Dell 9150

[LIVAN]

I recently bought a Dell 9150.(Built systems all my life but taking a break) I opened the case and it didn't seem like there is much ventilation but the CPU fan was quite impressive. Anyone know what they are using? How could it be so big and so quiet? Also, anyone know if Dell uses thermal pads or thermal paste?

 

[xanis]

I have no idea. I would assume that they're using the thermal pads from the stock Intel HSF.

 

[wpshooter]

From my experience on the Dells that I have looked inside of, you can pretty much count on the fact that they have used whatever is the cheapest they can find (remember they are in the business of making MONEY) unless you tell them what GOOD pieces of hardware you want in the systems you order from them.

 

[LIVAN]

I think the cheap stuff might be the DEll of yester years. The 9150 I got came with a proprietary motherboard with a very nice layout. Nice HD brackets. Good cable management. I really couldn't have done it better myself. Only thing I am concerned about is not having any thermal paste on the CPU (Thermal pad)

 

[AmberClad]

There was a CPU fan??? I thought the new ones just had a huge heatpipe heatsink and one rear 120mm exhaust fan behind the heatsink, at least the ones I've seen.

 

[LIVAN]

Originally posted by: AmberClad
There was a CPU fan??? I thought the new ones just had a huge heatpipe heatsink and one rear 120mm exhaust fan behind the heatsink, at least the ones I've seen.

Actually that was what I was wondering about? That huge thing is not the Intel stock fan right?

 

[AmberClad]

Originally posted by: LIVAN
Actually that was what I was wondering about? That huge thing is not the Intel stock fan right?

Nope, Dell uses some sort of custom heatsink that doesn't have a fan. Not sure who makes it.

Stock Intel HSF
Dell Heatsink

From looking at the pic, I'm guessing it's made out of aluminum, with possibly copper heatpipes...it'd be utterly stupid to ship something like that attached to the mobo if it were 100% copper.

 

[LIVAN]

I was thinking about replacing the Dell fan bt man that thing looks pretty impressive adn it's quiet so I changed my mind. Anyone know more about that setup?

 

[AmberClad]

Originally posted by: LIVAN
I was thinking about replacing the Dell fan bt man that thing looks pretty impressive adn it's quiet so I changed my mind. Anyone know more about that setup?

They may have ripped off the design of the TT Sonictower and CL-P0024 because the placement of the heatpipes look very similar, especially the tips of the pipes. I haven't heard of TT doing OEM work, so Dell probably just had someone build them a knockoff. I think Scythe and CM make heatpipe heatsinks too, but the heatpipes on their models look a lot different (they're not in two rows of three pipes).

 

[dexvx]

Originally posted by: wpshooter
From my experience on the Dells that I have looked inside of, you can pretty much count on the fact that they have used whatever is the cheapest they can find (remember they are in the business of making MONEY) unless you tell them what GOOD pieces of hardware you want in the systems you order from them.

Dell Dimension systems (with the notable exception of the lowest tier non-gfx upgradeable model) are far superior in quality compared to about half of DIY computers where people elect to buy the cheapest components available.

Although I have personally not taken apart a 9150 HS, I would assume you can improve upon it by applying AS5 and lapping it.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: LIVAN
I think the cheap stuff might be the DEll of yester years. The 9150 I got came with a proprietary motherboard with a very nice layout. Nice HD brackets. Good cable management. I really couldn't have done it better myself. Only thing I am concerned about is not having any thermal paste on the CPU (Thermal pad)

That is one thing you should not be worried about. I am 100% sure they are using one, either paste or pad. I mean, look at the size of the HS, it's freakin' huge. No, it's not the intel retail stock HSF. Dell builds these things to last, knowing that 90% of the customers won't bother to ever clean out the system with compressed air or something like that.

Pictures

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[Budmantom]

I wouldn't mess with it unless it gets hot.


Tom

 

[yohann]

Livan,
How would you rate the performance of this system? Say from 1 to 10?

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: yohann
Livan,
How would you rate the performance of this system? Say from 1 to 10?

I'm running a 9100, basically the same system. It's got a Pentium 630, I bumped the ram up to 2GB and replaced the x300 se with a 256MB GTX. Could not be happier considering my total cost (<1000). Running FEAR at 16x12 smoothly.

 

[LIVAN]

I would rate it a 9. Awesome. And I came from a water cooling Athlon 64 background.

 

[alimoalem]

how much did u pay for the system?

Originally posted by: bamacre
Pictures

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WHERE'S THE CPU??? that thing is HUGE!!

 

[GamerExpress]

Originally posted by: AmberClad
There was a CPU fan??? I thought the new ones just had a huge heatpipe heatsink and one rear 120mm exhaust fan behind the heatsink, at least the ones I've seen.

Yep, I have worked on a couple of the new 9150's. When I opened them up I saw the same old ugly ass green vents inside.

