Airflow and aftermarket fans

[kelvinhall05]

At the moment, my system is set up like this (specs in signature): One intake fan that came with the case, one exhaust fan that came with the case, and two exhaust push fans on my radiator that -- you guessed it -- came with the cooler. I know this probably isn't the ideal airflow setup, but what is? How should I set it up? If I should buy new fans, which ones should I buy? I don't really care about RGB or colors in general since my system is a mish-mash of random colors anyways, but I do care about noise and performance. They also have to work on 3-pin fan headers. Thanks!

[Imbellis]

Here's a google sheet with basically all fans on the market. Use tabs at the bottom to change sizes. (prices may be outdated)

 

This is a quote from another fan related topic ( Quiet PWM Fan Options ).

Quote

Here are some brands that are good:

 

*Fractal Design - There should be some economic fans (Around $7) that have good stats about 'em.

Noise Blocker - Good but expensive.

BeQuiet! - Good but expensive.

Noctua - Good but expensive.

 

Here are a couple of fans that come to mind:

Noctua NF-S12B redux-1200 - 59.1 CFM @ 18.1 dbA: $13.59

Fractal Design FD-FAN-SSR2-120-BK - 66 CFM @ 19 dbA: $6.49

be quiet! Pure Wings 2 - 51 CFM @ 19 dBa: $10.89

 

*I haven't used the FD's fan, so I'm hesitant to put it on (but the info about it says I should).

 

Generally, you should run positive air pressure causing air to go out cracks rather than in.

For your setup, I'd recommend switching your rad to intake. Beyond that - everything seems fine.

 

 

[Damascus]

Go on amazon and search arctic 120mm

 

Add as many are required 

 

Enjoy

[kelvinhall05]

3 minutes ago, Imbellis said:

Here's a google sheet with basically all fans on the market. Use tabs at the bottom to change sizes. (prices may be outdated)

 

This is a quote from another fan related topic ( Quiet PWM Fan Options ).

Generally, you should run positive air pressure causing air to go out cracks rather than in.

For your setup, I'd recommend switching your rad to intake. Beyond that - everything seems fine.

 

 

One thing I'm afraid of is there isn't a dust filter on top of the rad, only on the front intake and PSU cover. Is this an issue?

[kelvinhall05]

3 minutes ago, Damascus said:

Go on amazon and search arctic 120mm

 

Add as many are required 

 

Enjoy

I heard Arctic fans aren't very quiet. Did I hear wrong?

[Damascus]

1 minute ago, kelvinhall05 said:

I heard Arctic fans aren't very quiet. Did I hear wrong?

I've been impressed with the performance, they are $5 a pop in Canada.  Less of a steal in the US

[Imbellis]

10 minutes ago, kelvinhall05 said:

One thing I'm afraid of is there isn't a dust filter on top of the rad, only on the front intake and PSU cover. Is this an issue?

I heard Arctic fans aren't very quiet. Did I hear wrong?

 

I'd recommend adding a dust filter, but it's not necessary. You could DIY it for cheap or buy two 120mm filters.

I haven't tried Arctic fans myself, but the 53CFM and 23 dbA advertised for their F12 isn't bad (.3 sone); however, there is a lack of regulation/ testing for accuracy in the fan market.

[LogicalDrm]

18 hours ago, kelvinhall05 said:

One thing I'm afraid of is there isn't a dust filter on top of the rad, only on the front intake and PSU cover. Is this an issue?

That would be a thing. However I don't support idea of having top intake unless you are really struggling to keep CPU cooled. Just using rad as exhaust will do fine. The biggest thing you can do, is to move rear exhaust to front as intake and be fine with that.

 

Now, what are your temps and main reason for changing fans? FD case fans are already better than what you normally would get with case. Which AIO? It isn't listed in your specs (oddly).

[kelvinhall05]

1 hour ago, LoGiCalDrm said:

That would be a thing. However I don't support idea of having top intake unless you are really struggling to keep CPU cooled. Just using rad as exhaust will do fine. The biggest thing you can do, is to move rear exhaust to front as intake and be fine with that.

 

Now, what are your temps and main reason for changing fans? FD case fans are already better than what you normally would get with case. Which AIO? It isn't listed in your specs (oddly).

They’re kinda noisy. Temps are fine, but I’ll try moving the rear exhaust when I get home. As for which AIO, it’s an H100i V2. I’ll add it in when I get home. 

[LogicalDrm]

1 hour ago, kelvinhall05 said:

They’re kinda noisy. Temps are fine, but I’ll try moving the rear exhaust when I get home. As for which AIO, it’s an H100i V2. I’ll add it in when I get home. 

Have you tried to control them and set less aggressive fan curve?

[kelvinhall05]

1 hour ago, LoGiCalDrm said:

Have you tried to control them and set less aggressive fan curve?

Yes, I did the cooler fans, but the other fans I can't control (maybe I can, but IIRC 3-pin fans aren't controllable).

[LogicalDrm]

30 minutes ago, kelvinhall05 said:

Yes, I did the cooler fans, but the other fans I can't control (maybe I can, but IIRC 3-pin fans aren't controllable).

Depends on mobo if you can control 3pins or not. You could try with Speedfan. All 3 my 3pin case fans are controlled with it. It doesn't help that much if you get new fans and don't control them either. All fans are loud at full speed.

[Bcat00]

Arctic fans are good, issue is their quality control.

Had the Accelero IV cooler for my gpu once and one of the fans was out of balance so it shook alot. 

[WoodenMarker]

9 hours ago, kelvinhall05 said:

Yes, I did the cooler fans, but the other fans I can't control (maybe I can, but IIRC 3-pin fans aren't controllable).

2, 3, and 4pin fans can all be controlled. It's dependent on the header you're powering them from that determines whether or not you have control. 

What headers are you powering the case fans from? 

As for case cooling layout, you should place the rad at the front for intake and use the stock case fans at the top and rear for exhaust. 

[kelvinhall05]

7 hours ago, WoodenMarker said:

2, 3, and 4pin fans can all be controlled. It's dependent on the header you're powering them from that determines whether or not you have control. 

What headers are you powering the case fans from? 

As for case cooling layout, you should place the rad at the front for intake and use the stock case fans at the top and rear for exhaust. 

OK, so I just finished moving the rear exhaust fan since yesterday I was playing GTA V with some friends and didn't really have time. It is a bit quieter, so that's good.

The fans are either connected to the fan headers coming out of the CPU block on my H100i V2, or connected to the CHA_FAN2 and CHA_FAN3 headers, both of which are 3-pin. As for having the rad on the front, I tried it before moving it to the top, but temps weren't the best, and it looked ugly IMO.