Is this a good positive airflow? How to get the recommended positive airflow?

[austind903]

Hello, I'm building a PC and I'm striving for the best positive airflow for my PC. The case I will be utilizing, Corsair Airflow 275r, supports up to six 120mm fans (Two top, one rear & three front). The case includes three 120mm fans (900 RPM). So for my airflow design, I will be placing 3 included fans, one in the rear and two on the top to allow heat air to move out. As for the front of the case to let fresh air in, I'm trying to find fans that stay quiet and fast. So I found decently fast, and quiet fans. They are, be quiet! PVM high-speed 1,600RPM for 140mm fans, and be quiet PVM high-speed 2,200RPM for 120mm fans. My question for the front of the case, which implies the best airflow for the front of the case? Should I utilize three 120mm fans in the front OR two 140mm fans in the front for the best positive airflow? Also, does the top and rear fans are appropriate to use and where they are placed? Or I should buy better fans for better speed? Please comment below!
Thanks.
-
(PS, The reason I'm trying to achieve the best airflow is I'm a video editor. I will be running Davinci Resolve with Linux OS and importing heavy 4k 60 FPS editing)

[muito_gostoso]

 

3 minutes ago, austind903 said:

Hello, I'm building a PC and I'm striving for the best positive airflow for my PC. The case I will be utilizing, Corsair Airflow 275r, supports up to six 120mm fans (Two top, one rear & three front). The case includes three 120mm fans (900 RPM). So for my airflow design, I will be placing 3 included fans, one in the rear and two on the top to allow heat air to move out. As for the front of the case to let fresh air in, I'm trying to find fans that stay quiet and fast. So I found decently fast, and quiet fans. They are, be quiet! PVM high-speed 1,600RPM for 140mm fans, and be quiet PVM high-speed 2,200RPM for 120mm fans. My question for the front of the case, which implies the best airflow for the front of the case? Should I utilize three 120mm fans in the front OR two 140mm fans in the front for the best positive airflow? Also, does the top and rear fans are appropriate to use and where they are placed? Or I should buy better fans for better speed? Please comment below!
Thanks.
-
(PS, The reason I'm trying to achieve the best airflow is I'm a video editor. I will be running Davinci Resolve with Linux OS and importing heavy 4k 60 FPS editing)

use noctuas

[LogicalDrm]

I would say don't buy any more fans. What are your other components, mainly CPU, CPU cooler and GPU? The optimal airflow setup is 2x intake, 1x exhaust and you really don't gain anything by adding fans in air cooled build. If you would have AIO running, then that alone would add more fans.

[Demonic Donut]

4 hours ago, LogicalDrm said:

I would say don't buy any more fans. What are your other components, mainly CPU, CPU cooler and GPU? The optimal airflow setup is 2x intake, 1x exhaust and you really don't gain anything by adding fans in air cooled build. If you would have AIO running, then that alone would add more fans.

Going to have to disagree. Unless airflow is completely unrestricted, you're going to get better temps by having more fans. And in a perfect case with great airflow, more fans means you can run lower speeds instead of having them scream from running at max speed to get the same amount of airflow.

 

[LogicalDrm]

23 minutes ago, Demonic Donut said:

Going to have to disagree. Unless airflow is completely unrestricted, you're going to get better temps by having more fans. And in a perfect case with great airflow, more fans means you can run lower speeds instead of having them scream from running at max speed to get the same amount of airflow.

 

Yeah, no. Adding fans isn't really gonna move temps so much that it would be worth it. Sure if the GPU temps are higher than what they should be, going from two intake to three can improve things. But funny enough, only if case has airflow issues. This is backed up by several youtube tests, including old LTT one. More fans = better comes into play if you have AIO/custom loop where moving air through radiators is the key. On pure air cooling build just having constant airflow is enough. Plus having room being well ventilated and case in place where it can get fresh air and has room for exhausted hot air to move towards ceiling.

 

But if you have data (can be your own testing) to back your opinion, I'm always willing to change my opinions.

[RAS_3885]

11 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

Yeah, no. Adding fans isn't really gonna move temps so much that it would be worth it. Sure if the GPU temps are higher than what they should be, going from two intake to three can improve things. But funny enough, only if case has airflow issues. This is backed up by several youtube tests, including old LTT one. More fans = better comes into play if you have AIO/custom loop where moving air through radiators is the key. On pure air cooling build just having constant airflow is enough. Plus having room being well ventilated and case in place where it can get fresh air and has room for exhausted hot air to move towards ceiling.

 

But if you have data (can be your own testing) to back your opinion, I'm always willing to change my opinions.

Totally agree. Unless overcoming restricted air flow paths (radiators, HDD cages, SFF cases, etc.) adding more fans gets to a point of diminishing returns really fast, even though that seems to be the common suggestion/goal people have with pure air cooling.

