Pro Overclocker der8auer calls Intel X299 a “VRM Disaster”
Pro Overclocker der8auer calls Intel X299 a “VRM Disaster”
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One other factor that der8auer slammed Intel’s X299 platform for was the fact that most lower-end motherboards only included a single 8-pin EPS connector, which he states is not enough to safely deliver power to an overclocked i9 7900X.Â
In his testing, the cables of his 8-pin EPS connector was 65 degrees Celsius beside the main body of the PSU, which was a Super Flower unit. While this seems concerning, a lot of this heat stems from Super Flower’s universal 9-pin PSU connector, which contains a LED, have less conductors than other modular PSU connector designs and must offer +5V and +3.3V support as well as +12V for EPS/CPU power, showing that the PSU is at fault and not X299. Â
While splitting the power across extra cables, like when using a motherboard with an 8+4 or 8+8 EPS power solution will alleviate this issue on the Super Flower PSU, so would using a PSU with a more traditional modular connection design. Below is a comment from Jon Gerow, the world-class PSU expert known as “Johnny Guru”.Â
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If you used the SuperFlower PSU in the video with the crystal connectors, that’s part of your problem. Those “universal 9-pin connectors” have less conductors than most other modular PSUs because the same connector that’s used for EPS12V, PCIe, etc. has to also support +5V and +3.3V for Molex and SATA and then there’s an “LED pin” which, when grounded to a ground pin, turns on the interface’s LED. A horribly bad design. This is why the wires would be so hot.I suggest checking the voltage at the PSU and then at the motherboard’s EPS12V to see what the drop looks like under load. If the voltage is significantly lower than +12V, the board is going to have to pull more current than it normally would. I then suggest using that AX1500i you have on the shelf behind you and see if you end up with the same results since that modular cable for the EPS12V is four +12V pins and four grounds. — jonny
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This story will no doubt develop over time, especially as we continue to review additional X299 motherboards and test their VRM cooling solutions. At a minimum, motherboards are acting inconsistently, though at this time it is unknown whether or not these defects are restricted to just early X299 samples. Â
One other concerning factor is that the i9 7900X is not the most powerful CPU in Intel’s X299 lineup, with 12-core and up to 18-core CPUs on the way, all of which people will be interested in overclocking. Will these new CPUs be suitable for today’s X299 motherboard offerings, or will they require more powerful X299 motherboard VRM solutions? Â Â
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You can join the discussion on der8auer calling X299 a VRM disaster on the OC3D Forums.Â
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Pro Overclocker der8auer calls Intel X299 a “VRM Disaster”
 Â
Â
One other factor that der8auer slammed Intel’s X299 platform for was the fact that most lower-end motherboards only included a single 8-pin EPS connector, which he states is not enough to safely deliver power to an overclocked i9 7900X.Â
In his testing, the cables of his 8-pin EPS connector was 65 degrees Celsius beside the main body of the PSU, which was a Super Flower unit. While this seems concerning, a lot of this heat stems from Super Flower’s universal 9-pin PSU connector, which contains a LED, have less conductors than other modular PSU connector designs and must offer +5V and +3.3V support as well as +12V for EPS/CPU power, showing that the PSU is at fault and not X299. Â
While splitting the power across extra cables, like when using a motherboard with an 8+4 or 8+8 EPS power solution will alleviate this issue on the Super Flower PSU, so would using a PSU with a more traditional modular connection design. Below is a comment from Jon Gerow, the world-class PSU expert known as “Johnny Guru”.Â
Â
If you used the SuperFlower PSU in the video with the crystal connectors, that’s part of your problem. Those “universal 9-pin connectors” have less conductors than most other modular PSUs because the same connector that’s used for EPS12V, PCIe, etc. has to also support +5V and +3.3V for Molex and SATA and then there’s an “LED pin” which, when grounded to a ground pin, turns on the interface’s LED. A horribly bad design. This is why the wires would be so hot.I suggest checking the voltage at the PSU and then at the motherboard’s EPS12V to see what the drop looks like under load. If the voltage is significantly lower than +12V, the board is going to have to pull more current than it normally would. I then suggest using that AX1500i you have on the shelf behind you and see if you end up with the same results since that modular cable for the EPS12V is four +12V pins and four grounds. — jonny
Â
This story will no doubt develop over time, especially as we continue to review additional X299 motherboards and test their VRM cooling solutions. At a minimum, motherboards are acting inconsistently, though at this time it is unknown whether or not these defects are restricted to just early X299 samples. Â
One other concerning factor is that the i9 7900X is not the most powerful CPU in Intel’s X299 lineup, with 12-core and up to 18-core CPUs on the way, all of which people will be interested in overclocking. Will these new CPUs be suitable for today’s X299 motherboard offerings, or will they require more powerful X299 motherboard VRM solutions? Â Â
Â
You can join the discussion on der8auer calling X299 a VRM disaster on the OC3D Forums.Â
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