Why do so many computer cases have solid panels in front of the fans and only a small vent on the sides for the intake air?

[Xolin]

Why do a lot of PC Cases have solid panels in front of the fans and only a small vent up the sides to intake air? Surely this limits airflow considerably?

 

Take a look at this case for example:

 

Are the vents sufficient to intake air in this case? Would you buy a case like this or go for another PC case that has bigger vents / front mesh panel? 

[Praesi]

Its simply a design choice and not meant for the best cooling.

[Panoramix97]

Edited : I was wrong

[Hairless Monkey Boy]

2 minutes ago, Xolin said:

Are the vents sufficient to intake air in this case?

Usually no.

2 minutes ago, Xolin said:

Would you buy a case like this

Nope.

[Panoramix97]

Just now, Praesi said:

Its simply a design choice and not meant for the best cooling.

Does it really make a diff ?

[Praesi]

1 minute ago, Panoramix97 said:

Does it really make a diff ?

Oh yes.

Doesnt mean that it isnt enough cooling/airflow. Depends on what you are aiming for.

[Panoramix97]

1 minute ago, Praesi said:

Oh yes.

Doesnt mean that it isnt enough cooling/airflow. Depends on what you are aiming for.

Aiming for silent computer.

 

I have a case like that, only side vents, with 3X 140MM fans in front, 1x 140mm at the bottom inside tyhe case pulling air from underneath, and 1x 140mm exausht in the back

 

Using 10850K @ stock on a D15 cooler and getting 29-30 idle temp @ 20 ambiant room temperature

 

Getting around 65c max temp after running 3-4 cinebench R20 all core benchmark for example..

 

Are you saying I would get better temps with another case ? If yes approx. how much degree you think I could get with a case that isn't side way vented ?

[Praesi]

This has no serious impact on the sound.

For silent, you look for a different kind of case.

[Tristerin]

aesthetics, and it sells

[Panoramix97]

Just now, Praesi said:

This has no serious impact on the sound.

For silent, you look for a different kind of case.

I am using a Fractal Design Define S

 

Question was more about from your experience you think temp would drop 1-2 degree if using a case that is not side vents ? Or even more degrees ?

[Praesi]

Just now, Panoramix97 said:

I am using a Fractal Design Define S

 

Question was more about from your experience you think temp would drop 1-2 degree if using a case that is not side vents ? Or even more degrees ?

That depends on many factors. Your Temps are fine btw. If thats your concern.

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

2 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

aesthetics, and it sells

Imagine having your RGB fans obscured by fan grills. What a disaster that would be. 

[svmlegacy]

a e s t h e t i c

[Xolin]

Honestly, I have the case and there is no temperature problem (CPU - 62C~, GPU - 65~70C~), so what is the reason to buy a case with a front mesh panel?

[Tristerin]

2 minutes ago, Xolin said:

Honestly, I have the case and there is no temperature problem (CPU - 62C~, GPU - 65~70C~), so what is the reason to buy a case with a front mesh panel?

Cause I sit in the mid to upper 40C with airflow cases, room gets a lot less hot as the heat soak is never reached on the heat sinks in the system.  Extended periods of mining, folding, or gaming and my room doesn't get hot.

[emosun]

25 minutes ago, Xolin said:

Why do a lot of PC Cases have solid panels in front of the fans and only a small vent up the sides to intake air?

because consumers wants are stupid

That along with the need to use tempered glass....... as if in the event of a collision with another vehicle the case glass won't stab you or something..... consumers are just dumb

[VeganJoy]

2 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

Cause I sit in the mid to upper 40C with airflow cases, room gets a lot less hot as the heat soak is never reached on the heat sinks in the system.  Extended periods of mining, folding, or gaming and my room doesn't get hot.

temps will be lower but itll affect your room temps the same, the heat produced is the same its just not evacuated from the case effectively. for most people theres no real point in getting a nice airflow case, as super high tdp parts arent generally good for people on a budget. 3600s and 1060s/1660 supers wont be running hot even with like 1 fan in the case or something. the nzxt h510 is one of the best selling cases of the past decade, if not the most popular, period, and temps arent a problem for most people building in those despite the frankly atrocious airflow. it usually just doesnt matter.

 

airflow cases have been trending recently though, like the meshify c (damn you tofuharoto!) and the 500dx, because low temps are nice and high tdp parts like the 10600k-10900k and ampere cards are becoming a bit common, and budget cards like the rx580 or budget cpus running around in the secondhand market are generally hot and inefficient.

[Tristerin]

1 minute ago, VeganJoy said:

temps will be lower but itll affect your room temps the same, the heat produced is the same its just not evacuated from the case effectively.

I don't think you understand how this works.  Not here to argue but, just no.  

[VeganJoy]

3 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

I don't think you understand how this works.  Not here to argue but, just no.  

assuming the exact same components running at the exact same speed and wattage but in two different cases, one being high airflow and one being a glorified glass box with little airflow, room temperatures should equalize after some time to the same temperature. in fact, the epilepsy-inducing glass box, being less efficient at transferring heat from its components to the room, would heat up the room more slowly. unless something about the laws of thermodynamics changed recently

[Tristerin]

Just now, VeganJoy said:

assuming the exact same components running at the exact same speed and wattage but in two different cases, one being high airflow and one being a glorified glass box with little airflow, room temperatures should equalize after some time to the same temperature. in fact, the epilepsy-inducing glass box, being less efficient at transferring heat from its components to the room, would heat up the room more slowly. unless something about the laws of thermodynamics changed recently

Thermal equilibrium is the term you are looking for.  And in a non climate controlled box, you are correct.  But computers are, historically and logically, in climate controlled situations whether that is AC from a home, or ducted for servers.  And the output of less heat, absolutely impacts room temperatures (the ability for AC to keep temps low) short, and long term.  If something is "breathing" air at 70c, vs something "breathing" air at 48c you really think in a normal environment that temps overall don't matter for thermal reasons?

