Question How noisy is the NUC ?

Jul 15, 2019
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Hello!


Im looking to buy one of intels NUCs. I am intending to get the slightly taller version for better airflow.

However, even with the tall version, does the NUC get noisy ?

Will I be hearing it when watching a movie or typing ?

And is it true that the i3 version will be quieter than the i5 and i7 ?

There is not a hugh amount of info on the NUCs so some help would be appreciated.

Thanks
 

Eximo

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i3 will typically use less power than an i5 or i7, so in that regard it should be quieter. Assuming the same heatsink is used on all of them.

Typically, tiny fans make more noticeable high pitched sounds. So contrary to expectations, larger fans spinning slowly can be much quieter.

Which specific model were you looking at?

There are passively cooled PCs out there if you want true silence.
 
Jul 15, 2019
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The NUC8i3BEH, so its the 8109u proc.
I'm thinking of pairing it with an m.2 drive.

But what are these passively cooled options that you mention? True silence does 'sound' pretty good 😇

Do they keep similar scale ? Because i really like the tinyness of the NUCs.

P.S:

Also, one further complication is the iris 655 in the NUC, it seems to cover my "gaming" needs perfectly while the hd620 won't quite do the job.
 
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Eximo

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They give that CPU a 28W TDP. And the cooler is a decent size, the fan might still be fairly loud when under a full load.

There are many options for passively cooled PCs. Many are designed to run displays as digital signage. I can't think of any with a u class processor off the top of my head. Usually atom based. Many are designed to go between a monitor and a VESA mount, so they are usually about the same size as the square Intel NUCs you are looking at.

Others are larger and designed for industrial applications. A lot of them are built inside of enclosures you typically find on high end amplifiers. Others are more traditional aluminum enclosures.

Iris graphics are pretty decent for light gaming. Just depends on what you want to run.

Newegg's selection always impresses me:

Atom based: https://www.newegg.com/zotac-zbox-pi335-w2b-student-home-office/p/N82E16883218081?

Atom based celeron: https://www.newegg.com/p/1VK-01U9-0...pc&cm_re=silent_pc-_-1VK-01U9-006H3-_-Product

Full on laptop processor: https://www.newegg.com/p/1VK-01U9-0...c&cm_re=fanless_pc-_-1VK-01U9-006V4-_-Product

And this one with a modest laptop processor, looks like a router:
https://www.newegg.com/shuttle-xpc-...c&cm_re=fanless_pc-_-2RC-00MW-00002-_-Product

Industrial atom, it has all the old school connectors to replace older PCs to run manufacturing tools. Probably environmentally sealed: https://www.newegg.com/p/1VK-01S3-0...c&cm_re=fanless_pc-_-1VK-01S3-007J3-_-Product
 
Jul 15, 2019
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Thats quite a selection you brought there !

I failed to mention the gaming aspect of my purchase.
I mostly won't be gaming, the only gaming that is dear to me is:

UT99 @ stable 144hz, 1080p-1440p
And Quake Live, with the same performance requirements.

My hope is that the NUC can handle this without starting a minor hurricane inside the case...

I had this lenovo laptop that went in and out of idle and into full blow at "random", there was probably something wrong with it but it has none the less made me paranoid of ever having to repeat that experience.
 
Jul 15, 2019
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I don't see Iris graphics having any issues with either of those.
I don't see Iris graphics having any issues with either of those.

One more thing, something that struck me yesterday.

Based on youtube benchmarks, 8 GB ram vs 16 in games makes no difference.

However, a onboard gpu such as the iris 655, does not have any dedicated graphics memory and, correct me if im wrong, utilizes the regular RAM instead

So i started wondering if a system with onboard gpu would make better use of 16 GB than the system with dedicated graphics ?

What do you think ? Would 2x8GB be worth it over the 2x4GB that i had in mind?

(As far as QL and UT99 are concerned, the question is ofc irrelevant but i might try to fire up CoD4, Mass Effect, Bioshock or FEAR2 - or some other title like Outlast or CSGO)
 

Eximo

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Probably not for what you are doing. Graphics cards of the era of the games you are talking about varied in size from 256MB to 784MB at the top end. Most OS were still 32bit and capable of only addressing 4GB(3GB in practice) of memory anyway.

As I recall Iris graphics also take advantage of fast DRAM that is part of the CPU. Something like 128MB that helps significantly with performance due to the added latency of using system memory for the bulk stuff.

It certainly won't hurt to have 16GB, but only recent high end games really use a lot of system memory.