2011 Mini Owners: Elevate your mini!

[dyn]

I got my 2011 Mini Server a few days ago and have been unhappy with how often the fans go nuts. After reading this thread I put a roll of tape under it (first thing I had that was handy and smaller than the base), and now the fans haven't gone off once in the 3-4 hours since, and my CPU temp is 20-40 degrees cooler than it had been all day. I'll look for something a little more attractive than the roll of tape, but hey, it works.

20 to 40 degrees of what? Fahrenheit or Celsius? If it is Celsius than the difference is way too much. Don't forget that new machines need some burning in time. Spotlight will be run an index on the disk(s) which will also cause high cpu usage -> heat -> fans going wild.

@MJL: poorly designed by your standards It is a subtle but very important difference. These machines are designed to last for x years with a constant heat of x Celsius (or Fahrenheit or Kelvin or whatever you want to use). Don't forget that during the assembly the electronics are baked on the circuitboards using very high temperatures, several times. This is only for short periods, the problem is heat over longer periods. I highly doubt that temperature differences of 2~5 degrees Celsius will make a big difference in the lifespan of the device, especially if we are talking 65 vs 70 degrees.

 

[PLamarine]

Found these at Radio Shack, part number 64-2342. They were under $5 and were 8 in a pack. They are 3/4" square and 3/8" high. I put one on each corner. The vibration isolation is excellent, and much better airflow.

 

[pomanferrari]

Even better, from the source Apple itself in its patent filing:
http://www.patentlyapple.com/patent...mini-from-design-to-removable-hard-drive.html



Yes, when the cover is on, the red part will be sealed as shown below. Air travel through as MJL said.

Image

And the air should be sucked in from the front as circled below. Not the back as mentioned in ifixit.

Image[/QUOTE]

 

[Snips]

I use stands I bought from Ikea's kitchenware section (meant to be used for hot pans). These work a treat for ventilation, perfect size, and look the part too (imo).

(see attached)

 

[The-Pro]

If anyone really wants to lower temps, do the following:

No this is not the best in terms of dust

But anyway, remove the bottom panel, and place the mini on two, at least 1-2inch thick Styrofoam, wood or whatever material. Have the mini rest on them on the edges so that the fan has access to fresh air. You can also just place the mini on it side.

Well I did this just for fun and it was a huge difference. I have a 2010 2.4 mini and i ran the terminal commands so that I max out the CPU.
With the bottom panel the temps where 78°C and 3900rpm after 15mins of 200% CPU use.
Then I let the mini sit idle for an hour, took of the bottom panel, placed it on its side, and again maxed out the CPU.
Temps were 57°C and 1950rpm. after 40mins :O

I would never use the mini like that for a prolonged time because objects have free access to the internals and the last thing id want it something to be damaged. But still the difference is massive. Shows how much the bottom panel insulates.

BTW i did a similar test with my MBP. Completely maxing out CPU and GPU without the bottom panel resulted in 77-80°C CPU temp and average of 5400rpm instead of 90-98°C CPU temp and 6000rpm. Again, it shows how much the bottom plate insulates everything and stops the fans from getting cold air.

 

[zMacintoshz]

Put mine up on a cookie tray also, thanks for the idea

 

[MJL]

I've managed to get the sharp temperature spiking under control.

http://www.123macmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=29972

marinus

 

[parestailor]

I've managed to get the sharp temperature spiking under control.

http://www.123macmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=29972

marinus

too tricky for me! grr

 

[useme2305]

i put my 2011 Mac Mini Server in the top drawer of an ikea drawer cabinet. it's dead quiet and cool at all times thanks to the big 12 inch fan. i'm happy!
fresh air comes from the drawers below and hot air is exhausted through the back of the cabinet automatically...no fans required for exhaustion!

for anyone who wants to do this: check out the Ikea MALM drawer cabinets...they offer perfect conditions for this kind of project. a small two-drawers cab beside the desk will do.

for more pics click here!

 

[MJL]

@useme2305

May I suggest to add an airfilter to your installation?

I've cut a circle in a piece of UNI BF-1 Universal Filter Foam (green), which is normally used for motor bikes etc, and am resting the Mac Mini on that. It cuts out a lot of dirt that not only deposits on the fan blades (as visible in your photos) but also on the small surface mounted components on the logic board (some of them under the fan / heatsink junction) thereby deminishing their ability to get rid of their heat.

