The 4K Dell OptiMac - 9020 MT - Core i7-4790 - Radeon RX 570 - LG 4K IPS Monitor

[kazh72]

Last update for the day. Completed the build with a final tweak, undervolting the CPU. Very respectable Geekbench scores. Thanks to @trs96 and @kuty for their support today.

 

[kazh72]

@kuty when I boot up, the picker and the initial login screen (FileVault) is super low resolution. Is this the case with you? If I disable CSM/Legacy ROM support, it fixes the issue but then I have problem with waking up from deep sleep. Any ideas?

 

[kuty]

@kuty when I boot up, the picker and the initial login screen (FileVault) is super low resolution. Is this the case with you? If I disable CSM/Legacy ROM support, it fixes the issue but then I have problem with waking up from deep sleep. Any ideas?

I've never used the sleep features in OptiMac and I don't plan to. Booting time is OK for me and the Earth will keep spinning even if my carbon footprint is higher.

My boot process is in high resolution mode but Legacy ROM is disabled in BIOS (I don't know what is CSM).

Sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.

 

[trs96]

Here's how the GB5 score of the Core i7 2014 Mac mini compares to the i5-4590 7020 SFF model.
Nearly double the Multi-Core score and almost 200 points higher on Single-Core.

This is because Apple put a dual core laptop i7 into the 2014 Mac mini. The 2012 Mac mini models at least offered Quad Core laptop CPUs. Even those don't match the desktop i5 CPUs in the 2014 Dell Optiplex models. They also can't be upgraded to 32GB of ram as the 7020/9020s can.

 

[kazh72]

The Xeon CPU (E3 1245v3) arrived today and I couldn't wait so dropped it in straight away! The numbers don't look significantly up from the i5-4590 but the increase in the multi-core score, having the extra 4 threads, does really help with H.265 encoding which the iGPU cannot accelerate. It is able to encode just less than real-time so this is good news. (For reference I also purchased the E3 1225v3 as a pre-test as it was super cheap. That CPU was same performance as the i5-4590. It game me the confidence that Xeon CPU's would work in the 7020.)

As the E3-1245v3 is currently priced significantly lower than the i7-4770 or i7-4790, I feel this is a good way to get a 4-core/8-thread CPU into a 7020. I am sure with time, market movements, this may change. But for now, it's looking good.

 

[trs96]

CPU Cooler Upgrade for your OptiMac​

The CM i71C coolers are back in stock at a retail price on Amazon. 23 USD.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H1VZ11F/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

Newegg has them in stock again too. Same price.
https://www.newegg.com/cooler-master-rr-i71c-20pc-r1/p/N82E16835103279

Decided to use up some of an Amazon Xmas gift card and buy one for my 9020 MT. The stock Dell fan still works but makes more noise than this does. The difference is the larger 120mm fan that moves more air more quietly. There are lots of RGB effects that you can manage with the included controller. Not interested in any of that. You can search YT to see all the different options. Make sure to not buy the A version that is only for AMD motherboards. These i71C coolers fit right in to the screw holes of the existing Dell metal back plate, so all you need is a small philips head screw driver to install it. Easy. Taking off the existing backplate is anything but easy. I don't suggest that anyone try that.

You do need a 5 pin to 4 pin adapter to use this cooler so make sure you get that too. I bought a pair of black sleeved adapters on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08J812N2F/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

These are very high quality and reasonably priced but if you want to go really cheap, sellers on Amazon have the non-sleeved versions with the multicolored cables showing. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HF7YZ5W/?tag=tonymacx86com-20
They work but if you worry about how your cables look go with the black sleeved versions. Those will arrive a lot faster. The cheap colored ones take weeks to ship from China.

 

[trs96]

Here's a size comparison of the Stock Dell cooler and the i71C. Much bigger fan blades help keep the latter cooler and quieter. I'm not sure if the CM cooler will fit in the SFF models. If you try you may need to remove the optical drive for it to work. It should clear the ram easily. Let us know if you try one in your SFF. I have no plans to do so. Turn off all the RGB if you put one in the SFF, you won't be able to see any of it due to the solid side panel. Helps save a little electricity.

