RT-AC87U/R: Cooling solutions

[snb008]

120mm cooler master fan powered off the USB 2.0 port. Tried the same with the AC87U and didn't get anywhere.


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I think your 120mm CM fan works on the AC3200 but not on the AC87U because the bottom of AC3200 has openings in the middle while the AC87U only has openings to the sides, thus a fan positioned in the bottom center is not able to provide current into the router.

 

[shez]

Correct. It's sad Asus didn't think about these things when making the router.
What did work for me on the AC87U was 2 120mm fans, both USB one connected to the front and one to the back port - which wasn't really practical or worth it TBH.
Temps before
2G - 42, 5G - 70, CPU - 80
Temps after
2G - 38, 5G - 59, CPU - 65

But it was too much just to cool down just a router - so switched to the AC3200. Runs cool as can be with one 120mm fan connected to the back port - haven't got any readings as of yet because I wanted the most upto date firmware on it instead of the older Merlin one. Unless there's a way to read temps with original firmware anyone could tell me about?


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[DaveMishSr]

Getting this installed next week, funny thing is that it still wont make the router work properlyView attachment 4341

Not enough cooling power. You need at least a three-story unit, maybe four.

 

[pinkfloyd1173]

Not enough cooling power. You need at least a three-story unit, maybe four.

Good idea, just in case.

 

[shez]

The results for my RT-AC3200 with 1 slow moving 5V USB 120mm fan underneath:

CPU - 53
2.4GHZ - 44
5GHZ 1 - 41
5GHZ 2 - 47

Comparing this to my RT-AC87U (in the same room same position etc) with 2 120mm USB fans (1 fan didn't make a difference at all)

CPU - 65
2.4GHZ - 38
5GHZ - 59


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[amaduain]

Well, we had a heat wave this summer where I live, and the house temp went to 33C, and the router hit the 89C which was far from ideal :-(

I had a couple of 120mm fans for the computer and old usb cables, so I decided to cut and paste and have two usb 120 fans at no cost
I removed the top side of the router and put all together with zip ties (so can be undone) and connected to the front usb with a USB hub it makes no noise at all:

Connectors view:

The results:

Today is not so hot, around 26C at home.

 

[shez]

Well, we had a heat wave this summer where I live, and the house temp went to 33C, and the router hit the 89C which was far from ideal :-(

I had a couple of 120mm fans for the computer and old usb cables, so I decided to cut and paste and have two usb 120 fans at no cost
I removed the top side of the router and put all together with zip ties (so can be undone) and connected to the front usb with a USB hub it makes no noise at all:

Connectors view:

The results:

Today is not so hot, around 26C at home.

Actually looks super cool too


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[CptJack]

I cut a hole for a 40mm 5v fan and attached it to an internal 3.3v header. I have it pulling air from the side vents and exhausting it upwards. It's completely silent, and keeps my temps at 39/51/61. I was having problems with 5ghz stability before, but it's fine now.

 

[mromero]

I cut a hole for a 40mm 5v fan and attached it to an internal 3.3v header. I have it pulling air from the side vents and exhausting it upwards. It's completely silent, and keeps my temps at 39/51/61. I was having problems with 5ghz stability before, but it's fine now.

View attachment 4530

I have a 200mm fan oversize laptop cooler and it works very well; air all over the place it being a big cooler designed for a 17 inch laptop. But yes Asus outdid itself with a crappy design in the AC 87U router, and the crappiest firmware in history, flawed firmware in a non-ending parade of appalling releases even Eric has lost interest in the Quantenna design.

There are people out there selling mods for this POS router by cutting a hole on top and attaching a Rube Goldberg-like fan.

I think placing the router upside down on the laptop cooler may a solution that I may try ;o)

 

[tului]

Hole saw and a dremel to polish the edge and then use, as above 40mm, or whatever size you want to go up to. As I've got one in a closet in a room I never go in(storage) I may put a Delta on it. Few hundred CFM outght to keep it cool.

 

[jsteinm1]

Just got an AC Infinity AI-MPF80A2 to cool mine down. Took me from 82C on the CPU to 60C

 

[mattiL]

No drilling necessary!

 

[alarsen77]

I'm using Cooler Master NOTEPAL X-SLIM II.

Can't hear the 200mm fan motor spinning. It's dead silence.

Before
2.4GHz = 50°C | 5GHz = 72°C | CPU = 92°C

After
2.4GHz = 42°C | 5GHz = 56°C | CPU = 65°C

I am looking for this, as it would be perfect for my 87U but I can't seem to find this model anywhere. I find the X-Slim which has a 160mm fan but not his x-slim II that has the 200mm fan. Where did you get it from?

 

[alarsen77]

Just got an AC Infinity AI-MPF80A2 to cool mine down. Took me from 82C on the CPU to 60C

How quiet is this setup?

