galletabah
Limp Gawd
- Joined
- Apr 27, 2015
- Messages
- 236
wow xDD
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Memory Compatibility:
Does this mean 34mm modules will obstruct 2.5" drives or does this mean 34mm is the max that will not obstruct those drives?
- Standard profile DIMM modules
- Max 31.4mm tall pcb/34mm with heatspreaders
- Tall modules will obstruct 2.5" drive bracket
I am trying to figure out what RAM sizes will work.
I do know, from the diagram on the Sentry main page, that if you choose to use the 2.5 drive slots above the mobo, anything over 34mm will hit the height clearance of that drive bracket: (attached)
I was curious if anyone as able to find a way to mount a 2.5 w/o using the bracket, or in some way that the bracket won't obstruct DIMM clearance. You can definitely find some 34mm or smaller modules, but it can be a limiting factor on selection (especially at higher mhz and, in some cases, for Ryzen optimized memory). I'm sure there are ways and I'm not complaining about the drive bracket. I bet the Zaber team made it that way so it would be as flexible as possible, but there are always concessions with SFF.
Memory Compatibility:
Does this mean 34mm modules will obstruct 2.5" drives or does this mean 34mm is the max that will not obstruct those drives?
- Standard profile DIMM modules
- Max 31.4mm tall pcb/34mm with heatspreaders
- Tall modules will obstruct 2.5" drive bracket
I am trying to figure out what RAM sizes will work.
US buyer from Wisconsin. I got my sentry and all the components yesterday, everything arrived on the same day!
This was my first time building in a case of such size and it was harder than I expected, but not too bad overall.
Love the case, very premium feel to it.
Challenges:
1) The pci extender install was CONFUSING! I had to watch Dr. Zabers youtube install video and pause and see exactly where the extender was supposed to line up, I wasn't sure if the 2 screws where supposed to screw thru the riser itself or just keep it in place, its the later.
2)The corsair 450 sfx psu wouldn't fit flush against the front of the case. This was due to the power slot overlapping the bracket by just a hair, this wasn't a big deal, I debated dremeling the power connector, but just kept it as is. I was still able to secure it with the screws just fine.
The only other challenging part was cable management, but once i figured out what worked and what didn't it came together just fine.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you plan to go with the stock cooler bundled with a Core i7 you will not be happy, it cools fine but it is very loud. I just purchased a Cyorig C7 so hopefully that is quieter.
Parts List:
CPU: Intel - Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock - H270M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 Memory
Storage: Samsung - 960 EVO 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive
Storage: Crucial - MX300 1.1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Video Card
Power Supply: Corsair - SF 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply
Other: Dr. Zaber Sentry
Some pictures:
Before assembly -
After assembly just before the cover goes back on -
I installed windows and played a bit of the new Tomb Raider. Very pleased with everything so far!!!
Thanks to Dr. Zaber and all involved for a great product that was exactly what I was looking for in a small form factor case. Finally, my very own steam box
We've posted an update with answers to the questions about the riser few weeks back as well as updated the online manual which fully explains the issue. So far it looks like simplified manual lacks the indication that the online manual is explaining things broadly.
As for the corsair SF450 - was the problem on the IEC socket or the on/off switch? It looks like the switch might not be located properly according to ATX form factor specification...
The boxed cooler on i7 isn't copper core anymore, we've talked about it before. You can try sourcing it from someone who had 4790K or a Xeon. You can get it unused for few bucks.
Copper Core is rated 95W and is performing almost on par with NH-L9i while the full ALU is rated for 65W which isn't perfect in chassis like Sentry without chassis fans.
Cryorig C7 is actually terribly loud under full load because it's designed for 60 mm of height and not 47 mm.
(A4-SFX has almost identical CPU compartment and this video shows the problem of Cryorig)
UPDATE: Sentry CPU cooler tests results
Read carefully as there are a lot peculiarities about how CPU coolers behave inside Sentry!
1) What CPU coolers were tested?
2) Test Bench:We have ordered the coolers we have talked about earlier in this thread:
- Noctua NH-L9i
- Scythe Kozuti
- Zalman CNPS2X
We have topped that with what we already had:
- intel Copper-Core Box
- Cryorig C7
Finally we also wanted to check out fitting and performance coming from 92x25mm fan mounted on top of NH-L9i. We did that with Arctic Cooling F9 which has pretty close parameters to Noctua 25mm fan and we could get that with our local distribution faster than the one from Noctua.
3) Testing methodology:CPU: 65W Skylake, the i7-6700
Motherboard: Gigabyte B150N Phoenix Wifi
Thermal compound: Arctic MX-2
4) Tests summary
Noise monitoring at 1 meter in front of the test bench
30-minute tests (10-minute tests are too short to stabilize the temperature ramp) for each configuration:
- horizontal position - Prime95 Maximum Heat (full CPU load test)
- horizontal position - Heaven Benchmark (gaming load test)
- vertical position - Prime95 Maximum Heat (full CPU load test)
- vertical position - Heaven Benchmark (gaming load test)
Tests were run in stable ambient temperature of ~25 °C that was measured at two locations: on the desk and
at 1 meter in front of the test bench.
