Good cases for the Pi4?
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@Clyde - Hey Clyde, how's Germany holding up with the pandemic and all? That's a good point the orientation might facilitate your build but those Argon cases aren't meant to be hidden away in cabinets. That would be a sin! ;) They are well built with a nice finish and meant to be displayed. :) If I was going to mount a Pi in an upright cab I think I would go for one of those cheap acrylic cases/plates or make a cheap balsa wood plate or something.
I had one minor issue with the Argon One/Pi 4 and that was with mounting the board inside the case. The standoffs that hold on the bottom plate were to close together. I could either file the finish off the standoffs or file the PCB. I chose to file the PCB just in case the removed finish wasn't enough to fit the board down flush and I had to file both the standoff and PCB. It was less than a one MM and it took only a small round file to do the trick. I don't know if it was just an early run manufacturing variance or something but the Argon One for the Pi 3 case was a perfect fit.
The other really nice thing about the Argon One is the power button. After you load the script shown in the manual it integrates extremely well with RetroPie. You press the power button to turn it on and you're right at the ES menu. When done gaming just go through the RetroPie menu to shut it down and it will shut down properly and kill the power to the Pi just like a console. It's real clean powering up and shutting down. It feels like a true mini console minus any branding. ;)
You can also hold the button down for a graceful shutdown or longer to do a hard shutdown. I think it's the 3 to 5 second range. I was looking to change the times between a graceful shutdown and a hard shutdown but found a comment from a guy that wrote the company and they said they are hard coded values and can't be changed.
The fan is a user set percentage of the fans max RPM's based on 3 temps 55, 60 and 65. So you don't have full flexibility. It's set through a script so maybe it can be modified if those values don't work for your setup. The defaults have worked ok for me.
On a side note after a whole lot of testing I did get the Pi 4 stable at 2.1GHz with these settings:
over_voltage=6 arm_freq=2100 gpu_freq=750I used the overclock link provided by @barbudreadmon. At 2100 the temp topped out at 68C with CPU Burn in the Argon One. I would give a bit of room around the case due to it getting really quite warm to hot once the fan starts revving up.
Then I went through and compiled from source Retroarch, Emulationstation, Advmame, Daphne, FBNeo, mame2003-plus and several other emulators with no crashes. Compiling from source was the only other thing that would get the Argon case hot enough to kick the fan on.
I played a bunch of arcade games, Dragon's Lair, N64 games, etc. with no issues.
Finally I did the @quicksilver Quake 3 stability test with max bots in spectator mode for 12 hours straight with no issues at all. I started it before going to bed and it was still running fine when I got up so I let it go several more hours before calling it good. If the overclock is unstable I can usually get it to crash or lockup with Quake anywhere from 0 to 4 hours and if it makes the full 12 hour run I call it good.
It's been 100% stable at 2.1GHz all weekend. I also did try 2147 but it was locked up after the first overclock test. So the real number is probably somewhere between 2100 and 2147.
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@Riverstorm I'm well, thanks, and you? Germany seems to be one of the best places to be in these times if you believe the official numbers (which I do for the most part). There are moderate measures against the pandemic in place, like having to wear masks when shopping, or keeping your distance of approx. 1.5 to 2 meters, but they are bearable in comparison to those in other countries (edit: at least for myself, since my job isn't one of the cut-off lines of work).
Aaaanyway … coming back to topic, I surprisingly got around to setup my Pi 4 over the last weekend. It is now the new heart of my upright cabinet. Since I used it mostly for arcade and console games from the 70s and 80s, there was no sudden burst of speed to notice, but even without any overclocking yet, all of my beloved PSX games do run now at (mostly) stable 60 Hz without any of the sound stuttering I was used from my non-overclocked Pi 3B.
