1U Heatsink for AM4 and X470D4U?

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Wolfstar

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Nov 28, 2015
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Looking at picking up an X470D4U and want to, preferably, put it in one of the many 1U chassis I have. The only real non-1U I have is my NAS, which is in a Supermicro SC836 chassis, but I want this to be a virtualization host, and the X10SL7-F and E3-1271 v3 in the NAS are more than adequate for that task.

Problem is, I can't seem to find anything in the way of options for a 1U AM4 cooler/heatsink. I don't really NEED a fan since I'll have counter-rotating 40mm Supermicro fans, but I can't find anything other than the Dynatron A18 and Dynatron T497 - both of which are nearly impossible to find.

Does anyone know, first, if there's a heatsink-only option for AM4 in 1U chassis, second if there's a way to get the Dynatron A18 from other than the usual suspects right now, and third, will a Dynatron T497 actually FIT on an X470D4U without interfering with the memory slots?
 

Wolfstar

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Yeah, that'd do it if I have to, but I'd prefer to get it BEFORE a month and a half go buy, especially with a $17 shipping charge. If I can't find another option I'll do it, but yeah - rather not.

As for the T497, I want to say it looks like I could get it to fit with careful placement, but the dimensions show 93mm x 100mm x 30mm, and per the board's manual, "the maximum dimensions of the heatsink to be used is 116 * 83.65mm." I *think* the 10mm difference is in the heatsink below the socket, in which case cooler orientation would probably do the trick, but it'd be tight as hell.
 

Wolfstar

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I might get that just to have it actually, but I think the fin-stack is going the wrong way. If I can rotate it 90 degrees I'm good, but we'll see.
 

Patrick

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I know @WillTaillac ran into some space issues on the ASRR X470's with the stock heatsinks and memory. Probably good to look into.
 

ramblinreck47

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I might get that just to have it actually, but I think the fin-stack is going the wrong way. If I can rotate it 90 degrees I'm good, but we'll see.
I’ve read through the installation guide, and it looks like you’re right. You can’t really rotate the cooler like you can with some of the other Noctua models. I really hate how the X470D4U has its socket rotation mounting perpendicular to how it is on every AM4 motherboard (part of the reason I went with Intel).
 

Wolfstar

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I’ve read through the installation guide, and it looks like you’re right. You can’t really rotate the cooler like you can with some of the other Noctua models. I really hate how the X470D4U has its socket rotation mounting perpendicular to how it is on every AM4 motherboard (part of the reason I went with Intel).
Honestly, that's EXACTLY the reason I want it. That orientation is tied to the RAM locations for the most part, which means if it's not rotated either the RAM traces are almost impossibly complicated, or the RAM blocks airflow in a 1U chassis.

That said, I think I've found one that will work - the Reeven Vanxie - which is right size and even with the fan comes in under 37mm high and has the correct orientation for chassis airflow. Some of the renders on their site look like they've got a block of fins in the middle that are off-axis by 90 degrees, but actual video of the real thing shows it as correctly lined up. Best part is, it's $20. That'll carry me for a while until supply chain stuff normalizes and I can get something beefier - it's not going to be under a huge load anyhow.

I will admit, life would be a lot freaking simpler if AMD had just used the LGA2011 Narrow ILM mounting holes.
 
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Wolfstar

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Just wanted to post a followup on this. I got the Reeven Vanxie today - it definitely will fit in a 1U with the fan off; I didn't bother trying with the fan on but it's enough taller than a standard Supermicro 1U that I'm pretty sure it won't fit. That's fine though, the brackets are designed to work with either orientation, and it's relatively hefty despite its small size.

I think I'm still going to look around for a Dynotron A18, but this should get the job done for light workloads on a Ryzen 5 1600 AF. Once I've had a chance to test with temps, I'll post again to give an idea.
 

Wolfstar

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Final follow-up. Let this be a lesson to everyone - check for adhesive-applied backplates on your motherboards when playing with funky coolers.

As it turns out, the X470D4U does in fact have its backplate glued on - in fact, it looks like a variant of hot glue - and is not removable without extraordinary means. (We don't have a heat gun and if we have a hair dryer it hasn't been used in years.) Since the Reeven Vanxie uses a variation on the Noctua mount method where you put bolts in from the backside of the board, that presents an issue. The worst part about it is the threads on the Vanxie and the threads on the backplate don't match; otherwise I could just go in from the top.

For a fit perspective on this board particularly, you can only mount it one way (the heat pipes interfere with the capacitors around the VRM), and even then the other end of the heat pipes cover the nearest RAM slot. Note, the stock cooler ALSO blocks that nearest RAM slot, so don't expect that to be of any help.

From the perspective of the project, which was to mount an X470D4U in a 1U chassis and use it for a VM host, this is basically DOA. Between the glued-on backplate, and the fact that I went with non-ECC RAM for 2x32GB DDR4-2666 which resulted in the heat spreader being too tall for a 1U, I'm now rethinking how I'm going to proceed.

Thanks everyone!
 

tracehopper

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Did you ever find a heatsink that would work @Wolfstar?

I'm in almost the same situation -- I already have one X470D4U and want to try fitting another in an old 2U supermicro case (2U + shroud = can actually go up to 70mm high), but it's virtually impossible to find a passive AM4 heatsink that might fit. I have a X470D4U already and the RAM is so close to the socket that any heatsink overhang in the direction of the RAM is not going to fit.

