Log 4L Brickless Console ~ 400W PSU / 5700X / ZOTAC 4060 Solo

Animag771

Caliper Novice
Original poster
Feb 24, 2024
30
34




Specs:
Case: Custom-Mod SLM1 (4L)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550I Aorus Pro AX
Storage: 4TB Crucial P3 Plus PCIe 4.0 M.2
RAM: OLOy Owl 2x8GB 4000MHz CL18 (@ 3600MHz with tightened timings)
Cooler: Noctua L9a (should have used AXP90-X36)
CPU: 5700X
GPU: ZOTAC 4060 Solo (1.75 slot "Slim Edition")
Riser: ADT-Link PCIe 3.0
PSU: 2x CUI VOF-200C-12 w/ "250W" RGEEK PicoPSU
Fans: 2x NF-A4x10 PWM

I was originally running a ZOTAC GTX 1650 with a 200W power brick. My power brick was failing (dipping to 11V) which gave me the perfect excuse to see if I could make my setup brickless while also upgrading the GPU to something much faster. Here's what I had to do...

- Find PSUs that would fit, were reasonably priced, and were in stock; that rules out HDPLEX.


- Spray the PSUs with spray-on electrical tape for an extra level of safety.


- Swap the barrel connector to something more secure (GX12-3P) to prevent arcing and allow me to ground the case.


- Upgrade the 18 AWG wires on the PicoPSU to 14 AWG and solder a 12V bypass.


- Add polymide tape to the bottom of the case so the solder joints cant short out on the case. Then meticulously cut out the vent holes.


- Attach PSUs with 30lb double-sided tape.


- Add polymide tape to the tops of the PSUs so I don't short out the GPU.
- Solder new wires to connect everything and add an 8-pin for the GPU.
- Find a way to mount two NF-A4x10 PWM fans to keep the PSUs happy.


One of the PSUs sends power to the motherboard, powering the RAM, PCIe slot, M.2, fans, etc... The other PSU sends power to the 8-pin CPU adapter and the 8-pin GPU adapter. This adds up to a maximum allowable power draw of 400W (200W per unit) and should allow for some upgradability in the future and keeps the PSUs running very cool for now, since they aren't being fully utilized. The units are rated for 60mV max ripple noise and I've sized all of the wires for less than 1% voltage drop. This should be SIGNIFICANTLY more stable than my previous PicoPSU+power brick setup where nearly every wire was undersized and the power brick wasn't sending reliable voltage.

- Deshroud the GPU, swap the fan to a 75x10mm fan, cut the IO bracket in half (not shown) and test fit.


- Make a new GPU shroud to keep the GPU air from getting pulled into the CPU.


- See if the case will actually close. It did... There's probably 0.1mm of clearance from the GPU fan to the top panel.


Success! This thing is awesome! I'm so happy this worked out... It was CLOSE.

CPU Tuning:
-30 CO all cores
-72mV offset
+200 MHz boost override
PPT: 49W
TDC: 0A (Auto)
EDC: 74A
SOC: 925mV
VDDP 860mV
VDDG CCD: 820mV
VDDG IO: 845mV

GPU Tuning:
Core Clock: 2,565MHz @ 850mV
Memory Clock: +1500MHz

Power Draw:
Off: 1W (looking into eliminating this)
Idle: 37W
Netflix: 50W
R23 Single-Core: 62W
R23 Multi-Core: 80W
Superposition 1080p High: 145W
MAX Power: 167W (R23 Multi-Core + Superposition)

Temps:
While typing this: GPU 37C / CPU 45C
R23 Multi-Core: CPU Max 60C
R23 Single-Core: CPU Max 68C
Superposition 1080p High: GPU Max 67C



This current setup only uses 10% more max power draw than my earlier GTX 1650 configuration, while delivering 187% more performance! Also, with the CPU/GPU at stock settings (only DOCP w/ 1900 FCLK) the TimeSpy score was 10,662 (10,810 GPU / 9,898 CPU) which is only a 1.4% performance difference, while using 55% more power than my current tuning profile.
 
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Animag771

Caliper Novice
Original poster
Feb 24, 2024
30
34
awesome build!
Thanks! It was a lot of fun and my anxiety was through the roof when it was time to put the lid on it and hope the fan didn't hit. Actually the fan did just barely rub the top panel until I realized I could get a hair more clearance by swapping one of the GPU heatsink mounting screws with one that didn't have a spring. That little bit saved the build.
 

Animag771

Caliper Novice
Original poster
Feb 24, 2024
30
34
I let it stretch it's legs today just to see what it could do. I managed to score #8 in the world with my hardware. That was fun but it's to set it back to my previous profile and enjoy the lower fan speeds and efficiency.



 
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