes it does as I had a significant drop in temps with the fan fitted.

I hope that answers your question


@ welshdragon it would all depend on -

What case your rig is housed in first of all and the type of fans your using with your 920 and at what speed you run them; further is your current config intake (pulling air into the case) or extract (using the air inside the case and expelling it out of the case)?

The reason my temps are so good whilst running the fans at such a low RPM are firstly the 180 Air penetrator and secondly the inverted motherboard layout of the TJ08-E; cold air is drawn in and extracted through the 620 before it heats up (heat rises in a normal case so in effect your cooling pre heated air to pass through your CPU cooler).

With reference to the BeQuiet Dark Rock Advanced, it's a great air cooler yes and very very quiet; it's also very very effective but in all honesty I'd stick with the 920 and possibly change the fans your currently running.

 

[23RO_UK]

looks really good to me, great choice of parts
i also strangely like how u went fanless psu even tho theres a vent on the top?
i wouldnt want air being pulled into the psu from the top even with a fan filter

i was thinking when i was going to get this case i would turn the fan around inside the psu so it would blow out the top, voiding the warrenty tho im sure ><

maybe they could start making more psus where you can clip the fan out, makes sense even if just for cleaning

anyway great build thankyou for sharing it, did u put the hdd in the top bay? i cant see it

Thank you


The fanless PSU expels it's heat directly through the roof grill as you've mentioned so zero heat is ejected into the main chamber of the case, the decision to go with fanless was also to minimise on noise.


I agree with what your saying about PSU fans entirely, you have some great PSU's available but sometimes the choice of fan included is shall we say p*ss poor and to be able to substitute a stock fan or for it to be removable for cleaning purposes works for me.


In answer to your question the fan controller is in the top bay and the modded Lian Li 5.25" Internal HDD Mount is in the lower bay.

 

[23RO_UK]

Cheers for the advice regards coolers. Awesome build mate. Nicest I have seen on here for a while!

Your very welcome


And thank you once again


After full blown watercoooling, full tower/midi cases and ATX motherboards I just wanted a no fuss small factor build with no loss in performance or cooling...


The ASRock Z77 E-ITX, Antec KÜHLER 620 and TJ08-E combo make this possible

 

[23RO_UK]

Lastly the specs

Case - Silverstone TJ08-E

Mobo - ASRock Z77 E-ITX

CPU - Intel i7 2600K clocked @ 4.5GHz @ 1.285V

RAM - 8 GB (2x4GB) Samsung Green DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz 30nm Dual Channel running @ 2133MHz (10-10-10-24 2N) @ 1.45v Edit - Now @ 2133 (9-10-10-21-2N) @ 1.55V

GPU - KFA2 - GeForce GTX 560 Ti LTD OC 1024MB PCIe 2.0

Sound Card (external) - Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro

PSU - Silver Power S460SL 460W 80Plus Gold Fanless Silent Modular

SSD – Kingston Hyper X SH100S3/120G 128GB

HDD - Seagate Momentus XT 500GB

Cooling - 1 x 180mm Silverstone Air Penetrator SST-AP181 (front intake)
Antec KÜHLER H2O 620 with 2 x 120mm 1850 RPM Scythe Gentle Typhoon's (CPU cooler/extract)

 

[23RO_UK]

Core Voltage Offset Mode Overclocking

In preparation for the arrival of my 3570K and my concerns with it's heat disappation I decided to look into the black art of CPU Core Voltage Offset Mode Overclocking.


Now given I can run my current 2600K @ 4.5GHz @ 1.285V I was sceptical as to whether I could better this...


The good news is I can and I have


I now have it running at a bomb proof 4.5GHz @ a mere 1.264V effective using an offset of -0.110V


Result!!!

 

[23RO_UK]

Revised Specs

Revised specs

Case - Silverstone TJ08-E

Mobo - ASRock Z77 E-ITX

CPU - Intel i7 2600K clocked @ 4.5GHz @ 1.264V (-0.110V Offset)

RAM - 8 GB (2x4GB) Samsung Green DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz 30nm Dual Channel running @ 2133 (9-10-10-21-2N) @ 1.55V

GPU - KFA2 - GeForce GTX 560 Ti LTD OC 1024MB PCIe 2.0

Sound Card (external) - Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro

PSU - Silver Power S460SL 460W 80Plus Gold Fanless Silent Modular

SSD – Kingston Hyper X SH100S3/120G 128GB

HDD - Seagate Momentus XT 500GB

Cooling - 1 x 180mm Silverstone Air Penetrator SST-AP181 (front intake)
Antec KÜHLER H2O 620 with 2 x 120mm 1850 RPM Scythe Gentle Typhoon's (CPU cooler/extract)

 

[23RO_UK]

The final piece of the puzzle...

In keeping with the criteria of the build namely -

• It should both be quiet and energy efficient
• And lastly it should be able to overclock like the Devils own

It was time to pull the trigger on the last piece of the puzzle...


An Intel i5 3570K


My ever faithful 2600K will now go into retirement


As I had previously mentioned I had concerns with the 3570K's heat disappation and decided to look into the black art of CPU Core Voltage Offset Mode Overclocking as a means to counter this; again the initial testing with my 2600K yielded some good results but would the 3570K perform likewise...


The answer is yes!!!


*Pic to be posted*


I now have it running at a bomb proof 4.5GHz @ a mere 1.176V effective using an offset of -0.50V so tick the energy efficient box



Now to the performance...

Previously I was able to run the Samsung Green DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz 30nm Dual Channel memory @ 2133 (9-10-10-21-2N) @ 1.55V however for some reason I couldn't achieve those same timings with the 3750K


I've now re timed them as follows -


*Pic to be posted*


Not such a bad compromise @ 2000MHz (9-9-9-20-2N)



Would it now withstand a "Damned good thrashing..."



