Production Nouvolo Steck - SFF 8.7-11.2L ITX PC Case, supports liquid cooling

[fabio]

@Hifihedgehog
What's the temp at idle? should be in the 30s?

My 2700X in idle stay at 40/45, but seems normal.
Under load goes till 85 degrees, and the frequencies start to get lower to balance the TDP I guess.
But Is the same in the DAN for the 8700K delidded with the L9i. Of course is a different cooler but I think the temp will be the same.
Maybe the non X and non K version of those CPU are better in these tiny case?
Don't know, for now I am happy!!

 

[fabio]

With side panel off, yes. Off, it idles in the 40s, I believe. Peaks were 75 and 84, respectively. Let me know whatever other information you need. I will be looking at this later on tonight. FYI, I updated my top post while you were replying.

Maybe I can test mine with your benchmark? How is called again? Intel...?

 

[Hifihedgehog]

That is a crazy high RPM fan. Does it sound like a quad copter taking off at max speed?

It basically sounds like an RC heli at peak. Google it and you will find forum posts about people getting battle scars from these zippy fans. I joke about it here in the forums from time to time, but it can actually get crazy loud when stress testing. Gaming, though, it is quite a bit tamer and bearable.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Maybe I can test mine with your benchmark? How is called again? Intel...?

IntelBurnTest (IBT). It is not actually by Intel, but uses (presumably) Intel-sourced AVX source code for the stress test. It is basically an AVX insanity level test of death and stuff. If you can pass IBT after 30 runs on Very High with a YouTube video playing in the background, your CPU is Rock-of-Gibraltar rock solid stable. A bit of a warning, though: IBT will run hotter than Prime95 with Small FFTs.

 

[Allhopeforhumanity]

Maybe the non X and non K version of those CPU are better in these tiny case?
Don't know, for now I am happy!!

The non-X/K versions are basically just more poorly binned and restricted from unlocked frequency multipliers. If you down-tune and undervolt a 7700k for example, you will likely get better performance than a 7700 in terms of boost clock stability at the same voltage (at least this has been my experience).

It basically sounds like an RC heli at peak. Google and you will find forum posts about people getting battle scars from these zippy fans. I joke about it here in the forums from time to time, but it can actually get crazy loud when stress testing. Gaming, though, it is quite a bit tamer and bearable.

Just saw a video of those things; damn you could probably toss veggies into one of those and have it double as a food processor!

 

[macbosco]

I haven't read much about benchmarking out there. But overall seems that many of the stress tests are on tower case systems? I wonder if there is just this limitation with SFF case...
I am struggling with myself adding another 15-20mm height to the case to add some fans, then it ends up not quite SFF anymore...

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Just saw a video of those things; damn you could probably toss veggies into one of those and have it double as a food processor!

Yep. Once equipped with one of these beasts, my NH-L12 is basically as good as an AIO if you can bear the noise levels under peak load.

 

[fabio]

I haven't read much about benchmarking out there. But overall seems that many of the stress tests are on tower case systems? I wonder if there is just this limitation with SFF case...
I am struggling with myself adding another 15-20mm height to the case to add some fans, then it ends up not quite SFF anymore...

EDIT, wrong reply, sorry!

 

[macbosco]

I am thinking as recommendation for the masses one should do the Ks and Xs and overclocking with the extension and liquid cooling. Passive cooling for the rest...

EDIT: Come to think of it, I wouldn't need to make the extension at all if 70mm heatsink sufices . Yea and mind you that all the heatsinks do quote their TDP also. Guess all this makes sense if power draw is really above the components designed spec.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

I haven't read much about benchmarking out there. But overall seems that many of the stress tests are on tower case systems? I wonder if there is just this limitation with SFF case...
I am struggling with myself adding another 15-20mm height to the case to add some fans, then it ends up not quite SFF anymore...

I am thinking if there were just more and larger holes on the side panel, I might get better temperatures. It is not a total wash. If I were using a 2700X at stock with PBO, I probably would be at or under 75. That is how crazy good (and fast and LOUD) this Delta fan is. It may just very well be a simple case of the limits of physics that I am hitting, but I should test and see if more perforation helps. I could get some hardware cloth and masking tape and jerryrig a experimental side panel to see how temperatures change as more tape covers the panel. We’ll see.