 

[yohann]

Do you know the differences between the 9150 and the 9100?

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: yohann
Do you know the differences between the 9150 and the 9100?

If there is a difference, I can't tell. The 9100, 9150, and XPS 400 are all about the same. Same case and psu. From what I can tell the same mobo. I am currently using a 9100, and I've sold maybe 50 xps 400's in the past 3 weeks. If there is a difference, I haven't seen it.

 

[yohann]

Livan,
I have a 9100 now. It has one 512 ram chip and I want to add another 512 chip. Since you are satisfied with your setup, I would like to ask you where you got your ram. Any comments on ram for the 9100?

Yohann

 

[Liquidity]

/me resurrects the thread...

Last week I took advantage of Dell's "Dimension 9150 + 24" LCD deal". As far as the LCD, *WOW*. Dead sexy. As far as the 9150: It looks nice. I like the shiny white case (I know some don't, but I'm older and it goes with my minimalist loft decor as well as any computer can.) Like Livan, I also have always built my own computers and was quite suprised by how well-designed the case was and how neatly everything fit (cables, etc.) HUGE fan of the hard drives being on the bottom, desktop Mac-style...so easy to get to. And boy is it quiet - my loft is extremely quiet, and I still can't usually tell if the computer is on or not if the monitor has gone to sleep. Big fan of that (so to speak.)

Now, I've tried to play some of my games on it...and I'm not a huge gamer, I play Counter-Strike Condition Zero a couple of hours a week, and I'd probably play more Half-Life 2, Doom 3, etc. if I had a better computer. As it's shipped, this system is not capable of playing 3d games at the full resolution of the 24" monitor (that's probably obvious to most of you, but to be honest I didn't know what to expect.) So on Monday I bought 2GB of Corsair Value Select RAM (my unit had 512mb) and a BFG GeForce 7800GT 256mb. I selected 2-day shipping, and was charged for that, but TigerDirect shipped it UPS Ground anyway, but that's another story...grr. Anyway, I will post again after I receive it and let you all know how much that helps.

-Liquidity

 

[bamacre]

It will be a HUGE improvement. I have 2GB of Corsair VS in mine as well. I also added a 7800 GTX. Should have bought from ZZF, they have free 2-day shipping on both of these items. What cpu do you have in there? Mine has a Pentium 630, but the system runs like a champ with the ram and video card.

 

[Liquidity]

Hi bamacre (anagrams anyone? ), I bow to your GTX. I see your wallet is bigger than mine. Alas I could not buy from ZZF, they are in California, and thus would charge me tax. :/

Mine has the Pentium D 820 (2.8ghz).

I'm glad to hear that it will be a huge improvement; I had 1gb of RAM in my previous computer, and I am constantly surprised how much the Dell thrashes with only 512mb. Even with Counter-Strike CZ, which is an old game, load times and app close times are much longer than my previous (slower) computer.

-Liquidity

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: Liquidity
Hi bamacre (anagrams anyone? ), I bow to your GTX. I see your wallet is bigger than mine. Alas I could not buy from ZZF, they are in California, and thus would charge me tax. :/

Mine has the Pentium D 820 (2.8ghz).

I'm glad to hear that it will be a huge improvement; I had 1gb of RAM in my previous computer, and I am constantly surprised how much the Dell thrashes with only 512mb. Even with Counter-Strike CZ, which is an old game, load times and app close times are much longer than my previous (slower) computer.

-Liquidity

Well, I got a heck of a deal on mine, it's actually a 9100 but it's the same system. I paid a hair under 400 shipped for mine with 1GB of ram and dual dvd drives. My total cost was about 920 after upgrades.

 

[Liquidity]

Hello all, today I finally received my 2gb of Corsair Value Select RAM and BFG GeForce 7800GT 256mb. All I can say is WOW. What a huge difference. I don't think I've even heard my HDD since I installed them! What I mean is, the RAM made such a difference that the HDD isn't thrashing anymore. Games and apps load extremely fast and close even faster. I can run all my games (HL2, FEAR, COD2, etc.) at full resolution, although some games are just a tad slow with everything turned on (HL2:Lost Coast and FEAR obviously need some tweaking to be playable, for example.) I am extremely happy with how everything turned out.

I'd like to also say that every time I open the Dell case, it impresses me. I took the time to install a DVD-ROM from my old machine today as well, and it's just very obvious that the design was well thought through - such as the screws needed for installing a drive in the bay are screwed into the bay cover for storage. Good stuff.

And, a bit off topic, but my BFG 7800GT has a very annoying intermittent buzz to it. It's the fan, which I know because I stopped it from turning and it stopped the buzzing. That's annoying, but only a minor inconvenience as I was planning to buy an aftermarket cooler to bring my 9150 back down to its previous silent status.

Someone told me today that the 9150 + 2405 deal was back on, so I hope my ramblings helped somebody decide one way or the other.

Cheers,
Liquidity