CWWK/Topton/... Nxxx quad NIC router

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Sep 10, 2015
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Indeed I modify cars as a hobby too but my point was more
.look at all the people claiming overheat and throttling issues with these units. The fixes add to the price

Not to mention having to buy a new ps or what have you just to pass a stress test.

I don't read issues like that with ikool core devices. Hence the comment
Just because you haven't heard of issues yet doesn't mean they don't exist.

As for the ps issue it depends. CWWK included ps has been used by minipc mfg like Qotom for many years fine. Sure they are duds like any other products but in general they work well enough. Topton rebrands CWWK, their prices are cheaper, but they cut corners to get there such as including a lesser quality ps which people had memtest failures. For price conscious customer it doesn't matter as the application they use it for isn't as demanding in a stress test. Haven't seen a teardown of iKoolCore powersupply but wouldn't doubt it is simliar to many of the other std chinese ps. Pretty sure it isn't to the same level as Meanwell.

Not everyone has overheat/throttling issues. Many use it perfectly fine as is. Again comes back to what you use it for. Push it to the limit during summer time yea you'll hit those issues. They still work but just lower performance, but you have options to suppliment. That is the nature of fanless design. It also comes with it's benefit, no moving parts to fail and zero noise. Some people prioritize that need.

iKoolCore R2 is a neat box. Kinda want one for fun if it ever goes on sale. It has it's own suited use case. See it more of a desktop/homelab or travel setup than a set-it-forget networking device. It's smaller size comes with trade offs. Previous gen processor instead of latest. Ram is not interchagble as you're stuck with what you ordered. NVME is limited to 1 short 2242 stick. Fans which can fail & make noise. Despite the fan it still throttles at 93C running Cinebench

Boils down to what fits your needs. Each has their own strengths. Seems like IKoolCore fits you better.
 
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Napalm

New Member
Sep 8, 2021
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Indeed I modify cars as a hobby too but my point was more
.look at all the people claiming overheat and throttling issues with these units. The fixes add to the price

Not to mention having to buy a new ps or what have you just to pass a stress test.

I don't read issues like that with ikool core devices. Hence the comment
 

Napalm

New Member
Sep 8, 2021
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Wow double post. Thought that only happened on another site.

Anyway. Of the various versions of these is one better that the others?
 
Sep 10, 2015
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Wow double post. Thought that only happened on another site.

Anyway. Of the various versions of these is one better that the others?
analogous to asking "which car model is better" A coupe not necessarily better or worse than a sedan. Depends what you're looking for.

Brands

CWWK - original maker, spotty customer support , but ships fast
Hunsn - rebrand of CWWK but with good customer support on AMZN. Most expensive.
Topton - rebrand of CWWK, can be slow to ship, minimal support. Cuts corner with included accessories/power-adapter etc. Cheapest option.


Heat sink design

Type-A Short stubby, small/thin design, but least heat dissipation.
Type-B Medium fins Y or T fin. Larger, but better at heat dissipation
Type-C Tall long straight fins. Best heat dissipation but larger/heavier.
I3/i5/i7 version have extra copper heat pipes. N100/N305 versions only have copper blocks.
Larger Type-B/C has room internally for extra 2.5" ssd or optional 80x10mm fan.

Ports & NVME

2/4/5/6 ports. Some version has 1 or 2 slots NVMe. Speed varies depending on other port features. The 4-port model even have ability to accept a daughter board allowing 4 slot expansion at x1 speeds.

USB & i/o port

Varies a lot. Some have only USB2 while other have USB3 or even type-c etc. HDMI/DP/comm etc all varies too. N100/N305 has limited 9 Lanes so some features have to give to allow for others.

BIOS

Certain 4-port model have community modified BIOS to unlock extra features such power limit etc.
 
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Napalm

New Member
Sep 8, 2021
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Thank you. Based on your post there is evidence to suggest the topton is the worst of the set. So buy a cwwk or hunsn first or plan to take apart and fix issues with the topton.

