Reno_eNVy

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I'm pretty positive there are some PC builders out there so I wanted to ask on here instead of signing up for a new forum I'll only use once.

My motherboard recently took a huge dump and so I bought a new motherboard, cpu, and memory. I also figured that I should start fresh with cooling and cleanliness (my old fans were disgusting and almost unable to be cleaned.)

I ordered six 80mm case fans as that is as much as my case will hold. There is also a seventh on the side panel but that one is relatively new.

Now I'm wondering: how many of those should I plug into the mobo (if any) or should I just run them all off the PSU and have them constantly on? There will be four intakes on the front and two exhausts on the back.

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david_42

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Seems a bit much to me. My case only has one fan and it rarely runs. The air flow from the power supply keeps it system cool most of the time. But, I don't have a major graphics card.

I doubt that your MB can handle six fans anyway. I'd start with two (in/out) on the MB and connect the additional fans to the power supply, if the temperatures get too high.

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Reno_eNVy

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Thanks for the reply!

Yeah, it's a pretty hefty system so I definitely need three fans at the very least. I was just wondering if anybody had experience with the best configuration to let your mobo control.

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Haputanlas

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I know that if you have that many spots for fans, you may want to check the manual for the case. Cases are designed for optimal airflow over the motherboard and if you only use 3 out of 6 fans, you might be altering the intended flow.

I had a heat issue in one of my machines a long time ago and though that opening the case was a good idea to cool things down. Needless to say it actually made things worse. That was over a decade ago, but still was a great lesson in reading the manual for your case.

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stevereigh

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Too much intake and not enough exhaust. From a Mechanical point of view you actually would want more exhaust than intake and for there to be some kind of hole to make up for that air.

When we design small electric closets we never put ANY air into the room, always exhausting, with minimal louver space on the door for the makeup air. If you make the amount of exhaust air larger than the amount of intake air it will pull air into the space anyways.

As for the electric side, I would personally plug it into the PSU, though you probably should make sure your PSU can handle the additional load.

stevereigh

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You brought up another good point I overlooked. The direction of flow of the air is important too. Just remember that air takes the path of least resistance and figure out which way your air will be flowing and make sure it would sufficiently cool the space...

Reno_eNVy

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PSU is 800W. It's fine

And as far as intake/exhaust balance, the side-case fan can be set to exhaust if I want. But the PCI covers on the back are long since gone so there's definitely somewhere for the air to go.

EDIT: Also, the exhaust fans are located right behind the CPU/heatsink... so pretty much the most optimal location.

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Primary: air and sadness
Kegged: Southeast Asian Wit
Bottled: Light American Lager (5/13/12), Sahti (from keg), English Barleywine (brewed 9/26/09 -- bottled 5/5/10)

LET'S GO LA!
LA CAMPIONE!
PLAY FOR GLORY, THE GLORY LA!

emdiar

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Yeah, just to reinforce what Haputanlas said, your priority should be airflow. If you put too many fans pulling air into the case without enough exhaust, you're creating static pressure instead which won't help you.

On a side note, on my last upgrade i got some super-quiet fans and I couldn;pt be happier! I also got a fanless video card. The case fans were Noctua brand. It really made a difference in my daily stress level.

udt89

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Didn't notice anyone say that make sure u put thermal paste on ur cpu. Big oversight in novice builders.

I didn't read every post but 800w and 8 fans seems overkill short of having multiple video cards.

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udt89

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Oh and if u buy a modular psu that allows you to pick and choose wires you use. it helps a ton with airflow. Allowing you to leave some out

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