One more thing before I forget. I will add this to the review when I have the time. Could you consider screw-on panels? One little issue I noticed with the top panel is it comes off easily since the two small flat top screws on each end stick up a teeny bit (half of a millimeter). This causes the top panel to be ever so slightly not flush with the metal surface the magnetic strips attach to. The side panels actually are quite snug with theit magnetic strips since they attach to a completely level surface and are nice and snug. This little issue causes the top panel to come off a bit more easily that I would like than the side panels. Now, I realize this is not the intent of this case, but I put the case in my travel backpack that I take in my vehicle on a drive. Again, for this purpose, the side panels are quite secure but the top does come off a little more easily than I would prefer.

 

[fabio]

I am thinking if there were just more and larger holes on the side panel, I might get better temperatures. It is not a total wash. If I were using a 2700X at stock with PBO, I probably would be at or under 75. That is how crazy good (and fast and LOUD) this Delta fan is. It may just very well be a simple case of the limits of physics that I am hitting, but I should test and see if more perforation helps. I could get some hardware cloth and masking tape and jerryrig a experimental side panel to see how temperatures change as more tape covers the panel. We’ll see.

I want to try the L12S, removing the RAM Heatsink, in my opinion, it will work better!!! But I will test more this night.

My 2700X is at stock, with the PE/XFR2 in Auto, and Windows Power Profile set to Balanced (CPU from 5% to 100%)
Ram 2933Mhx C14 at 1.350V with the XMP/DCOP Enabled (I want to push it at 3200)

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Ram 2933Mhx C14 at 1.350V with the XMP/DCOP Enabled (I want to push it at 3200)

Use DRAM Calculator for Ryzen. I use it religiously and the latest release is spot-on. Export your timings as explained instructions with Thaiphoon Burner, import into those into the tool and enjoy! I was able to get to 3466 MHz on my Ryzen 1 using the exact settings they recommend for V1, Ryzen 1 and Fast. With Ryzen 2, depending on your RAM, you might very well be able to hit 3600 with the right timings.

 

[fabio]

Use Ryzen DRAM Calculator. I use it and the latest release is spot-on. I was able to get to 3466 MHz on my Ryzen 1. With Ryzen 2, you might very well be able to hit 3600 with the right timings.

Cool, Thanks!
Yes, I was planning to do that, But I want to balance an extreme speed with stability.

It will be great to know if the L12S will perform better in a similar config of ours!!

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Cool, Thanks!
Yes, I was planning to do that, But I want to balance an extreme speed with stability.

It will be great to know if the L12S will perform better in a similar config of ours!!

The creator has analyzed thousands of test result submissions and worked with AMD in getting it just right. It works incredibly well and I highly recommend it. I also mentioned (I edited after you had posted) that Thaiphoon Burner is helpful so you can grab and export your XMP memory timings. This way, you can then import so you do not have to manually input them into the DRAM Calculator.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Test results from lunch. But that’s not all! Hold your hats, gents and germs, for even more to come in this ripping and roaring post. I will have 3.9 GHz results added around 7 PM EST tonight.

Thermal dissipation test

System configuration:

CPU: Ryzen 7 1700
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L12 with 92mmx25mm Delta fan (AFC0912D-PWM) in updraft/exhaust configuration with 100% intensity set for 70 degrees Celsius in BIOS-defined fan curve
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix X470-I Gaming
RAM: G.SKILL TridentZ Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR 3600 Cl14 @ 3466MHz 14-15-14-28, 1.41V
Power supply: Enermax Revolution SFX 650W power supply with fan facing outward


Test description:

Run IntelBurnTest with 10 times to run at Very High stress level while monitoring peak CPU temperature (Tctl/Tdie) with HWiNFO64. Independent variables are clock speed, CPU voltage, and the placement (on or off) of the motherboard side panel. Dependent variables are peak CPU temperature (the Tctl/Tdie as reported by HWiNFO64) and the room temperature (the current ambient temperature as reported by the Nest thermostat). The thermal paste used is Arctic Silver 5.


