EPoX eX-5 MiniMe

Recently I bought the EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe, a barebone case which looks a bit nicer than the average PC casing:

EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe front view EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe side view EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe back view

Click on the specifications link to see what it is really all about. One of the problems I'm dealing with at the moment, regarding this case, is the cooling, and more specifically the noise that it makes. The cooling system is quite ingenious, as shown here:

EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe inside 1 EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe cooler front EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe cooler back EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe cooler bottom EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe cooler open EPoX eX5-300S MiniMe inside 2

The first picture shows the inside of the eX5, where the grey/white square in the middle is the processor (with thermal gel on it), and the blue square right below it is the northbridge. The black plastic bracket above the processor is the outlet for the airflow (the cooler blows the hot air into this vent, which leads outside the case). The second, third and fourth picture show you the cooler's front, back and bottom view. In the fourth picture you can plainly see how the cooler connects to both the northbridge and the CPU. The fifth picture shows you the front, with the front fan taken off. The last picture shows you the cooler in place, on the processor and northbridge.

My problem now is that the case and CPU are a little bit warmer than I'd like (35 - 40 degrees and 35 - 50 degrees, respectively, measured at the fans rather than at the core), and more importantly, the fans make too much noise. Apparently, the fans (Everflow 60x60x10 mm's, type R126010DU T) are known to make a bit more noise than they should. Also, I noticed that one of them was not well beared, making it more noisy. Since this machine is on my desk (obviously, it's too small and nice looking to tuck it away!), it should be a bit more quiet. So, right now, my search is on for two very good and silent 6x6x1cm fans!



Talk to Kryz



(c) 2001 - 2005: Kryz for content, Anya for design