H100i GTX in Define R5

[Anbu]

I'm buying a new build for my skylake pc and i'm getting H100i GTX as well as Fractal Design Define R5 case.

Anyone here has experience whats the best place to put the cooling? top? front?

[Tedster]

I'm buying a new build for my skylake pc and i'm getting H100i GTX as well as Fractal Design Define R5 case.

Anyone here has experience whats the best place to put the cooling? top? front?

I don't have any experience with this but I'd put it at the front if I didn't want to open the top moduvents and didn't mind moving the drive cages, and otherwise the top because it's generally easier but won't look quite as good.

[BigDay]

i would put the cooling unit at the top of the case. i have the define r4 and the top would be ideal IMO

[Curufinwe_wins]

I have a x61 in that exact case (the r5 and s are exactly the same outside of o/hdd rails). It really only makes sense to put it in the top two rearmost slots (this makes by far the most sense from an airflow perspective).

 

I will warn you though it isn't possible to do pull (or for that matter push/pull) on the r5 in the top back two slots because 280 aio rads (outside the h240-x) are a little bit lengthened by the reservoir which causes them to hit the io panel of your mobo if you put them in pull. 

 

Push is still doable though, but I did have to mod my closest fan (cut off a bit of the rubber corner) because my mobo has an insanely large i/o shield that caused the rad to be harder to place (this wouldn't have been an issue with literally any other motherboard out there)

 

Putting the 280 in the front eliminates any possibility of using the r5 for its only benefits over the s, and to be honest its never a good idea to intake with rad anyways, so unless you want poor airflow it doesn't make sense to place there.

[SonoDanshi]

I will warn you though it isn't possible to do pull (or for that matter push/pull) on the r5 in the top back two slots because 280 aio rads (outside the h240-x) are a little bit lengthened by the reservoir which causes them to hit the io panel of your mobo if you put them in pull. 

I have pull in my R5 with a crossflow rad (so not an AIO) but it did involve me introducing a hacksaw to my rear IO frame. Very frustrating that they couldn't relocate the mounting holes 2-3mm closer to the front of the case.

[Curufinwe_wins]

I have pull in my R5 with a crossflow rad (so not an AIO) but it did involve me introducing a hacksaw to my rear IO frame. Very frustrating that they couldn't relocate the mounting holes 2-3mm closer to the front of the case.

Yep, and aio rads are a little bit longer. It's a tiny little difference that would have solved the issue completely. (or moved the rad mounting slots about 5 cm farther away from the mobo.)

 

Still awesome case, I love it but that's a small yet annoying complaint.