Intel 3.06 northwood 533 FSB in need of heatsink?

[dirfmike]

I am upgrading my old processor. I currently am running an old P4 S478 2.53 northwood processor on a 533 FSB Asus P4PE mobo.

I found a replacement P4 S478 3.06 northwood processor on a 533 FSB.

Is the stock cooling OK or am I going to want to upgrade to something else? When I configured my rig 3 years ago with the 2.53 all reviews stated that the stock heatsink would be fine which it has been.

Thoughts???

[Gorganzola]

If you are using the stock heatsink that comes with the Intel 3.06GHz Northwood processor then you will be fine. If you are using the heatsink that is designed for the 2.53GHz on the 3.06GHz then you may face some thermal issues, or at a minimum the fan on the heatsink may have to work harder.

[dirfmike]

Originally Posted by Gorganzola

If you are using the stock heatsink that comes with the Intel 3.06GHz Northwood processor then you will be fine. If you are using the heatsink that is designed for the 2.53GHz on the 3.06GHz then you may face some thermal issues, or at a minimum the fan on the heatsink may have to work harder.

I will indeed be using the heatsink designed for the 3.06 as the whole package is brand new.

[Gorganzola]

Cool, then you should expect similiar behaviour to what you already have. Pop it in and away you go.

If it was me, I would buy a third party heatsink and slap a 92mm or 120mm fan on the unit, depending on which one you got, just for the additional silence.

[dirfmike]

Originally Posted by Gorganzola

Cool, then you should expect similiar behaviour to what you already have. Pop it in and away you go.

If it was me, I would buy a third party heatsink and slap a 92mm or 120mm fan on the unit, depending on which one you got, just for the additional silence.

Well.... here comes the inevitable question... which one?

I am very big on silence. I'm not sure what is causing the most noise in my case right now (Thermaltake Xaser II) but I think it's my Western Digital 120GB HDDs. Regardless...

I was poking around NCIX and see positive reviews and a decent price of $35.86 Canadian for the ZALMAN CNPS7000-ALCU P4 S478 ALUMINUM HEATSINK 1350/2400RPM 20/25DBA.

[Gorganzola]

I really like the Thermalright XP-120 with a Nexus 120mm fan on it, but I don't know if there are any compatibility issues with it and the ASUS P4PE or not. The solution is to get the Thermalright SI-120 which performs on par or better than the XP-120 and will fit any socket 478 motherboard. Then put on the Nexus 120mm fan.

If you are price conscious then the Zalman that you are looking at will do a good job and be noticeable quieter than the stock Intel heatsink.

Thermalright SI-120 S478/754/939 120MM Aluminum Heatpipe Cooler Fan Not Included

Nexus 120MM Real Silent Case Fan BLACK/WHITE 1000RPM 22.8DBA 36.87CFM 3/4PIN

Nexus 120MM Real Silent Case Fan Orange 1000RPM 22.8DBA 36.87CFM 3/4PIN

[dirfmike]

Gorganzola... thanks for the replies! The links to your recommendations direct from NCIX too??? Nice.

Fantastic. I will post what I end up doing and look forward to more replies.

PS. Love your sig line and I did do a search before posting.

[Gorganzola]

np, glad to help. I use NCIX a lot and they have good selection.

[dirfmike]

Well, I think I will add in a heatsink above and beyond the stock intel cooler. I plan on OC'ing the 3.06 northwood I will be receiving soon.

Thanks to Gorganzola, I am torn between these two heatsinks.

--------------------------
$36
ZALMAN CNPS7000-ALCU P4 S478 ALUMINUM HEATSINK 1350/2400RPM 20/25DBA

or

(total $73)
$53
Thermalright SI-120 S478/754/939 120MM Aluminum Heatpipe Cooler Fan Not Included
+
$20
Nexus 120MM Real Silent Case Fan Orange 1000RPM 22.8DBA 36.87CFM 3/4PIN
---------------------------

I guess the price difference alone should point me to the Zalman? Is the cooling that significantly better? I'm thinking I can get this 3.06 northwood on the 533FSB up to around 3.20? 3.30?

[DeusExMachina]

Remember you'll really have to consider is height requirements in your case. Thermalright's product is designed now to fit any 478 board, Zalman doesn't make that claim. And the 7000 is the little brother of it's Cu, and you're getting less copper and a smaller fan (92mm, compared to Thermalright's 120mm <-- it can have a grill attached, unlike Zalman's fan too <-- it's not fun getting nicked by a fan!).

Personally I'd go with the Thermalright because it'll fit any 478 board (a major concern of these ultra wide heatsinks); the fan is a standard case fan (can be picked up anywhere and offers more cooling options on what type can be used); it's lighter (some are topping 900g <-- which would warp a vertical laid m/b, let alone can snap it in half, and take the $500 v/c(s) with it too).

DXM

[Gorganzola]

I'll be honest with you and say that if it were left up to me I would go with the Thermalright SI-120. I own a Thermalright XP-120 and it performs excellently with my Intel Pentium IV 550 3.4GHz. I run it with the Nexus 120mm fan on it, going at 1000rpm and it is quiet. No complaints in this department.

The recommended fan from Thermalright for the SI-120 is the Panaflo FBA12G12L1A. I just wanted a quieter fan when considering the Nexus. The performance with just the Nexus is awesome, throw on a strong fan and it will be even better. The Nexus will still give you room to OC, but I have no idea how much room. I was able to get my 3.4GHz up to 4GHz and have decent temps, the only hold up was the motherboard. It wouldn't lock the PCI Bus so my SATA hard drive wouldn't boot.

You can get the recommended fan here:

Panaflo FBA12G12L1A

This may be another viable option if you need more air flow:

Panaflo FBA12G12M1A