 

[jsteinm1]

How quiet is this setup?

I'm running mine on high speed, the unit comes with a built in selection for lo/med/hi. On high, it's not loud but definitely audible depending on the room. Mine is in my office which has a louder desktop PC so I don't notice it unless my head it right by it. Medium in my room was almost silent. They have a larger 120mm version that didn't seem like it was available yet, but I'd imagine it would be pretty well silent for the same air movement.

 

[alarsen77]

I'm running mine on high speed, the unit comes with a built in selection for lo/med/hi. On high, it's not loud but definitely audible depending on the room. Mine is in my office which has a louder desktop PC so I don't notice it unless my head it right by it. Medium in my room was almost silent. They have a larger 120mm version that didn't seem like it was available yet, but I'd imagine it would be pretty well silent for the same air movement.

Have you noticed any performance increases with your router since running an active cooling solution? I haven't checked my temps (not even sure how to) but so far I am getting good performance out of my 87U.

 

[jsteinm1]

Have you noticed any performance increases with your router since running an active cooling solution? I haven't checked my temps (not even sure how to) but so far I am getting good performance out of my 87U.

I only had the router without cooling for about a week, and everything worked fine in that time. The hardest stress I'm putting on it is encrypting my 30/5 internet connection, but it can handle that fine. I've read here and there about people having 5GHz drops (I personally have not had any yet), and that cooling seemed to help. My whole reason for this is longevity. 82C on a CPU is pretty warm (enough so that the device had a very hot spot on the top), I know the CPU is made to run hot like that, but if it doesn't have to then why make it? 82C was a standard operating temp, I was afraid that would get even higher if I had a big file downloading for a period of time at max speed. Since putting that fan on I've been 55-57C (CPU) every time I check, so I'm happy. Both 2.4GHz and 5GHz I believe stay around 40C.

You can see the temps in the router web page (I can't recall exactly where). I'm running Merlin firmware, so I'm not sure if you can see them easily on stock if you're using that.

 

[alarsen77]

I only had the router without cooling for about a week, and everything worked fine in that time. The hardest stress I'm putting on it is encrypting my 30/5 internet connection, but it can handle that fine. I've read here and there about people having 5GHz drops (I personally have not had any yet), and that cooling seemed to help. My whole reason for this is longevity. 82C on a CPU is pretty warm (enough so that the device had a very hot spot on the top), I know the CPU is made to run hot like that, but if it doesn't have to then why make it? 82C was a standard operating temp, I was afraid that would get even higher if I had a big file downloading for a period of time at max speed. Since putting that fan on I've been 55-57C (CPU) every time I check, so I'm happy. Both 2.4GHz and 5GHz I believe stay around 40C.

You can see the temps in the router web page (I can't recall exactly where). I'm running Merlin firmware, so I'm not sure if you can see them easily on stock if you're using that.

I do have Merlins firmware on it. I will have to dig around for the temps screen. My internet is a 155/15 and it's been running at 180-200/18-19 lately is that more stress on the router since it's a faster connection?


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[oric1]

I am looking for this, as it would be perfect for my 87U but I can't seem to find this model anywhere. I find the X-Slim which has a 160mm fan but not his x-slim II that has the 200mm fan. Where did you get it from?

I bought it from a brick and mortar store in Singapore for USD28. If you don't mind, you can order it online from Malaysia for around USD12 (excluding shipping), they do ship internationally. Where's your location, by the way?

http://www.ipmart.com.my/main/product/COOLER_MASTER_NotePal_X_SLIM_II_R9_NBC_XS2K_GP_Black_COOLER_MASTER_Warranty_421368.php?prod=421368&source=search&sourcelink=L21haW4vc2VhcmNoX292ZXJ2aWV3LnBocD9pbj0wJmZpbmQ9Tk9URVBBTCtYLVNMSU0rSUk=

 

[jsteinm1]

I do have Merlins firmware on it. I will have to dig around for the temps screen. My internet is a 155/15 and it's been running at 180-200/18-19 lately is that more stress on the router since it's a faster connection?

To get to the temps, click Administration on the left side, then go to the Performance Tuning tab. I'm using my router to encrypt/decrypt my internet traffic to a VPN service, which takes a fair amount of CPU power to do on a fast connection. I would imagine this would heat my router up some if I was downloading a big file at a high speed, but I've never checked. For your case, "stress" isn't really the right word. It's not like you are hurting your router just by having fast internet.

As for the cooling, I can't say definitively that cooling the router will help with stability or longevity of it, but it definitely can't hurt. And after spending that much on a router, a couple fans isn't much more.

Also, if you happen to get the same setup as I have, I also ordered some cheap filters from China to catch the dust http://www.ebay.com/itm/201405462581