Airflow setup for Define R5 case ?

[jc.sn]

Hey guys,

 

In terms of static pressure fans, do 120mm or 140mm ones do a better job ? airflow/cfm/noise level comparison ??

specs:

fractal design define r5 case
gtx 970 g1 gaming
intel i5 4690k
coolermaster v650 80+ gold

would the radiator with 2 x 140mm fans at the top be enough for exhaust ? I am planning to use more intake than exhaust or keep them even.

 

 

So if I change the rear fan to intake, I will have:


radiator at the top 2x140mm (exhaust)



rear 1x 120mm (intake) AND BUY A 120MM DUST FILTER



bottom 1x140mm (intake)


front would be SP or AF preferably ?? and 2x120mm or 2x140mm please ??




OR the other alternative would be :

 

radiator at the top 2x140mm (exhaust)



rear 140mm (exhaust)



bottom 140mm (intake)



front 2x120mm VS. 2x140mm ?? AF vs SP ?? (intake)




4 INTAKE AND 2 EXHAUST OR 3 INTAKE AND 3 EXHAUST ??



CASE SPECS :


Cooling system

•Front: 2 – 120/140 mm fans (included is 1 Fractal Design Dynamic GP14 fan, 1000 RPM speed)
•Rear: 1 – 120/140 mm fan (included is 1 Fractal Design Dynamic GP14 fan, 1000 RPM speed)
•Top: 3 - 120/140 mm fan (not included)
•Bottom: 2 – 120/140 mm fan (not included)
•Side: 1 – 120/140 mm fan (not included)
•Fan controller: 3 step fan controller for up to 3 fans
•Dust filters: Bottom and front intakes

Water cooling compatibility

•Front – 360, 280, 240, 140 and 120 mm radiators of all thicknesses (requires removal of drive bays)
•Top – 420, 360, 280, 240, 140 and 120 mm radiators. (A thickness limitation of 55mm for both radiator + fan applies on 420, 280 and 140 mm radiators) (420 and 360 mm radiators require removal of the ODD bay)
•Bottom – 120 or 240 mm radiator (Use of radiators in the bottom position limits the PSU length to 165 mm)
•Rear – 120 or 140 mm radiator

[Ace Lean]

IMO you only need a couple exhaust... You could have intake from rear and bottom and exhaust out the top

[IP man]

do like me, 2 140mm in front and 1 in the back, no big deal. simple and effective if you put too many fans inside and remove the foam then whats the point imo

[WereCat]

I have Define R4. I use 2x 140 mm intakes front and 1 exhaust 140 mm rear ... I use 3 Fractal R2 fans. Those that were included with case. I run them at 7V. Works great for me.

[squid4fl]

I'm getting the R5 tomorrow (changing from the 350D for lower noise) and I plan on having 2 140s in the front (NF-A14) and the stock ones in the bottom and back (back as exhaust). I'll leave the top covers closed for maximum silence but in your case with the radiator you could try to mount it in the front. When mounting the rad in the top I would just try to use the rear fan as an intake (filtered) and check the temperatures. If things are getting to hot maybe turn it around again and see if something changes.

[vembutech]

Good idea squid . Go ahead.

[jc.sn]

do like me, 2 140mm in front and 1 in the back, no big deal. simple and effective if you put too many fans inside and remove the foam then whats the point imo

yeah I was thinking of doing that. im willing to give up some noise for performance so the radiator at the top would definitely be more effective than at the front. if I go with this setup, im going to be restricted to using a 120mm at the back (intake) and use a dust filter.

 

IMO you only need a couple exhaust... You could have intake from rear and bottom and exhaust out the top

that's exactly what I was thinking, to have more intake fans than exhaust fans or even them out. rear and bottom are already considered, but are you saying that taking out the 2 intake fans at the front are going to do more harm than good (is too much intake a problem ? I'm not really aware of it being a problem but correct me if I'm wrong ! )

 

I'm getting the R5 tomorrow (changing from the 350D for lower noise) and I plan on having 2 140s in the front (NF-A14) and the stock ones in the bottom and back (back as exhaust). I'll leave the top covers closed for maximum silence but in your case with the radiator you could try to mount it in the front. When mounting the rad in the top I would just try to use the rear fan as an intake (filtered) and check the temperatures. If things are getting to hot maybe turn it around again and see if something changes.

I've already asked people about having the radiator at the front VS having it at the top and they suggested that my best bet for performance > noise level is to use the rad as exhaust (top) rather than intake (front) because if performance is more of an issue to me than noise levels, the heat from the rad (from mounting it at the front) would affect my GPU etc.