ASRock have a pre-built solution motherboard + case 1U4LW-X470 but the manual says absolutely nothing about what model heatsink(s) will work, and the AMD Cooler QVL List is empty. I have no idea how they've managed to sell any of these without this info. The diagrams early in the manual have pictures of a heatsink, but then you get to Appendix A and they give pictures & instructions for an LGA1151 socket! Obviously needs more proofreading when cloning from an Intel motherboard manual.

Edit: Dynatron A24 was one option I came across (for 2U -- won't help you for 1U), but was unclear whether that 78mm measurement is height or width. I think it's width but it's going to be real tight.
 
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Prof_G

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I know this is a different board but looks like asrock decision to reset the motherboard organization for memory(so-dimms), cpu as they went 2011 mount looks like.

Asrock rack itx x570D4I-2T

What’s got me is the power supply pins with no atx wouldn’t have thought to be possible on this chipset.
 

jpmomo

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Aug 12, 2018
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I know this is a different board but looks like asrock decision to reset the motherboard organization for memory(so-dimms), cpu as they went 2011 mount looks like.

Asrock rack itx x570D4I-2T

What’s got me is the power supply pins with no atx wouldn’t have thought to be possible on this chipset.
I have that board x570 and it comes with a 24-4 pin converter cable. You also need to connect an 8 pin eps. For cooling, I use a 1U dynatron copper passive heat sink with a noctua 140 industrial fan. I am still trying to sort out the fan settings. Btw, this takes the am4 CPU but an Intel 1156 screw in cooler. It doesn't look like the backplate will come off that easy. It also has threaded nuts in the 4 holes so it only accepts screw in type coolers. You would need to drill out those threaded nuts to use a noctua cooler. The noctua coolers are expecting 4 holes without the threaded nuts.
 

DavidB

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Aug 31, 2018
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the real kick in the nuts for me was that I RMA one of my early release X470D4U boards which had a non-glued backplate and received one with a glued backplate in return. Not all is lost tho, the Noctua mounting system allows you to use the original screws from the black retention clips through the top of the hole (which can be difficult depending on the exact cooler block) into the glued backplate. A hair dryer was sufficient in my case to soften the glue enough to be able to peel it off.
 

Lyphiard

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Oct 17, 2015
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If you're looking for performance, I think you should look into 1U AIO's instead of 1U. For example, Dynatron makes a L3 liquid cooler which should have decent performance (I haven't used it myself so I can't speak to exactly what temps you can get).

I spent the good part of a month trying to cram a 3900X with a X470D4U motherboard into a 1U chassis with air cooling. The Dynatron A18 isn't too difficult to find but has horrible thermal performance, I was easily reaching over 95C and thermal throttling. I couldn't find any other coolers which would work without peeling off the backplate or interfering with some components. I know of some people who used the included heatsink with the 1U4LW-X470, but apparently it's custom to AsRockRack and doesn't yield great performance either.

In the end, I managed to (just barely) fit a Dynatron A28 1U copper vapor chamber heatsink on this board. It's a 1U heatsink for the SP3 socket, but I made a bracket that would allow it to screw down into this motherboard. Combined with 3 14k RPM fans under a fan shroud, I'm still easily reaching 85-88C over extended periods doing p95 stress tests.
 
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Scarlet

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Jul 29, 2019
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A Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 without the fan should work, if I'm looking at the measurements right. That would save you some money and get a extra Noctua fan.

NH-L9a-AM4
I'm a bit late but just in case someone finds this. I tried to use this noctua cooler in a 2U case with an X470D4U. Noctua uses an alternate mounting mechanism that does not work with the pre-installed backplate on the X470D4U. Unfortunately the pre-installed backplate is glued on, removing the glue was not an option for me.

I ended up using a Noctua NH-L12S in my 2U case. All memory slots are usable with this cooler.
 

VMman

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Jun 26, 2013
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If anyone does have workable solution for 1U that would be great. I'm interested installing a X470D4U into a Supermicro 1U chassis without having to resort to using a 2U. The AIO L3 cooler does seem like an attractive option.
 

nago

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Feb 20, 2019
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If anyone does have workable solution for 1U that would be great. I'm interested installing a X470D4U into a Supermicro 1U chassis without having to resort to using a 2U. The AIO L3 cooler does seem like an attractive option.
As stated before ASRock Rack offers a 1U4LW-X470 Barebone with an 1U passive Heatsink. I know this german shop which offers the heatsink seperatly: Equippr ASRock 1U Heatsink They got it directly from ASRock Rack, maybe you can find another shop to get it for you.
 

Lyphiard

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Oct 17, 2015
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If anyone does have workable solution for 1U that would be great. I'm interested installing a X470D4U into a Supermicro 1U chassis without having to resort to using a 2U. The AIO L3 cooler does seem like an attractive option.
What CPU are you planning to use? If you have a lower TDP the A18 should work fine.
 

VMman

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Jun 26, 2013
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What CPU are you planning to use? If you have a lower TDP the A18 should work fine.
I was thinking about the 3800X but that is a 105TDP which seems to exceed both the above mentioned OEM heatsink and the A18.
I wonder if adding some high speed 40mm Fans would help a bit however I would like to avoid any thermal throttling.