Case airflow advice

Push it to the max but make sure that you keep it cool!
Post Reply
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

Hey guys jus wanted to get some opinions on my cases airflow... heres what its currently at....

Image

im thinking of removing that fan thats crossed out cause its just not needed, then the star indicates a 120mm fan that i have on my side panel, blowing onto my gpu....
would you guys flip remove or change any of the fans here?
was wondering if i should flip the top right fan to blow air infront of my cooler but was wondering if it will just cause turbulance?
at the moment as you can see it comes from the front and bottom and leaves out the top and back.....
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
DAE_JA_VOO
Registered User
Posts: 12310
Joined: 28 Nov 2005, 02:00
Location: That other place
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by DAE_JA_VOO »

That layout that you have now is fine. Taking out the one fan at the bottom is okay, but if you flip the fan at the top, you'll be screwing around with the whole airflow.
That guy that used to mod cases. Now I take photos. True story.
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

Thanks dae ja voo is there anything you can suggest to improve on any aspects....? What would you do?
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
GreyWolf
Registered User
Posts: 4754
Joined: 06 Aug 2003, 02:00
Processor: PHENOM II 945
Motherboard: Asus M4A78
Graphics card: HIS ICEQ 4850 1GB
Memory: 4GB CORSAIR XMS II 1066
Location: , location, location!

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by GreyWolf »

Maybe flip the fan on the side panel so that it extracts air away from the GFX. I have this innate fear of placing fans to blow directly on to components as then you have massive dust build up. I could be wrong.
"Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit on his hands, hoist that black flag, and begin slitting throats."
- H. L. Mancken
DAE_JA_VOO
Registered User
Posts: 12310
Joined: 28 Nov 2005, 02:00
Location: That other place
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by DAE_JA_VOO »

Yeah, GW's suggestion is worth trying. Measure and monitor temps the way it is now (side panel on, of course), and then turn the fan around and measure temps again.
That guy that used to mod cases. Now I take photos. True story.
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

k cool thanks for the suggestion greywolf and i will give it a try dae ja voo... hopefully ill get a chance this weekend....
would kill to have red fans!!!! maybe one day if i water cool ill go red
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
-Prometheus-
Resident Drama Llama
Posts: 967
Joined: 05 Mar 2008, 02:00
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by -Prometheus- »

........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
Last edited by -Prometheus- on 04 Apr 2011, 02:43, edited 1 time in total.
BBLounge - Broadband and Technology forum
Please like our facebook page
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

i didn't quite understand that prometheus... was a lil confusing.... so you say if i flip my side fan it will then create a positive pressure... then you would also flip the bottom left fan and the top left fan?
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
Slimshaedy
Registered User
Posts: 673
Joined: 11 Aug 2010, 15:32
Location: Durban, Pinetown
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by Slimshaedy »

I rate its fine like that... That's the same idea I have for my case
[i7 2600K @ 4.6 ghz 1.35V] [Asus P8P67 Deluxe] [G-Skill RipjawsX 2x2GB DDR3 1600 CL6 (6-8-6-24) 1.5V]
[Sapphire Radeon 6870 @ 975/1200 1.2V] [Coolermaster V6 GT] [WD Caviar Black 640GB SATA3 6Gbps]
[Samsung SA350 23" LED] [NZXT Phantom White] [Corsair TX750W V2] [Zalman RS6F-USB 5.1 Surround Sound Headphones] My rig and benchmarks
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

You should always be aiming for a positive pressure. More air coming in than going out.
This will be more effective in cooling your case BUT will also mean more dust entering. If you can filter the dust, then go for the positive pressure. Assuming all your fans has the same CFM, then at the moment you have a slight positive pressure. Air coming in > air going out.

Look at a HP server. It actually has no extraction fans. All the fans pull air in and it exhausts it from vents all over the server.

You actually have a good setup there already and I won't make any changes if I were you. Hot air rises and that is exactly where your exhaust fans are. At the top.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

ya thats why i have put the top fans as extractors.... but hot air rises as u say and my cpu cooler sucks all that hot air in.... but i get what you saying... and it makes sense... but so does the other suggestions so its difficult...
my one mate had his top fans blowing in and is rear fan blowing in... he turned his cpu cooler so that it sucks from the top and blows towards the bottom of the case... he then turned his bottom and front fans so they where blowing out... but the cpu pushed all the hot air on the graphics card...
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

The_Jelly wrote:ya thats why i have put the top fans as extractors.... but hot air rises as u say and my cpu cooler sucks all that hot air in.... but i get what you saying... and it makes sense... but so does the other suggestions so its difficult...
my one mate had his top fans blowing in and is rear fan blowing in... he turned his cpu cooler so that it sucks from the top and blows towards the bottom of the case... he then turned his bottom and front fans so they where blowing out... but the cpu pushed all the hot air on the graphics card...
Yes your CPU cooler might do that, but when you have a lot of fresh coolish air (ambient temps in the room also plays a big factor!) then the "hot" air might not be that hot.

Your cable management is very good and I doubt that you will have a problem. My cables in my pc is a mess and I have the following:

One 120mm fan in the front pulling air in.
Two 140mm fans on the side panel that blows air onto the mobo and GPU.
One 120mm at the back exhausting + my power supplies 120mm also exhausting.

With this setup and my cables being a mess, my ambient temps inside the case and on the mobo is hardly over 30 degrees. GPU never goes over 60 degrees. I always have a fan on when the pc is on and windows are always open.

Edit: I bought proper filters for the two 140mm fans on the sides and my front 120mm is also filtered. Dust is not a issue in my pc.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

may i ask what filters are u using and where di u get them from ice pick....? ill tkae a look at all my temps just now and report back here with what i find
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

Sure.