Do you buy these with their included ram and SSD or buy them barebone. Seems there isn't much cost savings with barebone
 

inetjnky

New Member
Mar 29, 2024
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Does anyone know which SSD slot is the x4 slot in the N305 version C of CWWK model? Want to be sure I’m putting my SSD in the right slot. Thanks.
 
Sep 10, 2015
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Thank you. Based on your post there is evidence to suggest the topton is the worst of the set. So buy a cwwk or hunsn first or plan to take apart and fix issues with the topton.
The actual units are made by CWWK. No matter where you source them direct or rebranded might still benefit from new thermal paste. If you're happy with thermal performance then no need to do anything.

Topton included power adapter isn't as good as ones from CWWK/Hunsn but depending on your usage/model might be sufficient. Light load will be fine. Heavier load such as long stress test Topton ps issues might arise. All depends on your luck with QC.

If you buy from CWWK.net direct some tax saving could be realized depending where you're located. Hunsn sells on AMZN and provide great support. If you're curious, I suggest going back to previous posts & other threads/sites, read up on the exact issue/differences. But, yes, in general I'd recommend avoid Topton.

Do you buy these with their included ram and SSD or buy them barebone. Seems there isn't much cost savings with barebone
Since you're into auto hobby I'll give you another analogy. You buy a car with entry level tires or filled with conventional oil. It works, gets the car moving, but are you okay with that? Would you want to replace with nicer all-season tires or synthetic oil?

Same thing with the included ram/ssd. I explained earlier to you here. Up to you based on your needs and wallet size. Here are parts I bought, including extras but not necessarily what you would want or what other found to work.
 

fta

Active Member
Feb 19, 2017
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Topton included power adapter isn't as good as ones from CWWK/Hunsn but depending on your usage/model might be sufficient. Light load will be fine. Heavier load such as long stress test Topton ps issues might arise. All depends on your luck with QC.
All of these Chinese minipc sellers are going to give you a cheap, crappy power supply, including CWWK. Even if it’s supposedly a name brand power supply, the guts are usually replaced with junk. IMO you should always replace it with a known quality brand.
 

Napalm

New Member
Sep 8, 2021
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well on the car bit - depends on the car. a econobox that I don't plan to keep sure keep the cheap tire and the oil as affordable as possible that meets the manual min requirements or better.

My LS3, tuned 6sd, 4 door family car - well it gets premium synthetic oil runs on performance all season tires unless I race it when it goes on DOT R series rubber, etc etc. my truck that has factory twins gets a similar treatment other than the racing part.

Yeah I get the idea of better ram and SSD but does the box actually perform better like have any of you benchmarked one and saw say a 10% improvement. LIke the car issue - ok you put synthetic oil in it but did it really matter - well did you extend your drain intervals, or do you redline it occasionally. If no to either of those things - keep the convential oil.
 

Napalm

New Member
Sep 8, 2021
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I will say the more I'm reading about these and I'm glad I did, the more I want to get a bare bone box and have to rebuild it. If for no other reason that to ensure stability and reliability. So I'm planning that route at this point. And I think I'm also going to use a 120 or bigger fan on the top but I might still use a 12 V.

I was thinking of using a bigger/stronger power brick anyway and making a y connection on it to run say a fan or maybe 2 (for switch if necessary) and then the other Y is run to the router box. that way as long as the power was on the fan is on.
 
Sep 10, 2015
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All of these Chinese minipc sellers are going to give you a cheap, crappy power supply, including CWWK. Even if it’s supposedly a name brand power supply, the guts are usually replaced with junk. IMO you should always replace it with a known quality brand.
Yea they're all junk. Don't know the internals but Topton one is the bottom bin of the junk. Even junk has some use. For light/low power & non-important aplication it is workable. At least handy as a backup unit. I'd probably reuse mine for powering miscellaneous stuff like outdoor LED strips.

btw: anyone buying a Meanwell ps be sure to source from reputable seller as there are fake ones sold.

