Custom DB4 build

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Raiju

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I finally have some time on my hands to start building in the Streacom DB4.

See review [H]


The plan is to go with a gtx1050ti passively cooled. I want to use the front and right panel for the gpu so I am moving the cpu cooling to the left.

The HDplex Streacom hybrid for the cpu, the holes are slightly offset but the pipes seem to fit nice without forcing them.

cpu001.jpg


cpu002.jpg


If all goes well stress testing the G4560 should start in the next few days.
 
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Got it up and running, it's been stress testing 3+ hrs. Got up to 65C fairly quick but it stays there. It is about 18C here.

cpu003.jpg


yup, that's naked

cpu004.jpg


Still not sure if I keep it like this or try to mount again because I have 5C difference in the cores.
 
Did the psu next, didn't want to go with the overpriced and ripple disaster ZF240 Fanless 240W ZeroFlex PSU. So I went with the trusted sf450, to get it in there I did the following.

mounted four standoffs on the inside of one of the panels

psu001.jpg


I used the thick thermal pad that came with the db4

psu002.jpg


Then I bolted the pcb to the panel, the pad got nicely squished against the vrm's

psu003.jpg


Very happy with the results so far, cables are a perfect fit

top view

psu004.jpg


side

psu005.jpg


I think I am going to hook up a buzzer to the fan connector, not expecting it to happen but this way I will know when the psu wants to spin up so it will be a overheat warning

While I was at it I changed the resistor from the power led, it is no longer bright as a dying sun

led001.jpg


Gpu left, went with a gigabyte, waiting for heatpipes to finish off.
 
I have all the parts now to finish the build.

Glued on some heatsinks just to be sure, I used expoxy mixed with aluminiumoxide. Installed a buzzer to the fanout.

psub001.jpg


Heatsinks on mobo, chipset got freaking got

cpub001.jpg
 
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And I ran out of tim, oh well still need to bend the pipes for the gpu.

This time I used shims because I wasn't happy with contact between heatpipes and panels

shims.jpg


tot001.jpg


tot002.jpg
 
test fit, looks ok

gpu002.jpg


gpu003.jpg


Unfortunately I messed up 1 heatpipe, it was damn hard bending them without proper tools. So I need to get a new one:(
 
Luckily I didn't break anything and all booted well.

I had to disconnect the buzzer because it didn't stop, I think I used a too high of a resistor so the psu thinks the fan is blocked and keeps on trying to spin it up, I'll fix that later.

Temps look awesome, lid is closed and case is in corner onder a shelf.

stress 1.jpg


Only one thing I have the gpu overclocked with msi afterburner but, somehow it throttles with furmark, it does boost normal with a game.
 
keeps boost @ 1721Mhz

stress 2.jpg


This was final config before closing up

gpufinal.jpg
 
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If there is no internal airflow, then how much difference does it make to put those extra heatsinks on the motherboard? Do you have a way of measuring the temperatures without and with?
 
atmartens said:
If there is no internal airflow, then how much difference does it make to put those extra heatsinks on the motherboard? Do you have a way of measuring the temperatures without and with?
Click to expand...

It's more important than in a case with good airflow.

Also there will be some minimal convection based airflow. There are holes in the bottom, and the top has small cutouts on the edges that will let hot air out, and then it will draw cooler air in the bottom. Not a lot, but it will help.
 
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atmartens said:
If there is no internal airflow, then how much difference does it make to put those extra heatsinks on the motherboard? Do you have a way of measuring the temperatures without and with?
Click to expand...

Exactly what Snowdog says, also there are cutouts in the panels itself.

Here is a 30 mins stress test. I used prime small FFT's for maximum heat. I also started the little render from gpu-z to keep high boost on gpu.

stress 5.jpg


As you can see, system 55C, PCH 56.5C all perfectly acceptable temps considering you will never get these kind of loads even with gaming. When I started with this build I had planned to drill holes in the top cover for additional ventilation but I am not going to bother with that now.
 
Absolutely stunning build Raiju, i had the very same thoughts using the corsair power supply. im having trouble locating the heatsink do you mind letting me know where you get the HDplex one? also could i trouble you for a measurement from the graphics card board to the side panel internallaly (where you have the thernalright VRM cooler) as im wondering if im able to use the straecom heatsink riser that they do.

Thanks
 
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Breeezey said:
Absolutely stunning build Raiju, i had the very same thoughts using the corsair power supply. im having trouble locating the heatsink do you mind letting me know where you get the HDplex one? also could i trouble you for a measurement from the graphics card board to the side panel internallaly (where you have the thernalright VRM cooler) as im wondering if im able to use the straecom heatsink riser that they do.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Thanks, I assume you mean the cpu blok? They only come with cases, I was lucky and Larry from HDplex had a used one he was willing to sell me.

This thing is all closed now, next week I am tearing it all apart because I figured out what is wrong with my naked die mount after watching Kyle's video again. And while I am in there going swap to swap out the G4560 with a 4 core. I'll make the measurement you asked for then.
 