I didn't do any overclocking or thermal tests so far. I did overclock the Pi 4 in its passively cooled Argon Neo case for a short time to 1750 Mhz at an overvoltage of 2 without any throttling according to
watch -n 1 vcgencmd measure_clock arm, but since this didn't have any noticable benefits in my PSX games, I switched it back to the normal speed. (Yeah, the pretty little Neo is now hidden inside the cab, but it will take trips to hacker and Linux conventions from time to time, as its predecessor did, so its beauty is not completely wasted. 😉 )That said, which emulators and games would you or anyone else reading this recommend to test overclocking on? I was never much interested in theoretical numbers from benchmarks, but rather in actual noticable effects.
Thanks, and have fun with your new Toys. 😊
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@Clyde you should be able to run psx games fullspeed with enhanced resolution turned on now. Without the need for the inaccurate speed hack. At least I can when overclocked, I haven't tested it at stock speed.
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@quicksilver Thanks, I've actually activated the speed hack like I did on the Pi 3. I will test the enhanced resolution without it as you recommended.
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Do you/should you overclock if you want to play Dreamcast games on the Pi4, running version 4.6? I'm surprised the temps for an overclocked board are so well maintained with an Argon, and am considering doing so just to get better performance.
What really causes my Pi3 to heat up is the fact that it's hooked up to a 4k display, with the resolution setting on default, so that it automatically scales to whatever the monitor's preference is. I've tried to manually set it to like, 1080p, but then everything looks fuzzy and I'm not a fan of that. I'm looking forward to getting the Argon case and putting together this Pi4, since these temperatures you guys are getting under load are about as hot as my Pi3 runs ambient on a 4k display.
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@Weatherby Yes. You should overclock for Dreamcast. just to play it safe.
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@Clyde - That's great, I read Germany has been doing great. Since you're pulling that beauty out of your cab occasionally for field trips it's all good! ;)
We are doing ok here also even though we are dead last in the "race"! =/ For sure urban areas are harder hit than rural but the overall infection rate is less than a half percent, something like 0.4%. The media has a way of spinning things to make you swear the sky is falling and create hysterics. In some of these rural areas there just isn't much difference except for the ripple effect on the economics and even some political spins on the pandemic, go figure. They seem to focus on mostly the "bad" rather than the 100s of millions doing it right. I feel to many folks here hook a fire hose of news to their face and feed on it all day long. They need to unplug and take a break if it's getting to them to frequently.
My job is considered critical infrastructure also and I work the same as always Monday through Friday. We have a new jail addition going live in a month or so here and there's so much work to be done from fiber, switches, wireless AP's, camera's, finger printer readers, etc. etc. that have to get installed and setup. I just need to focus on the networking pieces. I also get the Sheriff's office, patrol vehicles, 911, juvenile detention center, etc. Several 24/7 departments in addition to the daytime ones. My partner in crime here at work is immune compromised so he's telecommuting and I am here every day but I don't mind.
From the Pi 3 overclocked to the Pi 4 overclocked I can run Mario Kart 64 with hi-res textures at full speed with no sound juttering, it looks fantastic in hi-res. Even though I never tried it at stock speeds. @quicksilver pointed out another great emu that runs at full speed with enhanced resolution. I'll do more testing as I get more games installed on the Pi 4.
I guess isn't faster better in most cases if there's no drawback? The two drawbacks are a possible shorter Pi life which I consider negligible as I've never "wore" a Pi out yet (even with massive overclock testing) and I suppose the electrical cost of running them faster.
If a game loads faster, exits faster, downloading from binary or source complies faster. Just running the Pi more efficiently from emulator to emulator and option to option seems better. Isn't that why we went from a Pi 3 to a Pi 4, for a better experience and performance? It seems like a win-win.
In competitive game play they shoot for a smooth consistent 60 FPS to improve their game play. It would seem consistent vs. "variable" FPS would make for a better gaming experience overall even if not tangibly noticeable. There's never enough power to run MAME perfectly smooth, especially the later builds in RetroPie. I see they even have been trying to get the latest MAME working on the Pi, which is great.
