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Last year I purchased an Asus M32AD pre-built system, and so far it has done exceptionally well. Over the summer I added a pair of extra HDDs for expanded storage and upped the RAM from 1x8 to 2x8, as well as plopped in a GTX960. However, since these upgrades have been completed, temps in the system have increased. The HDDs run around 100 - 110 degrees F, whereas before the drive upgrade the singular drive ran at 90 degrees. The CPU runs about 5 degrees warmer at idle and 20 degrees warmer under load. The GPU seems to run at expected temps of around 66 degrees C (at least that was what people were saying in the reviews). The system performs very well, but the extra heat is not only bad for the components, but uncomfortable in my room. I have two different options as far as upgrading the cooling system: upgrade the air cooling with a new air cooler and a pair of new fans (one to replace the original and one to add in the second fan slot); or swap the current air cooler for a single fan water cooler and use the current case fan in the second fan slot. I've looked at prices and that shouldn't be too much of an issue, however, my main concern is the power usage. I have a 350W PSU installed right now, which powers my system perfectly fine. I have looked at various PSU calculators in order to see what would be the best option as I would not like to upgrade my PSU at this moment (as I have future plans regarding a new PC and a rebuild of this system). Some calculators have said that I'd be ok with a couple more fans or a water cooler, and others have said I would need to ditch my DVDRW drive in order to have a water cooler. I have no idea which option I should take, and no nothing about water cooling so I would like some advice.

 

My system:

Intel Core i3-4170 @ 3.7GHz

Nvidia GTX 960 4GB 

1 3.5inch SATA III HDD

2 2.5inch SATA II HDDs

2 8GB DDR3 RAM

1 DVDRW drive

1 USB 2.0 external HDD

1 120mm chassis fan

 

As for audio I occasionally use some stereo headphones and often use a microphone. I also have a 7.1 surround setup, but all speakers are powered by their own DC inputs.

Keep in mind that I do not want to upgrade my PSU for this upgrade when making suggestions, thanks.

Primary PC: - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/8G3tXv (Windows 10 Home)

HTPC: - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/KdBb4n (Windows 10 Home)
Server: Dell Precision T7500 - Dual Xeon X5660's, 44GB ECC DDR3, Dell Nvidia GTX 645 (Windows Server 2019 Standard)      

*SLI Rig* - i7-920, MSI-X58 Platinum SLI, 12GB DDR3, Dual EVGA GTX 260 Core 216 in SLI - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GHw6vW (Windows 7 Pro)

HP DC7900 - Core 2 Duo E8400, 4GB DDR2, Nvidia GeForce 8600 GT (Windows Vista)

Compaq Presario 5000 - Pentium 4 1.7Ghz, 1.7GB SDR, PowerColor Radeon 9600 Pro (Windows XP x86 Pro)
Compaq Presario 8772 - Pentium MMX 200Mhz, 48MB PC66, 6GB Quantum HDD, "8GB" HP SATA SSD adapted to IDE (Windows 98 SE)

Asus M32AD - Intel i3-4170, 8GB DDR3, 250GB Seagate 2.5" HDD (converting to SSD soon), EVGA GeForce GTS 250, OEM 350W PSU (Windows 10 Core)

*Haswell Tower* https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3vw6vW (Windows 10 Home)

*ITX Box* - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/r36s6R (Windows 10 Education)

Dell Dimension XPS B800 - Pentium 3 800Mhz, RDRAM

In progress projects:

*Skylake Tower* - Pentium G4400, Asus H110

*Trash Can* - AMD A4-6300

*GPU Test Bench*

*Pfsense router* - Pentium G3220, Asrock H97m Pro A4, 4GB DDR3

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I would buy some new fans. I'd buy a high flow exhaust and intake and just run it like that until you buy a new one. No need to spend over $100 on water cooling for a system you're going to upgrade anyway. 

Intel i7 6700k|Asus Maximus VIII Hero|Asus Strix 1080|Gskill DDR4 3200|950 Pro M.2|Corsair RM750|Corsair OBSIDIAN 500D|Corsair K65\G65|SteelSeries Arctis 5|Asus PB277Q|PG279Q

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Just now, Vigilante505 said:

I would buy some new fans. I'd buy a high flow exhaust and intake and just run it like that until you buy a new one. No need to spend over $100 on water cooling for a system you're going to upgrade anyway. 

