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Skyreach S4M Ryzen/GTX 1060 brickless

Thirumal Kumaran

Cable-Tie Ninja
Jan 22, 2018
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Mine has been performing well also. I'm curious about the GX12-3pin you are going with. How are you wiring up the one that goes to the wall? Thanks!
GX12 has 2 parts one goes on to the S4M soldered with a Cup terminal & other gets fixed onto the wallsocket with a splice terminal...
 

Thehack

Spatial Philosopher
Creator
Mar 6, 2016
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Do we have any source or experience to backup this?
My email to larry doesn't help.

The mere process of another layer of DC-DC conversion does this. But that is just a guess.

An IC drives some mosfet, producing the correct voltage. Since it is stepping down the voltage, it has to monitor its output. It also has to have low/high frequency filtering to clean it up.

Maybe a real electrical engineer can chime in.
 
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BrotherStein

Cable-Tie Ninja
Nov 11, 2017
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So I think I successfully soldered everything. Checked with a multimeter, and there don't appear to be any shorts. Going to try and plug up everything tonight to test.
 
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Zackmd1

Airflow Optimizer
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Jun 3, 2016
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Well guys my gx12 connector failed today. Think it might be a bad solder joint as when temperature goes up, the system power cycles. Bypassed the connector and everything works perfectly. So I think I might be on the hunt for another power connector that can handle the thicker gauge wire that our power demands require. There is not much room in the connector which is what I think contributed to the bad solder joint.

Also appears that my gtx 1060 might be nearing the end of its life.... Temperatures have been getting out of control as of late (80C+) even with a fresh application of thermal paste and fan manually set to 100%. Possibly looking into a 1050ti since it can handle the majority of settings that the 1060 can at 1080p. That should be a decent stop gap until the 11 series midrange cards are released.
 

Thirumal Kumaran

Cable-Tie Ninja
Jan 22, 2018
146
67
Well guys my gx12 connector failed today.
That is very interesting...

I have setup my meanwell UHP 200 24 with gx12 and used to run 8700 and 1060 mini without any issues...
BTW, what did you load your setup with...?
I might be interested to replicate..
BTW, the connector does get hot (slight warm), but not too hot to fail...
Might be the quality of the connector playing here...

As an alternative you can look into a C6 connector, but might need a bit of grinding to fit in...
I'm currently trying to fit the C6 as an alternative. But it needs removing both the threads and use a screw and nut to secure it... It is a laborious process..
 

Zackmd1

Airflow Optimizer
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Jun 3, 2016
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That is very interesting...

I have setup my meanwell UHP 200 24 with gx12 and used to run 8700 and 1060 mini without any issues...
BTW, what did you load your setup with...?
I might be interested to replicate..
BTW, the connector does get hot (slight warm), but not too hot to fail...
Might be the quality of the connector playing here...

As an alternative you can look into a C6 connector, but might need a bit of grinding to fit in...
I'm currently trying to fit the C6 as an alternative. But it needs removing both the threads and use a screw and nut to secure it... It is a laborious process..

So it actually happened while playing fortnite. But can be replicated by running heaven benchmark at max settings 2560x1440 and prime95 simultaneously. Within a minute my PC power cycled suggesting it was a thermal issue. Troubleshooted alot of things and in the end, hardwired the power supply to the AC cord and it functioned perfectly. Best I can figure, there is a solder joint somewhere in my connector that is cracked. As temperature goes up, crack expands just enough to cause the power supply to trip.
 

BrotherStein

Cable-Tie Ninja
Nov 11, 2017
168
136
So it actually happened while playing fortnite. But can be replicated by running heaven benchmark at max settings 2560x1440 and prime95 simultaneously. Within a minute my PC power cycled suggesting it was a thermal issue. Troubleshooted alot of things and in the end, hardwired the power supply to the AC cord and it functioned perfectly. Best I can figure, there is a solder joint somewhere in my connector that is cracked. As temperature goes up, crack expands just enough to cause the power supply to trip.

