Best CPU choice to avoid overheating in a small case.

Looking for opinions on the best alternative.
I'm putting together a small 'workstation' for e-mail, internet and
word-processing use - nothing strenuous so I don't need tons of power. The
case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a micro-ATX mobo, one
floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its side. Airflow is by
60mm fans, one front and one rear.
PSU is rated at 200w.
I have two CPU/mobo combinations available - one's an Intel P-III 733 MHz
and the other an AMD Duron 1GHz.
I'm looking for reliability rather than out-and-out speed and was wondering
which CPU was least likely to encounter overheating problems in the small
case I'll be using. The other CPU/mobo will be used in a bigger case at a
different location., so nothing will go to waste.
TIA,
Kevin.
P.S.: Sorry for the cross-posting - not too sure which NG would be best to
ask. ;-)

"Kevin Lawton" wrote in message
...
Looking for opinions on the best alternative.
I'm putting together a small 'workstation' for e-mail, internet and
word-processing use - nothing strenuous so I don't need tons of power. The
case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a micro-ATX mobo,
one
floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its side. Airflow is by
60mm fans, one front and one rear.
PSU is rated at 200w.
I have two CPU/mobo combinations available - one's an Intel P-III 733 MHz
and the other an AMD Duron 1GHz.
I'm looking for reliability rather than out-and-out speed and was
wondering
which CPU was least likely to encounter overheating problems in the small
case I'll be using. The other CPU/mobo will be used in a bigger case at a
different location., so nothing will go to waste.
TIA,
Kevin.
P.S.: Sorry for the cross-posting - not too sure which NG would be best to
ask. ;-)

Any heat problems will be down to what cooler you use, not which processor!
I have an older Shuttle case in my living room with an Althon XP 1800+, but
i have it turned down from its default 1533MHz to around 1250MHz. I also
intend to lower the voltage on the chip slightly - this means much less
heat. So you could consider the same move?? The shuttle case came with a
heatpipe and radiator at the rear with the exhaust fan blowing right through
it and out the back of the case, perhaps you could investigate something
along these lines.

On Thu, 28 Oct 2004 16:46:53 +0000 (UTC), "Kevin Lawton"
wrote:

Looking for opinions on the best alternative.
I'm putting together a small 'workstation' for e-mail, internet and
word-processing use - nothing strenuous so I don't need tons of power. The
case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a micro-ATX mobo, one
floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its side. Airflow is by
60mm fans, one front and one rear.
PSU is rated at 200w.
I have two CPU/mobo combinations available - one's an Intel P-III 733 MHz
and the other an AMD Duron 1GHz.
I'm looking for reliability rather than out-and-out speed and was wondering
which CPU was least likely to encounter overheating problems in the small
case I'll be using. The other CPU/mobo will be used in a bigger case at a
different location., so nothing will go to waste.
TIA,
Kevin.
P.S.: Sorry for the cross-posting - not too sure which NG would be best to
ask. ;-)



The P3 is better for that use, it will produce significantly
less heat. Google or visit manufacturer's websites for spec
sheets detailing heat, but additionally the P3 will be
idling most of the time in a HLT state while early Athlon
boards (and many later for that matter) did not enable the
HLT-idle feature. It will be a significant difference.

Reliability isn't necessarily tied to heat though, driver or
OS bugs, or particular motherboard makes/models can also
play a large role in that. We can however only judge by the
info provided.

A pair of 60mm fans should suffice, particularly if you
aren't using a high-performance (gaming) video card, but if
you can mod the case to accept an 80x25mm fan you may be
able to achieve greater efficiency, same flow at lower noise
or higher flow at same noise, providing you choose
appropriate fan. A single 80x25mm fan may even allow
removing the "other" 60mm fan if the chassis airflow path(s)
is fair to good.

your choice should be in cpu coolers not cpus themselves. Btw the major case
heater is your harddrives and psu rather than your cpu