Tests were run in room with ambient noise ~45,5 which corresponds to quiet urban area
5) Test data and notes for each cooler:Not all coolers passed the tests - read further for more info
Thermal performance:
Not much to explain here except the 92x25mm Arctic Cooling F9 fan on top of Noctua NH-L9i- it should perform ~50% better (the fan itself) than 14mm NH-L9i fan but putting it directly against the case cover makes it harder to suck air and in effect it performs even worse.
Acoustic performance:
Not all coolers passed the tests - read further for more info
Result analysis:
Coolers in vertical position tend to be slightly louder under full load than in horizontal position perhaps due to the fact that they are trying to push the hot air downward which effects in running at max RPMs. Rotating the fan to push the air out instead of pulling it inside is worth a try here but results may vary depending on cooler construction.
Coolers in vertical position tend to be slightly quieter in idle than in horizontal position. This is likely effect of the case orientation in reference to the noise level monitor/the user position.
Noise level is significantly higher when putting the 25mm fan directly under the air inlet because the fan blades are slashing air against it. This result is consistent with what we've already knew about those configs from our tests with Cryorig C7. Note the fact that intel's flower fan doesn't behave this way because it has open frame and can pull air from all around and not for the airflow directly from above.
Finally what is commendable is the fact that in vertical position intel box cooler is inaudible in idle and we had consistent results in four prototypes running: Xeon E3-1230v2, Xeon E3-1231v3, Pentium AE and i7-6700 and combined with semi-passive cooled power supply it is incredible that the whole machine is completely silent when simply browsing the net.
6) Final Verdict:Intel copper core box cooler
Test Data:
Intel Copper-Core BOX: Horizontal Prime95
Intel Copper-Core BOX: Horizontal Heaven
Intel Copper-Core BOX: Vertical Prime95
Intel Copper-Core BOX: Vertical Heaven
Notes:
Not a stock cooler anymore - current generation K SKUs are sold without the cooler.
Can be bought in new condition from owner of previous generation K SKUs or owner of Xeon E3 processor and is dirt cheap in comparison to other solution since it can be bought as cheap as $3 because most of the owners are choosing bigger aftermarket coolers.
Its noise is slightly more audible/less pleasant in the middle of its RPM range so tweaking the temps to RPM ratio in bios settings might be a good thing to consider. Note the fact it has same noise levels while having different temps between full load and gaming load tests.
It is the easiest cooler to install and maintain.
Noctua NH-L9i and the 25mm fan possibility
Test Data:
NH-L9i with 14mm fan: Horizontal Prime95
NH-L9i with 14mm fan: Horizontal Heaven
NH-L9i with 14mm fan: Vertical Prime95
NH-L9i with 14mm fan: Vertical Heaven
NH-L9i with 25mm fan: Horizontal Prime95
NH-L9i with 25mm fan: Horizontal Heaven
NH-L9i with 25mm fan: Vertical Prime95
NH-L9i with 25mm fan: Vertical Heaven
Notes:
Fitting a 25mm fan on top is possible but it doesn't really help.
It will fit under the drive bracket if you have the worst case scenario of motherboard layout.
The noise is more pleasant in the middle of RPM range than intel's stock cooler. It might be better if you're not fully loading your CPU while gaming and don't use the headset while playing.
It also performs slightly better than intel box cooler, but until you have go with 95W CPU, you might want to save those few bucks here and buy a better GPU or SSD.
Scythe Kozuti
Test Data:
Scythe Kozuti: Horizontal Prime95
Scythe Kozuti: Horizontal Heaven
Scythe Kozuti: Vertical Prime95
Scythe Kozuti: Vertical Heaven
Notes:
It is significantly louder than NH-L9i because of the small slim fan that is pull air through the radiator. I'm not a fan of such constructions from now on...
It also is not properly designed because the heat pipe ends are outside the socket area and low enough to collide with quite standard now memory radiators even the ones like small HyperX radiators.
Cryorig C7
The mounting of this cooler is not properly designed as mentioned before. First we had to grind down the crews a bit so they wouldn't stand out ~8.5mm below the motherboard while mounted on Skylake CPU. Note the fact that we have 7mm stand-offs and ATX requires only 6.35mm down there.
Josh from NFC also had to shrink the screws somehow but for a different reason - they were too big in diameter for his motherboard holes.
After mounting it actually looked like the tension made the gap between the cooler base and CPU cover because the base was then sitting on the coils around the socket. We tried to put an aluminium shim between the CPU and cooler but in the end the gap between the fan and inlet was so small that it run at over 50 dB.
We may try to check out some thick termopad as a mounting solution for C7 when we get some time for more testing in the future, but so far it looks like it's not worth your money.
Zalman CNPS2X
It is REALLY small - the photographs make it feel slightly bigger.