 

I have a Define S case, which is wide open as far as air flow is concerned. My case fans are set to spin at 500-700 RPM depending on system load (Noctua NF-S12A fans). GPU temps sit right at 70 C +/- 1 degree under full load. CPU is around 60 C. I've tried everything from 1 intake and 1 exhaust, all the way up to 3 intake and 1 exhaust. As long as the airflow was moving through the case my temps didn't deviate by more than 1 degree, which is negligible. Only when turning the case fans completely off do I see component temps increase. Even turning fans to min RPM of ~300 the temps were still fine.

[RAS_3885]

9 hours ago, austind903 said:

Hello, I'm building a PC and I'm striving for the best positive airflow for my PC. The case I will be utilizing, Corsair Airflow 275r, supports up to six 120mm fans (Two top, one rear & three front). The case includes three 120mm fans (900 RPM). So for my airflow design, I will be placing 3 included fans, one in the rear and two on the top to allow heat air to move out. As for the front of the case to let fresh air in, I'm trying to find fans that stay quiet and fast. So I found decently fast, and quiet fans. They are, be quiet! PVM high-speed 1,600RPM for 140mm fans, and be quiet PVM high-speed 2,200RPM for 120mm fans. My question for the front of the case, which implies the best airflow for the front of the case? Should I utilize three 120mm fans in the front OR two 140mm fans in the front for the best positive airflow? Also, does the top and rear fans are appropriate to use and where they are placed? Or I should buy better fans for better speed? Please comment below!
Thanks.
-
(PS, The reason I'm trying to achieve the best airflow is I'm a video editor. I will be running Davinci Resolve with Linux OS and importing heavy 4k 60 FPS editing)

I would just run the included fans with 2 as front intake and 1 as rear exhaust.

 

If you have temp issues with that THEN evaluate more fans, but that case looks pretty open internally.

[austind903]

8 hours ago, LogicalDrm said:

I would say don't buy any more fans. What are your other components, mainly CPU, CPU cooler and GPU? The optimal airflow setup is 2x intake, 1x exhaust and you really don't gain anything by adding fans in air cooled build. If you would have AIO running, then that alone would add more fans.

CPU: Amd Ryzen 5 3600

CPU cooler: Stock

GPU: XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS

 

[LogicalDrm]

9 minutes ago, austind903 said:

CPU: Amd Ryzen 5 3600

CPU cooler: Stock

GPU: XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS

Rather than buy more fans, get aftermarket cooler. 3600 can get bit hot with just stock.

[Demonic Donut]

3 hours ago, LogicalDrm said:

Yeah, no. Adding fans isn't really gonna move temps so much that it would be worth it. Sure if the GPU temps are higher than what they should be, going from two intake to three can improve things. But funny enough, only if case has airflow issues. This is backed up by several youtube tests, including old LTT one. More fans = better comes into play if you have AIO/custom loop where moving air through radiators is the key. On pure air cooling build just having constant airflow is enough. Plus having room being well ventilated and case in place where it can get fresh air and has room for exhausted hot air to move towards ceiling.

 

But if you have data (can be your own testing) to back your opinion, I'm always willing to change my opinions.

If you have a good flowing case and good fans already, sure. OP was asking for optimal though, not acceptable.

 

As far as my own tests. I didn't move fans. Only turned them off/on and adjusted speeds. Also didn't install the original Corsair exhaust fan. Stress tests, not gaming or normal workload. GPU temps are normal for demanding games, CPU is higher than gaming, but lower than when I run F@H.

 

Corsair Carbide 400R case.

 

2 stock 120mm front intake fans (no speed control) plus Noctua 140mm rear exhaust with Noctua D15 w/ 120mm and 140mm. Fans including GPU manually locked at 50pct nets me 68C on CPU and 79C average/ 101 hotspot on GPU. GPU throttling a bit, but not majorly.

 

2 side intake 140mm Noctuas + 1 rear 140mm exhaust at 50% gives me 61C CPU and 74C/94C with no GPU throttling.

 

Same test as above but setting side intake to 25% instead of 50% to achieve similar airflow to quiet stock 120mm fronts. Simulating just moving the stock front intake fans to side intake. 65C GPU and 77C/100C GPU, some throttling, but not as much as stock setup.

 

All fans at 50% (how I usually run my case) gives me 58C CPU and 74C/94C GPU. Going over 50% speed doesn't do much but add noise, and I don't like hearing fans ramp up/down.

 

Diminishing returns, yes. But upgrading to better than stock fans is worth it imo, for airflow and for noise. Unless your case comes with great fans...

 

I also think the difference would be greater for CPU temps with a stock down flow cooler. Also, hardly any cases have side intake these days and most have a lot of restriction up front.