Good to know. I had to take mine apart to do some work on the case and GPU. I'm not super confident in my solder skills, but we will see. Thanks for the updates @Zackmd1!
 
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Zackmd1

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Jun 3, 2016
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Anyone got any recommendations on how I can bring down the temps on my 1060? I want to make this thing last as long as possible since 1050 ti prices are still high and 11 series are around the corner....

I am thinking of modding a vapor chamber cooler and either using the fan mounts in the S4 or creating my own fan mounting system. Either way i want to completely replace the crappy OEM aluminum heatsink.
 

Thehack

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Mar 6, 2016
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Unfortunately, you have the Zotac crappy cooler edition, so there's not much you can do, outside of repasting incase of a bad paste.

1. Nvidia GTX 10-series uses GPU Boost 3.0. How it works is that it checks for thermal headroom and power headroom. If there is still headroom for both, it'll overclock itself. This means, on most default setup, it'll keep boosting until it hits around 80C.

2. If your goal is to lower temp and and decrease noise, you should decrease power limit, and apply an "undervolt." Download MSI and start off with the following settings: -15% power limit, +100mhz core. Keep temp at 80C.

3. If your goal is to squeeze more boost, add a +100mhz core.

4. By adding increase core clocks, you're essentially undervolting, allowing it to achieve the same clock with lower voltage. Power limits and thermal limits take care of the rest.

5. If your goal is to run your GPU cooler, apply temp limit of 75C, +100mhz core.

Those are just baseline settings, every chip is a lil' different. Regardless, understand that unless you change the temp limit, the GPU will keep boosting itself until it hits power limit.

For cooler replacement, if you can get your hands on an EVGA version cooler, that would be the best. You should look for 1060 SC versions.

Regardless, you don't have to worry about life span. GPUs are very hardy, and as long as it's thermally limiting properly at 80C, it'll last just fine.
 
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Zackmd1

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Jun 3, 2016
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Even with those settings the GPU still managed 77C... I have been trying to find a evga cooler for some time with no luck...
 

Thehack

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Mar 6, 2016
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Even with those settings the GPU still managed 77C... I have been trying to find a evga cooler for some time with no luck...


77c is very acceptable. Keep in mind that the gpu will keep boosting if it sees temp overhead. Temperature is really a non issue. You should be looking at noise or low performance (lack of boost) as indicator of issues. Nvidia gpu are literally designed to stay pegged at 80C.
 
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TheHig

King of Cable Management
Oct 13, 2016
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This^.

Hopefully you can find some settings in afterburner to get your card where you like it @Zackmd1

My S4 runs the MSI Aero itx 1060 and it it very respectable concerning noise levels. It has the zero fan speed for temps under 50ish also which is a godsend for normal 2d stuff. The L9i fan on the cpu is all I can hear. All the Zotac minis have an always on fan correct?

@Thehack awesome pointers on gpu tuning. Good stuff.
 

Zackmd1

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Jun 3, 2016
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This^.

Hopefully you can find some settings in afterburner to get your card where you like it @Zackmd1

My S4 runs the MSI Aero itx 1060 and it it very respectable concerning noise levels. It has the zero fan speed for temps under 50ish also which is a godsend for normal 2d stuff. The L9i fan on the cpu is all I can hear. All the Zotac minis have an always on fan correct?

@Thehack awesome pointers on gpu tuning. Good stuff.

Yea the fan runs constantly. The reason why I am bringing up a temp issue is that my GPU used to be happy around 72C. The fan RPM no longer climbs as fast as it did before/ max RPM is lower yet temp is higher.
 
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BrotherStein

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Nov 11, 2017
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I'm not sure what has happened your case, but something blew in my GTX 970 mini a month ago or so. The fan ran at what I guess would be close to 100%. Could not control RPM at all. I pulled off the shroud and stuck a 92mm Noctua fan on it and it was way more quiet. I still can't control the RPM (this model doesn't have PWM), but it still keeps it pretty cool for gaming and everyday use. I'm in the same boat where I'm just waiting for the 11 line to come out.