When I looked at prices, single fan water coolers were only around $60, which is no issue. As for the upgrades, the components in this system I was planning on transplanting in another case and building a more powerful PC in this case, but this upgrade won't occur for a year or two.

Primary PC: - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/8G3tXv (Windows 10 Home)

HTPC: - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/KdBb4n (Windows 10 Home)
Server: Dell Precision T7500 - Dual Xeon X5660's, 44GB ECC DDR3, Dell Nvidia GTX 645 (Windows Server 2019 Standard)      

*SLI Rig* - i7-920, MSI-X58 Platinum SLI, 12GB DDR3, Dual EVGA GTX 260 Core 216 in SLI - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GHw6vW (Windows 7 Pro)

HP DC7900 - Core 2 Duo E8400, 4GB DDR2, Nvidia GeForce 8600 GT (Windows Vista)

Compaq Presario 5000 - Pentium 4 1.7Ghz, 1.7GB SDR, PowerColor Radeon 9600 Pro (Windows XP x86 Pro)
Compaq Presario 8772 - Pentium MMX 200Mhz, 48MB PC66, 6GB Quantum HDD, "8GB" HP SATA SSD adapted to IDE (Windows 98 SE)

Asus M32AD - Intel i3-4170, 8GB DDR3, 250GB Seagate 2.5" HDD (converting to SSD soon), EVGA GeForce GTS 250, OEM 350W PSU (Windows 10 Core)

*Haswell Tower* https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3vw6vW (Windows 10 Home)

*ITX Box* - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/r36s6R (Windows 10 Education)

Dell Dimension XPS B800 - Pentium 3 800Mhz, RDRAM

In progress projects:

*Skylake Tower* - Pentium G4400, Asus H110

*Trash Can* - AMD A4-6300

*GPU Test Bench*

*Pfsense router* - Pentium G3220, Asrock H97m Pro A4, 4GB DDR3

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18 minutes ago, Eastman51 said:

When I looked at prices, single fan water coolers were only around $60, which is no issue. As for the upgrades, the components in this system I was planning on transplanting in another case and building a more powerful PC in this case, but this upgrade won't occur for a year or two.

Just get a few fans that will help with bringing in fresh air and removing the hot air :D (sounds like an airflow issue by the way)

Looking at my signature are we now? Well too bad there's nothing here...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What? As I said, there seriously is nothing here :) 

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58 minutes ago, Mr.Meerkat said:

Just get a few fans that will help with bringing in fresh air and removing the hot air :D (sounds like an airflow issue by the way)

ok, thanks

Primary PC: - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/8G3tXv (Windows 10 Home)

HTPC: - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/KdBb4n (Windows 10 Home)
Server: Dell Precision T7500 - Dual Xeon X5660's, 44GB ECC DDR3, Dell Nvidia GTX 645 (Windows Server 2019 Standard)      

*SLI Rig* - i7-920, MSI-X58 Platinum SLI, 12GB DDR3, Dual EVGA GTX 260 Core 216 in SLI - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GHw6vW (Windows 7 Pro)

HP DC7900 - Core 2 Duo E8400, 4GB DDR2, Nvidia GeForce 8600 GT (Windows Vista)

Compaq Presario 5000 - Pentium 4 1.7Ghz, 1.7GB SDR, PowerColor Radeon 9600 Pro (Windows XP x86 Pro)
Compaq Presario 8772 - Pentium MMX 200Mhz, 48MB PC66, 6GB Quantum HDD, "8GB" HP SATA SSD adapted to IDE (Windows 98 SE)

Asus M32AD - Intel i3-4170, 8GB DDR3, 250GB Seagate 2.5" HDD (converting to SSD soon), EVGA GeForce GTS 250, OEM 350W PSU (Windows 10 Core)

*Haswell Tower* https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3vw6vW (Windows 10 Home)

*ITX Box* - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/r36s6R (Windows 10 Education)

Dell Dimension XPS B800 - Pentium 3 800Mhz, RDRAM

In progress projects:

*Skylake Tower* - Pentium G4400, Asus H110

*Trash Can* - AMD A4-6300

*GPU Test Bench*

*Pfsense router* - Pentium G3220, Asrock H97m Pro A4, 4GB DDR3

Link to comment
https://linustechtips.com/topic/664079-upgrading-cooling-system/#findComment-8578988
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