So maybe I will go with the latter of what you said, which is use the rear as intake (switch the 140mm stock fan for 120mm and use a dust filter), top as exhaust, bottom as intake and front as intake too - this is with the rad at top (exhaust) as opposed to at front (intake)

 

Im definitely going to use SP 140mm at the bottom (opposite the rad up top), but can someone help me out on the front (2x140mm) and rear (1x120mm) whether I should go SP or AF (the front has a dust filter and 1 very thin perpendicular air vent - left and right ??)

mind you, the radiator has 2x140mm fans and this will be used as exhaust at the top !!

[squid4fl]

yeah I was thinking of doing that. im willing to give up some noise for performance so the radiator at the top would definitely be more effective than at the front. if I go with this setup, im going to be restricted to using a 120mm at the back (intake) and use a dust filter.

 

that's exactly what I was thinking, to have more intake fans than exhaust fans or even them out. rear and bottom are already considered, but are you saying that taking out the 2 intake fans at the front are going to do more harm than good (is too much intake a problem ? I'm not really aware of it being a problem but correct me if I'm wrong ! )

 

I've already asked people about having the radiator at the front VS having it at the top and they suggested that my best bet for performance > noise level is to use the rad as exhaust (top) rather than intake (front) because if performance is more of an issue to me than noise levels, the heat from the rad (from mounting it at the front) would affect my GPU etc.

So maybe I will go with the latter of what you said, which is use the rear as intake (switch the 140mm stock fan for 120mm and use a dust filter), top as exhaust, bottom as intake and front as intake too - this is with the rad at top (exhaust) as opposed to at front (intake)

 

Im definitely going to use SP 140mm at the bottom (opposite the rad up top), but can someone help me out on the front (2x140mm) and rear (1x120mm) whether I should go SP or AF (the front has a dust filter and 1 very thin perpendicular air vent - left and right ??)

mind you, the radiator has 2x140mm fans and this will be used as exhaust at the top !!

 

Personally I would always go for the bigger fan possible just because they move more air with less noise. Maybe you are more effective with one high rpm 120mm if you really need high pressure on one spot but for the (quite well) ventilated front of the R5 two 140s seem to be better in my opinion. 

But in the end.. it wont make a big difference. I'd go for whats quiter.

In my current setup: Corsair 350D, 2x NF-A14s in the front. Under load my gtx 970 temps drop just by 1-2 degrees when turning the front fans from low to full speed but it gets quite loud. So it actually doesn't make that much of a difference.

[jc.sn]

Personally I would always go for the bigger fan possible just because they move more air with less noise. Maybe you are more effective with one high rpm 120mm if you really need high pressure on one spot but for the (quite well) ventilated front of the R5 two 140s seem to be better in my opinion. 

But in the end.. it wont make a big difference. I'd go for whats quiter.

In my current setup: Corsair 350D, 2x NF-A14s in the front. Under load my gtx 970 temps drop just by 1-2 degrees when turning the front fans from low to full speed but it gets quite loud. So it actually doesn't make that much of a difference.

well I have to get a dust filter at the back if I use that for intake rather than exhaust, and they only sell 120mm fan filters here. So that one is definitely going to be 120mm and the rest 140mm. But I have a question, AF or SP for the bottom 140mm and the 2x140mm at the front ?

 

intake ratio is going to be 4:2.

[squid4fl]

well I have to get a dust filter at the back if I use that for intake rather than exhaust, and they only sell 120mm fan filters here. So that one is definitely going to be 120mm and the rest 140mm. But I have a question, AF or SP for the bottom 140mm and the 2x140mm at the front ?

 

intake ratio is going to be 4:2.

Allright

I'd go for pressure then. They should deliver better performance where airflow is restricted.

[RazrLeaf]

@jc.sn

1. You could get away with 3 intakes and 3 exhausts if you set up your fan curves right, but it's easier to create a positive pressure environment with 4 intakes and 2 exhausts.
2. Get 140mm fans for the front. And get ones that can deliver air with more pressure. Anytime you have a filter, you're going to want fans with pressure.
3. If you're willing to give up noise for performance, I would suggest you buy the Phanteks Enthoo Pro (if you haven't bought the R5 already).
4. You're running a 970 with a massive cooler on it. It's not going to care if the insides of the case are being warmed by a front 240 radiator. You'll probably be perfectly ok with your radiator in the front, and a bottom intake paired with a rear exhaust. Test it out, and if you don't like it, test it as the top exhaust with just a bottom and upper front intake, and see what kind of improvement you get. If it sends you in a direction you prefer, that's when you should get the 120mm fan with filter for the rear and the extra 140mm fan.

[xeromynd]

I went balls-to-the-wall and have 3x 140mm intakes (front + bottom), 1x 140mm exhaust (back), and push/pull exhaust (top). 

Run them all at like 800RPM, lots'o air and it's not terribly loud. (Total silence isn't all that important to me)