Many console emu's seem to benefit too from the extra speed even if it doesn't translate to perfect emulation it's an improvement or step in the right direction.
I know theirs two sides to overclocking. I even hear some say it's not stable and shouldn't be done on a Pi. If done correctly I feel it's definitely ok and perfectly stable. Actually some days I get more of a thrill out of pushing the overclock boundary on a new Pi vs. game playing, some days that is! ;)
I'm not sure what you mean by a theoretical number from benchmarks? Those two words together in a sentence almost seems like an oxymoron. Aren't benchmarks based on real testing, data and experience which is the opposite of theory! ;)
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@Riverstorm Do you have a good resource on how to properly overclock the Pi4?
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@Weatherby - I basically used a link similar to what @Gamesman provided. It worked well.
I also did the latest firmware update that allows the Pi to run cooler with the steps explained here. I think the bootcode.bin is stored in eeprom and the rest is on the SD card. I don't quite know if you have to run it each time you deploy a new image. Maybe someone with a better understanding could answer it.
For stress testing I used this link provided by @barbudreadmon for heat & stress testing.
I also use this link as explained by @quicksilver in the 2nd post. You're basically using Quake 3 Arena in spectator mode with at least 8 bots but I like to add the max number of bots. I run it at least 12 hours and within that time frame I can usually weed out an unstable overclock. Sometimes it just takes several hours before it becomes unstable.
Warning Quake 3 in spectator mode with full bots moves and updates your screen so fast you could have seizures if you're light sensitive. It can be a bit nauseating if you watch it to long unless you step back a bit. It's just a blur of bots, blood and appendages. I like this test as at one time it was the defacto standard in 3D benchmarking.
I agree with @quicksilver in that any overclock that locks up or crashes, even once, is a bad overclock and set to high. It's has to be 100% stable before I call it good.
If you really really want to test it you can let any of those tests or others you prefer to go much longer like 24-72 hours.
If using the links provided by @barbudreadmon make sure you have sufficient cooling and pass test 1 before going to test 2 because it gets even hotter. It polls at 10 second intervals and can easily jump 20C with insufficient cooling. The faster the overclock the hotter it gets.
I was happy with the 68C max temp in the Argon case but as a fun experiment I ordered that massive heatsink fan combo @Ecks posted above just to test cooling and see what it can do to make the Pi run cooler. It's not as portable or practical as these smaller cases but I think it has a certain aesthetic appeal I really like. Now I need to find a case to match.
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@Riverstorm I don't quite know if you have to run it each time you deploy a new image. Maybe someone with a better understanding could answer it.
I believe as long as you do not redo the OS and just update RetroPie software it will stay over clocked. Mine has so far.
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@Gamesman said in Good cases for the Pi4?:
I believe as long as you do not redo the OS and just update RetroPie software it will stay over clocked. Mine has so far.
Ok, thanks for the information. Do you know if you download and install a fresh RetroPie image if you would need to rerun the firmware update?
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@Riverstorm said in Good cases for the Pi4?:
From the Pi 3 overclocked to the Pi 4 overclocked I can run Mario Kart 64 with hi-res textures at full speed with no sound juttering, it looks fantastic in hi-res. Even though I never tried it at stock speeds.
That sounds great, but the N64 doesn't interest me that much, since neither me or my friends had one back in the classic days, and my cab has no analog controls besides its two Ultimarc Spintrak spinners. Or do you know if RetroArch can map the spinners to left/right analog controls for the N64? That may at least make them viable for some racing games. But even then, the N64 will never be an important subject in my emulation endeavor.
I guess isn't faster better in most cases if there's no drawback?
I usually think the other way around: why waste time, effort, power, and the lifespan of my Pi 4 on a speedup I may not actually notice? The loading times may be a viable argument for me if they would improve significantly. Did they for you?
