Anybody have some tips on cooling the Inwin Q500 case???

[The Wildcard]

Hello, I was just wondering if anybody have some cooling tips for this specific case, the Inwin Q500.

I was also wondering if anybody knew how I could attach a second small case fan, possible 60 mm X 60mm near the parallel port/serial connector to suck out additional air behind my slot 1 form cpu.

 

[The Wildcard]

BTW, strangely, my Q500 doesn't have a second fan mount near the parallel port connector but I have seen other Q500's with them. I do have a fan mount near the top rack but that's it for the back of my case.

 

[da loser]

that one with fan output is the q500n. I just cut out that middle section between the 2 ports and taped a 80mm fan. Might want to use some ducting for better airflow.

 

[The Wildcard]

Yeah i just found that out by reading another online article, okay i'll try the tape.

 

[zuffy]

I put 2 80mm Silencer fans above the PS and 1 80mm Silencer in the front... works fine for me.

 

[Diceman]

Dicemans Q600N mods site

This my friend .....you've gotta see!.....the Q600n is the same as the Q500N

 

[Cybordolphin]

You could try a "blowhole".

 

[Brig]

Diceman-
Nice job on the case. Question, if you don't mind.
Which bit exactly (part#) did you find to be best for cutting ? I couldn't quite make out from your pics which one you were using.
This'll take you to Dremel's bits, with part numbers.

Dremel Bits

I'm getting ready to cut some fans into a Q500. Figured I'd tap some experience to get the bits right the first time, rather than trial and error.

Thanks.

 

[Zipperhead]

Text

 

[Brig]

Holy smoke, Zipperhead. You don't mess around, do you ?
I think that's the same rig they use on the Cooling Towers at TMI to keep the core from melt-down.

If you used a Dremel type tool, which bit did you use ?

 

[thermite88]

I found that the best cooling enhancement for the Q500 is to replace the power supply with an Enermax 350W. The PS has a 92 mm fan positioned directly above the CPU sucking out air.

You can get the PS from Russ:

CompuCheap

 

[Zipperhead]

to cut holes for fans i used "holesaw".get it at home depot.i put up a
couple more pics for ya.take a look at hole 1,2,3.



Text

 

[ginfest]

I'll second Thermite, I have the Enermax in my InWin, also cut out the front grill for a Panaflo 120mm, and put 2-80mm in the upper rear. The whole set-up keeps the case temp at 25C with 20C ambient air coming in, my P3-650 runs at 936/1.75 vcore, 28C at Idle, 45 C max under heavy 3D for hours.

 

[Brig]

Hmmm.....even quicker and cleaner than a freehand cut, with less chance of a slip-up. Easier is good. I'll check it out.
Thanks

 

[The Wildcard]

Wow thanks for all the tips guys. WEll that Enermax power supply looks really kick ass so i might buy it. If i do not buy it, i think i'll just tape or squeeze or drill in a small 60 mm fan in the back of my computer near the the parallel ports and also drill vent holes in the front grill for more air.

Hahah and as for the HOLE SAW...jesus christ...mommieeeeee....lol.

 

[Diceman]

Well you can buy it from many manufacturers, I use the fiberglass reinforced cutting wheel discs.

black and decker, craftman, and a few others all make essentially the same wheels........they last much longer when cutting cases versus the cheap discs! you can buy them at walmart, home depot......
# 426 is the fiberglass reinforced cutting wheel. thats what i use........cuz i cant buy the diamond wheels around here........i bet there even better ( and more money)

 

[The Wildcard]

Hmm how much does it cost and how hard is it to drill through the front grill?

 

[downhiller80]

92mm blowhole in the front panel, in line with hard disks.

120mm in side panel, in line with AGP/CPU

120mm in other side panel, above powersupply, near to the CD-drives.

Tidy those cables!

Seb

 

[Cybordolphin]

I actually used snips on the front of one of these to remove the existing grillwork, and added a 120 fan up front. It went easy.... just try to get all those sharp pieces snipped off.
I connected the holes (kind of like connecting the "dots&quot, with the snips.

Then I drilled several holes in the front plastic. I used two different sized drill bits to try and keep it looking "stock". This allowed better airflow to the big 120 fan up front.

 

[Jubjub]

One of my gripes about the Q500 - and many other cases, for that matter - is that the plastic front bezel really prevents the front bottom fan from drawing in outside air, for two reasons.

First, there is very poor venting in that faceplate. Less obviously, there is a gap of about 1.25 inches between the plastic faceplate and the steel front of the case itself. That means that the intake fan (moutned inside the steel front) is pulling air out of that space, not directly from outside. Meanwhile, that space is filling up with hot air that comes from the many spaces in the steel case front up by the drive bays. You wind up recycling warm case air more than actually drawing in cool outside air.

I've used a two-fold fix. First, I drilled a 6" grid of roughly 1/4" holes (about 1/2" apart) into the lower front of the plastic bezel. Next, I cut a piece of foam-core board to go between the plastic bezel and the steel case front just above the fan grill. This separator (duct taped in place) prevents air from up by the drive bays from recycling down through the dead space to the intake fan. Essentially, it creates a (very short) duct from the fan to the outside air source.

It was a cheap fix, and my airflow (and temps) have improved quite a bit. Taping up the vent holes in the side panel also helps airstream integrity through the case.

This droning essay brought to you by JubJub...

 

[Zipperhead]

here is a pic of what he is talking about and how i fixed it.i used a tupperware bowl,fit perfect-was the exact same size as the hole.



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[Brig]

Diceman

Got it. Thanks

 

[Jubjub]

Zipper, great solution. Much less cheesy than foam core and duct tape. Thanks for posting the pic -- my wife is losing a piece of Tupperware tonight...

 

[Diceman]

NP Brigs..........glad to help

 

[The Wildcard]

Hey Zipper, can you post that pic again?