Case mods

[JesseKnows]

I am trying to get my new VP6 rig as high as possible (don't we all?). Dual PIII-700 cB0. With 1.75V it runs at 133 FSB -> 933 MHz. There are no high-heat boards (simple CL 5645 AGP video, sound, network, modem). Only one HD at this time, although I will add more 7200 RPM Maxtors.

At this time the mid-tower case has an 80mm intake fan in the front bottom, and I drilled through the plastic front to let air in. When the case is open, or without the plastic on the front, under load I get to 37 C. With the case closed and the plastic on I get to 43 C. I know I need to improve the hole in the front plastic. I am not interested in drilling the side metal panels for more fans, although I could do it for going over a GHz

My question: What should I do in the back of the case? There is a vertical strip of holes running next to the PCI-card bracket screw ledge. I can close these holes completely with tape, I can add a small fan over some of the holes exhausting air, or I can turn the fan around and input air.

Any opinions?

JesseKnows

 

[mechBgon]

I have a dual-Celeron system set up like that, in a mid-tower case, so I know that situation. You could really use a case with at least a high-output 80mm exhaust fan on the rear in addition to the power supply fan. Better yet would be something with two auxiliary 80mm rear fans such as the Antec 830SX and 1030SX, or else a blowhole on the side to pump in cold air directly to the CPUs. I have a blowhole on my system, and it works well.

Another idea is to add a slot fan in the top PCI slot to exhaust some of the heat coming from the CPUs, but that is not going to work as well.

Why do you have such a powerful system and only a CL video card... is it a server? That is my guess, since you are planning to add more hard drives to it. If it's a server, then I question the wisdom of overclocking it, and I also think you should splurge and get a case with better ventilation, considering how much you've spent already on the rest of the hardware. $45 shipped for an Enlight 7237 with a Sunon case fan and no power supply, or get the Antec SX1030, which comes with two 80mm case fans and can accept two more, including one right in the hard-drive bay to keep your drives cool. Or if you are in the mood for something huge, there is the infamous Addtronics 789x series.

 

[JesseKnows]

Thank you for your reply.

I was just pointing out that the temperatures were measured with the CL video (would replace that with an ATI expert@work when done). I am not a gamer, and would use the computing power for calculations (some people actualy _compute_ with computers). Not any server in the popular sense.

I invested ~$500 in the MoBo and CPUs, and already have the case. I neglected to specify that the one fan on the bottom front is intake, I will modify the post.

There is no room for exhaust in the upper back (other than the power supply), and I usually put my feet on the case top and prefer not to have the top open for a fan. That's why I asked about the holes in the back.

Would adding an intake on the side blowing at the CPUs be advised, or some ducting arrangement? I wonder about the effect of turbulence.

JesseKnows

 

[mechBgon]

An intake blowhole on the side panel would be ideal, since it will feed room-temperature air directly to whatever you aim it at, making it as if your case were open. It is also worth saying this: blowholes let noise out. Even if you choose quiet fans for the blowhole you will probably hear a lot more internal noise, such as the hard drives and CPU fans. But it works great! And turbulence is your friend when it comes to heat transfer. For a reasonably-quiet fan I like the 120mm Panaflo L1A, which moves about 70cfm unrestricted, or you could add a pair of the 80mm L1A's, which are quieter yet.

If you're not into cutting holes in your case, I don't blame you. Still, having a case fan on the rear panel is pretty much the norm these days. AMD considers it "essential" for an Athlon-based system, for instance. One of those Antec cases with four 80mm Panaflo L1A fans would be a nice, relatively-quiet setup with a lot of airflow.

If you really want to stick with your existing case then about the best solution I can think of is to add a slot fan under the video card and replace the fan in your power supply with the most powerful one you can find, to increase the exhaust flow. Panaflo high-output 80mm fan at Millisec. Also cut the grillework away where the power supply fan is, or remove the grille if it's the removable type, to increase the airflow.

If you like actually using all that computer power, join the AnandTech distributed-computing team too. Have a look at the "Team AnandTech" link in my sig if you have room in your System Tray for another icon, get those idle CPU cycles working for AnandTech!

 

[JesseKnows]

Thanks!

I will look at the PS fan/grill and see whether that can be improved. Also, the PS draws air from the case through a set of slits in the PS box, which can be enlarged. However, when the case is open and therefore there is no restriction from the intake, the PS fan throws out quite a bit of air already.

As far as the back goes, and if I fit a fan into the rows of holes, should that be intake or outtake?

I am already on SETI. Will anyone benefit if I join TeamAnandtech in this context?

JesseKnows

 

[mechBgon]

Thinking about the fans in the rear, you might have to try both directions and see what works best. If they blow cool air right to the CPU fans, then intake might be best, but some people would worry that there would be a "short circuit" of airflow directly from them to the power supply, leaving less ventilation for the rest of the case.

With SETI@home, your work units go with you wherever you go. If you join Team AnandTech, all your work units count toward Team AnandTech's total too. If you join, be sure to pop into the Distributed Computing area here and say hello, everyone likes to greet new members. We are moving up the ranks very nicely and are now setting up a statistics arrangement so that people can download their work units from a central proxy and get statistics on their production, and the production of the rest of the Team. Some of the SETI guys and gals are focused on the stats and making Team AnandTech one of the top ten teams (we're getting there). Some are focused on the science. Overall they're a pretty nice bunch of people.