Fan noise NUC7i7BNH vs NUC7i5BNH

[AGupt32]

I have ordered a couple of 7th gen i7 and i5 NUC units for my office. After reading multiple reviews on Amazon.com and the nucblog, I realized that a lot of people are having issues with the noise from the fan on the i7 unit. Some of the users had mentioned the sound to be comparable to the one out of a hair blower.

Is it that loud under normal usage? The clients who will be using these units won't be using it for any high-performance tasks, just basic browsing and multimedia playback and upload on aws. Will the i7 unit be loud under this kind of daily usage? As the seller has not shipped the items as of now, I can ask him to ship more i5 units instead of the i7 ones.

Your inputs are welcome on this.

[LeonWaksman]

In my opinion, NUC7i5BNH is more that enough to perform task you have mentioned in your post above. On similar older model (NUC6i5SYH) I'm even making video rendering tasks. Under normal loads (browsing, office application). the blower is very quiet. Under maximum load you will hear the blower (similar to laptop blower, not very disturbing). You should be aware however, that the CPU is not only the part that will affect computer performance. The NUC7i5BNH is kit only, without RAM memory and without storage. So, you need to by also RAM memory and M.2 Solid Disk Drive (SDD) and 2.5" SDD or HDD (Hard Disk Drive). In the following link you may find a list of tested and approved by Intel components for your NUC. Again to my opinion the RAM size that will fit all your task is 16GB (although 8GB may be enough too). Do not by all memory in one module. For example, if you decide to install 16GB, buy two 8GB memory modules. In such configuration, the memory will work in dual channel mode.

Hope this helps

Leon

[AGupt32]

Okay so I guess it would be better to buy a i-5 gen variant at this point. Also I need to ask if I can attach the nuc unit to the back of my monitor. I have Benq 24" monitors at my workplace . They do support VESA mount (I am not sure tho). Do I have to buy some extra stuff to get this thing mounted on the monitors ?

The specifications for the monitor unit can be found https://www.benq.com/en/monitor/stylish/gw2470h/specifications.html here.

----edit-----

I am pretty sure I can mount these nuc units to the back of the monitor I have.

As for the nuc configuration, I will be adding a Samung 970 EVO NVMe drive and 4*2 GB ram sticks to enable dual channel.

I do need to ask tho whether getting a 2400MHz RAM stick will make a difference as compared to 2133MHz one. I am getting a good deal at my local hardware store on the 2400MHz sticks, but I am not sure about the compatibility or other performance bottlenecks.

[LeonWaksman]

Sorry, I was intending to give you link to the compatible products:http://compatibleproducts.intel.com/ProductDetails/ExportPeripheralInfo?moduleName=Intel%C2%AE%20NUC&productType=Kits&productName=Intel%C2%AE%20NUC%20Kit%20NUC7i5BNH http://compatibleproducts.intel.com/ProductDetails/ExportPeripheralInfo?moduleName=Intel%C2%AE%20NUC&productType=Kits&pr…

• 2400 MHz memory modules will work on these Intel NUCs, but because the processor only supports speeds up to 2133 MHz, higher-speed SO-DIMMs operate only at the 2133 MHz memory timing. Regarding to the compatibility issue of the memory you can buy, I can't be sure. If it is not listed on Intel's list, better to test if it works.

Leon

Edit:

In the NUC kit, you have a VESA mounting bracket and screws included. You don't need buy any additional hardware to mount this NUC on your BENQ GW2470H monitor

[RMay2]

No experience with this specific model but in the past I've had a lot of success with capping the processor frequency in situations where I required near-silence. It only takes changing this setting by 10% or so to make a big difference.

Of course, a capped i7 is kind of pointless when you can buy an i5 and save some cash...