Raiju said:
Thanks, I assume you mean the cpu blok? They only come with cases, I was lucky and Larry from HDplex had a used one he was willing to sell me.

This thing is all closed now, next week I am tearing it all apart because I figured out what is wrong with my naked die mount after watching Kyle's video again. And while I am in there going swap to swap out the G4560 with a 4 core. I'll make the measurement you asked for then.
Click to expand...
Thanks for that, im contemplating going with a G4560 as well instead of something like an i5, tried to highlight the measure in one of your images below hope you dont mind. :

https://preview.************/e5QPoF/vrm001.jpg
 
Breezey said:
Thanks for that, im contemplating going with a G4560 as well instead of something like an i5, tried to highlight the measure in one of your images below hope you dont mind. :
Click to expand...


Sure np. Oh and the cpu cooler is for sale on amazon
 
Breezey said:
Thanks for that, im contemplating going with a G4560 as well instead of something like an i5, tried to highlight the measure in one of your images below hope you dont mind. :
Click to expand...

Hi, sorry look a bit longer than expected. That distance is 55mm.
 
Amazing work raiju, you've really inspired me to push the specs on the gpu I was planning on putting in my system.
 
Hi Raiju, I have bought the DB4 and I am looking for a "4 months after" feedback about your DB4 fanless system :
  1. Is the system still stable (no crash, freeze, error message) ?
  2. How hot are the panels connected to CPU and GPU (can you put your hand on them) ?
Thank you very much.
 
Hi, the system has been 100% stable, I even mined eth with it a for a month while I was building a mining rig . With the 24/7 full load use the panels get a bit too hot to touch, thermals were all well within normal parameters.

The db4 is being used daily and is only off at night, with normal use the panels stay cool to the touch, 2-3 hrs gaming they get warm but you can touch it without burning your hand.

Good luck with your build, let me know if you want to know more.
 
That's an awesome build. One question though, if I may: why did you mount the PSU on the outside and not on the central column? If you were to do that, could you use that panel for cooling the PSU or additional GPU cooling?
 
Thank you, the psu vrm's on the backside of the pcb get quite hot, they are now cooled via a thermalpad with the panel it is mounted on. Works quite good because that panel heats up under load.

Since the m.2 ssd is cooled by the central column (also thermalpad) and the backside of the cpu also radiates quite some heat I didn't want to cramp that area.
 
Raiju said:
Hi, the system has been 100% stable, I even mined eth with it a for a month while I was building a mining rig . With the 24/7 full load use the panels get a bit too hot to touch, thermals were all well within normal parameters.

The db4 is being used daily and is only off at night, with normal use the panels stay cool to the touch, 2-3 hrs gaming they get warm but you can touch it without burning your hand.

Good luck with your build, let me know if you want to know more.
Click to expand...
Thank you very much. I do have a question. After assembling everything, I have plugged the computer, and power LED is always ON (impossible to turn off). Also, the computer cannot be turned ON, and the motherboard LED are continuously red.
I have an ASUS Z170I Pro Gaming. Please, can somebody check below my set up to see if anything is wrong ? I have plugged :
- the 20+4 pin on the EATX PWR connector
- 4 pins on the right side of the EATX12V connector
- PSW - on PWR BTN GND
- PSW+ on PWR BTN "PWR"
- LED - on PWR_LED -
- LED + on PWR_LED +

Thank you very much for your help !
 

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Did you test the hardware before assembling? I don't see anything wrong with how you connected led and powerbutton.

I am however not sure about the 4 pin atx, it could well be the motherboard wont power on unless it has a 8 pin atx.

What cpu are you using?
 
Raiju said:
Did you test the hardware before assembling? I don't see anything wrong with how you connected led and powerbutton.

I am however not sure about the 4 pin atx, it could well be the motherboard wont power on unless it has a 8 pin atx.

What cpu are you using?
Click to expand...
Thank you for your help. After discussing in another forum, a smart guy told me that it should be the CPU : in fact, the ASUS Z170l Pro Gaming needs to be flashed in orther to be compatible with Kabylake CPUs (mine is an i7-7700K).
So, impossible to boot into the BIOS in order to upgrade it.
The guy says that I have to find/buy the cheapest compatible CPU in order to enter the BIOS and flash it.

Just for information, I attach some pictures of my setup, which is not the best because it is kind of DIY, but maybe it can help.
The NVIDIA GTX 1050Ti from Palit is passive, however when it arrived, I found that the rad dimensions where oversized compared to the DB4 case. So I had to cut, clean the rad, and reassemble everything. I have also put some flexible heatpipes in order to compensate the lost of one heatpipe that I have cut.
I recognized it is a strange DIY, but it could works.
 

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OK, I confirm 2 things :
  1. The CPU i7-7700K was not recognised by the BIOS version. So a Pentium G4400 was OK to upgrade the BIOS and make it compatible with the i7-7700K.
  2. The Case I received contained a failure : LED and PWS connectors were inverted. I mean, I had to connect LED on PWR pins and PWS on LED pins to boot the computer. Crazy.

