PC in da closet

I have a few questions that pertain to moving my PC to the closet.
The reason I want to move my PC to the closet is the fact that I am trying to find a cheap solution for my HTPC. I will describe my specs below.

Abit KX7-333R
1700+@ 2.3ghz
Antec Truepower 430 PSU
Chieftec case with 4 Panaflo L1A case fans
AX-7 with Panaflo L1A
Ti4800 vid card with Svideo out.
Other misc. things

My computer desk rest about 10 feet away from my closet. I am trying to justify whether it would be better for me to purchase a VGA extension, 2 USB extensions (kb/mouse), and some speaker wire to run for my current speakers to run where my PC would be on the floor.
I am just not sure if my PC will be able to stay cool enough to stay in the closet with that kind of OC when I play games, fold, watch DVD's, etc. My PC climbs easily to about 48*C when I fold hard. I have a feeling that it can't handle being in the closet.

Now my other option would be to purchase a 15' Svideo cable to run to my TV, then purchase speaker wire to run to the speakers to have them be routed in my room the way it want it.

I know that my PC will stay cool enough if I place it above my desk near the airconditioner.

I really need some input b/c I have to move back home from my dorm tonight and was gonna purchase everything tonight.

Does your closet have a vent? If not, the air will slowly heat up to the point where it becomes useless. Are you going to keep your closet door open?

I can crack a portion of the closet open to where fresh air can get in. But I too was afraid that the PC would heat the closet up too fast. Unfortunately there is no vent to let fresh air in.

You would be able to do it if it was a VIA cpu. You could probably get away with it if you had a celeron or a P3 at stock or slightly overcloked. But you're not going to manage that with an overclocked AMD. Sorry. I used one to keep my room warm one winter when the heat went out, while my parents shivered in their room where the space heater was.

I think dust would also be a problem in a closet or other small space.

Mod your closet door to accept two 2x2 matricies of 120mm fans: 4 intake, 4 exahaust.

I think I have found a way to deal with this matter. Thx everyone.

well, what is it?

I have a second rig available to me. It is an XP 1600 system. I think I am going to it to be my new fileserver. I can purchase a 5.1 sound card and a cheap TV out card to go to the TV. I think that system will do nicely in the closet. I will have to test it out first though before I do anything. Gotta make sure the XP1600 doesn't heat everything up uber fast.

The AX-7 is a great heatsink, so you should be good to go.

Anyway, regarding the original question....

Remember this axiom: Modern computers make sub-par to decent space heaters.

InThrees said:

Anyway, regarding the original question....

Remember this axiom: Modern computers make sub-par to decent space heaters.

Click to expand...

Very true. That is why I am going to have to monitor this thing closely for the first few hours.

I would not put it in an enclosed space like that. If there is no or little ventilation the temp will quickly climb 5-10 degrees F which could make the CPU 10-20 degrees hotter. So it would be better to be inconvienced and have better cooling.

Thank You,
Daniel

Dude.... really, just go with a tualatin core PIII or celeron. Normally I would reccomend AMD for performance, but it's gonna get WAY too hot in there WAY too fast with AMD.
And for crying out loud... that 1600 is going to be a PALOMINO, which will run hotter than the 1700 T-bred XP!!!!!

Look through this:
http://users.erols.com/chare/elec.htm

That 1700 T-bred will put out 45W of heat.
That 1600 palomino will put out 56W of heat.

A 1ghz Tualatin p3 will put out 27W of heat.

(These are at STOCK speed. Overclocked is FAR worse.)

And remember... the temperature of the processor will increase exponentially as the air temperature increases. (not linearly...)

If you want a true-to life test to see if this will work, put two 100W lightbulbs and a thermometer in the closet. Come back and check the temperature a few hours later. You can safely assume that the air in the case will be at least 10C warmer than the outside air and that the processor will be at least 10C warmer than the air in the case. This is with top of the line $50 heatsinks, jet-like fans, and awesome case airflow. Without these, you can add another 10-20C.

If the temperature after several hours of this, plus 20-40C is NOT acceptable for running a computer, then it won't work.

A P3 system could be represented by 2 60W lightbulbs.

Or you could underclock the processor, rather than wasting money on an overpriced, old p3 board and processor. Dropping it into the 1gig range and undervolting it may be sufficient to keep your closet cool.

Just check on it periodically for the first day or so while running prime95 or another stress program, and see how warm it gets.

Good point... dropping a tbred XP down to 1ghz will only put out 30W. Same with a barton.

I helped with the servers at my school which are locked in a closet, the best solution that we found was to take the bathroom exhaust fans an install 4 in the ceiling venting outside via a 4" PVC pipe, an installing large grates near the floor to admit fresh air into the server closet, the noise of the exhaust fans never got above that of the server CPU Coolers

How about putting a couple fans into the bottom of the door, then a few into the top.

sandman001 said:

How about putting a couple fans into the bottom of the door, then a few into the top.

Click to expand...

Cant try that. The landlord would not be happy. I will just have to open the side door once I move the system in there. I think I will try the undervolting, unclocking the CPU. I have a radeon 7000 that is in the system so it doesn't push out too much heat.