Pls Help. Spec-6 Airflow

kamisis12 · November 12, 2019

I recently ordered my build online which includes a Corsair Carbide Spec-6 white case. I am going to fill all fan slots. It is currently being delivered. I am super confused about one thing. The top fans are designed as an exhaust for this case; why the hell does it have a filter incorporated there? If I take it off, it will look terrible(saw the mesh online). But if I don't Isn't the filter going to just trap the dust in and restrict airflow. Do you think exhaust with a filter going to be a problem? Is there any out of the box solutions to this problem? I started thinking I might run airflow in reverse but I saw online it might increase gpu temps.

flashiling · November 12, 2019

depends on which way the fans are turned.

if you have the fans spinning air into the case then yes dust will make it harder to get air into the case.

if the fan is spinning out of the case, dust might make it harder to get air out.

but dust is going to be a problem most of the time.

linus has a video about one year old where he showcases the differences with fans blowing in and blowing out

martward · November 12, 2019

You should try to avoid getting dust into you case if you don't want it there, not necessarily try to get it out again using the fans. I guess the reason they are there is also that dust can get into you system when you PC is off and the fans aren't pushing air out. As long as there is as much or more air getting into the system as going out dust shouldn't be that much of a problem in my experience.

glenalz81 · November 12, 2019

Corsair Carbide Spec-6 and good airflow don't go together.

kamisis12 · November 12, 2019

The reason I don't want to take off top dust filter is cosmetic. Maybe I can take off the front dust filter and use front as an exhaust and use top(w/ filter) and back as intake. What do you think will happen to do cooling performance of the case?

TVwazhere · November 12, 2019

3 hours ago, kamisis12 said:

The reason I don't want to take off top dust filter is cosmetic. Maybe I can take off the front dust filter and use front as an exhaust and use top(w/ filter) and back as intake. What do you think will happen to do cooling performance of the case?

Your rear fan does not have a dust filter (and the front filter is much too large for that fan slot), so it will let a lot more dust in than if it were used as an exhaust.

Are you using an air tower CPU cooler, or an AIO? You might see better CPU temps with a top/rear intake (especially with an air tower) but will liekly see increased GPU temps since the GPU will not have any fans directly feeding it fresh air. I roughly draw in paint what a theoretical reverse airflow path might look like, assuming you're using an Open air card design (not a reference blower cooler)

Essentially ythe GPU will have to pull air in from the PCI-E slots, which means more work for the GPU fans (faster spinning, higher noise)

kamisis12 · November 13, 2019

18 hours ago, TVwazhere said:

Your rear fan does not have a dust filter (and the front filter is much too large for that fan slot), so it will let a lot more dust in than if it were used as an exhaust.

Are you using an air tower CPU cooler, or an AIO? You might see better CPU temps with a top/rear intake (especially with an air tower) but will liekly see increased GPU temps since the GPU will not have any fans directly feeding it fresh air. I roughly draw in paint what a theoretical reverse airflow path might look like, assuming you're using an Open air card design (not a reference blower cooler)

Essentially ythe GPU will have to pull air in from the PCI-E slots, which means more work for the GPU fans (faster spinning, higher noise)

Thank you soo much for the sheer amount of effort you put into the reply.

System: sapphire 5700xt pulse, r5 3600, mugen 5 rev b tower cooler. 2x140, 4x120 unused high quality fans from previous builds.

Cooling, I see the issue with the gpu overheating and it is not worth reversing airflow in such a case. I am wondering if I Mod my remaining pci slot covers to hold the attached fan(92mm I think) as an intake would both gpu and cpu temps be lower than the standard front to top airflow path. I might face a problem where if I run that 92 as an intake it might work in the counter direction of the gpu fans leading to higher temperatures. Any ideas?

kamisis12 · November 13, 2019

18 hours ago, TVwazhere said:

Your rear fan does not have a dust filter (and the front filter is much too large for that fan slot), so it will let a lot more dust in than if it were used as an exhaust.

Are you using an air tower CPU cooler, or an AIO? You might see better CPU temps with a top/rear intake (especially with an air tower) but will liekly see increased GPU temps since the GPU will not have any fans directly feeding it fresh air. I roughly draw in paint what a theoretical reverse airflow path might look like, assuming you're using an Open air card design (not a reference blower cooler)

Essentially ythe GPU will have to pull air in from the PCI-E slots, which means more work for the GPU fans (faster spinning, higher noise)

Here are the 2 flow diagrams for Standard and reverse airflows with explanations on fan placement... Which do you think is better for cooling

TVwazhere · November 13, 2019

4 hours ago, kamisis12 said:

Here are the 2 flow diagrams for Standard and reverse airflows with explanations on fan placement... Which do you think is better for cooling

Spoiler

A 92mm fan there would indeed provide substantially more airflow to the bottom fans which would decrease GPU temps. You should also be able to use a magnetic dust filter (even if it's only 120mm) to make this a dust free intake as well.

I personally recommend these filters (I have never actually used them before) but their thin weaving coupled with their density provide great dust filtration which not totally impeding airflow.

https://www.amazon.com/SilverStone-Technology-SST-FF123B-Filter-Cooling/dp/B00ARB5E8U/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=120mm+dust+filter&qid=1573652040&sr=8-6

7 hours ago, kamisis12 said:

Thank you soo much for the sheer amount of effort you put into the reply.

"Put as much effort into your question as you'd expect someone to give in an answer"- @Princess Luna

kamisis12 · November 13, 2019

7 hours ago, TVwazhere said:

A 92mm fan there would indeed provide substantially more airflow to the bottom fans which would decrease GPU temps. You should also be able to use a magnetic dust filter (even if it's only 120mm) to make this a dust free intake as well.

I personally recommend these filters (I have never actually used them before) but their thin weaving coupled with their density provide great dust filtration which not totally impeding airflow.

https://www.amazon.com/SilverStone-Technology-SST-FF123B-Filter-Cooling/dp/B00ARB5E8U/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=120mm+dust+filter&qid=1573652040&sr=8-6

"Put as much effort into your question as you'd expect someone to give in an answer"- @Princess Luna

So, what is the final verdict? Which setup would give me best thermals? Standard or reverse airflow? You sort of insinuated reverse airflow with 92 mm would be better, just double checking.

Last question: I ommited the use of some fan slots in the diagrams; the reasons are given in the diagrams. Do you agree with the ommissions or would you suggest some alterations?

Ps: this might be useful to other 270/275r/spec-6 users. I might test both systems upload temp info.

TVwazhere · November 13, 2019

18 minutes ago, kamisis12 said:

So, what is the final verdict? Which setup would give me best thermals? Standard or reverse airflow? You sort of insinuated reverse airflow with 92 mm would be better, just double checking.

I am of the opinion that due to the nature of the 275R/Spec-06's front panel, a Rear/Top intake setup is likely to yeild a considerably cooler CPU temperature, and a noticeably cooler GPU temperature (with the 92mm fan in the underlying expansion slots) however the only way to know for sure is to test! That's the fun part, to find out what works best for your setup! SCIENCE!!!

That being said, Corsair has recently releases the 275R Airflow edition, so future buyers looking at the 275R pr SPEC-06 who are concerned about airflow might be able to turn to this updated case, as well as any future 275R owners who are concerned about their airflow should keep an eye on Corsair's Spare Parts page.

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/ycbCmG/corsair-275r-airflow-atx-mid-tower-case-cc-9011182-ww

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/sY9tt6/corsair-275r-airflow-atx-mid-tower-case-cc-9011181-ww

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categories/Products/Accessories-|-Parts/c/Cor_Products_Accessories_Parts