As for your last two examples, I don't think that your CPU's speed would make any noticable difference in downloading with the usual domestic internet connection, and compiling times don't matter much to me, since I tend to do other things while my systems are busy with such things. :)
Isn't that why we went from a Pi 3 to a Pi 4, for a better experience and performance? It seems like a win-win.
Well, I got that better (and seemingly maxed-out) experience for PSX games on my normal clocked Pi 4 already. :) That's why I asked for other emulators or games who would benefit from overclocking.
There's never enough power to run MAME perfectly smooth, especially the later builds in RetroPie. I see they even have been trying to get the latest MAME working on the Pi, which is great.
For the latest MAME I have my desktop pc and my laptop. So again, I do not see any need to do this on my Pi 4 … yet.
Many console emu's seem to benefit too from the extra speed even if it doesn't translate to perfect emulation it's an improvement or step in the right direction.
I'll have to see a need for that in action yet. My current plan is to wait for a game to show any shortcomings and then test it overclocked, since it is so conveniently easily done with a config edit and reboot. :D
That said I completely understand the urge do do things "because you can". That's why I bought the 4GB Pi 4, and why I maxed out my EEE 901 netbook back in 2008 to 2GB ram without any actual need of my sleek Lubuntu Linux OS. =B) But in this case, my Experimentierfreude (German for willingness to experiment) is limited to the needs of my arcade cabinet.
I'm not sure what you mean by a theoretical number from benchmarks? Those two words together in a sentence almost seems like an oxymoron. Aren't benchmarks based on real testing, data and experience which is the opposite of theory! ;)
Depending on the benchmark in question, it may try to simulate the actual use case, but it is still only a fake one, i.e. "theoretical". While benchmarks can give me a hunch about the results of a tweak or hardware upgrade, its actual usefulness depends on me noticing it in action in the end.
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@Clyde said in Good cases for the Pi4?:
I usually think the other way around: why waste time, effort, power, and the lifespan of my Pi 4 on a speedup I may not actually notice?
Well shoot, that's quite the response. Can you map spinners in RA? Can you notice the speedup? Are load times significant to you? Are those rhetorical questions or you want me to do the research for you? ;) Sorry, that wasn't worded well, maybe the option is labeled "Update from source" but what I was referring to was compiling. Back in the day when I was compiling 2003plus several times a day, those gained extra minutes, would have been nice. Over the weekend when I compiled every installed emulator from source I think it was beneficial too.
Nah I disagree it's not a waste of time and energy to overclock. You did acknowledge some of the benefits but then in the same breath said they are of no value. I guess it is futile as you've made up your mind regardless of the overclock benefits and the extra speed. I guess it's worth is based on the users needs/wants I would venture to say. Some of it is just plain ol' subjective to tastes, so I get it. You've shown the extra speed is of no benefit to you.
I guess you could also consider hacking, conventions, gaming or pretty much anything a waste of time, effort, and lifespan. I would consider overclocking part of the hobby which is partially done for pleasure for some of us and because we can and we enjoy it. I understand some don't like messing with overclocking. Why do we do what we do? The million dollar question! :)
I also tried to share a few emu's that could benefit from the extra speed and a few other examples like compiling, loading, frame smoothing, etc. which some of us would consider viable but you either don't use it or find no value which is ok.
RetroPie is such a hugely diverse multi-emulator, multi-platform beast that is forever growing it might be difficult to give you a list of what runs better on a Pi 4.
I'll have to leave your benchmark comments alone. I read it several times and I have no idea what you're saying about a benchmark being "fake" or theoretical. I don't think I view a benchmark definition the same. It's a number based in fact and not any sort of theory.
I just consider it a point of reference for comparison to other similar items which typically seems to involve some sort of speed measurement, like CPU's, GPU's, etc. The benchmark values never change but they are fluid in a sense as technology evolves and the list is updated with newer (typically higher) values. The meaning and value of each benchmark changes with time and additions to the list.
