If you have a Antec SLK3700AMB...

[Thawk]

...how do you have your cooling set up? There is one 120 mm fan in the rear for exhaust, do you install another in the front for intake? Short of cutting the case that is it, right? Also, what fans are you using? I want to keep this system as quiet as possible.

 

[idea]

2 Panaflo 1LA 120mm, front intake, rear exhaust. Dual fan PSU by Antec. Once I got the case I removed the stock grill. It's quiet and very enjoyable.

 

[Thawk]

What do you mean by 'removed the stock grill'? Did you do some cutting?

 

[Bad Dude]

I pretty sure he means the grill where the fans are to be mounted, there are holes there in the case. Cut the round shapes and put the wire grills instead.

 

[RalfHutter]

On my SLK3700 I'm running one 120mm L1A Panaflo at 5 volts on the back as an exhaust and one 92mm L1A at 5 volts on the front as an HDD cooler. The front fan does not lower my case temps at all, it just keeps my HDD cool.

I also recommend cutting out the fan grills, they are fairly restrictive and so they reduce airflow and increase turbulence noise.

 

[Bad Dude]

The problem is the grill is pretty tough metal to cut.

 

[carmat4]

I agree about cutting the stamped grill. I'm also planning to do this, very soon. The case comes with one 120mm fan in rear and room for another in front, but the air intake is very restricted by the stamped grill. I heard of major improvements in airflow after removing.

 

[RalfHutter]

Originally posted by: Bad_Dude
The problem is the grill is pretty tough metal to cut.

I cut the grill on mine with one of those $8 "nibblers" from CompUSA. It wasn't super easy to cut but it wasn't that big of a deal. It was the first "case-mod" I've ever done and it came out just peachy.

 

[joshg]

Note if you don't remove the grill and you want to install something like a 38mm thick 120mm fan, you will have to still do some modding.

The little plastic fan holders are only designed for 25mm thick 120mm fans. Also, the hole that holds the plastic fan holder to the case is not in the same spot as the hole for your fans. In fact there are two holes, the outer set being too far apart for your fan's screw holes, and the inner set being too close together. You have to drill a 3rd hole directly in the middle of the two sets of holes on both the front and the back of the case.

It's really not that hard to do. The metal is very sturdy, but any $20 drill should be able to do the job.

Also note if you install 38mm thick 120mm fan on the front of the case, the front hard drive rack will be a VERY tight fit. In fact, my HD cage is completely flush against the fan, and I had to use a lot of effort to get it back in. It does fit, but it's very tight!

 

[Thawk]

Blast! I just got two 38 mm fans in the mail (Panaflo L1As) that don't fit! I did not even think about the width, I thought that would be standard! Hmm, now what.

 

[RalfHutter]

Originally posted by: Thawk
Blast! I just got two 38 mm fans in the mail (Panaflo L1As) that don't fit! I did not even think about the width, I thought that would be standard! Hmm, now what.

Now you pull off those cheapass purple plastic holders, throw them as far as you can , drill yourself a new set of mounting holes and mount the fans to the case with bolts and washers and enjoy a much quieter setup then if you had used some other crappy 120 x 25mm fan in those cheesy plastic holders.

 

[SuperPickle]

Originally posted by: RalfHutter

Originally posted by: Thawk
Blast! I just got two 38 mm fans in the mail (Panaflo L1As) that don't fit! I did not even think about the width, I thought that would be standard! Hmm, now what.

Now you pull off those cheapass purple plastic holders, throw them as far as you can , drill yourself a new set of mounting holes and mount the fans to the case with bolts and washers and enjoy a much quieter setup then if you had used some other crappy 120 x 25mm fan in those cheesy plastic holders.

Nonsense. Ok, the stuff about washers is valid advise. However, if you don't want to go through the trouble, a 38mm fan will be held in place by the rear holder. It doesn't clip properly, but it will hold. Unfortunately, your out of luck for the intake as i don't believe a 38mm will fit although it may if you discard the plastic mount.

My current setup includes the stock fan in the front and a Panaflo M1A 38mm in the back, rheostat controlled.

 

[Thawk]

basalisk,
I tried to put the fan in the clip but it didn't seem like it would hold. Did you use any other means to secure the fan? I was picturing it working itself loose and dropping on my volcano.

 

[Bad Dude]

I use the delta 38mm thick and I used the plastic purple thing for mounting OK. I also use the fan controller of course. It should hold fine, unless it is broken.

 

[RalfHutter]

Why do it half-ass and try to kludge the 38mm thick fan to fit into a holder that it's not designed to fit into? Just scrap the holder and bolt the fan to the case. It's a much better solution and only requires a few minutes to drill four holes. If you don't want to use bolts you can screw it on with regular self-tapping fan screws.

 

[Thawk]

OK, I went Ralfhutter's route and did some case modding. I picked up screws and rubber washers, cut new holes for the fans and mounted them. Per an earlier suggestion I also cut out the stock grill. The mod did not take long and will pay off in the end. Thanks for all the help!

 

[RalfHutter]

Ya done good kid!

 

[Abhoth]

Yeah, running that case for the wife's machine... 2500+ Barton... Panaflo for the pushin' air out and a Thermaltake up front bringing air in. Both 25mm thick so no mods required there. Cooling well, but wanted it to settle in before I clipped the stock grills so I could tell if it really made a difference.

 

[h0mi]

I'm gonna heed people's advice ... i removed the plastic holder in the front and I'm going to drill 4 holes to hold in place a 120mm fan without that plastic thing, but I don't know what size drill bit to use. Any suggestions?

I'm also going to remove that front grill as well.

 

[Thawk]

h0mi,
Use the size drill bit that fits snuggly into the holes in the fan. The holes that I drilled went nicely inbetween each of the two existing holes so there were no measurements needed. Make sure to attend to all of the metal shards!

 

[RalfHutter]

Originally posted by: h0mi
I'm gonna heed people's advice ... i removed the plastic holder in the front and I'm going to drill 4 holes to hold in place a 120mm fan without that plastic thing, but I don't know what size drill bit to use. Any suggestions?

I'm also going to remove that front grill as well.

The size of the hole is not super-critical. As long as it's big enough for whatever size screw you're going to use, you're OK. If the hole size is a little too big it can actually make it easier to line things up if your holes aren't perfectly in position.

I used a 3/16" (.187") dill for mine.