Today I tested the mount with an EK AM5 water block. This needed a compromise in the design (which I could work around with custom threaded fittings, but each cooler/water block would need its own design, whereas what I have here works with any AM5 cooler) adding a 4mm copper heat spreader on top of the CPU:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/am5-copper-hs.jpegIt's a smooth machined lump of copper with a pocket to grip the top of the CPU. I used a Thermal Grizzly Kryosheet pad instead of thermal paste (which was frustrating to cut to size), which I used to aid the potential repeatedly dismantling. I mounted the water block on that:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/am5-ekwb-1.jpeg https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/am5-ekwb-2.jpegThe whole thing is designed so the screws go all the way in (hand tight) to get the maximum out of the springs. Tightening was done in a cross pattern, a few turns at a time. Then the same Alphacool radiator hooked up I use for tests:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/am5-with-rad.jpegThe mount is solid, as it is with the Noctua fan, and can be pushed and prodded with no play. I ran the same tests as I did with the Noctua and earlier Alphacool water block, with these numbers:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/bc2etc-gen-waku-ek-am5.pngThe temperatures are higher than the with the Alphacool:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/bc2etc-gen-waku-acool.pngMy solution runs nearly 10 degrees hotter, which is probably a combination of thermal pads vs paste (I used Kryonaut Extreme as the paste, at around $95 USD per pot over here, which we use at work for GPU water cooling) plus the compromise of that lump of copper. But a maximum of 57 degrees is cool running!
I've decided against custom fittings and will keep the compromise of copper heat spreader, but I will switch over to thermal paste and re-run the tests next week.
It's quiet, with the fans stalling and shutting off, and with temps better than the Noctua fan:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/bc2etc-gen-noctua.pngAnd certainly better than the IBM HSF:
https://wip.numfum.com/cw/2023-07-14/bc2etc-gen-hsf.pngMore tests next week!