[Hairless Monkey Boy]

16 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

If something is "breathing" air at 70c, vs something "breathing" air at 48c you really think in a normal environment that temps overall don't matter for thermal reasons?

The temperatures don't matter. Only the total dissipated power matters.

 

Thought experiment:

 

A hot plate is in a small closed room. The hot plate is set to consume 1 kilowatt for 1 hour. Let's say the plate reaches a max temp of 100C, and the temperature of the room rises by 10C over the course of the hour.

 

Now you do the experiment again. But this time, you put a big hunk of metal on top of the hot plate. A heatsink. It runs 1 kilowatt for 1 hour like before. This time it reaches a max temp of 60C, because the heatsink allows for more efficient heat transfer into the air in the room. And like before, the temperature of the room rises by the same 10C, because we have added the same amount of energy to the room. The temperature of the hot plate does not matter.

 

Edit:

 

I'd also like to point out that in this thought experiment, the hot plate at 100C and the hot plate + heatsink at 60C are both transferring energy into the air at exactly the same rate. 1KW in fact. The heatsink merely allows that heat transfer rate to occur at a lower temperature.

[VeganJoy]

3 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

Thermal equilibrium is the term you are looking for.  And in a non climate controlled box, you are correct.  But computers are, historically and logically, in climate controlled situations whether that is AC from a home, or ducted for servers.  And the output of less heat, absolutely impacts room temperatures (the ability for AC to keep temps low) short, and long term.  If something is "breathing" air at 70c, vs something "breathing" air at 48c you really think in a normal environment that temps overall don't matter for thermal reasons?

once our arbitrary boxes are fully heat soaked they will release heat at the exact same rate it's being introduced, which is however much power is being drawn (minus efficiency and whatever). the flow rate through the high airflow box will be greater, so the exhaust will be cooler but carry the same amount of heat energy as the glass box emitting hotter air, but less of it. temperatures inside each case will be drastically different but they will emit heat at the same rates once becoming heat soaked. technically the box could have literally zero airflow and the same result would occur through thermal radiation. in this theoretical scenario the components would likely be completely cooked long before reaching thermal equilibrium and the heat radiating off of the box would be very hot, but it'd be radiating the same amount of heat as the other boxes to the room. there should be little difference between a computer and a space heater emitting the same wattage in heat.

[Tristerin]

8 minutes ago, HairlessMonkeyBoy said:

The temperatures don't matter. Only the total dissipated power matters.

 

Thought experiment:

 

A hot plate is in a small closed room. The hot plate is set to consume 1 kilowatt for 1 hour. Let's say the plate reaches a max temp of 100C, and the temperature of the room rises by 10C over the course of the hour.

 

Now you do the experiment again. But this time, you put a big hunk of metal on top of the hot plate. A heatsink. It runs 1 kilowatt for 1 hour like before. This time it reaches a max temp of 60C, because the heatsink allows for more efficient heat transfer into the air in the room. And like before, the temperature of the room rises by the same 10C, because we have added the same amount of energy to the room. The temperature of the hot plate does not matter.

 

6 minutes ago, VeganJoy said:

once our arbitrary boxes are fully heat soaked they will release heat at the exact same rate it's being introduced, which is however much power is being drawn (minus efficiency and whatever). the flow rate through the high airflow box will be greater, so the exhaust will be cooler but carry the same amount of heat energy as the glass box emitting hotter air, but less of it. temperatures inside each case will be drastically different but they will emit heat at the same rates once becoming heat soaked. technically the box could have literally zero airflow and the same result would occur through thermal radiation. in this theoretical scenario the components would likely be completely cooked long before reaching thermal equilibrium and the heat radiating off of the box would be very hot, but it'd be radiating the same amount of heat as the other boxes to the room. there should be little difference between a computer and a space heater emitting the same wattage in heat.

As I noted before, these theoretical situations, are assuming a closed box, which isn't how 99% of the computer world works.

Your situations both are with zero room airflow, or introducing cool air into that room.

 

48 minutes ago, Xolin said:

so what is the reason to buy a case with a front mesh panel?

The question, again was why to buy a PC case with a front mesh panel.  To keep components at a lower temp overall is my response.  

 

I can agree with #science, and appreciate your alls understanding of this, but on a hot summer day, there is a reason you want airflow while you game.  We can continue your theoreticals, and I will continue to agree that in situations, specifically controlled environments meant to show how thermal dynamics works - you are right.

 

But overall there is a reason for keeping PC components at a lower temp, and that's to keep the ambient temp as low as possible for as long as possible, for me, and that was my response to the original question.

 

45 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

Cause I sit in the mid to upper 40C with airflow cases, room gets a lot less hot as the heat soak is never reached on the heat sinks in the system.  Extended periods of mining, folding, or gaming and my room doesn't get hot.

 

 

[Hairless Monkey Boy]

@Tristerin

 

How about this:

 

Say its cold in your house/bedroom. Really cold. And for some reason you can't turn the heat on. The only thing you have to heat your room is your PC. So you turn it on and load up the GPU and CPU with F@H or something so you don't feel so bad for wasting the power. How do you set the fans to best heat the room?

[VeganJoy]

even with airflow into the room, assuming its the same for both rooms then the total heat removed from each room should be the same.

 

vaguely relevant ltt video: