What to do for cooling

[WhitetailAni]

I'm at a bit of dilemma:
I've decided to upgrade my cooling setup as my 10-year-old came-included-with-the-case Molex fans are dying.

I'm not sure what to do, though:

1. Get 1 120mm and 1 140mm fan to put on the back (exhaust) and top (not sure)

2. Get 3 120mm and put them in the back (exhaust), top (not sure), and bottom (intake)

Here is a diagram of my current setup (120mm front intake, 190mm side intake, 120mm exhaust)

Spoiler

And here is option #1 (120/140):

Spoiler

Here is option #2 (3x 120):

Spoiler

I'm not sure which way to orient the top fan - should it be intake or exhaust?
And which one is better - the 120/140 or the 3x 120?

[KangUsapEmenq]

Top fan should be an exhaust, as it would be a complete waste of airflow (the air would be just exhausted again by the another fan) if it's gonna be an intake.

 

Both options are viable and actually would be the same. 3x120 would be much easier to get to.

[WhitetailAni]

Just now, dhannemon13 said:

Top fan should be an exhaust, as it would be a complete waste of airflow (the air would be just exhausted again by the another fan) if it's gonna be an intake.

 

Both options are viable and actually would be the same. 3x120 would be much easier to get to.

The bottom 120mm would be almost completely choked (my case has no cable management and most of my cables are stored there, so if I did put one I'd probably stick a fan guard on it), but I could put it in the front.

Front fan is doing fine, though.

I think I'll do the 3x120 as it's $10 cheaper.

 

[KangUsapEmenq]

8 minutes ago, ragnarok0273 said:

The bottom 120mm would be almost completely choked (my case has no cable management and most of my cables are stored there, so if I did put one I'd probably stick a fan guard on it), but I could put it in the front.

Front fan is doing fine, though.

I think I'll do the 3x120 as it's $10 cheaper.

 

Rather to put it on the front instead of choking the airflow there....

[WhitetailAni]

1 minute ago, dhannemon13 said:

Rather to put it on the front instead of choking the airflow there....

I've already got a front fan that's going strong.

Just my rear fan is dying and it's responsible for dissipating my CPU heat - which is probably why I have 50-60C idle temps.

[KangUsapEmenq]

14 minutes ago, ragnarok0273 said:

I've already got a front fan that's going strong.

Just my rear fan is dying and it's responsible for dissipating my CPU heat - which is probably why I have 50-60C idle temps.

It's kind of bit too high, tbh. How about the CPU cooler? Thermal paste's good? No clogged airflow on the fins of the cooler?

[WhitetailAni]

5 minutes ago, dhannemon13 said:

It's kind of bit too high, tbh. How about the CPU cooler? Thermal paste's good? No clogged airflow on the fins of the cooler?

Arctic MX-4, applied in September 2020.

Fins are clear, fan is a bit dusty but spins freely (hard to clean as it's a SpinQ).