Phase change 24/7

[Kohta]

Let me get your thoughts on using Phase Change in general, and using it 24.7.

Iv'e heard these things are loud, now when i think loud, i think of a body shop, which is my line of work, loud in my home is about the dB of someone running 80 grit sand paper over a metal surface, if it isn't louder than this, then i can sleep through it (i have a baby and i'm used to noise).

The only issue i see is condensation around the CPU's base, or in the back of the motherboard, -45c freon hits a 30c surface it's inevitable, before i purchase this kit:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/6...156_1366_939_940_AM2_Xeon.html?tl=g30c367s679

What are your thoughts on 24/7 use and it's pro's and Cons?

 

[Bobnova]

Personally, I wouldn't use phase on a 24/7 basis.
Mostly because the gains from running Cold aren't large enough to make a realistic difference in 24/7 tasks, especially with SandyBridge.

Pros:
You can run higher voltage "safely".
Previously unstable clock speeds (at a given voltage) may become stable.
Bragging rights.
Running Cold is fun!

Cons:
Wet hardware dies fast, proper insulation for a SB system is a pain in the rear and/or very messy.
Don't get that much more performance, if you aren't rendering or somesuch you likely won't notice the difference.
Increased power usage and noise levels. I have no idea how noisy as I've never heard one in operation.



Now if you were planning on getting into benching (see link in my sig), that changes everything!

 

[CompuTamer]

I have a simpler idea...

Run LN2 in a closed loop

 

[Gautam]

Plenty of people used to run phase 24/7 in the past. (It was easier as yesterday's CPU's didn't have the heat dump that today's do...though Sandy is an exception)

I did so myself for close to a year. It was nice to run at clock speeds far higher than any typical system, but even for a Conroe, the 300-400MHz you'd get over aircooling wasn't noticeable in day-to-day usage. What was noticeable was the fact that my system weighed around 100 lbs, took an extra amount of time to boot up as it had to wait for the compressor to pull down first. Other than that, there was nothing especially annoying about it in any way. Even the noise level wasn't that high. It was just utterly unnecessary and nothing more than a novelty. On a Sandy Bridge, you probably won't get any more than 200MHz or so over what you'd get on air. Is that, along with the huge amount of bulk, extra power draw, really worth over $900 to you?

 

[capttripppp]

Digital storm has some type of integrated cooling system that they use on their prebuilt systems that keeps temps below 0C. I'm not quite sure what it is that they use, but it may be worth it to research it in-leu of phase change

 

[Kohta]

Seems to not really be worth it, i can definitely find other things to spend $900 on. Leave the politics at home, they have no place here. -hokie

It was mostly to see if i could pass 5.0ghz, i can't do it with the Noctua NH-D14, in fact the chip doesn't like anything above 78-80c above 1.48v or it will just give up. These circumstances are easily met when ambient is 80F, i figured if i was going to drop $600 in a extremely good water cooler why not spend a few hundred more in sub zero.

Maybe i will just hold on to my extra and see how the ivy bridge/bulldozer are going to do, or just unload in the 7000 series GPU's, honestly i don't "Need" anything i'm just making projects.

 

[Conumdrum]

Another issue with 24/7 usage is the electricity costs.

 

[57udl3y]

You could consider a water chiller. Gets to almost 0C but would probably be easier to work in a 24/7 set up

 

[muddocktor]

It still has condensation issues and increased electric costs though.

 

[janas19]

Let me get your thoughts on using Phase Change in general, and using it 24.7.

Iv'e heard these things are loud, now when i think loud, i think of a body shop, which is my line of work, loud in my home is about the dB of someone running 80 grit sand paper over a metal surface, if it isn't louder than this, then i can sleep through it (i have a baby and i'm used to noise).

The only issue i see is condensation around the CPU's base, or in the back of the motherboard, -45c freon hits a 30c surface it's inevitable, before i purchase this kit:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/6...156_1366_939_940_AM2_Xeon.html?tl=g30c367s679

What are your thoughts on 24/7 use and it's pro's and Cons?

Just like every other concept, the characteristics of phase change cooling would depend on how you implement it. If you demand sub-zero temperatures, sure, you'll have to deal with condensation and a large compressor.

Theoretically, however, you could build a passive phase change cooler without any noise or condensation - all you would need is a big enough evaporator, a, and b, contentment with cooling the CPU to ambient temps.

Sure, you couldn't do any extreme overclocking on such a setup. But you could still have a phase change cooler without any noise and minimal condensation (perhaps even no condensation, if you lived in a dry region).

 

[janas19]

I have a simpler idea...

Run LN2 in a closed loop

Check this ... http://www.overclock.net/t/47538/closed-loop-liquid-nitrogen-cooling