Yeah I get the idea of better ram and SSD but does the box actually perform better like have any of you benchmarked one and saw say a 10% improvement. LIke the car issue - ok you put synthetic oil in it but did it really matter - well did you extend your drain intervals, or do you redline it occasionally. If no to either of those things - keep the convential oil.
synthetic vs conventional does your car drive 10% faster? No. But it means you can go longer before changing. Slightly better engine protection & cleaner. Does that matter to you? Depends. For a beater car I wouldn't mind conventional. Car I'm going to depend or keep long term I'd prefer better.

I prefer to put my own ssd/ram of choice in a barebone. Intend to leave this in the media panel or closet as long term networking usage. Longevity & reliablity is preferred. Plus I rather deal with name brand warranty like Crucial than somewhere in CN which if lucky gets 1yr worth. For SSD/RAM I actually prefer them to be slower. Why? Slower also tends to mean less heat. Fanless enclosed usage that matters more to me.
 
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Stereodude

Active Member
Feb 21, 2016
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Does anyone know which SSD slot is the x4 slot in the N305 version C of CWWK model? Want to be sure I’m putting my SSD in the right slot. Thanks.
I don't think there is one anymore. The N305 only has 9 lanes and the design for these seem to have been a through a few revisions. They added USB 3 ports and made a few other changes, but also reduced the lanes to the M.2 slot.
 

Alec246

New Member
Apr 1, 2024
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Just got my N100 4x2.5G from CWWK.net. About 10 days very good delivery time.

I have already purchased these componentes from Amazon, waiting for delivery next week.

Crucial P3 Plus 500Gb - CT500P3PSSD8
Kingston Fury 16GB - KF556S40IB-16


Its gonna be BareMetal Firewall/Router, so I went for stability 24/7. Now Im gonna measure the PSU adapter to find the correct size for a proper high quality replacement.

Just have to learn how to replace the ThermalPaste, and if a Cooper Shim will be needed. I sure hope not!
 

Z0eff

New Member
Mar 15, 2024
7
4
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Netherlands
Does anybody know the pinout for this fan header on this CWWK unit with an N305 and 6 eth ports?
The one combination I tried didn't work and I don't have the tools to quickly check different pinouts. :(

I tried searching this thread for a little bit but couldn't find the answer.

EDIT: nvm turns out I just hadn't made a proper connection on the 12v pin. For future reference it's the same as the regular 4 pin motherboard connector

weird_fan_header_cwwkunit.jpg
 
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Sep 10, 2015
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Does anybody know the pinout for this fan header on this CWWK unit with an N305 and 6 eth ports?
The one combination I tried didn't work and I don't have the tools to quickly check different pinouts. :(

I tried searching this thread for a little bit but couldn't find the answer.

View attachment 36046
I have the N305-6L and measured the pinouts here 2-pages back. They are standard PWM 4-pin pinout. Should work with any 12v fan.

If bought from CWWK it should have included an an Micro JST 1.25 to DuPont PWM adapter.

Mine was wired incorrectly (red/blue wires were reversed). Correct order is BLK(gnd)-RED(12v)-YELLOW(tach)-BLUE(pwm)

Lucky I checked. If yours is also the wrong order swap it around like in this video.
 
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Z0eff

New Member
Mar 15, 2024
7
4
3
Netherlands
I have the N305-6L and measured the pinouts here 2-pages back. They are standard PWM 4-pin pinout. Should work with any 12v fan.

If bought from CWWK it should have included an an Micro JST 1.25 to DuPont PWM adapter.

Mine was wired incorrectly (red/blue wires were reversed). Correct order is BLK(gnd)-RED(12v)-YELLOW(tach)-BLUE(pwm)

Lucky I checked. If yours is also the wrong order swap it around like in this video.
Thanks for the additional information! It turns out I just hadn't properly connected the 12v line.

I didn't order directly from CWWK so ended up making my own adapter.
 
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