 

[useme2305]

a great piece of advice. thanks!

 

[The-Pro]

@useme2305

damn, thats some nice setup

 

[Macs4u]

My new mac mini temps are fine? Might be the temp of the room thats the problem?

 

[SR45]

My new mac mini temps are fine? Might be the temp of the room thats the problem?

Agreed. Room ambient temps is the issue. Specially in the summer months. Have had no issues with my temps (Florida Summer) if I keep the room temps at 77 degrees. No need for me with some extra set up to reduce the temps.

 

[glhiii]

Agreed. Room ambient temps is the issue. Specially in the summer months. Have had no issues with my temps (Florida Summer) if I keep the room temps at 77 degrees. No need for me with some extra set up to reduce the temps.

Same here -- where I live the house is rarely above 70 degrees, and I have had no problems with my Mini server whatsoever. I never hear it, and it just works.

 

[spda242]

i put my 2011 Mac Mini Server in the top drawer of an ikea drawer cabinet. it's dead quiet and cool at all times thanks to the big 12 inch fan. i'm happy!
fresh air comes from the drawers below and hot air is exhausted through the back of the cabinet automatically...no fans required for exhaustion!

for anyone who wants to do this: check out the Ikea MALM drawer cabinets...they offer perfect conditions for this kind of project. a small two-drawers cab beside the desk will do.

Damn nice!!! I have been thinking of doing something similar by cutting a hole in a shelf and place a fan in the hole and the mini slightly elevated above it and use a tube for directing air as you have done.
I was also planing to ad a fan filter below the fan to keep dust out. As others have suggested it might be a good idea for you also.
Seeing your solution i need to get my project going

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My new mac mini temps are fine? Might be the temp of the room thats the problem?

There are loads of threads with people who have trouble with hot latest gen Mac mini's
My 2,5 GHz mini (the one with AMD GPU) are at least running at 70 degrees Celcius but usually closer to 80 degrees Celcius in normal operation and the fan are driving me nuts.
I get the feeling that the 2,3Ghz low end mini might be reasonable cool/quiet though?

 

[philipma1957]

the base mini is pretty quiet most of the time. My server mini is behind a HT cabinet door.

 

[MJL]

the base mini is pretty quiet most of the time. My server mini is behind a HT cabinet door.

No more temperature spikes - it evens out nicely.

 

[lilsoccakid74]

Bought three of these from Woot.com for 7.99 each last week

http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Z3C-00001-Notebook-Cooling-Black/dp/B0021ZEHQU


My 2009 sits comfortable between the rubber grips, while the 2011 model reaches both grips perfectly. I took the bottom off, and the fan blows directly upward into the 2011 mini. I did place a filter over the fan to prevent blowing dust into it.

Now run between 50-70*C at high load, instead of 90-95*. The quiet white-noise from the cooling fan is much more pleasant than the minis fans when at 3500+ RPM.

 

[bdodds1985]

just bought these:

from amazon.

I wanted something that had a higher elevation, rubber and could stick to the bottom. they are a little pricey but o well... can't wait to get my new mac mini!

 

[Jamooche]

I have been using this stand for the past 6 months. Everything stays nice and cool and it eliminates the noisy vibrations. Highly recommended!

http://www.amazon.com/Newer-Technol...WJYM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1330695143&sr=8-2

 

[Riverrun]

My set up with Mini i7.

 

[paulrbeers]

I have been using this stand for the past 6 months. Everything stays nice and cool and it eliminates the noisy vibrations. Highly recommended!

http://www.amazon.com/Newer-Technol...WJYM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1330695143&sr=8-2

I think the whole "Elevate your mini" is overblown and too many are overly worried about the temps of their mini's. This is the first product I might actually consider using and not because of heat, but because it will save me some valuable real estate on my desk....

 

[useme2305]

i couldn't care less about the temps! it's the noise that bothers me.

for me the 2011 server mini is way too loud even in idle with the fan at its lowest possible speed.

 

[Jamooche]

i couldn't care less about the temps! it's the noise that bothers me.

for me the 2011 server mini is way too loud even in idle with the fan at its lowest possible speed.

See my above post. I also didn't really care about the nose, but using the stand quieted things down a lot. I don't even notice the computer anymore.