We've caught bad luck with this one - the unit we've got has a faulty PWM control and its fan is running like in idle all the time. I'm going for RMA with this bad boy sometime this week.
It also looks like it may be going for End of Life now so it might not really matter for you.
Finally I still wonder if it's really that good to support 120W TDP CPUs since Valve went with it for their Steam Machine prototype. It slightly outperformed both intel box and NH-L9i when running idle, but it didn't have best results in reviews we could find online.
Nothing really changed in terms of what we think you should do initially - If you're buying intel cpu then take it without BOX cooler and buy copper core cooler for few bucks online. That's for a start until you know if you really need to spend that additional money for better cooling.
For aftermarket coolers it looks like NH-L9i might be the best choice from what we've tested, but with all the data we think that you may want to check out other coolers in this format such as Silverstone Argon AR05 or Cooltek ITX30.
I assume you've cancelled your order on C7?
You can check out our test results of cpu coolers here:
As for the intel cheaping out - yeah they aren't adding the copper core coolers to the K-SKUs, they aren't adding them at all. What is more they are using some thermal compound since skylake that made people want to delid their chips more then ever before...
My short to mid term tech requirements have changed - If anyone really wants a Sentry get in touch via DM as I am considering selling my spot
I'm kinda short of money for school so I'm selling my White Sentry spot, whoever wants it please contact me via email: [email protected]
So I took my Sentry over to a friends' place last night for a LAN party. Everything went perfectly.
Can i just say... Holy crap. Until you've actually traveled with this case, you don't really have a good feel for just how small it is.
I took my Raven RVZ01 all sorts of places, and while it was doable, it was also bulky and uncomfortable to carry. The Sentry? No such problems whatsoever.
So glad you said something. I just checked too and mine is locked as well (order 974). Now to wait a month or two for it to ship to US.Order LOCKED! I just checked today and my order is locked! Woot! Thanks Zaber team!
US buyer from Wisconsin. I got my sentry and all the components yesterday, everything arrived on the same day!
This was my first time building in a case of such size and it was harder than I expected, but not too bad overall.
Love the case, very premium feel to it.
Challenges:
1) The pci extender install was CONFUSING! I had to watch Dr. Zabers youtube install video and pause and see exactly where the extender was supposed to line up, I wasn't sure if the 2 screws where supposed to screw thru the riser itself or just keep it in place, its the later.
2)The corsair 450 sfx psu wouldn't fit flush against the front of the case. This was due to the power slot overlapping the bracket by just a hair, this wasn't a big deal, I debated dremeling the power connector, but just kept it as is. I was still able to secure it with the screws just fine.
The only other challenging part was cable management, but once i figured out what worked and what didn't it came together just fine.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you plan to go with the stock cooler bundled with a Core i7 you will not be happy, it cools fine but it is very loud. I just purchased a Cyorig C7 so hopefully that is quieter.
Parts List:
CPU: Intel - Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock - H270M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 Memory
Storage: Samsung - 960 EVO 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive
Storage: Crucial - MX300 1.1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Video Card
Power Supply: Corsair - SF 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply
Other: Dr. Zaber Sentry
Some pictures:
Before assembly -
After assembly just before the cover goes back on -
I installed windows and played a bit of the new Tomb Raider. Very pleased with everything so far!!!
Thanks to Dr. Zaber and all involved for a great product that was exactly what I was looking for in a small form factor case. Finally, my very own steam box
Got my batch 3 black sentry today
Oh hey, we have the same motherboard. I'm pretty satisfied with it. Have you tried fitting the C7 on it? Might consider the cooler in the future.
I actually ended up cancelling the C7 based on feedback from this forum and some other reviews on youtube. I'm after the quietest possible cooling solution, which for me seems to be the nh-l9i.
What kind of paint are you using for the white units? I think I might just paint one myself. Has anyone done any custom paint jobs so far?
What kind of paint are you using for the white units? I think I might just paint one myself. Has anyone done any custom paint jobs so far?
What kind of paint are you using for the white units? I think I might just paint one myself. Has anyone done any custom paint jobs so far?
It's a high-graininess structural powder coating. It is being made by our 2nd paintshop (by themselves) and if you would like the exact colour code it is in the range of RAL9003.
You could always try covering it with vinyl like YetAnotherTechChannel did in his video:What kind of paint are you using for the white units? I think I might just paint one myself. Has anyone done any custom paint jobs so far?
About this. They should make a case just like the sentry but where there is a whole in the case on top of the motherboard for installation of taller heatsinks coolers and also include like some sort of grill to cover the whole when not using a tall heatsink on it.On the topic of building other cases! I would be curious if you guys at DR ZĄBER have any other ideas!
Someone on Reddit had posted this online a while back. Looks like he took your idea to the extreme.About this. They should make a case just like the sentry but where there is a whole in the case on top of the motherboard for installation of taller heatsinks coolers and also include like some sort of grill to cover the whole when not using a tall heatsink on it.