Yet again yes


*Pic to be posted*


And lastly to benchmark the wee beast once again


*Pic to be posted*




Yeah I can live with that

 

[23RO_UK]

Damn, that looks boss! I am sorely tempted to copy your build, even though I don't really need to upgrade at the moment. I just like the idea of a small but powerful machine, kind of like how mobiles having gotten smaller and more powerful.

Edit: Any chance you could take a photo with something next to the case for a sense of scale? Like maybe a DVD case?

That is an awesome build. I want to do something similar, my only issue is my 3.5" HDD.

I notice it has holes at the bottom to secure a 2.5" (SSD, in my case). Do you think adding a 5.25" to 3.5" adapter will hold my HDD up top? So i don't have to use the HDD cage?

Thank you both


@ RationalGaze - will do in the next couple of days


@ Doomedspeed - a 5.25" to 3.5" adapter would work just fine.

 

[23RO_UK]

I see the case can actually fit micro-ATX boards, so why did you stick with ITX? I am trying to decide on a MB for my theory-build, and micro boards must be better than ITX ones right (if you can fit them in your case)?

In answer to your first question my own requirements for a motherboard are simply as follows -

• It have 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors
• A PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot
• It should be Z77 Chipset
• And lastly it should be able to overclock like the Devils own

The Z77 E-ITX ticks all those boxes

and micro boards must be better than ITX ones right

Erm no funny enough


As an example the following ASRock boards are all mATX -

• Z77M
• Z77 Pro4-M
• Z77 Extreme4-M

And they all have one thing in common, a 4 + 2 Power Phase Design.


The Z77 E-ITX on the other hand has a 6 + 2 Power Phase Design

 

[23RO_UK]

On another note, I have been deciding whether to get a water cooler like yours, but I read that air coolers might have better performance and water blocks were just for looks. Is this why you went with water? Do you reckon a tower cooler could fit in there ok?

First of all the forget the notion that waterblocks are just for looks, that is an absolute myth; Hybrids such as the the Antec KÜHLER H2O series or Corsair H series (though I'd avoid the Cosair H series as they are renowned for noisy pump problems) are far more efficient than air cooling and full blown water cooling is far more efficient still.

I'll be upping my 620 to the 920 in the near future purely as the Ivy Bridge chips run hotter, the 620 is ideal for Sandy Bridge chips.

Also fan choice is key and I'd recommend Scythe GT series.


Would a standard air cooler fit the case?

Yes

Though I'd recommend you look at the Silverstone website to be sure as to the maximum height tower it will accept.

 

[23RO_UK]

Looks great, 2nd time I'm seeing this.

Now stop showing off mate

Lmao


Now there's a familiar face

 

[23RO_UK]

I see, thanks for the advice. I have a build in mind now, the cooler is just the last undecided piece. Next I need the courage to click buy on the £500 upgrade! Also need to sell my old case, MB and Q6600.

Your welcome


Ahhh but just think of all the fun that £500 will buy

 

[23RO_UK]

Air Flow Mini Concept

Recently having obtained a Silverstone PS07 Black for the grand sum of 40 quid (to good a price to pass up) and with a view to possibly watercooling once again at a later date...



I present to you -



Air flo Mini Concept



The build criteria remains the same namely

• It have 2 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s connectors
• A PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot
• It should be Z77 ITX
• It should both be quiet and energy efficient
• it should be able to overclock like the Devils own
• It should outwardly and inwardly appear modest, minimalistic and purposely understated

Where does the PS07 differ from the TJ08???


Outwardly the PS07 presents a smooth front with the front panel connectivity vertically mounted on the left side of the facia whereas the the TJ08 has it mounted just above the mesh

They both share the same chassis and internal layout with but one all important difference, the TJ08 uses a single 180mm Air Penetrator front mounted intake whereas the PS07 uses 2 x 120mm front intake fans

So why change?


Simple, the PS07 allows me to front mount a 240 radiator at a later date with minimal fuss (versatility and future upgrade potential)

Thank you for looking

 

[23RO_UK]

Been inspired by this and a couple of other TJ08-e builds and currently speccing parts while waiting for my PPI claim to be paid into my bank.

I'm keen on the Kuhler H2o's and wondered if you had tried the 620 with the ivy bridge or if you had stepped straight up to a 920?

I tried the 620 with a 3570K and it worked out just fine

I wasn't impressed with it's performance or thermal characteristics however so sold it and kept my 2600K lol

Also how have you got yours set up? pump into the cpu fan controller and the fans on the fan controller?

The current set up is the 3 front fans plus the H620 running off the fan controller and a PWM fan running off the CPU fan header on the motherboard

Do you think a the heat generated by a card like a 7950 would have much of adverse affect on the CPU temp with the extra hot air it's pushing into the case or will the air penetrator handle that ok?

Both the TJ08 and the PS07 will handle that no problem

and last question (promise) whats the fan controller you've got? looks pretty nifty

It's a Lamptron FC6 and it's a great bit of kit

sorry for 20 questions, wavering on the H2o cooler as most people seem to favor air coolers so just looking for some justification in getting one really
thanks

No problem, just ask away

 

[23RO_UK]

thanks for all the answers

Your welcome

does the 620 run much cooler when its positioned in the front of the case like that?

Try a HUGE 5-6°C drop under full load

Much much better than I had anticipated

Think I prefer the looks on the TJ08, can see the advantages of the PS07 if you want to water cool though.

Aesthetically I would agree the TJ08-E has the better facia yes

Was is just the extra heat that made you sell off the 3570?

No not just the heat though that was an issue, my 2600K is good for 5.3GHz and the 3570K was found to be sorely lacking in comparison