AsRock Rack is famous for its low-cost server/workstation motherboards running on Ryzen, like X470D4U and X570D4U. However, what’s annoying is that the cooling bracket is rotated 90 degrees. This is a terrible design choice for HomeLab setup, as AMD consumer coolers installing on that mainboard would blow air upwards, breaking the backward airflow. What’s more, backplates are glued to mainboard, and I don’t want to risk breaking it.
Recently I came across Cooler Master’s S2N-6FMYS-S7-GP, a 2U AM4 side blower on IdleFish (the biggest online flea market in China Mainland) and got it for CNY 30. Turns out it works perfectly.
If you have a Noctua cooler you can use the NM-AM4 (or NM-AM4-UxS) mounting kit to rotate the cooler 90°. I’ve run a NH-U9DX i4 3U in front-to-back orientation on similar boards in the past.
If you’re in Europe (or can stomach the shipping costs elsewhere) an affordable low-profile option is the Gelid Slim Silence AM4. I’ve currently got one keeping a Ryzen 5 3600 cool on my X570D4U—in a 1U case—and temperatures are acceptable (but not fantastic).