In this case it's a proven speed with an actual real number. It's not "fake", based on a hunch or theoretical. It's not a plane, it's not a car...it's...it's a benchmark! ;) Several examples have been shown how speed is beneficial depending on what services and emulators you like to run. Either way we know you don't use them or find no benefit or value to them and that's ok too!
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@Clyde said in Good cases for the Pi4?:
I usually think the other way around: why waste time, effort, power, and the lifespan of my Pi 4 on a speedup I may not actually notice?
Well, from your post, it looks like you are only playing 8/16 bits console and PSX, so even a pi3 might be sufficient actually.
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Isn't this getting a little off topic now because the topic is for a good case for the Pi 4 and now people are talking about things like benchmarks and firmware updates.
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I'm going to be using a SmartiPi Touch 2 with mine. :)
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@Ecks - I always factor in overclocking when considering a case. It's a "considered" feature. I pretty much overclock everything if possible and with PC's I always buy Intel's K chips as they are unlocked and specifically designed for that purpose. I think the OP'er had asked about overclocking later in the thread. I think he's looking for a good case and some tips on overclocking.
Further down @barbudreadmon and a few others had discussed overclocking also. I know @barbudreadmon does most (if not all) of the work on one of the top arcade cores. I figure if a core or RP dev asks if someone can run some tests I try and help out as I figure it's a fraction of the time they put into development.
It might help them decide which games will/should run properly or which ones are good candidates to add in the future.
Anyway, sorry, you're correct we can share the overclock information about a particular case without discussing the merits as there's a plethora of other great threads on the forum specifically geared toward cases, overclocking & cooling.
By the way thanks for sharing that hefty heatsink/fan combo. Mine arrived today from Amazon and I am looking forward to doing some testing. That heatsink kills me every time I look at it as it reminds of the equivalent of an old muscle cars with pipes, hood scoops and engine hanging out everywhere. Rev it up! :) I also picked up a Noctua 40mm 5v fan as I love their fans but don't care much for the color combo. The make one of the best fans and you get exactly one color choice.
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@Riverstorm said in Good cases for the Pi4?:
I know @barbudreadmon does most (if not all) of the work on one of the top arcade cores
I'm clearly not doing most of the work, the actual team contains 5 people : iq_132 & dink are the 2 main developpers (they handle new drivers and real research); kev, JacKc and me handle smaller fixes/improvements. I'm fully responsible of the libretro part of things though.
Yes, knowing what current arm boards are capable of can indeed be useful for development. -
To the OP topic: I do not like to have active cooling in my arcade (noise, collecting dust, may break some time).
So I picked a Geekwork Aluminum case without fan(s). And followed loosely this guide (German, but just check the pictures, note: in that on this page a JoyIT case is used).Result: I can keep my Rpi4 at 60C max while stresstesting and having it overclocked to 2000 MHz. (Ambient temp around 25C).
How to do it:
I ditched the thermal pads shipped with the geekworm except for the VLI VL805 chip and replaced it with a copper plate
carefully bent, flattened and fit to size not to create a shortcut. Additionally I used some thermal paste:
Then to support the heat spreading I cut out three (almost) squares, folded in the middle and stuck into the Aluminum
case. Note the position and smaller size of the Copper "square" next to the PoE pinout:
For additionally heat spreading I mounted the whole setup on the rest of the Coppper sheet with an Copper stripe
(isolated with tape towards the NIC/USB ports):
This keeps the Pi in place even during heaviest arcade action. You may notice the absence of the USB-C power: I use the GPIO to power this workhorse. :-)
For your reference the dimensions of the Copper parts. The Copper sheet has to have 0.5mm thickness.
You can find the copper sheet for around EUR10 or less (e.g. check a scrap dealer), if you can lend tin snips and invest some time this makes a very efficient heat spreader that does not break the bank.
Cheers
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