One question : every time I boot, the BIOS alert me about CPU High-Temperature. i7-7700K is around 89°C (according to the BIOS), maybe this CPU is not suited for this case. What do you think ? What should be the best performance/temperature ratio for the DB4 case?

Thank you very much.
 
I was having high CPU temperatures after almost two years of trouble-free operation and found out that my heatsink had come loose. Check to ensure you have effective mating between the CPU and heatsink before suspecting the case. No amount of good airflow in a case is going to mitigate a bad mate between CPU and heatsink.
 
Thank you very much for your feedback. I confirm that the CPU was overheating due to losen heatsink, now temperature is around 50°C. I am on Ubuntu and I have run a CPU stress test during 5mn and a 4K movie in Youtube in parallel : behaviour was stable despite a few lags in the movie.
The stess condition was using stress tool with the following command :
Code: 
stress --cpu 8 --io 4 --vm 4 --vm-bytes 1024M --timeout 10s

Please, I would like to know a good stress test tool for Ubuntu. Do you know how long time shall I do it ?
Thank you very much.
 
Thank you. And I confirm that ubuntu is stable with my hardware list (for people under 17.10, please be sure to connect under Xorg session by default, otherwise a black screen can occur after boot because Wayland can't recognize Nvidia GPUs).
 
Raiju said:
I finally have some time on my hands to start building in the Streacom DB4.

See review [H]


The plan is to go with a gtx1050ti passively cooled. I want to use the front and right panel for the gpu so I am moving the cpu cooling to the left.

The HDplex Streacom hybrid for the cpu, the holes are slightly offset but the pipes seem to fit nice without forcing them.

View attachment 24001

View attachment 24002

If all goes well stress testing the G4560 should start in the next few days.
Click to expand...
 
Hi Raiju

Do you have a link for Kyle’s video that you mentioned in your [H]ard Forum post?

What was wrong with your naked die mount?

where did yo get your replacement heat pipe?

Where did you get the heatsinks for your build? – the blue and copper ones you stuck on your build after you found the chipset getting hot

In your Hard Forum post, you said you used shims because you weren’t happy with contact between heatpipes and panels. Did you use shims for all the heat pipes that cam in contact with the panels?

I have purchased a motherboard that Streacom has told me is incompatible with the LH6 in regard to a DB4 build. I was intending to use the HDPlex 8 heat pipe heat sink with the CPU, and was wondering if bending the pipes might be a way of overcoming this incompatibility?
 
Hi Chocolateburmese,

I was thinking the heatsink didn't mount properly because of the notches on the corners of the plastic socket, but it clears them just fine. It is an other problem, the heatsink is 2 pieces and it turns out it has a crappy solder job.

I am waiting for ryzen 3000 and navi to upgrade. This was more or less a test build with cheap components. Still it's my daily driver and I game the crap out of it but I want to upgrade from 1080p and really push the limits of the case. I will separate the heatsink and resolder or use metal tim.

I'm in Europe dunno if the shops where I got them would be any helpful, they are very easy to get though.

Heatsinks were various ones I had laying around, I believe the blue ones are from Zalman.

Yes I used shims for all heatpipes.

What mobo did you get?
 
Hi Raiju

Thanks for getting back to me.

I posted a while ago, so I'm not sure what you're referring to when you say the heat sink has a crappy solder job. Do you mean the HDPlex 8 heat pipe heat sink for the CPU?

My apologies if this is a stupid question, it's just that I'm trying to remember what I was referring to when I asked the question.

One of my concerns is making use of the heat sink mounts as effectively as possible. Just using the heat pipes for heat transfer seems like a waste of potential when the heat pipes are heating up a chunk of aluminium anyway. I think you may see it the same way, hence the shims.

I thought it might be a good idea to see how IC Diamond Graphite pads might work. I intend to use the pads only on the sections of the heat sink mounts that aren’t in contact with the heat pipes. The issue there would be to get enough force behind the pads to get them to work effectively, but not too much and get a gap between the heat pipes and the sides of the case.

I thought of using the pads due to the fact they are ‘squishy’ and therefore I wouldn’t have to get a shim that protruded out the exact same distance as the heat pipes which would be difficult to do.

I purchased some copper shims from eBay and AliExpress that range in thickness from 0.1mm to 2mm in order to find the best thickness so the Diamond Graphite pads exert the ‘right’ amount of pressure to optimally transfer heat.

I don't own the DB4 yet, but I'm planning on making the purchase at the end of the month.

What do you think of my idea of using shims as well as the IC Diamond thermal pads?

I realise that using shims and thermal pads is far from ideal, but the only alternative I can see is to use a spirit level and a lot of sanding to get the shims at exactly the right thickness, and that seems daunting.

I purchased the Asus ROG Strix Z390-I Gaming Motherboard. Unfortunately I can only use the 'standard' 65 Watt configuration with this motherboard, so I'm going to have to buy another motherboard that is compatible with the LH6 kit and I'm planning on using a 3rd side of the case as well, so I'm going to have to do some work bending heat pipes at the 'right' angles as well as purchase extra heat pipes. Somewhat fun but also a little daunting too :)
 
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