Results:

Clock Speed (GHz) / Voltage / Side Panel On or Off — Max Temperature / Ambient Temperature (Celsius)

3.8 / 1.26250 / On - 83.4 / 18.9

3.8 / 1.26250 / Off - 70.8 / 18.9

3.9 / 1.34375 / On - 90+ Thermal shutdown / 18.9

3.9 / 1.34375 / Off - 74.3 / 18.9


Discussion:

As an aside, man, that side panel does have a huge effect on the temperature. It is actually 13 degrees Celsius, not the 7 to 10 number I had originally quoted earlier. Maybe, @macbosco, you should consider some different perforation patterns, sizes, and shapes for version 1.1 to improve the thru-side panel airflow.

 

[Allhopeforhumanity]

As an aside, man, that side panel does have a huge effect on the temperature. It is actually greater than 13 degrees Celsius, not the 7 to 10 number I had originally quoted earlier

That's actually pretty huge. I'll make sure to compare with my L9i this weekend and see if I get a similar disparity.

 

[Engr62]

One more thing before I forget. I will add this to the review when I have the time. Could you consider screw-on panels?

I was called "bitter" when I recommended this.

 

[Aki]

Here is a short insight to my CPU cooling adventures. I'm using a 2700x with a l12s and have 2 fans installed in the top. Since I'm using VLP DDR4 I was able to fit the a12x25 under it. Sadly it actually performs worse than an a12x15. I guess that's because there is not enough room for the air to flow through after it is pulled through the heatsink. Also for me pulling air in is actually better than trying to push it out.
So for the following data I'm using the l12s with the stock fan flipped to pull air in.

I've set the top fans to around 950RPM and the CPU fan to 1150RPM (I love silence), disabled multi-threading and set the 2700x to 3,75Ghz at 1.15v. Ambient is usually around 20-22°. With these settings I quickly hit around 80°C with prime small ftt while the power consumption is around 110w according to hwinfo. While gaming (monster hunter, overwatch) the CPU usually stays around 70-74°C while consuming around 60-80w according to hwinfo.

When removing the sidepanel the CPU temperatur drops to around 68-70°C while gaming and my CPU fan speed drops to around 950RPM and the top fans to 800RPM.

Edit: Small note, the fans in the top create quite unpleasing turbulence in contrast to the cpu fan, which is almost silent even at 1100RPM. But I'm also extremely sensitiv to noise.

 

[fabio]

Here is a short insight to my CPU cooling adventures. I'm using a 2700x with a l12s and have 2 fans installed in the top. Since I'm using VLP DDR4 I was able to fit the a12x25 under it. Sadly it actually performs worse than an a12x15. I guess that's because there is not enough room for the air to flow throgh after it is pulled through the heatsink. Also for me pulling air in is actually better than trying to push it out.
So for the following data I'm using the l12s with the stock fan flipped to pull air in.

I've set the top fans to around 950RPM and the CPU fan to 1150RPM (I love silence), disabled multithreading and set the 2700x to 3,75Ghz at 1.15v. Ambient is usually around 20-22°. With these settings I quickly hit around 80°C with prime small ftt while the power consumption is around 110w according to hwinfo. While gaming (monster hunter, overwatch) the CPU usually stays around 70-74°C while consuming around 60-80w according to hwinfo.

When removing the sidepanel the CPU temperatur drops to around 68-70°C while gaming and my CPU fan speed drops to around 950RPM and the top fans to 800RPM.

Edit: Small note, the fans in the top create quite unpleasing turbulances in contrast to the cpu fan, which is almost silent even at 1100RPM. But I'm also extremly sensitve to noise.

This is very interesting for me. Could you give us more details about your temp and frequency using Prime? I suggest to setup it in custom, 16 thread, 8k fixed test. I am interested to the performance fo the L12S compared to my L12. My 2700X is in AUTO, so no manual overclocking or VCORE offset.

 

[fabio]

The creator has analyzed thousands of test result submissions and worked with AMD in getting it just right. It works incredibly well and I highly recommend it. I also mentioned (I edited after you had posted) that Thaiphoon Burner is helpful so you can grab and export your XMP memory timings. This way, you can then import so you do not have to manually input them into the DRAM Calculator.

Actually didn't work for me at 3200Mhz following the Calculator value. maybe with 16gb stick it could have issues? The ASUS won't boot and reset the RAM config. BUT, at 2933Mhz, using the Calculator optimization works with no problem at all!