[mythtv-users] Lowest power HD frontend?

[Joseph Fry]

>  Hmmm... hadn't thought of that.  So you are saying I could effectively
>>> throttle my system power consumption by simply removing the fan from
>>> my CPU heat sink?
>>>
>>
>> Absolutely not.  I'm saying your CPU won't eat itself.  There's not
>> going to be anything effective about your CPU operating in this manner,
>> other than it will retain some minimum level of functionality to keep
>> the system running.
>>
>>  That would be fantastic -- silent and low power -- but I am skeptical
>>> about the longevity and reliability of a system like that.
>>>
>>
>> Silent, low power, and absolutely awful performance.  This is not
>> something that is a good idea.  This is merely a protection mechanism
>> for the CPU should you fail to give it sufficient cooling.  Note that
>> your CPU will be doing this to some degree anyway.  All removing the
>> heatsink does is mean it cannot speed back up for normal operation once
>> you load it up.  You're stuck down at that extremely low level of
>> performance.
>>
>
> OK, but do you mean awful compared to an Atom 330?  I sure hope not!
>
> If what you say is correct (that a modern i3 system takes less power than
> an IONITX) then that fanless i3 system should be cooler and perform better
> than a fanless IONITX.  Really that is all I am looking for since I am
> satisfied with the performance of a dual core Atom 330 as a mythfrontend.
>
> BTW: I looked them up on cpumark and the i3-530 is just over 4X as fast as
> the Atom 330.  I am not saying a four fold improvement is trivial but
> really, 4X as fast as an Atom is hardly something to jump up and down about
> -- especially when it comes with almost 10X the TDP!
>
> Regardless, as long as it never ended up _slower_ than an Atom due to
> throttling I really am not too concerned.


I don't think anyone is encouraging  you to run any cpu fanless; unless
it's in a properly engineered fanless case, which probably wouldn't perform
so well in a closed cabinet.

What he is saying, and I agree with, is that you could safely run a modern
Intel CPU, in a standard configuration, in a closed cabinet.  Yes it will
get hot in the cabinet... but no, it will not melt anything.

What will happen is that the CPU will throttle itself to reduce the heat
generated such that it will adjust it's performance to it's environment.
 Essentially, trying to spec a system to under 25W because that's what your
cabinet can handle before it gets too hot is an unnecessary exercise.  Spec
the system you want, and let the temperature throttling keep it running
safely in your cabinet.

The advantage is that if it's idle most of the time (as it probably will
be), when it does get utilized, you have plenty of power to do what needs
doing, and it will do it quickly, before it idles again.  If it ever tries
to run at peak power for too long, it will get throttled by temperature.
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