Cube to the MAX!

[minihack]

Did a stress test with GeekBench 64-bit with the Turbo Boost enabled and throttled in BIOS @ 3.37 GHz (34x multiplier). Ran it for over 40 minutes. Temperatures were stable in the mid to high 70's as compared to the high 60's in non-Turbo boost @ 3.07 GHz (31x multiplier). This was about the threshold for temperature, as any higher speeds climbed up over 80C very quickly, which is beyond acceptable for me. It appears that the i7-3770S can perform at around a 10% overclock in the Cube in the 3.4 GHz range.

I've included screenshots of both non-Turbo and Turbo modes for comparison of Benchmark Results and Temperatures using GeekBench.


i7-3770S in Non-Turbo Boost Mode @ 3.07 GHz

i7-3770S in Turbo Boost Mode @ 3.37 GHz

Ersterhernd

Wow, really impressed with what you have squeezed out of this Cube. Makes my water cooled mod feel a bit silly now....

 

[Soothsayr]

The 3770T is not officially supported on the DQ77KB, where the S version is.

Wow, that I didn't know. More re-checking to do.

I also noticed that the i5 and i7 NUC's were coming out soon from Intel. I'd love to see the performance of the i7 NUC and see if it makes more sense to go that route. Luckily I'm not in a hurry to start this project - I just finished building my first hackintosh in a temporary PC case (need to start a thread/post pics) but am almost done with my g5 hacks before I can move the equipment over. I will definitely need to take a deep breath before starting the G4 Cube project so my cube will sit in the attic a bit longer

 

[ersterhernd]

Wow, really impressed with what you have squeezed out of this Cube. Makes my water cooled mod feel a bit silly now....

Believe me Minihack, there's NOTHING silly about ANY of your work!

Thx for the comments!

 

[dddirtman]

a clever and well built cube

 

[ersterhernd]

Thanks! It was a TON of fun!

 

[ersterhernd]

Three separate stress tests using CPUTest for Mac on my G4 Cubes. This gives an idea of the performance and temperatures for comparison between the i3, i7 and i7 Turbo Boost. Note that only the i7 Turbo Mode pushes the fans to maximum RPMs.

CPUTest Running Time = 51 minutes and 45 seconds

1. i3-3225 @ 3.27 GHz
2. i7-3770S @ 3.07 GHz (No Turbo Boost)
3. i7-3770S @ 3.37 GHz (Turbo Boost)

Ersterhernd

 

[ersterhernd]

My Kill-A-Watt meter showed up today from Amazon. Here's some of the results I read with the i7 Cube plugged into it.

Power Off - 1.4W
Idle/Screen Saver - 19W
Desktop - 20 to 23W (Varies)
YouTube 1080P FullScreen - 42W
GeekBench - 64 bit - 45 to 80W (Varies with each test) averages 60 to 70W.
CPUTest - Enormous test using 8 instances - 76W (3.37 GHz)
Prime95 Torture Test (Blend) - 80-82W (3.17 GHz)

I am running the CPU power throttled in the Processor Override Settings in BIOS. As MacTester said in his thread, Prime95 uses more power than all the other benchmarks, thus this i7 throttles the overclock down by 200 Mhz due to the limits set in BIOS.


Ersterhernd

 

[MacTester57]

I have approximately the same values here. Prime 95 is a bit higher - about 85W. The exact readings also depend on the power supply and on the mains voltage (we have 230V / 50Hz in Europe)

MacTester

 

[ersterhernd]

Haven't posted to this thread for some time, but in preparation for OSX 10.9 due out soon, I added a new Intel 530 SSD (120GB) to the i7 Cube. It fit perfectly into the outer sidewall of the core, with its 7mm thickness. Used a small 1" square piece of 3M sticky pad to secure it.

The Cube now has the following Storage:

Crucial mSATA 256GB (2x128GB partitions) @ 3 Gbps
Samsung 830 Series SSD 120 GB @ 6 Gbps
Intel 530 Series 120GB @ 6Gbps

There's room for one more SSD if I need it, on the opposite side of the core to the picture shown below. Getting the Sata Power over to that side would be tricky though, I doubt if I'll do it anytime soon. This thing has plenty of storage in it now for what I need.

Ersterhernd

 

[minihack]

Haven't posted to this thread for some time, but in preparation for OSX 10.9 due out soon, I added a new Intel 530 SSD (120GB) to the i7 Cube. It fit perfectly into the outer sidewall of the core, with its 7mm thickness. Used a small 1" square piece of 3M sticky pad to secure it.

The Cube now has the following Storage:

Crucial mSATA 256GB (2x128GB partitions) @ 3 Gbps
Samsung 830 Series SSD 120 GB @ 6 Gbps
Intel 530 Series 120GB @ 6Gbps

There's room for one more SSD if I need it, on the opposite side of the core to the picture shown below. Getting the Sata Power over to that side would be tricky though, I doubt if I'll do it anytime soon. This thing has plenty of storage in it now for what I need.

Ersterhernd

Nice to see you used my idea on this! Amazing what can be fitted into a Cube (and around it!) isn't it?

My Cube is sadly waiting in line for me to get back to it......seeing you post on your build just made me feel guilty of neglect. As I write this I can see in front of me my iMac G3 (waiting cables from China), my Mirror Drive Door G4 (housing my Haswell Zotac while I finish the iMac case mod) and my New Mac Pro mod all begging for my time.

My own Cube now needs to be filled with water and then given some serious Watts. So much to do.



http://www.tonymacx86.com/images/smilies/icon_crazy.gif

As always though mate, it is great to read your builds even though they make me feel guilty as hell....