"Kevin Lawton" wrote in message
...
Looking for opinions on the best alternative.
I'm putting together a small 'workstation' for e-mail, internet and
word-processing use - nothing strenuous so I don't need tons of power. The
case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a micro-ATX mobo,
one
floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its side. Airflow is by
60mm fans, one front and one rear.
PSU is rated at 200w.
I have two CPU/mobo combinations available - one's an Intel P-III 733 MHz
and the other an AMD Duron 1GHz.
I'm looking for reliability rather than out-and-out speed and was
wondering
which CPU was least likely to encounter overheating problems in the small
case I'll be using. The other CPU/mobo will be used in a bigger case at a
different location., so nothing will go to waste.
TIA,
Kevin.
P.S.: Sorry for the cross-posting - not too sure which NG would be best to
ask. ;-)

On Thu, 28 Oct 2004 13:42:04 -0400, "Monster"
wrote:

your choice should be in cpu coolers not cpus themselves. Btw the major case
heater is your harddrives and psu rather than your cpu


No, no, and no.

In a small case the heatsink size may be limited by
available space. Even so the same heatsink could be used on
either CPU, perhaps modding the Athlon 'sink if it exceeds
the socket 370 keep out zone.

It is untrue that harddrives and PSU are the major case
heaters. PSU EXHAUSTS, drawing out case air with it. Any
system set up this way will be COOLER as a result of having
the PSU in it, not hotter.

A single hard drive (OP is not setting up a multidrive
fileserver) should consume roughly 10W, which is less than
CPU, many video cards, or the motherboard itself.

kony wrote:
| On Thu, 28 Oct 2004 16:46:53 +0000 (UTC), "Kevin Lawton"
| wrote:
|
|| Looking for opinions on the best alternative.
|| I'm putting together a small 'workstation' for e-mail, internet and
|| word-processing use - nothing strenuous so I don't need tons of
|| power. The case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a
|| micro-ATX mobo, one floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted
|| on its side. Airflow is by 60mm fans, one front and one rear.
|| PSU is rated at 200w.
|| I have two CPU/mobo combinations available - one's an Intel P-III
|| 733 MHz and the other an AMD Duron 1GHz.
|| I'm looking for reliability rather than out-and-out speed and was
|| wondering which CPU was least likely to encounter overheating
|| problems in the small case I'll be using. The other CPU/mobo will be
|| used in a bigger case at a different location., so nothing will go
|| to waste.
|| TIA,
|| Kevin.
|| P.S.: Sorry for the cross-posting - not too sure which NG would be
|| best to ask. ;-)
||
||
|
| The P3 is better for that use, it will produce significantly
| less heat. Google or visit manufacturer's websites for spec
| sheets detailing heat, but additionally the P3 will be
| idling most of the time in a HLT state while early Athlon
| boards (and many later for that matter) did not enable the
| HLT-idle feature. It will be a significant difference.
|
| Reliability isn't necessarily tied to heat though, driver or
| OS bugs, or particular motherboard makes/models can also
| play a large role in that. We can however only judge by the
| info provided.
|
| A pair of 60mm fans should suffice, particularly if you
| aren't using a high-performance (gaming) video card, but if
| you can mod the case to accept an 80x25mm fan you may be
| able to achieve greater efficiency, same flow at lower noise
| or higher flow at same noise, providing you choose
| appropriate fan. A single 80x25mm fan may even allow
| removing the "other" 60mm fan if the chassis airflow path(s)
| is fair to good.

That's what I thought might be the case - that the P-III would dissipate
less heat than the Duron (thunderbird, I think). Whichever I use, the HSF
will be a Coolermaster Aero. The mobos are both VIA chipset jobs with
integrated S3 Savage 4 graphics, Creative sound and Realtek network.
I certainly won't be able to fit an 80mm fan at the back, but could possibly
drill extra holes to allow two 60mm fans side-by-side. At the front, I might
be able to re-drill and fit an 80mm fan.
So thanks, I'll put the P-III in the very small case with the 60mm fans and
the Duron in the larger case which will take 80mm fans.
Cheers,
Kevin.