Here is the link: http://www.demcifilter.com/
They are based in CPT but will ship to you.

Summary: You can custom make the filters if you want. Any size or shape. You can even add logos on the sides like I did:
Image
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

ah demci filters.... theres a thread about them somewhere in here..... they look amazing but don't think they will work for my case... i have a plastic side panel with only one fan... and as i understand those filters stick on via magnet.... then the top is completely meshed the whole way across the top... then the front is also completely meshed... so not sure how they would look ar fit.....
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

The_Jelly wrote:ah demci filters.... theres a thread about them somewhere in here..... they look amazing but don't think they will work for my case... i have a plastic side panel with only one fan... and as i understand those filters stick on via magnet.... then the top is completely meshed the whole way across the top... then the front is also completely meshed... so not sure how they would look ar fit.....
My case is ferrous, but if your case is non-ferrous then you also get a small magnetic strip that you first stick onto the plastic and then the filter itself sticks to that.

So there is a way.

I would say the top and sides would look cool, but maybe the front not so much. Could you not then add some other sort of filtering fiber on the inside of the front?

Dust is a biaatch and I got tired of opening my pc and cleaning it. These filters really work and since I've put them in, I've regularly opened the side panel and had a look. NO dust at all. I trace my finder over the GPU and not a trace of dust.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

ya i can it filters between inside and the front but just need to fin a place that makes something like that here in durban... and yup i hate dudt too with a passion... least my pc serves dual purpose... keeps me entertained and cleans my room for me hahahahahaha!
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

The_Jelly wrote:ya i can it filters between inside and the front but just need to fin a place that makes something like that here in durban... and yup i hate dudt too with a passion... least my pc serves dual purpose... keeps me entertained and cleans my room for me hahahahahaha!
hahaha!

Bought me a 140mm Shark fan. Damn. It came with a "power reducing" cable to run at a lower voltage. Thought I'd try it without that cable. Dang! that things sucks so much air and is so noisy. Decided to put that voltage cable thing in.

But without the filters these fans suck in so much crap. Rather keep it clean. Dust is a big pc killer. A lot like AIDS. Slow, but it still kills.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
The_Jelly
Registered User
Posts: 423
Joined: 13 Aug 2010, 22:37

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by The_Jelly »

Hahahahahahaha! So my pc has aids.... And yours did before you bought your antiretrovirals... Hahahaha! Ill go filter hunting next weekend... I'm off to the coast now now.... Keen to lower some temps in my case sometime aswell just need the time to sit and play around
i7 950 @ 4ghz 1.3v| Zalman CNPS 10x extreme Cooler | Asus Rampage III extreme | 6gb corsair dominator 1600 (7-8-7-20) | Asus gtx 560 Ti Direct Cu II SLI| Corsair Tx 750W | Coolermaster Cm690II Advanced | 640Gb WD Black Sata 3 6gb/s |
-Prometheus-
Resident Drama Llama
Posts: 967
Joined: 05 Mar 2008, 02:00
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by -Prometheus- »

........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
Last edited by -Prometheus- on 04 Apr 2011, 02:43, edited 1 time in total.
BBLounge - Broadband and Technology forum
Please like our facebook page
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

I didn't want to start a new thread about the same thing, so I though I'd use this one.

Last weekend I decided to give the PC some TLC. Removed everything inside, cleaned it, reapplied thermal compound where necessary and put everything back together.

I left the two 140mm fans on the side that blows air onto the motherboard and GPU disconnected and what do you know! The temps on the CPU and GPU fell by a few degrees! :shock:

So I decided to move that quick spinning 140mm Shark fan to the front of the case for better airflow from the front. Temps dropped by about 1 degree.

So, now I have one 140mm sucking air in from the front, a 120mm extraction fan and my PSU fan extracting as well. The fans from my HSF blows onto the rear extraction fan.

So with only those fans now and I have better temps than with all those fans blowing air in.
I must add that the ambient temps have been VERY high the past few weeks and perhaps with the two 140mm fans pulling in so much hot air, it might have aided in higher temps and now with only one intake fan, there is less hot air coming in. :?:

Will need to actually test this in one night where the ambient temp stays the same for a while.
I know I know, if the pc don't crash, then the temps are fine, but I like reaching low temps. :lol: :lol:
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
Sojourn
Registered User
Posts: 5649
Joined: 02 Sep 2004, 02:00
Location: Still looking...

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by Sojourn »

Icepick - if the pc don't crash, then the temps are fine.
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

Sojourn wrote:Icepick - if the pc don't crash, then the temps are fine.
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
-Prometheus-
Resident Drama Llama
Posts: 967
Joined: 05 Mar 2008, 02:00
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by -Prometheus- »

........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................................................
Last edited by -Prometheus- on 04 Apr 2011, 04:36, edited 1 time in total.
BBLounge - Broadband and Technology forum
Please like our facebook page
IcePick88
Registered User
Posts: 1341
Joined: 18 Mar 2008, 02:00
Location: KZN
Contact:

Re: Case airflow advice

Post by IcePick88 »

I lean more towards the case that has better flow now.

Previously I had fans blowing air in from all directions and that did not create a nice flow. The air was all over the place.
No it flows nicely from the front to the back.

But yes, I do have a negative pressure now, but I will connect one 140mm fan on the side to suck air out and see if the temps perhaps drops a little more. :D
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 (OC'ed to 3.8Ghz)
CPU Cooler: CM Hyper TX3 P/P
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD5850
Motherboard: Asus M4A785T-M
Memory: 4GB Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1333
Case: Zalman Z7
Display: Samsung Syncmaster 2243BWX
Post Reply