 

[LogicalDrm]

3 minutes ago, Demonic Donut said:

Diminishing returns, yes. But upgrading to better than stock fans is worth it imo, for airflow and for noise. Unless your case comes with great fans...

 

I also think the difference would be greater for CPU temps with a stock down flow cooler. Also, hardly any cases have side intake these days and most have a lot of restriction up front.

With your testing taken into account, I would still say that better to see what temps are before jumping the gun. CPU cooler will make bigger impact than getting better fans. I did skip the fact that case comes with low-rpm variation of fans, and this could be issue. Still, I would prefer going for 3 more performing fans over 6 fans overall.

[-rascal-]

The airflow design of the Airflow 275R is pretty decent, according to Tech Gezus (Steve over at Gamers Nexus).

I built a new Ryzen system for my cousin using this chassis a few months ago.

 

Both @LogicalDrm and @Demonic Donut have valid points.

 

3x quality fans at the front + 1x fan at a rear should be enough as far as positive airflow goes.

You can add 2x exhaust fans at the top if necessary.

 

If you are running a stock cooler for the CPU now, it would be a good idea to get an after market CPU cooler.

 

Might be good to set-up custom fan profiles as well, so when the CPU + GPU workload gets high, the fans will adjust the extra heat output.

Keep the RPM and noise down when the system is idle / low workload.

Ramp the fans up when things exceed the certain temperature, etc.

 

I would get a baseline of your temperatures with the stock set-up first.

Go from there, and add / replace fans, or get a new aftermarket CPU cooler if necessary.

 

 

[austind903]

On 4/27/2020 at 11:05 AM, LogicalDrm said:

Rather than buy more fans, get aftermarket cooler. 3600 can get bit hot with just stock.

 

On 4/27/2020 at 12:06 PM, -rascal- said:

The airflow design of the Airflow 275R is pretty decent, according to Tech Gezus (Steve over at Gamers Nexus).

I built a new Ryzen system for my cousin using this chassis a few months ago.

 

Both @LogicalDrm and @Demonic Donut have valid points.

 

3x quality fans at the front + 1x fan at a rear should be enough as far as positive airflow goes.

You can add 2x exhaust fans at the top if necessary.

 

If you are running a stock cooler for the CPU now, it would be a good idea to get an after market CPU cooler.

 

Might be good to set-up custom fan profiles as well, so when the CPU + GPU workload gets high, the fans will adjust the extra heat output.

Keep the RPM and noise down when the system is idle / low workload.

Ramp the fans up when things exceed the certain temperature, etc.

 

I would get a baseline of your temperatures with the stock set-up first.

Go from there, and add / replace fans, or get a new aftermarket CPU cooler if necessary.

 

 

Okay, so far I've read all the comments and done some further research. I'm going to save money by not replacing the included fans. My airflow plan is utilizing one of the included fans at the rear and one at the top (both are 900 RPM) as an exhaust. For intake, I'm going to buy two 140 mm quiet, PVM, high speed (1,600RPM) fans. Ideally, positive airflow is less fan speed on the exhaust, while intake fans should be faster. I'll buy two 140 mm be quiet!, PVM, high speed (1,600RPM) fans for the intake. Ideally, the positive airflow is less fan speed on the exhaust, while the intake fans should be faster.

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For an ideal positive airflow at the top of the case, should I do two 120 mm or one 120 mm?

-

Also, I've heard that the stock CPU cooler is not enough for the AMD 3600 CPUs. So, my question is, what's the best budget-wise, and again, decent airflow CPU cooling?

-

Side note: I'm going to do some overclocking for the CPU.

[WoodenMarker]

25 minutes ago, austind903 said:

Okay, so far I've read all the comments and done some further research. I'm going to save money by not replacing the included fans. My airflow plan is utilizing one of the included fans at the rear and one at the top (both are 900 RPM) as an exhaust. For intake, I'm going to buy two 140 mm quiet, PVM, high speed (1,600RPM) fans. Ideally, positive airflow is less fan speed on the exhaust, while intake fans should be faster. I'll buy two 140 mm be quiet!, PVM, high speed (1,600RPM) fans for the intake. Ideally, the positive airflow is less fan speed on the exhaust, while the intake fans should be faster.

For an ideal positive airflow at the top of the case, should I do two 120 mm or one 120 mm?

Also, I've heard that the stock CPU cooler is not enough for the AMD 3600 CPUs. So, my question is, what's the best budget-wise, and again, decent airflow CPU cooling?

Side note: I'm going to do some overclocking for the CPU.

The stock cooler is fine for stock clocks but it isn't very quiet. If you're oc'ing, an aftermarket cooler can help. 

The stock case fans are adequate for cooling but aftermarket fans can improve airflow and allow for lower fan speeds / noise. 

What's quiet is up to you. Try out the stock case fans first. You can determine what to do from there depending on your satisfaction.