Here's the fit in my 9020 Dell Optiplex, in a Darkflash mATX case. Note that you must have all your ram installed first or the closest slot will be blocked by the cooler. The GPU backplate on my Aorus card has plenty of clearance. Does make things look a bit better than the stock Dell CPU cooler.

 

[trs96]

Another new product from Amazon that I'll be trying out when the NVMe drive shows up. This adapter costs just $8.99 on Amazon and includes everything in the picture. Build quality is good. Only downside is that the screws don't attach the LP bracket completely. Still a little play in the bracket when those are used. Other than that, very good adapter.

Amazon.com

If you haven't seen it yet, there's a detailed guide showing how to inject an NVMe driver into your BIOS so that you can boot directly from an NVMe drive in the PCIe slot of your Optiplex.

Install and boot from an NVMe SSD on a Dell OptiPlex 9020, 7020 or 3020

How to modify the BIOS of a Dell Optiplex 9020, 7020 or 3020 so that it can boot from a PCIe NVMe SSD Drive for maxiumum performance.

www.tachytelic.net

One final note. This adapter does have RGB lighting on it that I hadn't expected on something that sells for $9.
It's in an SFF case with no side window, so no big deal. If you have a glass side panel it could be a problem. If you look closely at the top edge of the card, you can see all 5 of them.

This could get very annoying very quickly if you have a glass side panel. Why do they make that star flash so rapidly ? The Chinese companies seem to think everyone loves and wants more RGB.

 

[trs96]

How to Make your OptiMac MT as Silent and Cool as Possible
​

• Get rid of the 80/92mm Dell OEM fans. The CPU heatsink fan and rear exhaust fan.
• Buy an extra front intake fan so that you get better airflow.
• This mini-guide assumes you've moved your MT system to a new case.
• If you want to keep the Dell mATX case, get a 92mm size fan for the rear exhaust.
• You can install a 120 in the front of the OEM case but airflow is restricted somewhat.

The cost of this cooling upgrade comes to just under $50 USD. It you enjoy silent computing it's worth it. If a little fan noise doesn't matter, just keep the stock Dell fans. They are high quality and last a long time. They do the job.

A. Get one of these CM i71C cooler fan combos. RGB doesn't have to be connected.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H1VZ11F/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

B. Get two of these Arctic Cooling 120mm silent fans. These are as quiet as Noctua fans at a much lower price.
They also have a 6 year warranty so you know that they are well made.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GSTMRFB/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

If you are keeping the Dell OEM case, install this 92MM Arctic fan as exhaust. Use the rubber mounts.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VJJ4BH1/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

C. Get two 5 pin to 4 pin adapter cables so you can use the five pin fan headers on the board.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08J812N2F/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

You'll also need one 4 pin splitter if you buy two of the Arctic Cooling fans.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EF9OI0O/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

Hopefully you've bought a mATX or ATX case that doesn't have restricted airflow.

Here's a couple of possible choices:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07N1HL5PR/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

This Silverstone mATX case is small and light weight. Doesn't have a PSU shroud.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PDT745F/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

The CM NR400 is the higher quality case with more interior room.

These are the idle temps I get with the CPU fan at max speed. It does make noise at 1700+ RPM
so I usually run it at the lowest speed. Even then it stays plenty cool. Arctic fan speeds can't be
ramped up higher than 1,111 RPM. So if you do game, you'll probably want fans that get closer to
2000 RPM. They limit the speeds of the Artic P12 silent fans to keep them quiet as possible.

When you consider that a 3 pack of Corsair iCUE SP120 fans cost $64 this $50 upgrade is reasonable. You don't get all the RGB Bling to impress your friends but you do get a cool and quiet system. We all know that the latter is much more important.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08XJZ82Y8/?tag=tonymacx86com-20

 

[trs96]

I've now put together a "cheat sheet" for all the Hidden UEFI settings you might want to change for the 3020, 7020 and 9020 models. I own all three of these in various form factors so I thought it would be nice to have everything on one sheet of paper for reference. Print it out and keep it nearby if you need to make changes or reapply all of them after a CMOS reset. I've included the factory defaults chart as well if you ever need those.