Gareth Tuckwell wrote:
| "Kevin Lawton" wrote in message
| ...
|| Looking for opinions on the best alternative.
|| I'm putting together a small 'workstation' for e-mail, internet and
|| word-processing use - nothing strenuous so I don't need tons of
|| power. The case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a
|| micro-ATX mobo, one
|| floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its side. Airflow
|| is by 60mm fans, one front and one rear.
|| PSU is rated at 200w.
|| I have two CPU/mobo combinations available - one's an Intel P-III
|| 733 MHz and the other an AMD Duron 1GHz.
|| I'm looking for reliability rather than out-and-out speed and was
|| wondering
|| which CPU was least likely to encounter overheating problems in the
|| small case I'll be using. The other CPU/mobo will be used in a
|| bigger case at a different location., so nothing will go to waste.
|| TIA,
|| Kevin.
|| P.S.: Sorry for the cross-posting - not too sure which NG would be
|| best to ask. ;-)
|
| Any heat problems will be down to what cooler you use, not which
| processor! I have an older Shuttle case in my living room with an
| Althon XP 1800+, but i have it turned down from its default 1533MHz
| to around 1250MHz. I also intend to lower the voltage on the chip
| slightly - this means much less heat. So you could consider the same
| move?? The shuttle case came with a heatpipe and radiator at the rear
| with the exhaust fan blowing right through it and out the back of the
| case, perhaps you could investigate something along these lines.

I will be using CoolerMaster Aero HSFs on both processors, but I would have
thought that heat dissipation was down to how much heat the processor
produces ? I believe that the P-III will produce less heat than the Duron
but I'm not absolutely certain.
I'm not too sure about reducing the voltage and clock rate. I don't need
terrific performance, but a 733 MHz P-III or a 1 GHz Duron aren't exactly
'cutting edge' anyway. I'll be installing Motherboard Monitor (MBM-5) to
keep an eye on the temps - just wanted to get the build as good as possible
first.
Not too sure I really fancy having to go to the complexity and expense of a
heatpipe and stuff - though it does sound like a good idea for high
performance systems.
Thanks,
Kevin.

On Thu, 28 Oct 2004 18:25:35 +0000 (UTC), "Kevin Lawton"
wrote:


I will be using CoolerMaster Aero HSFs on both processors, but I would have
thought that heat dissipation was down to how much heat the processor
produces ? I believe that the P-III will produce less heat than the Duron
but I'm not absolutely certain.
I'm not too sure about reducing the voltage and clock rate. I don't need
terrific performance, but a 733 MHz P-III or a 1 GHz Duron aren't exactly
'cutting edge' anyway. I'll be installing Motherboard Monitor (MBM-5) to
keep an eye on the temps - just wanted to get the build as good as possible
first.
Not too sure I really fancy having to go to the complexity and expense of a
heatpipe and stuff - though it does sound like a good idea for high
performance systems.

A coolermaster aero is more than sufficient for the P3.

I have a miniATX box with less than (the average airflow for
2 x 60mm fans), it has a Celeron 900 in it with a small
'sink, 50 x 15 mm fan undervolted to 7V and still stays cool
enough. With the Coolermaster Aero you can probably reduce
it's fan voltage to the point where the fan is barely
spinning ( 7V) and still have CPU stay cool enough
providing it's base is smooth for best heat transfer.

A P3-733 is very easy to keep cool, though if the
motherboard allowed reducing voltage to around 1.55V, it
might barely need a fan at all.

Kevin Lawton wrote:

case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a micro-ATX mobo, one
floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its side. Airflow is by
60mm fans, one front and one rear.
PSU is rated at 200w

Take a look at the Antec Aria case (300W, no floppy, 3 HD, quiet):
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...129-146&depa=1
http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_g...antec%2520aria

Matt wrote:
| Kevin Lawton wrote:
|
|| case I'm using is one of those 'mini' jobbies:- takes a micro-ATX
|| mobo, one floppy, one hard drive and a CD or DVD mounted on its
|| side. Airflow is by 60mm fans, one front and one rear.
|| PSU is rated at 200w
|
| Take a look at the Antec Aria case (300W, no floppy, 3 HD, quiet):
|
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...129-146&depa=1
|
http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_g...6/search=antec
%2520aria

What's this - a PC case without a floppy ?
It does seem to be a very pretty case, and if I was in the market for
another case I might think about it.
As it happens, I already have the case and was concerned about whether it
would be able to cope with the heat dissipation of an AMD CPU or if it would
be better to use the Intel.
And there's still the problem of where do you mount your floppy and zip
drives in that Aria case.
It looks like I'll be playing the safe bet and using the P-III,
Kevin.