X1000 not a fan!!

[AmigaNG]

So today I wanted to do a project that I have been meaning to do since I got the X1000, replace the the fan on the CPU!

Its so god dam noisy! So bought a replacement much quiter fan to replace the one on there.

BUT I CANT REMOVE IT!!!

the top two screw came off easy, but the bottom two just will not move, put a lot of effort into it to the point that now I think I worn away the head of the bottom right screw. Really Really annoying.

Why Amigakit on a $2,000 machine did you have to put on this cheap noisy fan!!! Glad its in a Factul Case, that does do a pretty good job at keeping the noise down.

So pretty much given up, I dont want to damage my machine over just the noise of the fan, but if anyone got any suggestings, cheers.

[Raziel]

Since this is a very sensitive area where you could permanently damage the underlying cpu, i'll pass on the heavy force solutions (Hammer, drilling a hole in the screws head, welding, cutting a new line into the screws head, etc.)

Isn't there a heatsink under the fan?
I don't remember anymore, have had my heatsink/fan combo replaced years ago, but if there is, you should(?) be bale to remove the heatsink from behind the mobo and then try to get rid of the fan(?)
That way you're not risking damaging the underlying cpu.

You could still try to:
1) put epoxy glue on top of the screws head (Some very strong adhesive "can" work too). Let it dry completely and use a wrench to turn it. Hopefully the glue will hold and eventually lossen the screw to a point where you can easily turn it out.
2) There are screw extractors especially made for such cases. Not sure what they are called, but you can get them anywhere.
3) You could try a bigger sized screwdriver (mind the force, though)

[nbache]

I've also replaced my CPU fan in the X1000 many years ago, and I had no such problems.

In fact, it's the first time I've heard about problems getting the fan unmounted, so it doesn't seem to be a general issue.

I totally agree about the need to fit a better (less noisy) fan, though.

I second Raziel's remarks, but I might still consider the drilling option, if you feel you are able to do it very cautiously. Maybe with a columnar drill to make sure it doesn't slip into sensitive areas? I think if you find one of those extraction tools, it might still require drilling a hole anyway, I believe they work by being screwed into such a hole with a reverse threading, so you can turn it counter-clockwise to bring the original screw out with it.

But whether these come in sufficiently small sizes anyway, I'm not sure.

Hope you find a solution - you will so love your X1000 when it has a quieter fan. Consider upgrading the case fans as well, there is a series of even quieter Fractal ones available. Oh, and your PSU.

Best regards,

Niels

[AmigaNG]

Yes I think you can just remove the heatsink, but I did'nt really want too. I am use to working with hardware and if it was a Pc I would, but I dont know I just find myself much more careful with my AmigaONE X1000.

Has there been much research or any test with CPU temps without a fan?

I think I'm leaning on leaving it as is and waiting for an Amiga show (hopeful there will be a future where they will be back on) in the UK where Amigakit or an Amiga nut has done this before and see if I could have it done at the show.

thanks anyway guys.

[Raziel]

...scary side-story...

When i switched my heatsink/fan combo i also had heatspreaders on the ram modules and didn't realize that the heatsink did not reach the die, but was infact dangling above it, fixed in place by the too high ram heatspreaders.

I did not load in WB back then, but was messing around in the firmware menu, trying commands and stuff and stumbled over "show temp"...

Funny enough, the temp did go beyond 65°C (not very much more due to not being stressed by the firmware) and i thought, oh my, what crappy heatsink i wasted money on...then i took another look (case was still open) and saw that the RAM modules were the bad boys.

Removed the heatspreaders, reinstalled the heatsink and down went the temperature to 35-37°C (Firmware) and 45-47°C (normal/stressed).

Sooo, i don't know what the cpu is capable of, but i remember reading some tech papers about the PA6T and i *think* they were talking about 70°C as a "safe" max.
But, of course, i wouldn't do it to test on purpose again

[tonyw]

This is not a recommendation, and may be unsafe for those in hot environments, but...

In all my NG Amigas, I run the fans at 7V, not 12V. The fan runs at about half the speed, but makes a quarter of the noise. It also lasts much longer before having to be removed for lubrication.

(+ve wire to +12V, -ve wire to +5 V in one of those 4-pin Molex connectors). Mind you test the temperature afterward to make sure it's reasonable. I don't know what the limit on the other CPUs is, but 70 deg C on the PA-6T is only warm. Here in Australia on a hot day, I've never seen my X-1000 reach 65 deg C, in a room where the ambient can reach 28-30 deg C.

[Raziel]

@tonyw

or simply use a fan controller like this. (I still use the one that came with my original X1000 case).

The five fan (120mm) Amiga case is more silent than the one fan (92mm) PC case.
Both cases use the same fan brand (Noctua NFS series, priecey, but the best and most silent there is), but the Amiga side is levelled down to the slowest (3v to 12v), while the PC is levelled where hardware/BIOS tells it to be (destination is 30°C and i cannot change that in BIOS).

[pvanni]

I had the AmigaNG problem, the fan screws doesnt unscrew, so I removed the heatsink from the mobo
to be able to remove the fan without the risk of any damage, then drilled the screw from the fan

[328gts]

hopefully this blog post i did when I changed my orignal noisy CPU fan will help you out:

http://mancave-ramblings.blogspot.com/2015/06/

[AmigaNG]

Yes, thank to Raziel I got one and its keeping my Amiga all nice and cool now! Plus the Fan / noise issues is solved! Happy AmigaN!