Apogee GTX vs Danger Den TDX - Quad Core

[Avid6eek]

Just before I left for work today the UPS Guy was kind enough to drop of a box containing a Swiftech Apogee GTX. I took some quick pictures of the block to post:

[IMG]****************hardware-geek**********/Pictures/Apogee01.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]****************hardware-geek**********/Pictures/Apogee02.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]****************hardware-geek**********/Pictures/Apogee03.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]****************hardware-geek**********/Pictures/Apogee04.jpg[/IMG]

The block definetly doesn't need to be lapped...it already has a mirror finish. On top of that Swiftech has already bowed the contact plate, so I won't have to make any adjustments to get the maximum performance out of it. I will install the block and get some temperature results as soon as I get home.

[jdrom17]

Nice looking. I'll await the results. Maybe you'll be able to push your quad some more.

[Avid6eek]

I got the new block on, and the results are positive:

TDX Idle Temps

Core 1 - 56C
Core 2 - 56C
Core 3 - 51C
Core 4 - 51C

TDX Load Temps

Core 1 - 89C
Core 2 - 89C
Core 3 - 84C
Core 4 - 81C

Apogee GTX Idle Temps

Core 1 - 52C
Core 2 - 52C
Core 3 - 47C
Core 4 - 47C

Apogee GTX Load Temps

Core 1 - 81C
Core 2 - 82C
Core 3 - 79C
Core 4 - 73C

The end result is improved, around 4C cooler idle temps, and 7C cooler load temps. This was running 3.6Ghz and 1.65v. I did some stability testing at high frequencies and was able to push my max stable overclock up by about 100Mhz.

[jdrom17]

Still seems so high for water, but I guess those older quads pump out more heat. Aren't they rated for like 100C? So I guess in that sense, it's well below the max.

[Dizzious]

Wow, that's a nice block.

The whole bit about a bowed contact plate - that's to compensate for the IHS of an intel dual/quadcore cpu being slightly raised in the center, right?

The first time I installed my WB I guess I used too thin a layer of AS5, as i noticed the top portion of the cpu wasn't coming into contact with the block (evident from the portion of the block which did not have any AS5 on). I got a lot better temps after I righted the problem; granted the only reason i took it apart again was because the flow on the block was backwards Although perhaps the IHS bow only occurs in the c2d lineup and this was simply me installing the block wrong that messed it up.

I take it those are 1/2" dia barbs, but do you know if they are the same height as the ones that come with DD blocks?

Do you know the temp of your coolant? Perhaps another / bigger rad would help?

[cfairchild]

Nice! That is definitely a good block for a quad.

[Avid6eek]

These temps are much higher than what I'm used to, but it is still within intel's specifications, so I'm not worried. At stock speeds I have idle temps around 30C which is more normal, but when overclocked 4 cores put out alot of heat. I don't know the exact temperature of the water in the system, but it isn't excessively warm. The tubes feel warm and there is warm air coming out of the radiator, but it isn't bad. I do have a plan for greater cooling capacity in my next major system overhaul, but that isn't going to happen for some time yet.

[BAM!]

is this with your triple 120mm or quad 120mm.

i've been telling people the Apogee is the best block around the block, it's good to see some solid evidence in this forum. i am really glad and happy for you.

[Qbical]

nice looking, *standard temp comment*

[Avid6eek]

is this with your triple 120mm or quad 120mm

It's with a triple 120mm fan, but one of the fan's has all the blades broken off (thanks to an incident with my hand). Because of that it only works as a dual 120mm radiator.

[Qbical]

i say take that fan off, stomp on it, then replace it with a working one

[Avid6eek]

i say take that fan off, stomp on it, then replace it with a working one

I didn't have any mounting screws when I put the fan on...so it's on there with 2-ton epoxy...that thing is never coming off .

[Grimreaper]

Leave it to Avid to go the extreme route Honestly, I think simple glue or super glue would have sufficed lol. I did use rubber bands to hold a fan to a heatsink once...they didn't last very long...

[yahooadam]

you can probably still get it off, it will only be held on 2, maybe 3 edges, hardly a big layer of it either
An exacto knife (or screwdriver) should get that sucker off

Also, jeez are the blades made of Styrofoam or something ? Ive knocked plenty of fans in my time and never broken one

[-=CrAnSwIcK=-]

i use twist ties if i don't have screws...i have an 80mm fan twist-tied to my x1600 right now...-10 degrees over stock cooling...

i would like to water cool someday...watercooling mid-range parts just seems like a waste of money...so maybe if i get a better job...congrats on the new hardware and cooling avid...bench that shyt

[Skorp]

I didn't have any mounting screws when I put the fan on...so it's on there with 2-ton epoxy...that thing is never coming off .

You... great big idiot! Please tell me it was only some generic triple rad, and not one of those wiggy Thermochill ones.

[Avid6eek]

Please tell me it was only some generic triple rad, and not one of those wiggy Thermochill ones.

It's a Black Ice GTS Stealth 360.

[Skorp]

It's a Black Ice GTS Stealth 360.

Really? Strange, I would have thought you'd have something a bit fatter.

Either way, if you crunch the numbers, you could do with a triple rad. And I mean with three fans on it. A 3.6GHz-overclocked E6600 at 1.5V will push out 160W of heat, says this if you just use the overclock-my-CPU part. That's a huge increase. I'm assuming you have your 8800GTX in that watercooling loop as well, and given that you use a quad core, you're looking at in excess of 350W of heat to dissipate. This is a heatload that your radiator - even when running in triple-fan mode - will have a job to deal with.

I don't know what the thermal characteristics of that radiator is, but assuming you're getting a new radiator anyway, you want to look at the Thermochill PA120.3 triple-rad, which seems to be the best. If you look here the thermochill beats out even the higher-end Black Ice series. The important numbers are at the bottom, which show how close to room temperature a radiator can get the coolant, the lower the better. On another note the Thermochill has far lower flow restriction than the other radiators, which is dead handy for your DangerDen GTX block, notorious for hammering flow rate.

This site will help here. I don't know what pump you have, but for comparison a DangerDen D5 or similar (they go under Laing and Swiftech brands too) has a flow rate of 1.5gpm. 350W, put that over the third graph (watts to gpm graph), and you can see what kind of fans you need to use, and how fast they have to go.

The Nexus fans are quiet, but ain't enough to get the job done. This is all assuming 100% usage on all four cores and the graphics card though, which isn't likely, so you might scrape by with three Nexus fans at full whack. I don't think your Black Ice Stealth is as good as that Thermochill, not by quite a bit, so even with three fans you're gonna struggle.

You might chance a better overclock with more cooling, you never know.


EDIT: 1.65V you're at... jeez, that's over 400W... you're gonna need that Thermochill!

[Dizzious]

Double-sided tape works just fine for fans, Shiz... I couldn't find any screws that were the right size to hold my heavy aluminum-framed AOC fan onto my rad, so it's on there with double-sided. It's been there for six months or so now, still nice and sturdy and I can actually take it off at will

Speaking of holding fans on; I'm going to go post a pic of my current machine somewhere.

Question - do the quads come with the same stock heatsink as the rest of Intels processors?

[Skorp]

Question - do the quads come with the same stock heatsink as the rest of Intels processors?

Yep. They were designed to handle 130W Pentium Ds, so a Core 2 Quad is well within what they can handle.