As mentioned I made some progress on the rebuild last week.
In short I was able to check the first 3 points on my to-do list:
- Ryzen 7 3700x installation
- Replace the 92mm fan on the NH-L12 (with a NF-A12x15)
- Remove RAM heatspreaders
I did want to benchmark the CPU using the old fan before installing the NF-A12x15, but was unable to do so due to time constraints.
I also did not bother taking photos of the CPU swap itself as I do not consider it very interesting content..
Removing the RAM heatsinks & replacing the CPU fan
I made some research in advance of the fan swap, and came to conclusion that removing the RAM heatspreaders would be a prerequisite.
Because of this, before voiding the warranty on my original 16GB kit I decided to run some memtest passes to make sure everything was in order.
It was a good thing I did, because the kit would not clear a single pass at its rated configuration. As such I opted to RMA the kit which yielded me a refund.
I ended up replacing it with a 32GB kit from the same Corsair Vengeance LPX line that tested OK.
I only wanted to remove the RAM headspreaders as a last resort, so I did a quick test-fit to see if I could get away with leaving the heatsinks on.
[SPOILER="NF-A12x15 test-fit"]
As you can see, even though the fan/cooler sits flush with the memory, the cooler coldplate does not sit flush with the CPU IHS.
I could maybe have forced it flush by screwing it down and stressing the heatpipes, but it would not have mattered due to lack of side-panel clearance.
[/SPOILER]
It turned out the headspreaders had to come off like I had assumed. In order to remove them I used a heatgun and a set of hobby-knives to separate the individual memory chips from the headspreader.
[SPOILER="RAM Headspreader removal - NSFL"]
Halfway through the first stick. The thermal adhesive is surprisingly strong..
Both sticks ready for installation
It fits!
[/SPOILER]
After about 1,5hrs of meticulous heating, cutting, and scraping I was able to install the cooler with the new fan.
[SPOILER="The result"]
The fan had to be shifted towards the centre in order to clear some I/O components on the mobo.
I also just noticed there seem to be some minor warping on one of my sidepanels, a known fault with the first Ghost S1 batch..
[/SPOILER]
The system POSTs and both RAM sticks register.
No benchmarks yet, but the system does feel a lot snapper with the 3700x.
The CPU idles at 45-50C, and peaks at around 80C during heavy load. Not great, not terrible..
Before proceeding I will clean and add/update the baseline benchmarks that I captured before starting work on the rebuild.
