Production SENTRY 2.0: Evolution of console-sized gaming PC case

SaperPL

Master of Cramming
DR ZĄBER
Oct 17, 2017
472
882
Anyone used the ID-COOLING IS40X V3 PRO cooler with the Sentry 2.0?

We have the IS-40X, not sure which version it is but it looks like the one in this store page. I think it is V3 and that there isn't a PRO variant as it's not on the page. There are IS-40X and IS-40 PRO coolers but those are two different generations and the PRO line is discontinued.

Not sure if its worth it, the fan gets close to perforation and the direct contact heatpipes don't do much over other coolers. I tested it for some time, but it's much louder than NH-L9a. ID-cooling does overestimate the TDP their coolers can handle. 100W TDP for this cooler feels like it was tested in a wind tunnel.

Generally it's pretty hard right now to handle Zen2 CPUs and there's no silver bullet to solve this.

I'm going to try and see how C7G behaves since I haven't even tested Cu version. I'm curious whether it makes sense.
 

Khio

Caliper Novice
Dec 16, 2019
25
39
I'm going to try and see how C7G behaves since I haven't even tested Cu version. I'm curious whether it makes sense.

What fan are you using with the C7 ? I kept mine ( the aluminium one ) 3 days before I ditched it for the NH-L9a because of the noise, thanks !
 

SaperPL

Master of Cramming
DR ZĄBER
Oct 17, 2017
472
882
It's still in the box, I'll use the stock one and then I'll try to see if that's a problem.
The alu one is pretty bad on high RPM, but once again this is not an issue with the fan but it being close to perforation.
If somehow the CU/G model makes it run at lower RPMs then it'll make sense to me.
 

dmznsdp

Caliper Novice
Jan 5, 2020
25
7
It's still in the box, I'll use the stock one and then I'll try to see if that's a problem.
The alu one is pretty bad on high RPM, but once again this is not an issue with the fan but it being close to perforation.
If somehow the CU/G model makes it run at lower RPMs then it'll make sense to me.
Could you please check the noise levels while using something like a dust filter? You do have one, I know. :)
 

ChrisWilde

Efficiency Noob
Aug 1, 2020
6
3
Hey everyone. Dzien Dobry @SaperPL, and thank you very much for creating such an amazing product.

I just ordered my Sentry 2.0 in the recent limited sale (I rushed to get it within the first 3-5 minutes) and I am waiting for it to arrive.
I am currently saving money and waiting for the new Ampere GPUs as I'd like to build a no-compromise PC.

I am also thinking about a Ryzen 3700x or a 3900x (I know the TDP is really high). What would you say is the absolute strongest Ryzen that the Sentry 2.0 can handle and what is the BEST (and maybe biggest?) cooler to pair it up with that can still fit?

Thank you very much in advance.
 

MelbourneFL

Chassis Packer
Feb 12, 2020
14
10
The 3700x is still 65W TDP. So that should be ok with a good cooler. The 3900x has a TDP of 105W. I don't how well that would work in a Sentry 2.0.

I also have a question regarding delivery of the latest sale. I ordered a black unit and got the confirmation email by PayPal but never anything else like a shipping info or tracking number. Is that normal? Were the units shipped already?

Thanks!

Alexander
 

tja4430

Trash Compacter
Mar 14, 2020
39
45
The 3700x is still 65W TDP. So that should be ok with a good cooler. The 3900x has a TDP of 105W. I don't how well that would work in a Sentry 2.0.

I also have a question regarding delivery of the latest sale. I ordered a black unit and got the confirmation email by PayPal but never anything else like a shipping info or tracking number. Is that normal? Were the units shipped already?

Thanks!

Alexander
Its important to note the 3700x actually runs around 88 W TDP at stock. I had the same question earlier in the thread.

I've researched the 3700x being used in the Sentry a little more, and theres quite a few Youtubers running that in their builds, but I cant imagine that they are running it anything above stock.

I don't think a 3900x would be a wise choice in this case.
 

tja4430

Trash Compacter
Mar 14, 2020
39
45
This is my projected build when the Sentry arrives:

Ryzen 5 3600
Noctua L9 AM4 Chromax
Gigabyte B550I AORUS PRO AX Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard
Western Digital SN750 500GB NVME SSD
Crucial MX500 1 TB SSD
EVGA RTX2070 Super XC Gaming
Corsair SF600
Sentry 2.0

Troublesome part is just finding parts, especially the ITX Motherboard, GPU, and PS in stock.
 

Redux-Limited

Caliper Novice
Sep 1, 2019
32
29
This is my projected build when the Sentry arrives:

Ryzen 5 3600
Noctua L9 AM4 Chromax
Gigabyte B550I AORUS PRO AX Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard
Western Digital SN750 500GB NVME SSD
Crucial MX500 1 TB SSD
EVGA RTX2070 Super XC Gaming
Corsair SF600
Sentry 2.0

Troublesome part is just finding parts, especially the ITX Motherboard, GPU, and PS in stock.
I think you should wait on the GPU, Ampere is right around the corner. If it were a month ago I would've said go for it, but now I think it would be worth wait a few weeks. Unless Nvidia releases the GPUs at crazy prices.
 

Khio

Caliper Novice
Dec 16, 2019
25
39
Hey everyone. Dzien Dobry @SaperPL, and thank you very much for creating such an amazing product.

I just ordered my Sentry 2.0 in the recent limited sale (I rushed to get it within the first 3-5 minutes) and I am waiting for it to arrive.
I am currently saving money and waiting for the new Ampere GPUs as I'd like to build a no-compromise PC.

