Streacom FC7 or FC8 with i5 3570k?

[Borden]

I've just upgraded from my i3 2130 to an i5 3570k and I'm having no problems at all with my 160W Pico PSU.

I've removed my dedicated graphics card and the temperature of the i5 is actually lower than the i3 now. This is down to the fact the graphics card was putting out a lot of heat and raising the cpu temp of the i3.

 

[PTSnake]

So, youre going with the onboard HD4000? Have you tried super pi and those kind of programs to check for stability?

If to, my project is a GO then

 

[PTSnake]

Also, could you post some pics of your build just to have a real idea of the size? I'm working with an error-margin of about 1cm IF that much

 

[Borden]

Yup I'm using the HD4000.

I haven't run any of those programs, no. If it helps, I ran a Core i5 2500k from the same PSU for about a year. The 2500k has a higher TDP and I never had any issues. I don't play games so can't comment on that. I measured the power usage at the wall with the 2500k and at load it didn't go anywhere near the 160W limit. I honestly think that people make much too big of a deal over TDP and power limits.

Currently I have the 3570k undervolted, which will be making a difference to it's power draw. Not that I'm worried tbh!

Check out my thread here for lots of pics. Only thing that's changed is that I no longer have the GPU installed. http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18407837

 

[PTSnake]

Looks good, only thing to be worried about now is how to transform my blu-ray drive into a top-loader one... i'll figure something out. Thanks

 

[vince1]

I loved the idea of this case but building it is a right pain, I gave up in the end. Anyone interested in buying the case message me.

 

[Amp34]

I've just upgraded from my i3 2130 to an i5 3570k and I'm having no problems at all with my 160W Pico PSU.

I've removed my dedicated graphics card and the temperature of the i5 is actually lower than the i3 now. This is down to the fact the graphics card was putting out a lot of heat and raising the cpu temp of the i3.

what sort of temps are you getting? With every day use it's fine, hovering around 40-50*, however if I do something intensive that loads the CPU it gets to silly temperatures (100 degrees...). I might look into turning turboboost off and capping it at 3.4GHz as I can't work out how to underclock the system (i've undervolted it by two steps already).

As for whether the PSU handles it, fine. People go way over the top with Watt requirements IMO. those 1kW PSU's are just stupid, you could run an entire server room off a lot of them... 600W would do the bast majority of people, even with crossfire or SLI.

*Yeah high for a normal case but this is passive after all.

I'm also having sleep problems at the moment. When it gets put to sleep when it wakes up it tries to do it 3 times then just restarts and loads up normally. Aside from waking up constantly on its own which I can't work out why.

EDIT: Actually, if you don't have any of the above problems it would be great if you could show me what settings you use in the BIOS.

 

[Amp34]

I loved the idea of this case but building it is a right pain, I gave up in the end. Anyone interested in buying the case message me.

What problems are you having? It's a tight fit certainly but I currently have two SSDs and a full size 3.5"HDD in there (without a DVD/BD drive though). 15cm SATA cables are your friend!

Remember as well that you don't really need to think about airflow as there are no fans.

 

[Borden]

I did a quick test. The most intensive use my system gets is importing photos into Lightroom and rendering previews. Here's a screenshot of it doing that.

It seems to idle around 26-30 degrees. With the i3 and GPU it would idle at 40. The case is noticeably cooler to touch now than with the GPU.


With regard to the sleep issues, there always seems to be the tiniest of things which can cause problems here. I found that my Logitech wireless KB and mouse were intermittently talking to the USB receiver and that was triggering the system to wake. I disabled the ability to wake the PC from all devices in device manager with that option (go to properties and hit the power management tab).

For BIOS options, I've just got the standard S3 sleep option set and have all the gimicky Intel rapid start things disabled.

TBH I don't use sleep all that much because it boots fast enough with an SSD. I would use it more if there was an option to turn off that stupid blinking sleep LED! You can disable the LED but that also disables the regular power LED when the PC is on.

 

[PTSnake]

Looking good. I'm planning on moving to canada next year, and start building a similar (our the same exact) build on one of these puppies:

it's only been done right one time as far as i can tell, by some japanese guys, i'm planning on doing it with a way more clean design (seing as the Z77 has an MSata slot on the back), but i'm getting stumped when it comes to make the bluray drive work as a top loader.

 

[Amp34]

I did a quick test. The most intensive use my system gets is importing photos into Lightroom and rendering previews. Here's a screenshot of it doing that.

It seems to idle around 26-30 degrees. With the i3 and GPU it would idle at 40. The case is noticeably cooler to touch now than with the GPU.


With regard to the sleep issues, there always seems to be the tiniest of things which can cause problems here. I found that my Logitech wireless KB and mouse were intermittently talking to the USB receiver and that was triggering the system to wake. I disabled the ability to wake the PC from all devices in device manager with that option (go to properties and hit the power management tab).

For BIOS options, I've just got the standard S3 sleep option set and have all the gimicky Intel rapid start things disabled.

TBH I don't use sleep all that much because it boots fast enough with an SSD. I would use it more if there was an option to turn off that stupid blinking sleep LED! You can disable the LED but that also disables the regular power LED when the PC is on.

How hot/cold is your room!? That seems significantly cooler than mine... Something not right somewhere then.

 

[vince1]

What problems are you having? It's a tight fit certainly but I currently have two SSDs and a full size 3.5"HDD in there (without a DVD/BD drive though). 15cm SATA cables are your friend!

Remember as well that you don't really need to think about airflow as there are no fans.

Just limning up the heat pipes and getting the top plate lined up, i had another go and it seems to be all good just need to fit the psu and connect up the front panel connectors.

 

[Borden]

Well I'm a student and live in a house with other students, all of whom would rather wear extra layers than pay for heating However, I have a radiator in my room and I wouldn't say it's cold in here. I don't have a thermometer to check.

What program are you using to check temps?

PTSnake, you could take the top off a tray loading laptop drive and use that? Remove the button from the front to stop the tray trying to open and that should work. You'd also have that circular bit that you snap the discs on to in the middle.

 

[PTSnake]

trying to use as much of the console as i can, including the open/close button (the switch to detect if it's opened or closed is on the back tho), but yes, using a top loader or tray one seems to be the best options

 

[Amp34]

Well I'm a student and live in a house with other students, all of whom would rather wear extra layers than pay for heating However, I have a radiator in my room and I wouldn't say it's cold in here. I don't have a thermometer to check.

What program are you using to check temps?

PTSnake, you could take the top off a tray loading laptop drive and use that? Remove the button from the front to stop the tray trying to open and that should work. You'd also have that circular bit that you snap the discs on to in the middle.

I'm using OHM as well and I never have the heating on in my room. I don't have a thermometer but it's around 20 in here max (in a fleece).