cooling issues in node 804, 4790k w h100i

[CAC1291]

Hi,

 

I've posted recently in other parts of the forums about my GPU's heat in my case, but have also come up on a different issue as well, although I think it's related.

 

All of my PC's parts are in my signature. Inside this Node 804, my CPU gets to roughly 65C from a 20 minute Intel XTU CPU burn test, and similar results when testing one of my more demanding games, Dragon Age Inquisition. This isn't that bad, but considering everything is at stock, I think the temperatures could be considerably better.

 

I took the sides off my case to see if the problem is cooling. Immediately, I saw that the temperatures during another XTU burn test hit a max of 55C.

 

I've ordered Noctua NF-F12s to replace the stock corsair fans pulling air through the top of my H100i -- this should reduce CPU temps a bit. I'm pretty sure I'm going to also sell my GTX 770 that blows air into the case with a blower-style 970 that blows air out the back, to reduce temps inside.

 

What else, cooling wise, can I do? I have a stock fan pulling air in through the bottom front of the case, and a stock fan exhausting air out the top rear, like common sense dictates. Would replacing these fans with something from noctua or silverstone help towards my goal of cooling everything (particularly the CPU) better? What other suggestions do you guys have?

 

My issue is trying to figure out what is the best way to solve this. I understand I may not be able to get such a significant decrease in temperatures with the case closed, but I think I could get 5 or 6 C less with a better cooling solution. This also means I could do a better overclock -- after some initial testing, my 4790k needs roughly 1.29v on manual vcore to be stable at 4.7ghz -- with a closed case, this is around 80c, while with the case open, around 70c.

 

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

I've also attached a picture showing the cooling setup in my case. 

 

[CapricaBuccaneers]

I can only speak from my own experience - I was going to get a Node 804 or Corsair 350 originally before opting for the Arc Mini R2.

Fractal stock fans seem decent as first glance, they run quietly at full rpm and air seems to be flowing. However they actually have a pretty poor cubic feet per minute rating of 40 at full speed compared to Noctua's standard NFF12's 55 cfm or the NFS12a's 62 cfm.

Definitely change your stock front/rear fans to NFS12a models, and the two on your radiator to the NFF12s that you've ordered. You will likely need to tweak your fan settings to make the front fan spin faster normally so that it draws more cool air in. For reference my intakes are clear so I leave them running at 222rpm - and they increase speed to 6xx under load. This allows them to function while still remaining quiet.

Also try to clear up some of your cabling, it's not easy but it will help a little with your airflow.

Possibly mount the radiator directly to the chassis and the fans under it, this would allow the coolant tubing to rise up a little giving a wider channel for air to flow front to back. It likely won't make a huge difference but you're going to be aiming for lots of small improvements to equate to a significant one at first.

As you've mentioned your gpu exhausting hot air into your case is also an issue, but unless you replace it there's little you can do about it.

[CAC1291]

I can only speak from my own experience - I was going to get a Node 804 or Corsair 350 originally before opting for the Arc Mini R2.

Fractal stock fans seem decent as first glance, they run quietly at full rpm and air seems to be flowing. However they actually have a pretty poor cubic feet per minute rating of 40 at full speed compared to Noctua's standard NFF12's 55 cfm or the NFS12a's 62 cfm.

Definitely change your stock front/rear fans to NFS12a models, and the two on your radiator to the NFF12s that you've ordered. You will likely need to tweak your fan settings to make the front fan spin faster normally so that it draws more cool air in. For reference my intakes are clear so I leave them running at 222rpm - and they increase speed to 6xx under load. This allows them to function while still remaining quiet.

Also try to clear up some of your cabling, it's not easy but it will help a little with your airflow.

Possibly mount the radiator directly to the chassis and the fans under it, this would allow the coolant tubing to rise up a little giving a wider channel for air to flow front to back. It likely won't make a huge difference but you're going to be aiming for lots of small improvements to equate to a significant one at first.

As you've mentioned your gpu exhausting hot air into your case is also an issue, but unless you replace it there's little you can do about it.

 

Yeah, on my old Arc Midi I eventually replaced the stock fractal fans with Corsair AF-140s and saw some improvement. 

 

My cabling unfortunately can't be cleared up too much more, since I don't have a modular PSU, but I might reconfigure the fans on the radiator. Would pushing hot air through the radiator change temps at all? 

 

And I think if the drop in temps resulting from a new GPU are enough, I'll replace it. It might be, if I consider temp drops and the slight power drop/performance improvement a 970 would bring. 

[MourningSouls]

Personally I'd put the H100 rad in the other chamber, install two good fans in the front primary chamber, and two decent fans the back (One direct back, the other top back, and run one at 7v). Also make sure to have an exhaust fan the the HDD/H100 chamber.

 

You would actually have a proper amount of intake this way, while also having good exhaust.

[CAC1291]

Personally I'd put the H100 rad in the other chamber, install two good fans in the front primary chamber, and two decent fans the back (One direct back, the other top back, and run one at 7v). Also make sure to have an exhaust fan the the HDD/H100 chamber.

 

You would actually have a proper amount of intake this way, while also having good exhaust.

 

I'm not sure I'd be able to do that. I need the back chamber to house my HDD's. I have a 1 TB and a 3 TB for mass storage. 

[MourningSouls]

I'm not sure I'd be able to do that. I need the back chamber to house my HDD's. I have a 1 TB and a 3 TB for mass storage. 

You have two cages. Though clearance for the cables with the second one are a bit less than is desirable, there are adapters and cables that can deal with that should things not work smoothly.

 

Silverstone's SST-CP11B-500 and SST-CP06 would do the trick. Would probably cost a bit more than desired though.

 

You could also move the HDD cage to the bottom infront of the PSU if it's short enough, then put the H100 in the top. Would have a much better price, but depends heavily on your PSU's length.

 

Unfortunately it's going to be July before I can get my hands on a Node 804 to actually be able to test things on my own.

[CAC1291]

You have two cages. Though clearance for the cables with the second one are a bit less than is desirable, there are adapters and cables that can deal with that should things not work smoothly.

 

Silverstone's SST-CP11B-500 and SST-CP06 would do the trick. Would probably cost a bit more than desired though.

 

You could also move the HDD cage to the bottom infront of the PSU if it's short enough, then put the H100 in the top. Would have a much better price, but depends heavily on your PSU's length.

 

Unfortunately it's going to be July before I can get my hands on a Node 804 to actually be able to test things on my own.

 

I don't think I can fit the radiator in the back. It would require removing both of the HDD cages, since it would take up the length of the top of the case. I only use one cage, but I can't get rid of it or move it to the bottom, since my case is not modular and that's where I've bunched and organized the unnecessary cables (along with those required to plug into the HDDs). I was going to get a new PSU later this year, but certainly not right now. 

 

The good news is that the new Noctua fans came in. I've kept the fractal fan at the front bottom for now (will replace it in a week or two maybe?) and added the Noctua NF-S12b. I've also replaced the corsair fans on the H100i with NF-F12s, and have replaced the back fractal fan with one of the Corsair SP 120s that was on the radiator (since that should be a slight improvement). 

 

Temperatures in the case dropped significantly with the side panel closed. Where I was getting 65 after a 15 min Intel XTU stress test, I was now getting 55-57. I had the corsair fans on a custom RPM curve dependent on CPU temperature, spinning at the most at 1700 RPM. Turning that down to 1300 RPM for the Noctua fans has increased temps to 61 or 62, but regardless this is a significant improvement. 

 

I'm still mulling over replacing the GPU, just because this DCUII gets pretty loud since it's going all the way up to 80C. But overall, I'm happy with the fans.