I am also thinking about a Ryzen 3700x or a 3900x (I know the TDP is really high). What would you say is the absolute strongest Ryzen that the Sentry 2.0 can handle and what is the BEST (and maybe biggest?) cooler to pair it up with that can still fit?

Thank you very much in advance.

I think the safest Ryzen is the Ryzen 3600 ( not the 3600X wich has a 95W base TDP ).

I went with the 3700X in my Sentry for the 8 core 16 threads and because it's also rated 65W, with the Noctua NH-L9a it does throttle at 95 degres at full 88W. Wait for SaperPL to test how the Cryorig C7g does, the C7 aluminium was doing fine with open case but the fan is too close to the case and the noise was really LOUD.

You can lower the max TDP of the CPU, at 80W max the NH-L9a is enough for the CPU to not throttle. Unless you are not planing to use a GPU and go for a really big AIO ABSOLUTLY DON'T GO for the 3900X, Ryzen with 105W TDP use up to 142W and I don't see anything fitting the Sentry taking care of that
 

ChrisWilde

Efficiency Noob
Aug 1, 2020
6
3
I think the safest Ryzen is the Ryzen 3600 ( not the 3600X wich has a 95W base TDP ).

I went with the 3700X in my Sentry for the 8 core 16 threads and because it's also rated 65W, with the Noctua NH-L9a it does throttle at 95 degres at full 88W. Wait for SaperPL to test how the Cryorig C7g does, the C7 aluminium was doing fine with open case but the fan is too close to the case and the noise was really LOUD.

You can lower the max TDP of the CPU, at 80W max the NH-L9a is enough for the CPU to not throttle. Unless you are not planing to use a GPU and go for a really big AIO ABSOLUTLY DON'T GO for the 3900X, Ryzen with 105W TDP use up to 142W and I don't see anything fitting the Sentry taking care of that

What about the all-copper Cryorig C7 CU? Has anyone tested that? What is the max TDP it can handle?
 

SaperPL

Master of Cramming
DR ZĄBER
Oct 17, 2017
472
882
Talking about the TDP for CPU and the cooler is a bit useless right now for all the low profile coolers.

Remember this thing that killed Steam Machine prototype reviews:

120W powerful cooling - we have tested this thing, it couldn't even keep a 65W i7-6700 from throttling when running a 60Hz vsync capped games. Felt like something that should be used with 35W TDP CPUs. Similarly ID-Cooling states 120/130/145W TDP etc on their low profile coolers.

The thing is though that cooler manufacturers are either testing these low profile coolers at the same test conditions as big tower coolers, so a big vented case with front and back fans or a chamber that precisely controls the temperature inside by venting out the hot air, OR those 120W are based on test vehicles that are designed for older generations of CPUs and thus 120W for something like intel X99 is completely different than 120W on Zen2. The smaller node size means more thermal density and it's harder to transfer all the heat as fast as possible from the smaller area under IHS to the base of the cooler.

Add deceptive TDP ratings that don't take turbo into account and you have worse thermal dissipation in actual SFF conditions on the cooler vs greatly higher thermal output per die area.

(NOT) fun fact is, IMO Steam Machine prototype failed at reviews exactly because of CNPS2X, or more precisely because team at valve who put this together looked just at specs and paired 95W TDP K-SKUs from intel with this thing and it seems like they didn't test this extensively before handing it out to reviewers. If they went with 65W non-K SKUs and NH-L9i or a copper-core 95W intel box cooler, we could've had actual steam machines right now. But since the prototype failed thermally for CPU, every system integrator trying to tackle this just went completely different route to avoid the issue rather then figuring out how to make it properly.

My point of view on this whole thing with cooling CPUs right now is: Zen+ behaves better thermally in SFF conditions than Zen2. You might get diminishing returns on the investment when using Zen2 and cooler that can't physically handle the heat output. We will have to see how will 4000 series single-die chips behave thermally and potentially they might be a silver bullet for tackling this thermal issue. Chiplet approach might be cheaper to manufacture, but there are most likely bigger energy losses when you have to transfer data between the dies - you get longer routes to handle. If that theory is valid, then maybe Zen3 6 and 8 core CPUs will be a single die SKUs that are perfect for low profile cooling.

For now we are where we are.
 

Instran0

Master of Cramming
May 31, 2017
526
107
What about the all-copper Cryorig C7 CU? Has anyone tested that? What is the max TDP it can handle?


a copper or Graphene-copper C7 [ Noctua swapped ] ,can handle 95W TDP or higher, but not in a Sentry.

that's because you need an airgap of at least 3mm, & the Zaber Sentry only has a 1mm airgap.

although you could mod your Sentry, to fix that.
 
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Khio

Caliper Novice
Dec 16, 2019
25
39
3mm gap between top of the fan and the case is what we need ?

So a C7g with a Noctua 14mm would have a 2mm gap, that would need to find a 13mm fan or to remove 1mm of the top C7g... tempting haha

My C7 normal is resting in its box I think i'll scalp it to give it a try
 

Instran0

Master of Cramming
May 31, 2017
526
107
that would need to find a 13mm fan or to remove 1mm of the top C7g... tempting haha


yes.

if you sand down 2mm off your Noctua fan, then a copper C7 or Graphene-copper C7 cooler will work, at 95W TDP or higher.
 
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kazuma86

Airflow Optimizer
Jan 12, 2020
276
164
a copper or Graphene-copper C7 can handle 95W TDP or higher, but not in a Sentry.

that's because you need an airgap of at least 3mm, & the Zaber Sentry only has a 1mm airgap.

although you could mod your Sentry, to fix that :



Wow,, i will do this after i got another side panel from ZZ. If they are selling parts by parts >_<