Heatsink for Soekris net6501
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This is not perse pfSense related but since I use it and can't find anything useful through Google i'm taking the question here.
I have a set of Soekris net6501-70's
Thats a ATOM 1.6Ghz (dual thread) CPU.
http://soekris.eu/shop/net6501/net6501_70_board_only_en.htmlI have one in a rackmount case with 2 fans
And another one in a "standard case" without fans.The product page depicts a previous revision of the board with a smaller heatsink.
The ones I have have a solid aluminium slab on it instead of the black thing you see in the product picture.The rackmount setup runs around 55c idle, the other one 67c idle.
A bit hot if you ask me.Does anyone have experience with these boards and how to better cool them? Perhaps replace the heatsink, add a fan, stick on a thermal pad, etc..
I could just try them all. But I'd rather not waste money on several uninformed attempts…Thoughts?
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I've got one of the units with the older black heatsink. I stuck 4 copper BGA RAM sinks on top.
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Did that notably improve the temperature?
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I never measured it, and I wasn't using any fans, but it went from "burns at the touch" to "uncomfortable".
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Hah!
But you can see the temperature in pfSense ;)
I'm having a hard time finding a heatsink for a atom E600 series cpu :(
This is similar to what you use?
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/4811/Enzotech_BMR-C1.html
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/1730/Zalman_ZM-RHS1.htmlAnd more common blocks such as these are too large or in the wrong shape:
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/4693/EnzoTech_CNB-S1L.html
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/2932/Zalman_ZM-VHS1.html -
Hah!
But you can see the temperature in pfSense ;)
I'm having a hard time finding a heatsink for a atom E600 series cpu :(
This is similar to what you use?
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/4811/Enzotech_BMR-C1.html
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/1730/Zalman_ZM-RHS1.htmlAnd more common blocks such as these are too large or in the wrong shape:
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/4693/EnzoTech_CNB-S1L.html
https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/2932/Zalman_ZM-VHS1.htmlThe first one you posted is
more or less the same aswhat I used. I stuck 4 of them on top of the black "heatsink".I'd look up the temp for you but I don't use that box any more. I swapped it out for a DN2800MT + a quad-port i350.
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I see :)
Thanks for your replies though. -
For anyone interested ;D
Earlier today I have installed a Zalman VGA cooling kit.
(https://www.freezinghardware.nl/product/1730/Zalman_ZM-RHS1.html)I put the larger 4 on the lower bit of the aluminium heatsink and the smaller 4 on the raised part of the heatsink in 2 little squares.
So far the temperature seems down to 55-58c from 68c during normal use.
(Using this case: http://soekris.kd85.com/images/kd85_4h_6501/)I still have to test it under load and over a couple of days but so far things seem to have improved bit :)
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It been over a week and I'm happy to report the CPU on both Soekris computers went down by about 8-10c on average. Also under load.
In the rack mounted net6501 there are also 2 30mm fans (1 sucking in, 1 blowing out across the board) and that temperature went down an additional 5c averaging at 55c under average load and sinks to 52c idle.
The non-fanned net6501 in a desktop/standard enclosure sits around 60-62c idle and 64-66c under average load.It would seem to me that if Soekris engineering would put a slight larger finned heatsink on the CPU it would reach these temperatures this by itself already. The Alu slab is a bit insufficient in my opinion.
If you can find such a heatsink (Mounting holes 40mm apart along the side, 45-47mm diagonal) you can easily fit it on as the mount points are on the board. But I couldn't find a suitable heatsink that fits a rackmount or standard case.
Even better would be a low profile finned/ribbed heatsink with a thin (< 5mm thick 40mm fan). On the desktop case this "stack" may not exceed 25mm, preferably 20mm to improve airflow without needing to drill holes in the top cover. In the rackmount case the height may not exceed 35mm.
Since the net6501 has 2 fan headers this can be a viable option for some if some noise is not a problem.